USS Monsoon Receives 2015 Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award

BAHRAIN

05.31.2016

Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Victoria Mejicanos 

U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. 5th Fleet           

The award is presented annually by the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) to battle-ready ships in the U.S. Atlantic and Pacific Fleets. This is the first time a coastal patrol ship (PC) with a permanent crew won this award.
“The rapid rate that Sailors come and go on a PC creates a unique challenge to the operational readiness of our unit,” said Lt. j.g. Ben Carrington, the operations officer of Monsoon. “We have learned to adapt to this by making our sponsorship program a high priority, reaching out to new crew members as soon as their orders are posted, and integrating them into our shared sense of pride early on.”
Crews aboard PCs face a unique challenge of being assigned to the ship for one year. Sailors are constantly rotated through as the veteran crew members train the new Sailors to the ship.
“I’m pleased to say that those aboard Monsoon have always taken personal ownership of the material condition of our ship,” said Lt. Cmdr. Erik S. Roberts, the commanding officer. “This crew takes pride in maintaining their own gear. In the rare cases when we require outside assistance, we're right there, shoulder to shoulder with the technical representatives, learning and fixing.”
The award gets its name from a 13-year-old girl who wrote a letter in 1917 which included a dime donated in hope of constructing a new U.S. battleship prior to the end of World War I. This donation prompted the contribution of 200,000 dimes, all given by American children. While the dimes collected from the donations were gifted to individual divisions in a ship, after World War II, the Navy shifted the accolade to commands demonstrating readiness and fitness of the ship as a whole.
The timing of the award is coupled with Monsoon having the highest advancement rate for coastal patrol ships on the waterfront. The crew received the award during a frocking ceremony for its Sailors.
Monsoon recently had the distinction of leading the maritime security portion of the International Mine Countermeasure Exercise (IMCMEX) which lasted from April 4 through April 26, 2016. As part of the largest maritime exercise in the world, Monsoon coordinated efforts of six different navies, building relations with our security allies and promoting crucial interoperability skills.
“The bottom line is that this is an all-hands initiative,” said Roberts. “Everyone has a part in it, from the most senior officer to the most junior Sailor. They are forging a legacy of sustained superior performance at sea. I couldn't be more proud of them.”
Monsoon is one of 10 coastal patrol ships deployed to the area, homeported out of Bahrain, and participates in bilateral and multilateral exercises with regional partners in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations.
The U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations encompasses about 2.5 million square miles of the Middle East's maritime reaches and includes the Arabian Gulf, Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean.
For more news from Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/5th Fleet, visit www.navy.mil/local/cusnc/.

• Date Taken: 05.31.2016
• Date Posted: 06.06.2016 09:53
• Story ID: 200070
• Location: BH