U.S. Navy Chaplain Delivers Resiliency Training Aboard USS George H. W. Bush

Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Novalee Manzella | ATLANTIC OCEAN - Chaplain Lt. David Ferguson, assigned to CREDO Mid-Atlantic Region, prays at an altar inside the ship's chapel of the aircraft carrier U.S.S. George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) on Oct. 27, 2021. GHWB provides the national command authority flexible, tailorable warfighting capability as the flagship of a carrier strike group that maintains maritime stability and security in order to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied and partner interests. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Petty Officer 3rd Class Novalee Manzella)  

VA, UNITED STATES

10.27.2021

Story by Petty Officer 3rd Class Novalee Manzella 

USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77)

ATLANTIC OCEAN -- USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) held a Chaplains Religious Enrichment Development Organization CREDO Afloat course called Suicide Talk on October 26, 2021.

Suicide Talk is one of many trainings designed by CREDO to promote resiliency and warfighter toughness at sea.

Suicide Talk is a 90-minute class intended to familiarize large groups with safe intervention skills, and to invite GHWB Sailors to participate in more in-depth training. It touches on the topics of prevention and the steps to take if someone is thinking or talking about suicide, but its main goal is to help change the culture surrounding the discussion of suicide.

“The main thing I want you to take away from this is to be more comfortable of being aware of suicide and creating safe, respectable situations where people feel comfortable talking about suicide,” said Chaplain Lt. David Ferguson, assigned to CREDO for Mid-Atlantic Region. “This is not as much about prevention as it is about awareness. We are going to talk about talking about suicide.”

Suicide Talk is the first time that GHWB has been able to utilize CREDO since coming out of the shipyards. Suicide Talk is an invaluable training, but it is far from the only resource CREDO has to offer.

“We are considered regional assets,” said Ferguson. “Anybody that asks for us we will go to them, and that is why we are on this ship.”

Other CREDO courses offered to Sailors are Immunity to Change and Arsenal Assessment classes.

Ferguson describes Immunity to Change as a program based off the book Immunity to Change, by Dr. Robert Kegan and Dr. Lisa Lahey, designed to help individuals, teams, and organizations make personal and collective changes that are important, but have proven resistant even with thoughtful plans and heartfelt intentions.

Ferguson says that pinpointing and uprooting immunities to change brings people, teams, and organizations closer to meeting their goals.

The Arsenal Assessment is another program that CREDO is offering to Sailors. Ferguson explains it as a look at the seven best practices to reducing the negative effects of stress and determines a person’s current level of performance in each area. It is based off of the book The Stress Effect, Why Smart Leaders Make Dumb Decisions and What to Do About It, by Dr. Henry L. Thompson.

Altogether, these courses allow chaplains with different backgrounds to reinforce resiliency and warfighter toughness among Sailors.

“The chaplains are a great resource whether a person is religious or not,” said Ferguson.

While CREDO is a tool that can be used by Sailors on any ship, it is one that needs to be requested by name. Chaplains stationed aboard ships work very closely with CREDO chaplains, but the best way to bring these programs and more to GHWB is through demand of the crew.

GHWB provides the national command authority flexible, tailorable warfighting capability as the flagship of a carrier strike group that maintains maritime stability and security in order to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied and partner interests.

• Date Taken: 10.27.2021
• Date Posted: 11.05.2021 10:48
• Story ID: 408731
• Location: VA, US