USS Jason Dunham Celebrates 365 Days DUI-Free

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class William Jamieson, USS Jason Dunham Public Affairs

USS JASON DUNHAM, At sea (NNS) -- Guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) celebrated a milestone by reaching 365 DUI-free days while on its maiden deployment, Aug. 6.

According to Command Master Chief Raymond Chamberlain, a robust command culture of responsibility and the personal pride of the crew were the main contributing factors to the ship's DUI-free year.

"This achievement is a great example of Sailors looking out for Sailors," said Chamberlain. "This crew takes the reputation of their ship personally and it shows when you can reach this type of milestone. The word proud doesn't come close to expressing what I feel for every last one of them."

In order to help foster a command climate of responsibility, Jason Dunham employs the Arrive Alive program, which provides Jason Dunham Sailors with a number that can be called to provide the Sailor with a safe ride home.

Senior Chief Electrician's Mate Michael Jordan, command Drug and Alcohol Programs Advisor (DAPA), said he and Chief (select) Gas Turbine System Technician (Mechanical) Dwayne Williams, assistant DAPA, focus on the Arrive Alive program and the leadership of Jason Dunham Sailors resulted in command primed for success.

"Chief (select) Williams and I looked back at situations where Sailors had gotten DUIs and we realized the reason they didn't use the Arrive Alive program and ended up with a DUI in almost every case because they were afraid of reprisals," said Jordan. "So the command as a whole refocused their efforts towards educating our Sailors about the Arrive Alive program and reinforced the message that they weren't going to get in trouble by using te [program] and it really made a difference."

Because of their success, Jason Dunham Sailors strove even harder to maintain their claim to be DUI free.

 "I had Sailors coming up to me and telling me how many days it had been since the last DUI," said Jordan. "They really took ownership of their reputation, and they have a lot to be proud of."

To celebrate the ship's DUI-free year, the ship's supply department provided a cake and a special meal of steak and crab legs.

Culinary Specialist 3rd Class Jobdavid Santiago said the galley Sailors were proud to be able to honor the crew's achievement.

"This meal is for everyone because everyone had a part in making sure we stayed DUI free," said Santiago. "We don't want this to be the last one. We are proud of how far we have come, but we want to keep going."

Jason Dunham is on a scheduled deployment in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of responsibility.