Naval Station Guantanamo Bay Celebrates 78th Annual Seabee Ball

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA

02.29.2020

Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Samantha Oblander 

AFN Guantanamo Bay

GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba (NNS) – More than 200 U.S. service members and their guests attended the 78th annual Seabee Ball at the Windjammer Ballroom at Naval Station (NAVSTA) Guantanamo Bay on Saturday, February 29, 2020.
The ball celebrated not only the 78th birthday of the United States Navy Seabees, but also the 178th birthday of Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) and the 153rd birthday of the Civil Engineer Corps (CEC).
Navy Capt. James Robbins, the guest speaker at the event and the Director of Engineering for Joint Task Force (JTF), Guantanamo Bay, shared personal stories with guests and focused on what motivates people.
“John F. Kennedy once said, ‘we choose to go to the moon because it’s not easy; we do the things because they are hard,’” quoted Robbins. “I think he got that wrong. We choose to do things because they’re interesting and we make it fun. Turns out there’s three things that contribute to motivation: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. Autonomy is being in charge of your own destiny. Mastery is being better at something you enjoy. A lot of people play the guitar. They’re not going to get paid for it, but they like doing it. Purpose is that knowing what you’re doing makes a difference. Autonomy is the desire to be master of your own destiny.”
There are more than 13 thousand personnel assigned to Naval Construction Battalions worldwide and Robbins spoke about what makes the Seabees successful.
“The construction industry; we breed a particular class of highly independent people,” said Robbins. “They’re masters of their own craft. You don’t need to tell them how to do something; you tell them what you want and to get it done.”
Those who attended the ball enjoyed dinner, dancing and the traditional cake-cutting ceremony led by the oldest and youngest Seabees in attendance.
Junior officers from NAVSTA Guantanamo Bay’s Public Works departments led the audience in singing “The Song of the Seabees,” which was one of the highlights of the event.
Robbins said he believed in passing on what has been learned to the next generation of Seabees coming up.
“I think it’s our experiences that cannot be taken or hidden from ourselves, so when we finally hang up the uniform we look back on what we did and there will be two things that you have left,” said Robbins. “You’ll have the memories of what you’ve accomplished and the relationships that you’ve built. So we all serve with honor, courage and commitment, but nothing says that it can’t be fun, so surround yourself with quality people and have fun.”
The ball is held annually to honor all Seabees, Civil Engineer Corps officers and NAVFAC staff, past and present who have paved the way to victory. In addition, it honors all of those who are following in their footsteps.
For more news from Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, visit www.navy.mil/local/guantanamo/.

• Date Taken: 02.29.2020
• Date Posted: 03.05.2020 09:53
• Story ID: 364536
• Location: NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, CU