Gettysburg Receives Navy's Top Community Service Award

By Ensign Tommy Changaris, USS Gettysburg Public Affairs

MAYPORT, Fla. (NNS) -- The chief of naval operations named guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg (CG 64) as the recipient of the Navy's highest award for community service, Nov. 24.

Gettysburg received the 2014 Navy-wide Project Good Neighbor Community Service Award in the medium sea command category and is joined by awardees in various other sea, shore and overseas categories.

The Project Good Neighbor Award, a Navy Community Service Program award, recognizes the best year-round, volunteer-supported program or special project that promotes outreach activities to establish and restore hope to the community.

Serving the local wounded warrior population and supporting community programs like Habitat for Humanity, Gettysburg's crew volunteered thousands of hours of their personal time in 2014. Beyond the crew's efforts, the ship's Family Readiness Group (FRG) also volunteered in the Jacksonville, Florida, area while the ship was deployed in early 2014.

"I could not be more impressed by the crew and our families right now," said Gettysburg's Command Master Chief Dan Hacker. "Even though we have had a lot on our plate for a while now, these Sailors remain motivated to get out there and help their community. To me, that just speaks volumes to the character of our people."

The Gettysburg crew undertook community service efforts throughout 2014 that included partnerships with the Jacksonville Wounded Warrior-Safe Harbor office and Beaches Habitat for Humanity, as well as a special project at the American World War II Cemetery in Rhone, France while on deployment.

Lt. j.g. Stephanie Santarelli, Gettysburg's auxiliaries officer, said as soon as she checked aboard, she was invited to take part in a command project for Habitat for Humanity.

"It was clear early on that serving our community was a priority on board," Santarelli said. "Going out and taking on a project, especially one that benefits someone in need, is a great way to build that teamwork and camaraderie that a ship needs."

Homeported in Mayport, Gettysburg is in the middle of an 11-month maintenance period, which will include significant upgrades to its hull and engineering plant.