On Thursday, a sailor from a DDG on the same pier as me, was struck by a vehicle and died.
He was pronounced at about 1500. I was called at 1600 by their chaplain, a friend of mine, who is based in Hawaii.
Of course I went.
Of course, I notified one of his closest friends who was on duty at the time.
Of course, I stayed aboard for three hours counseling everyone because he was the sailor everyone knew and loved.
Of course, I went to duty turn over at 0615 on Friday morning, praying with the crew,
helping them to grieve. It does not matter that this is a 96 for my ship. A fellow sailor died and his ship needed a chaplain.
Of course, I sat with the CO and XO and officers who cared deeply for this sailor - a BUDS drop-out, a QM2, ESWS, SAR swimmer, VBSS, always had a joke at the right moment to defuse the stressful situation, who loved to surf like the CO, and developed a deep respect for his Senior Chief.
Of course, though it is Shabbat, I was at duty turnover at 0615, and sat with the crew for two hours.
Of course, I assisted in making the notification to his father, mother, new wife/now widow. I know that it is Shabbat, but I was not going to rush out of there, even three hours later. This is where they needed me to be.
Of course I will be at khaki call and the all-hands call Tuesday morning, and sit with NN DIV afterwards.
By the request of the family, YES, I will be at the viewing on Tuesday. Just because it is not a Jewish practice does not mean I cannot support someone else's faith practices.
Yes, I gave my number to every Khaki that asked and to the sailors closest to him who may need to talk at some point in their grieving process, who like him, were plank owner of this amazing ship.
Yes, I made sure that a chaplain made contact with the previous NAV who just PCSed last month.
This was, and will continue to be hard, emotionally.
I am taking care of myself, and have an amazing support system, so I can be there for the crew and the family in the coming days.
May memories of him bring strength to those who knew and loved him.
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https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/public-safety/story/2020-02-13/florida-man-24-struck-and-killed-on-i-8-in-alpine
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We lost Thomas yesterday afternoon.
He and a Navy friend (David Pierce, Kate Pierce) were returning from a hunting trip and pulled over to secure a tarp covering their gear that had worked itself loose on the bed of his truck.
Tom was on the road side of the truck when a car from the opposite side of the road veered off course, crossed the center line and struck Tom.
He was life-flighted from the rural Julian, CA countryside and was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at Sharp Memorial trauma center in San Diego.
Please give us this time to grieve and sort through the details of what will be painful coming days and weeks. I will post more as we make arrangements in San Diego and here in Tampa Bay.
We thank you for your thoughts, concerns, and love. Hold your loved ones tight. None of us have any guarantees.
Life is precious.
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