By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Ben Farone, USS
George Washington Public Affairs
YOKOHAMA, Japan (NNS) -- First class and chief petty
officers from the U.S. Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, USS George
Washington (CVN 73) visited the Seijyou Hoikuen nursery school and escorted
local children to the Kanazawa Zoo, March 13.
The visit came at the request of the Zushi Hayama Lions Club
and represented a collaborative effort among chiefs and first classes in their
first community relations (COMREL) and engagement event for this year's CPO 365
Phase One training.
"Altogether we had one hundred thirty-six children. And
the good part for GW's crew, they were very friendly and the children were
friendly to them." said Esther Kiyomi Kaneko, Zushi Hayama Lions Club vice
president.
According to Kaneko, the interaction between the students
and Sailors, a first for several of them, was a success, helped in no small
part by goodie bags delivered by the ship.
"Today being outside the home and meeting English
people; some of the children have never seen Americans before. I think they had
a good time. And the lollipops and cookies were a big treat to them too!"
Having the opportunity to interact with the Japanese community,
as well as demonstrating a true lead-by-example spirit for junior Sailors was a
win-win for Hospital Corpsman 1st Class (SW/AW) Carlos Vidal, from Shreveport,
Louisiana.
"We're the ones who set the tone. When junior Sailors
see that we're willing to take some of our time out of our day to do something
other than what's required, it kind of lays the foundation and allows the
junior Sailors to grow in a way that emulates our senior personnel."
Vidal also noted that despite a language barrier, Sailors
and students were able to share a glimpse inside each other's lives.
"The diversity is probably the most important takeaway
for me. Two different countries, two different languages but we're still able
to come together and share a bit of each other's culture." said Vidal.
Senior Chief Logistics Specialist (SW/AW) Hai Tran from
Stockton, California, echoed Vidal's assessment of the day's events, adding
that the school visit was not just an opportunity to strengthen ties with
George Washington's host country, but to increase camaraderie between the First
Class and Chief Petty Officers Messes.
"It's a good opportunity to, first of all interact with
the local community and second of all, since we're going as group with CPO 365,
it's a good teambuilding event for the chiefs and soon-to-be chiefs. This was
my first time to be able to get out and do a COMREL with this ship and I think
it went really well."
George Washington (CVN 73) and its embarked air wing,
Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, provide a combat-ready force that protects and
defends the collective maritime interests of the U.S. and its allies and
partners in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.
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