San Antonio's Fiesta Spirit Welcomes Sailors During Navy Week

By Chief Mass Communication Specialist L.A. Shively, Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs

SAN ANTONIO (NNS) -- San Antonio Navy Week officially kicked off with the commander Naval Medicine Center (NMC), Portsmouth Va., speaking before the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce Military Affairs Committee April 14.

Rear Adm. William R. Kiser commander NMC will be the inaugural commanding officer for the new Medical Education Training Campus (METC) at Ft. Sam Houston which will combine medical training for the Navy, Army and Air Force.

METC is the largest consolidation of service training in Department of Defense history and will be the world's principal military medical education and training institution.

Though traditionally an Army and Air Force town and often referred to as Military City USA; Navy presence in San Antonio is growing rapidly as a result of the 2005 Base Realignment Act (BRAC).

Kiser's presentation to the Military Affairs Committee described METC and the benefits of a joint training center.

According to Kiser, under BRAC standardized training for medical enlisted specialties will enhance tri-service interoperability and joint deployment opportunities, while cutting redundant curricula, streamlining system capacity and reducing infrastructure.

"In the coming months, San Antonio will see a huge influx of Sailors moving here with the establishment of METC, the joint Medical Education Training Campus," said Kiser.

"Navy Weeks are a great opportunity for us to travel to non-fleet concentrated areas and tell our Navy story to people who don't traditionally hear it," said Kiser. "The San Antonio Navy Week is a wonderful way for us to get in front of their [METC] arrival and explain to the people who live here who we are and what we do.

The San Antonio Navy Week began April 14 and runs through April 25 during which Sailors will be celebrating Fiesta at the Riverwalk, visiting sick children and swapping sea stories with veterans.

The U.S. Naval Academy band Electric Brigade will visit Ft. Sam Houston during the Army's Fiesta celebration. Sailors from USS San Antonio (LPD 17) are speaking to youth and Navy flag officers are visiting area universities and businesses to communicate support and engender a sense of partnership with the BRAC endeavor.

Sailors will be on board for the Navy Day at the Alamo, the Battle of Flowers and Texas Cavaliers River Parades.

Students at area high schools will get a chance to experience the flight simulator and have fun in the Navy Suburban, an SUV loaded with Navy interactive video games.