Photo By Seaman Jaimie Bethea | A U.S. Sailors, assigned to the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, work to remove debris...... read more read more
ST. THOMAS, U.S. Virgin Islands – U.S. Sailors and Marines, assigned to the Iwo Jima Amphibious Readiness Group (IWO ARG) – 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) Special Operations Capable (SOC), volunteered their time at The Humane Society of St. Thomas during a community service event Feb. 15, 2026.
Sailors and Marines from San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28) spent their Sunday morning rearranging shelves, removing debris, and reorganizing to allow for more one-site supply storage at the facility.
“One of the reasons that people join the military is a strong desire to give back to our communities and to serve our neighbors. Community relation [COMREL] activities allow Sailors and Marines to do just that,” said Lt. Cmdr. David Sensenig, Fort Lauderdale’s chaplain.
A hallmark event to most deployments, COMRELs afford service members the opportunity to spend time with each other outside of the operational environment to give back to the local community through acts of service. “I was very excited to hear that we were doing another volunteer event,” said a participating Sailor. “[I think] it’s good to get a break from the day-in-day-out and be able to spend time with people outside of work.”
The Humane Society of St. Thomas is the only animal shelter available on the island. The facility, founded in 1957 as a shelter for neglected animals, is a non-profit organization that relies heavily on the generosity of volunteers. Patrick Alessandri, the humane society’s maintenance coordinator, has collaborated with the U.S. Navy for four years on service projects and spoke of the benefits the facility and community gained from the help of Sailors and Marines.
“With other volunteers you’re not really certain what they can or can’t do. In the military, there is nothing you can’t do,” Alessandri said.
Sensenig highlighted how community service serves a dual purpose, allowing service members to provide assistance to those in need while shaping partnerships on a local scale that have broader impacts internationally.
“While COMRELs probably won’t make the news like some of our high-profile operations do, they demonstrate the same qualities of dedication and commitment for which the Navy and Marine Corps are so well known,” Sensenig explained.
Fort Lauderdale is deployed to the Caribbean in support of the U.S. Southern Command mission, Department of War-directed operations, and the president’s priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect the homeland.
For more information about Fort Lauderdale visit: https://www.facebook.com/FORTLAUDERDALELPD28/
| Date Taken: | 02.14.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 03.20.2026 16:56 |
| Story ID: | 560867 |
| Location: | VI |
| Web Views: | 22 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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