Guest Post from VADM J. P. Currier, Chief of Staff:
On Friday, I had the distinct honor of visiting our dedicated men and women on the front lines of support for our operational partners involved in Haitian Relief Operations. I was very proud of our mission support and operations personnel operating from Guantanamo Bay Naval Station (GTMO) as I witnessed firsthand their hard work in support of this important international humanitarian effort.
I met with mission support personnel that stood up and continue to operate at a high pace at our logistics' cell Forward Operating Base (FOB). At the base's hub on the leeward side of GTMO (near the airstrip), humanitarian supply movement is executed flawlessly under our bi-level support model. On the windward side of the island, I watched with pride as mission support personnel worked tirelessly to support vessels inport for maintenance, repair, and logistics; often augmenting engineering work parties to enable where our cutter crews receive much needed time off inport. I sat down with CGC LEGARE's Commanding Officer, CDR Scott Bauby, for a 30 minute frank and open discussion on Haitian Operations, support, and way forward for better service to our fleet. The material condition of the cutter, and high crew morale during this high tempo operation was noteworthy and I applaud Scott for his leadership. CMC Kevin Isherwood and I received an informative brief from CDR Charlene Downey and LT Bryan Burkhalter of MSST 91103 (Los Angeles/Long Beach) on their current operational engagement at GTMO. We then met with the entire MSST for an all hands where I had the pleasure recognizing several outstanding individuals for their hard work and adherence to our core values.
In addition to visiting Coast Guard people, I also met with RDML Patricia Wolfe, J4 cell lead for the Joint Task Force (JTF) in GTMO, pier-side while an LCU was being loaded with humanitarian supplies bound for Haiti. We had an informative discussion on current ops support and I was proud to hear how well our Coast Guard men and women are integrating into the JTF structure. At my meeting with GTMO NAVSTA CO, CAPT Steven Blaisdell, I discussed Coast Guard interests in GTMO with respect to our logistics footprint and preparations for possible engagement in Operation Vigilant Sentry.
To conclude the visit, I had the honor of presenting CG Air Station Miami's Enlisted Person of the Year Award to Petty Officer Carlos Rodriguez. Carlos, a Store Keeper serving detached duty in at AVDET GTMO, set a shining example this past year and was a real leader in standing up FOB GTMO in support of Haitian Relief Operations. I would like to thank everyone at FOB GTMO, especially CAPT Jim Sebastian and LCDR Eric Carter, for operationalizing our modernized, bi-level logistics model in this first "true" test of providing critical support to high-tempo operations on the front lines of this humanitarian campaign. Thank you and continue the great work!
Semper Paratus,
J.P. Currier, VADM
Chief of Staff
