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ALASKAN GULF – Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Roniemarc Salvador, a dental technician aboard landing dock ship, USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49), has been aboard for approximately four weeks and already loves the tight-knit camaraderie of his shipmates. He doesn’t have a typical schedule; Salvador has a civilian career as a dental hygienist, yet is temporarily working as a healthcare professional while out to sea. One day, he’s on land working as a dental hygienist, and the next, he’s on a ship out in the Alaskan Gulf.
Salvador is one of the few U.S. Navy Reservists currently serving aboard USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) while underway in support of Northern Edge 23-1, an exercise that provides the opportunity for U.S. military personnel to sharpen their skills; to practice tactics, techniques, and procedures; to improve command, control and communication relationships; and to develop cooperative plans and programs.
“My shipmates and my unit, they’ve been proactive in having me experience the ship life,” he said. “They’ve been good at giving me opportunities to just blend in and be one with the ship and with the unit, and not be segregated as a Reservist.”
Salvador had the opportunity to work solely as a civilian as a dental hygienist in Anchorage, Alaska, but had the desire and the drive to simultaneously share his medical expertise with a different kind of community: the military.
“As a civilian, you just show up to work, do some work, go home,” he said. “Here, we get to do our work together. After that, we get to hang out, which is very nice, and then do the same thing tomorrow.
“It’s nice to have that transition, not just being a robot.”
In addition to serving as a Reservist and working as a dental hygienist, Salvador also serves as a member of the Alaskan Navy Militia. This specific aspect of his career allows him to use his healthcare skills to provide healthcare not only to his shipmates, similar to the active service component, but also to his community.
“As an Alaskan sailor, we have this unique opportunity to deploy in the Alaskan community and the tribal villages,” he said. “Every time there’s a disaster, we get the opportunity to deploy and help out. I get to see my community more. Having an impact in the community you live, it’s been super rewarding for me.”
Seeing how he is able to make a difference, helping people in the smallest ways while making the biggest impact makes the experience incredibly rewarding for Salvador.
Salvador feels a sense of pride in the work and services he’s been able to provide. Few are able to do what he does at the capacity he does. As he serves, Salvador is able to learn from his shipmates while they learn from him, and he takes these opportunities to advocate for the opportunities for and lifestyles of Reservists.
“Not a lot of active people know about the Reserves, or understand what the Reserves are, or what is our mission,” he said.
Despite many sailors not having a deep knowledge of the Reserves, the overall attitude toward active Reservists has changed over time. Salvador finds those within the active component who do get to work with Reservists are very appreciative of the work those serving part time can offer.
“Most of the mobilizations, deployments, annual trainings, units or commands that I’ve been to, they’ve been very appreciative of the work, that Reservists can help out, even just from watch standing or sometimes just taking some of the workload from the active duty component,” he said. “It’s been like that every time I go somewhere.”
The positive opportunities afforded to Reserve sailors like Salvador are nothing short of incredible. However, when he finds himself in a challenging spot, Salvador looks at life – and his Reserve service – like a popcorn kernel.
“If you cook popcorn in the same oil, same pan, same heat, not every popcorn pops at the same time,” he said. “I treat life like that, even with my shipmates. Sometimes in the Reserves, or in general, in life, you won’t get recognized for stuff that you do. If you just keep going and doing the hard work, your time as a popcorn kernel will pop.”
| Date Taken: | 05.08.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.05.2023 23:22 |
| Story ID: | 446276 |
| Location: | AK, US |
| Web Views: | 42 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Reservists: Serving Afloat and Ashore, by PO2 Shelby Robinson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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