Guam NCO reenlists on USS Kitty Hawk
While some at Andersen have reenlisted under water or while on a flying mission, for Tech. Sgt. Eileen Grooms, 734th Air Mobility Squadron, the Navy came in mind for her ceremony.
"I wanted to do something different," said Grooms, a native of Batavia, N.Y. "I was hoping that the (reenlistment)could be arranged on one of the Navy ships."
Just her luck, it just wasn't any ship. The USS Kitty Hawk, America's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, made a port call to Guam while on its way to Australia to participate in an exercise.
The reenlistment ceremony took place on the bridge of the Kitty Hawk, which homeports at Yokosuka, Japan.
Standing on the left of the helm, Navy Capt. Allen G. Myers, the ship's commanding officer, administered the oath of reenlistment to Grooms, who stood on the right of the helm. The audience included her husband, Larry, fellow squadron members and reporters from the American Forces Network in Tokyo, Japan.
While the reenlistment ceremony was special for Grooms, the event was also a memorable one for Myers, who has his own links to the Air Force. He was one of eight Air Force Academy Cadets from the class of 1978 to be commissioned to serve in the Navy. Also, his brother is a senior master sergeant in the Air Force.
"I was more than happy to be part of this reenlistment ceremony," Myers said. "It's the first time I've had the opportunity to reenlist someone from a sister service. When I received word that Sergeant Grooms wanted to do this on our ship, I was more than happy to make her wish come true." (FROM AIR MOBILITY COMMAND PUBLIC AFFAIRS).
Follow Us On:
