2 THE MIRROR, NS MAYPORT, Thursday, March 29, 2007

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NavalStationMayport Capt.CharlesKing.............................................................................................CommandingOfficer Cmdr.JohnLobb...................................................................................................... ExecutiveOfficer CMDCMDeborahDavidson..........................................................................CommandMasterChief

NavalStationMayportEditorialStaff BillAustin...........................................................................................................PublicAffairsOfficer MC1SonjaChambers............................................................................ DeputyPublicAffairsOfficer MCSNBonnieWilliams....................................................................... AssistantPublicAffairsOfficer PaigeGnann...............................................................................................................................EditorThe MirrorisdistributedwithoutchargethroughoutMayport’sNavycommunity,includingtheNavalStation,on- andoff-baseNavyhousing areas, and ships, squadrons and staffs homeported atNSMayport.Copiesare also available at theNaval Station’s PublicAffairsOffice, Building 1, andThe FloridaTimes-Union, 1RiversideAvenue,Jacksonville,FL32202.Thedeadline for all submissions isThursday at 4 p.m., oneweekprior to publication.News and articlesshouldbesubmittedtothePublicAffairsOffice,ormailedto:

The MirrorP.O.Box280032NavalStation

Mayport,FL32228-0032Commercial:(904)270-7817DSN:960-5226

CommercialFAX(904)270-5329DSNFAX:960-5329Email:mayportmirror@comcast.net

COActionline:270-5589or1-800-270-6307ThisDoDnewspaper isanauthorizedpublication formembersof theDepartmentofDefense.ContentsofThe Mirror arenot necessarily theofficial viewsof, or endorsedby, theU.S.Government, theDepartmentofDefenseortheDepartmentoftheNavy.PublishedbyTheFloridaTimes-Union,aprivatefirminnowayconnectedwiththeU.S.Navy,underexclusivewrittencontractwithNavalStationMayport,Fla.Theappear-anceofadvertisinginthispublication,includinginsertsorsupplements,doesnotconstituteendorsementbytheDepartmentofDefense,U.S.NavyorTheFloridaTimes-Union,of theproductsor servicesadvertised.Everything advertised in this publication shall bemade available for purchase, use or patronagewithoutregardtorace,color,religion,sex,nationalorigin,age,maritalstatus,physicalhandicap,politicalaffiliation,oranyothernon-meritfactorofthepurchaser,userorpatron.TheeditorialcontentofthispublicationistheresponsibilityoftheNavalStationMayport,Fla.,PublicAffairsOffice.Advertisementsaresolicitedbythepublisher.Inquiriesregardingadvertisingshouldbedirectedto:

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Chapel CallCommand Chaplain:Cmdr. Phil Wyrick

SUNDAYSunday School........................9 a.m.Morning Worship............10:30 a.m.Protestant Baptism.......As requested

TUESDAYMOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers)...........9:30 a.m.(First and third Tuesday of the month)

WEDNESDAYWomen’s Bible Study........9:30 a.m.Choir Rehearsal......................7 p.m.

SATURDAYMen’s Prayer Breakfast..........9 a.m.Youth Group 2, 4....................6 p.m.

Catholic Services:Sunday Masses.......................9 a.m.CCD..............10:15 a.m.-11:15 a.m.

BAPTISMSPlease call 270-5212 to arrange a Baptism class.

SERVICESFor shipboard and Waterfront Services, call 270-5403. Personnel of other faiths seeking contact with spe-cific religious groups should call the Chaplain’s Office at 270-5212.

Where will you go after USS JFK’s decommissioning?

Lt. Geoffrey WilsonUSS John F. Kennedy

I’m going to DESRON 14.

HMSN Cayan PiggUSS John F. Kennedy

Naval Hospital Jacksonville. I don’t know where yet, but within the hospital.

HM2(SW) Andrew FosterUSS John F. Kennedy

Naval Hospital Pensacola, in the radiology department.

MMC(SW) Alex NicolasUSS John F. Kennedy

I’m going to Naval Re-cruiting District Jacksonville.

AG1(AW/SW) James Grainger

USS John F. KennedyNorfolk, Weather Command

Norfolk.

AG1(AW) Nishon BarnesUSS John F. Kennedy

Anti-submarine Warfare Command in Yosuka, Japan.

Credo Corner

Street Talk

Fleet TalkBy FLTCM Jackie DiRosa

U.S. Fleet Forces Command, AtlanticLast week, FLTCM(SS/

SW) R. D. West addressed the recently announced changes to the Navy’s focus on the deploy-ability and employability of our units. I would like to echo his comments and further explain how these changes will affect you and your families.

First, it’s important to under-stand the history that led to these changes and why these decisions were made. The orig-inal PERSTEMPO instruction was written in 1985 within the context of the Cold War require-ments. Prior to the instruction, nine month at sea and multiple

deployments during an at-sea tours were common. The 1985 PERSTEMPO instruction set the framework for more than a decade of steady six-month deployments and a predictable rotation policy.

During the 1990’s , the i n c r e a s e d d e m a n d b y Combatant Commanders for Navy capabilities made it more difficult to maintain predict-able deployment cycles. After September 11, 2001, those demands increased even more and sticking with a static six-month deployment model from 20 years ago no longer made sense. As an example, in 2005 the Navy held to past policy and

ended up executing a 26 percent increase in presence to meet the needs of the Combatant Commanders. These changes were short notice and created instability in Sailors lives.

Now, more than ever, the Nation needs the capabili-ties that you have been trained to carry out and each day we spend training at sea is impor-tant. The training conducted during each of the phases of the Employment Cycle allow us to advance into the next phase and ultimately provide a com-bat capable unit ready for future missions. There may be times when we are called on to deploy on short notice during that win-

dow of availability. But that will only be when Combatant Commanders require the unique capabilities that we bring to a mission, which could include missions in support of our own citizens, at home

You may have heard that the Navy will do more seven month deployments. This is true, but only when it is nec-essary for commands with a single deployment within an Employment cycle. If multiple deployments are required with-in an Employment cycle, the maximum planned length limit will be six months. In either case, deployments will not be routinely scheduled for longer

than six months. I would ask you to remember that there are other services, as well as our Sailors serving IA missions, who deploy for a year at a time.

The potential for increased time at sea is to be balanced with more time at home. In a recent message (NAVADM 051/07), the CNO, Adm. Mike Mullen, wrote that “While we increased the time avail-able for employment in sup-port of the nation’s Combatant Commanders, I want our Sailors to understand that we have care-fully considered the potential for personnel impacts. The new plan will better account for deployed time and preserve the

traditional 50 percent time-in-homeport.

We are a nation at war and this more flexible schedule and responsive surge capability is vital to the nation and our Navy. Shipmates, we live in an unpre-dictable world and your service is valued, as are the sacrifices of your families while you are away. Our nation depends upon young men and women who are willing to volunteer to serve their country.”

If you have any questions on the Navy’s new operation-al focus, don’t hesitate to talk to your chiefs, your command master chief or others in your command leadership.

By Cmdr. Jon C. Fredrick-son, CHC, USN

Director, Spiritual Fitness DivisionWe always have far more

choices in life that we could ever imagine. Take for example the couple that may believe that they have “fallen out of love.” One of the things that we teach at our Marriage Enrichment Retreats is how to strike the original match. I’d like a dol-lar for every couple who have come to me to complain that they have lost their love for

each other and they don’t know how to get it back. I usually get blank stares of disbelief when I explain that love is volitional. You can simply choose to fall in love again. Most people don’t realize that love, romantic love, is not a feeling so much as it is an action that produces a feel-ing. Act like you are in love, I tell couples, and the feelings of love will be given to you. After all, how do you become friends with some one? You act friendly, right? The feelings of

friendship follow the act of pro-viding friendship.

One of the great lies of life that so many of us so easily buy into is that we simply do not have any options. We believe we have played our last card and that there are no more decisions to be made, other than to give up. Yet there are always other choices. True joy, for example, like happiness and freedom, is a major prize of life, and like the other two conditions, joy eludes those who seek it directly. It is

a result of, and dependent on something else.

Like being in love, joy is a secondary effect of a primary action. It comes as a result of the choices we make. When we create an environment that sup-ports and encourages someone else, we find joy in the doing. There may be no more valuable human enterprise than lighten-ing someone else’s load, leading someone’s who’s lost to a the safe road, or extending a hand to someone who has fallen.

Giving almost always produc-es what we want to get.

Someone once told me that basically life is a problem to be solved. In that context, one of the beauties of life is that we will never run out of chances to make healthy decisions. And, knowing the human condi-tion, whether we live long or short, none of us will escape the reality of making more than our fair share of bad decisions. One decision that we can avoid however, is to believe that we

are trapped, unable to make any choices at all. CREDO exists to help people make healthy choices. If you haven’t afford-ed yourself the privilege of par-ticipating in one of the retreat venues offered, I would highly recommend giving yourself the luxury of a week end away - a week end to grow and find for yourself options and choices that you may not have dreamed possible. If you would like to attend a CREDO retreat, call us at 270-6958.

Chapel Announces Easter ServicesFrom Base Chapel

A s t h e E a s t e r s e a s o n approaches, Christian church-es throughout the area will be holding special worship obser-vances.

Naval S ta t ion Maypor t Chapel will hold the following Easter services:

For Roman Catholics: Thursday, March 29, 7 p.m.

- Penance ServiceSunday, April 1, 9 a.m. - Palm

SundayThursday, April 5, 7 p.m. -

Holy Thursday MassFriday, April 6, noon -

Stations of the Cross6:30 p.m. - Good Friday

CelebrationSaturday, April 7, 8 p.m. -

The Easter VigilSunday, April 8, 7 a.m. -

Sunrise Service (at the Beach Pavilion)

9 a.m. - Easter MassFor Protestant Christians:Sunday, April 1, 10:30 a.m. -

Palm Sunday and CommunionFriday, April 6, 8 p.m. - Good

Friday WorshipSunday, April 8, 7 a.m. -

Sunrise Service (behind Ocean Breeze)

10:30 a.m.- Easter WorshipF o r E a s t e r n O r t h o d o x

Christians, St. John the Divine Greek Orthodox Church, 3850 Atlantic Blvd. (phone: 396-5383) is holding the following services:

Saturday, March 31 - Lazarus Saturday Orthros at 9 a.m. and Divine Liturgy at 10 a.m.

Sunday, April 1 - Palm Sunday Orthros at 8:30 a.m. and Divine Liturgy at 10 a.m.

Thursday, April 5 - Vesperal Divine Liturgy at 9 a.m. and Passion of our Lord at 7 p.m.

Friday, April 6 - Burial of our Lord at 3 p.m. and Lamentations at 7 p.m. (Military members are invited to attend the 7 p.m. ser-vice in their dress uniform.)

Saturday, April 7 - Vesperal Divine Liturgy at 10 a.m. and Resurrection Service at 11 p.m.

Sunday, April 8 - Agape Vespers at noon at the Episcopal High School picnic grounds

For assistance with other faith specific worship information, please contact the Naval Station Religious Ministries staff at 270-5212.

Homefront in FocusBy Beth Wiruth

Military Spouse Support ContributorMarch and April are desig-

nated the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society’s active duty fund drive. The Navy-Marine Corp Relief Society or NMCRS is a private non-profit chari-table organization. Sponsored by the Department of the Navy, it operates nearly 250 offices ashore and afloat at Navy and Marine Corps bases through-out the world. Its mission: “to provide, in partnership with the Navy and Marine Corps, finan-cial, educational, and other assistance to members of the Naval Services of the United States, eligible family members, and survivors when in need; and to receive and manage funds to administer these programs.”

As a former ombudsman I have a great appreciation for the

NMCRS. This team of mostly volunteers works hard to raise funds and provide services that assist Sailors, Marines and their families. Personally, I have seen them provide no-interest loans to help sailors and families fly home for family crisis, assist with medical bills, provide edu-cational loans, and train and equip sailors and their families in budgeting, budgeting for a new baby and much more. I have great respect for this orga-nization.

Your service member will be contacted this month to assist the NMCRS to accomplish its mission. This is an opportuni-ty for us to help “take care of our own.” The NMCRS relies totally on donations and that gives us an opportunity to meet the need. There are many ways as spouses that we can support

the work of NMCRS. Begin by talking with your spouse about making a monetary donation. This can be done as a one-time gift via cash or check; online via credit card, or your service member can authorize an allot-ment of a monthly deduction from their pay. All donations are tax deductible.

While we are speaking of monetary support, for every dollar donated by an active duty service member, over three dol-lars is made available in sup-port of families. That is a great return on investment. Most of us enjoy a great cup of coffee. If each of us gave up just two cups of coffee per month and donated that money to the NMCRS we would effectively double their donations from last year and empower them to do more for our sea service family.

You can ear-mark your dona-tion for use in several funds: Hurr icane Katr ina Rel ief which offers assistance to those impacted by Hurricane Katrina, Combat Casualty Assistance which assists fami-lies of those serving, injured or killed in Iraq, Afghanistan or on board ships in the Arabian Gulf ; NMCRS Educat ion Programs which assists families and service members achieve education goals (scholarships needs are greater than ever), Visiting Nursing Program to fund staff and materials for this vital service, or a General or Unrestricted Gift to be used for the greatest needs of the NMCRS.

To make a gift online log on to www.nmcrs.org and fol-low the links. You can elect to

establish a monthly credit card donation as well. To donate by allotment your service member can obtain an allotment form from their command’s fund drive representative. To donate by check make your check pay-able to NMCRS and mail to 875 N. Randolph Street, Suite 225, Arlington, VA 22203-1977.

There are other ways you can support the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society. Donate to your local NMCRS Thrift Store. Your donations will be sold at substantial savings to military families and the proceeds are turned around to help families in need.

Become a NMCRS Volunteer. You can work as little as two hours a week and have a real impact in the lives of Sailors, Marines and their families. As a volunteer you will be trained

to greet clients, work with cli-ents to determine their needs, and help them balance their budget. You can help publicize the Society’s programs in print or through pubic speaking. You can work in their Thrift Shop or make layette items for their “Baby’s First Seabag” gifts.

You will be trained for any job you perform and can build your skills and will be reim-bursed for mileage and child-care. But more than that, you will build friendships and job skills while providing a tre-mendous service to our military family.

Do you have a question, com-ment or topic request for Beth? Contact her at beth.wiruth@homefrontinfocus.com.