Great Lakes MWR Gets Spooky with Zombie Tag

Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Brigitte Johnston | GREAT LAKES, Il. (Oct. 28, 2020) Sailors assigned to Training Support Center Great Lakes pose for photo as winners of a game of zombie tag, hosted by Great Lakes’ Morale, Welfare, and Recreation. This is the eighth annual game of zombie tag MWR has hosted for the students held around Halloween. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Brigitte Johnston)  

GREAT LAKES, IL, UNITED STATES

10.28.2020

Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Brigitte Johnston 

Naval Station Great Lakes

GREAT LAKES, Ill. (Oct. 28, 2020) – Although 2020 hasn’t been a normal year, Naval Station Great Lakes’ Morale, Welfare, and Recreation hasn’t stopped finding the fun for Sailors assigned to Training Support Center Great Lakes. MWR hosted their eighth annual Zombie Tag event at Constitution Field for students in the wake of Halloween.
“It’s a really fun opportunity for Sailors to come out and participate in a unique Halloween event,” said Megan Stadlman, the Community Recreation Manager for MWR. “We set the stage. It’s a little bit weird because this year the stage was already set but historically, we’ve always used the backdrop of a pandemic has taken over the world, turning people into zombies. Two have managed to get through the gates of the base and you have to go find all of the vaccine stations to survive and make it back to ground zero. We altered the storyline a little this year as we have found ourselves in a pandemic but I think everyone still had fun.”
Over 60 Sailors participated in the event with help from MWR and TSC staff. Participants had to go to each “inoculation station” to get a card signed, being careful to avoid any “zombies” who could turn them. Once turned zombie, your goal was to infect others and prevent them from meeting their final goal. This spirited event was able to be held as normal with COVID-19 requirements but didn’t stop Sailors from enjoying the game.
“It’s something that I’m glad that they did so we take advantage of it,” said Seaman Apprentice Ismael Castro, from Visalia, California. “It’s a morale booster, having everyone out here and having fun. It shows that this base has the brother and sisterhood that I heard about even before I showed up. The unity is great.”
In-person events have been off the table for much of the year, making Zombie Tag the first since the lockdowns began. Castro says that if you didn’t attend, you missed out on the fun. MWR has been hosting virtual programming for much of the year to keep Sailors recreating in addition to making some services available throughout the year with health protection guidelines.
“It’s in our name; Morale, Welfare, and Recreation,” said Staldman. “Right now, these Sailors could use some morale. Things have been hard. We haven’t been able to do a lot of the things we normally like to do and recreating has had a lot of restrictions put on it.”
Staldman says that she’s hoping MWR can continue to provide entertainment options for Sailors within COVID restrictions. While her and the MWR team have been providing base families with curbside support, such as take-home craft kits, the students rely on the 20 to 30 programs a month held in a normal year that have been limited during the pandemic.
“Our goal is to get as creative as possible to help them find ways to continue to recreate, said Staldman. ”It’s good for the mind, it’s good for the body, and it’s good for the soul. They still have liberty time, they still have free time. We’re trying to help them find ways to use that time to make the most of the liberty time they have with the restraints we’re working in. That’s our job, we’re going to find some ways to bring them some fun. They don’t call us the Funboss on ships for nothing.”
For more information on Naval Station Great Lakes MWR and see what services they’re offering, go to https://www.navylifegl.com/ and follow them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NavyLifeGL/.
For more news from Naval Station Great Lakes, visit https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/NSGLPA or www.facebook.com/NavalStationGreatLakes.

• Date Taken: 10.28.2020
• Date Posted: 10.29.2020 13:56
• Story ID: 382011
• Location: GREAT LAKES, IL, US
• Hometown: VISALIA, CA, US