May 22, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Release #082-09
Eisenhower Sailors Lend a Helping Hand at a Bahraini School
MANAMA, Bahrain – A dozen Sailors from the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 7 and Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 8 participated in a community relations (COMREL) project May 17, at the Ali Primary School of Bahrain, during the ship’s recent port visit to Bahrain.
Sailors lent a helping hand with morning activities at the school, which is an early intervention school established by the Bahrain Society for Children with Behavioral and Communication Difficulties.
Chief Petty Officer (FMF/SW/AW) Michael Music, who organized the COMREL, said the visit by Eisenhower Sailors was an opportunity to help serve the local Bahrain community.
“COMRELs are our way of saying thank you and lending a helping hand. We do it to help people,” said Music. “The staff and students welcomed us with open arms. The smiles on their faces as we talked to them were very rewarding.”
Aviation Electronics Technician Airman James Welsh from the “Bluetails” of Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 121 lines shack, said he participated in the COMREL because it was a great chance to reach out to the students.
“It feels great to help,” said Welsh. “I’ve been very fortunate in my life and I thought it would be nice to be able to give something back to children of Bahrain while I was here.”
At the school, the children’s morning activities included callisthenic exercises, races and an obstacle course, followed by a refreshing dip in the pool, said Welsh.
“It was an enjoyable way to start to the day, and the kids were great,” he said. “They had a lot of energy and we had a lot of fun at the gym and the pool.”
Yeoman 2nd Class Paul Palgen from CSG-8 said the COMREL was an opportunity to make a good impression on the children at the school.
“When you’re young, the idea of another country or their people is still being formed,” said Palgen. “These first impressions can be the key to an outlook of peace and friendship beyond a language barrier.”
She added that he likes to participate in community relations projects because they leave a lasting impression on everyone involved.
“I have better memories of the places that I visit when I take part in a COMREL, than if I were to go shopping or dining in a foreign port,” said Palgen.
The Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations as part of a regularly scheduled deployment in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom as well as Maritime Security Operations. Operations in the U.S. 5th Fleet are focused on reassuring regional partners of the United States' commitment to security, which promotes stability and global prosperity.
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