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    Sailors help local school prior to PANAMAX 2011

    PANAMAX 2011 on camera

    Photo By Chief Petty Officer Jose Lopez | U.S. Army Sgt. Sonya D. Dame, attached to 4th Military Information Support Group,...... read more read more

    PANAMA CITY, Panama – Multi-National Forces South, along with the Panamanian Servicio Nacional Aero-Naval, assisted the Centro Educativo Brisas del Chumical school with needed repairs here as they prepare to commence PANAMAX 2011.

    Sailors attached to ships from the Task Force that in the next 12 days will participate in PANAMAX 2011 picked up paint brushes, shovels and garden tools to ensure that the school is ready and safe for the children who attend.

    “The assistance we received is a lot more than we expected,” said Diana Miller, school principal. “We thought we were going to receive assistance with cleaning and painting, but the sailors did so much more, including doing some electrical work around the facility.”

    Sailors from Honduras, Nicaragua, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, and host nation Panama performed various duties around the school. Most took brushes and painted the inside of class rooms. Others assisted with ground keeping duties and clearing earth from the side of a near-by hill. SENAN and U.S. personnel helped coordinate the event that included presenting supplies to the school’s principal.

    “It’s good to see the involvement that is taking place here, not just with the different foreign navies, but with the community,” said U.S. Army 1st Lt. Jonathan Holem, Office of Defense Cooperation, U.S. Embassy, who was overseeing the distribution of supplies to the school. “Not only are the teachers and students present, but the mothers and fathers as well. They get to see what an exercise like PANAMAX can do for the community.”

    Sailors often participate in local community relations projects when visiting ports throughout the world. This gives them the opportunity to interact with locals and extend good will to people in need.

    “They bring a day of joy for the kids,” said Lt. j.g. Manuel Llorente, chaplain SENAN. “The facility was in need of upgrades, like painting in the classrooms and new equipment such as chairs and desks. Seeing the sailors from different nations come here and assist the children in their needs warms my heart.”

    At the end of the day Llorente presented the principal with supplies for the school and gifts for the children. After their community work, the Sailors returned to their ships to prepare for the sea phase of PANAMAX 2011.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 08.16.2011
    Date Posted: 08.16.2011 19:35
    Story ID: 75450
    Location: PANAMA CITY, PA

    Web Views: 137
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN