Almost At Sea!

Today is July 1st. I am sitting in a hotel room in Mobile, Alabama as I took a couple days leave (vacation). I haven't taking any time off since December. And now we are about to set sail to go around South America to bring this great ship to her homeport in San Diego.

To recap:
- I started to apply to the Navy in Feb 2012. Resume, applications, references,multiple interviews and then a final interview at the Pentagon in December, culminating in being accepted into the Naval Chaplaincy.
- February 17, 2013 - I was commissioned as a Naval Officer Lieutenant Junior Grade after 12noon mass at St. Joseph Church, Toms River, NJ
- I waited until the diocese released me to go to the Navy. In the meantime, I prepared. I started physical training, getting my things in order and packing up my stuff.
- I received my orders in the beginning of August and then headed off to Officer Development School in Newport Road Island for 5 weeks of officer training. I was with doctors, lawyers, nurses, dentists, chaplains and nukes (nuclear engineering instructors). I was the only priest. We learned the basics of how to be officers in the Navy. I graduated ODS on September 20.
- I drove to Fort Jackson, South Carolina for 8 weeks of Chaplain School. We learned not different religions, but the particulars of being chaplains in the Navy. We went over the instructions, policies, programs and potential pitfalls. Mostly we got a sense of the attitude needed to be successful: having a heart for the people we serve. I graduated Chaplain school on November 15.
- Then I drove to NJ to pack up a trailer full of stuff (thanks to Bob, Cat and Mike for the help!) and I drove cross country to my first assignment in San Diego. I spend six weeks there getting my feet wet (lots of training, paperwork and meeting people.)
- In January I drove to Pascagoula, MS to join the PCU America and see the ship for the first time. I met the rest of the CRMD ministries department team. We worked hard to get the ship ready to receive the crew in April.
- ON April 10th, we marched onboard to take possession of the ship. USS America delivered to the Navy




Since then we have been setting up our respective departments and going through all kinds of qualifications of certifications. Flight deck and Hangar bay fire drills. Ship wide fire drills, General Quarters drills, Anti-Terrorism Force Protection drills occurred daily.

It has been quite something to get used to. 6am wake up calls, 10pm lights out. Sleeping in racks (mine is the top bunk of 2-high bunkbeds.)

Getting to know the 1100 sailors and a few Marines has been a challenge, but I have enjoyed meeting them and getting to know their jobs a bit. I watched the Deck department training on their mooring lines and anchors. This week I watch them use a crane to pull up the 7 meter RHIB boat on to its shipboard cradle. I have watch the Air department do their fire drills and I get to watch them carry injured crew to the Flight Deck Battle Dressing Station, where I am stationed during General Quarters. I have visiting engineering spaces and checked out the huge diesel generators (supply power to the whole ship), the Main Reduction Gear, the propeller shafts and the Turbine Engines (basically a jet engine that makes our ship go really fast.) I got to do a maintenance spot check on the SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare system sensor. That was cool. I visited aft steering, way down in the back end of the ship where we can steer the ship manually if all else fails. I almost broke my head on a battle lantern (it is a very tight space.)

Routinely, big chaps and I walk around the ship, just chatting with sailors and observing their daily routine. Our office is right off the mess decks, so I frequently, pop my head out and talk to the FSAs (those temporarily assigned to help setup and  clean up meals and the CSs, the cooks.

I have been doing a lot of counseling, sailors, mostly juniors, come to talk about whatever is going on in their life: marriage, work, stresses and occasionally something spiritual. All those conversations are confidential. It is a privilege to be someone they know they can talk to about anything. Occasionally, I refer them to medical or some other service for some further assistance.

I have been saying daily mass at 11:30am and Sunday mass at 830. We have been very happy to have music each week by our choir. I enjoy working with them each week. I will add a Saturday evening mass probably at 7pm when we get underway.

We have been working 6 days a week for a number of weeks. This Saturday was mostly a free day, however many Engineers were working hard on repairs and of course 1/3 of the crew was on duty. This phase is almost complete.

Next Stop: South America

Now the fun begins. We pack up and set sail soon. Final preparations are being made to get underway. We will sail south to Colombia, Brazil, the Straits of Magellan, Chile and Peru. And in about 2 months we will pull into San Diego. After that we will head to San Francisco to be Commissioned in October.

In each port we will meet with dignitaries, do some service projects, some trips, some liberty. Along the way, the many new folks (about 700 first time on ship) will experience real Navy sea life. Very exciting (he says with a little trepidation.)


Please continue to pray for us on the USS America!