NOSC Prep Day Info For Reservists & Their Families Page 3 Family Event Month of the Military Child Carnival Pages 4-5 NH Jax IAs Deploy Aboard USNS Comfort Page 11 www.jaxairnews.com Sailors of the Quarter honored at luncheon By Clark Pierce Editor ; I Photos by Kaylee LaRocque AWC Todd Fallin of HS-3 happily greets his daughters, Sydney, 3, Alexandria, 7, and Savannah, 11, as their mom, Sorena, looks on at the homecoming. HS-3 'Tridents' return home By Kaylee LaRocque Ir NAS Jax Deputy PAO I| -g T he "Tridents" of Helicopter Squadron Three (HS-3), who aided in the capture and transport of 16 suspected pirates in the Gulf of Aden back in February, returned home to NAS Jacksonville April 16 after a deploy- ment on board USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). HS-3 deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom as a compo- nent of Carrier Air Wing Eight for seven and a half months flying more than 3,800 direct combat support flight hours. In January, the squadron provided three HH-60H aircraft to Commander, Combined Task Force 151 supporting counter-piracy operations on board USS San Antonio and USNS Lewis 'N Clark. With piracy con- tinuing to be a huge problem in this area, Navy forces are on high alert. "All of our missions are dangerous but we just contin- ue to do our job professionally," said HS-3 Commanding Officer Cmdr. Scott Starkey. The squadron was actually split up and tasked with new missions. "We're trained to handle all warfighting assignments," said Lt. Chris Brinkac. Of course, his best mission was arriving home to greet his family. "I'm just glad to be home. It's what I've been waiting for," he added. During the deployment, HS-3 along Lt. Cmdr. Chris Brinkac of HS-3 hugs his wife, Amee, and daughter, Kellylyn, 4, on the NAS Jax flight line after the HS-3 "Tridents" deployment with Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 8 aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). with the Roosevelt also made a historic port visit to Cape Town, South Africa in October 2008, marking the first visit of a U.S. aircraft carrier to the country of South Africa in over 40 years. While in port, the Tridents conducted an emergent at-anchor 80,000 pound vertical replenishment to aid in a cooperative engagement with the South African government. HS-3 is comprised of 24 officers and 174 enlisted Sailors. The squadron flies four SH-60F and three HH-60H Seahawk heli- copters. More than 325 Sailors, family members and ship- mates gathered for a spe- cial Sailor of the Quarter (SOQ) celebration April 14 at the NAS Jax Officers' Club. "Today, we recognize Sailors for the fourth quar- ter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009," said emcee and NAS Jacksonville Command Master Chief CMDCM(SW/SS) Jeff Hudson. "This event never fails to fill me with pride because Sailors of the Quarter rep- resent the top five percent of our people who come in early and stay late getting the job done without being asked. So we're taking time out today to recognize and thank you, our right-hand men and women. But be aware once your com- mand identifies you as a 'hard charger' or a 'go to' individual your responsi- bilities will multiply as you progress in your careers," a grateful Hudson told the audience. The NAS Jacksonville Honor Support Team pre- sented the colors and the Navy Band Southeast A Cappella Quartet (MU2 Mallory McKendry, MU3 Roberta Shardt, MU2 A.C. Smith and MU2 Michael Buenvenida) performed the national anthem. NAS Jacksonville Command Chaplain (Cmdr.) Gerald Felder delivered the invoca- tion. The event's guest speak- er was NCl(AW) Wendy .- Photo by Clark Pierce NAS Jacksonville Commanding Officer Capt. Jack Scorby Jr. congratulates NOSC Jacksonville Command Career Counselor NC1(AW) Wendy Drinkwater on her presentation April 14 at the Sailor of the Quarter luncheon. Drinkwater, command career counselor of Navy Operational Support Center (NOSC) Jacksonville. She told her fellow Sailors of the Quarter, "What an honor it is to represent this group of achievers. I hope I serve you well. Thanks go to my chain of command for giv- ing me the freedom to try new things, to learn to be flexible and to give me the support I need when it's time to change course." "Being here today as Sailor of the Quarter is huge for me. It validated my coming to work every day and putting in the long hours. When I saw my name on the side of our building I felt like a rock star. It made me work even harder because now I have to live up to the tradition of those Sailors of the Quarter who went before me. Now, I have bigger shoes to fill and I'm going to do that," said Drinkwater. "This also allows me to tell my younger Sailors that if you work hard and do your best, you'll be rec- ognized and we'll bring you with us. I must thank my mentor, YNC Michelle Lang, who saw something in me I'm not sure what it was that caused her to bring me along in my Navy career. She urged the audience of high achievers to become mentors. "Go out and find that hard-charging Sailor who might be struggling and use your experience to help bring them along. Developing our people through the Navy tradition of honor, courage and com- mitment is what sets us apart. Thank you for allow- ing me to be part of that tradition." The audience rewarded Drinkwater with a standing ovation. Hudson said the event is filled with future lead- ers. "Whether it's the Blue Jacket, Junior Sailor, or Sailor of the Quarter you will that find that these men and women each have mentors who help them See SOQ LUNCH, Page 15 NAS Jax Navy Exchange rolls out new Navy Working Uniform By Kaylee LaRocque NAS Jax Deputy PAO The NAS Jacksonville Navy Exchange (NEX) held a ribbon- cutting ceremony April 14 to officially roll out the new Navy Working Uniform (NWU) and to open a new store to accommodate Sailors in acquiring need- ed items. The new store is located next to the conve- nience store in the NEX warehouse. During the event, NEX employees gathered as NAS Jax Commanding Officer Capt. Jack Scorby Jr. praised their hard work and dedication to the Sailors here. "I iust want to take Photo by Kaylee LaRocque AWCS(AW) Jim Zobrosky of CV-TSC Mobile Training Team, is assisted by Navy Exchange employee Leilani Robello in the new Navy Working Uniform Store, which opened for business April 15. a moment and thank you all for the fantastic work you've done in putting this all together. I really appre- ciate all the great effort that went into this and I have no doubt that when people start shopping here, it's going to be a tremen- dous success," he said. According to NEX General Manager Steve Foster, the idea was to cre- ate a special area where Sailors could go as a unit to get fitted for the NWJU, find the items they need, put in their embroidery orders and make the purchase in just one stop. "I put this out to my staff and asked how we could best accomplish this. My store manager, John Wood, took it for action and with a team from Building 523 and Southeast District Facilities, set out to create a space in our warehouse," Photo byAWVAN Scott Beach From left, NAS Jax Command Master Chief CMDCM(SW/SS) Jeff Hudson, Navy Exchange (NEX) General Manager Steve Foster, NEX Store Manager John Wood and NAS Jax Commanding Officer Capt. Jack Scorby Jr. cut the ribbon to officially open the Navy Working Uniform Store April 14. said Foster. This meant creating a space, building shelving units and dressing rooms, rewiring the electrical sys- tem and organizing the merchandise. "It took us about seven weeks to trans- form this space. Our team of associates also spent hours going to the differ- ent commands here to pre- fit about 3,500 Sailors and measure them for their new uniforms," Foster contin- ued. "We will be located here for about 90 days and then plan to move all the items into the uniform shop in the NEX. Our goal is to get at least 50 to 60 percent of our Sailors outfitted here so the uniform shop is not so congested and it's easier for our customers to get their items," added Foster. For those already meas- See UNIFORMS, Page 12 TOUCHING Armed Services Blood Drive O Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 14 IB AEE April 30 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Memorial ceremony for fallen Seabees MnL CNATTU Jax on Yorktown Avenue May 2 at 10 a.m. NFL Jaguars Roar will autograph posters for donors. Call 542-2824 ext. 1 for more info.