Coast Guard celebrates groundbreaking for modernized Tybee Island facility. Crewmembers of Coast Guard Station Tybee in Savannah, Ga., recently hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a new 25,000 square-feet building. This new multipurpose building will be used for Station Tybee Island, Coast Guard Cutter Pompano, and Coast Guard Aids to Navigation Tybee Island to support their multiple missions in the Savannah area. The building is being constructed, in part, due to hurricane damage in 2016. Construction is planned to be completed in the spring of 2023. Master Chief Petty Officer Eric D. Risner, officer-in-charge of Coast Guard Station Tybee, presided over the ceremony. “We are excited to break ground on our new facility in Savannah,” said Risner. “We are looking forward to having a new state-of-the-art station to better serve our community.” Station Tybee is located north of Tybee lsland. It covers the region from St. Helena Sounds, S.C., to Sapelo Sounds, Ga. There are 38 active duty members and 19 reservists assigned to the unit.
10th anniversary of the USCG Aviation Workout to Remember honors fallen heroes. It is expected that on Feb. 28, more men and women than ever before will gather at gyms, parks, air stations, and aboard vessels at sea to pay tribute to fallen heroes. The Coast Guard Foundation created the fitness event, formerly known as “The 6535 Memorial Workout,” to honor the four aviation crew members of Coast Guard helicopter 6535 who were lost in 2012 in Mobile, Ala. Today the annual event honors all the lives lost in Coast Guard aviation. The event includes a tough workout comprised of four rounds with a 400-meter run, 65 air squats and 35 burpees to pull-ups, all limited to 60 minutes, preferably. The Coast Guard Foundation recognizes that people can remember cherished ones in many ways and exercising through sweat and effort is a minor sacrifice to honor those who made the ultimate one. Since 2012, the Workout to Remember has raised more than $20,000 for the Coast Guard Foundation’s Fallen Heroes Scholarship Fund. The foundation began in 1969 and partners with the Coast Guard to provide resources to members and families that build resilience and strengthen the entire community. If you are interested in participating in this year’s event by gathering together in small or large groups wherever you are or you want to learn more, click here. You can also call 860-535-0786.
Coast Guard Mutual Assistance (CGMA) funding helped Coast Guard families during recent water contamination at Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickman. CGMA provided more than $130,000 in assistance to 222 Coast Guard families affected by water contamination at Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickman at the close of 2021. CGMA gave $600 grants which covered immediate and out-of-pocket expenses. “Having been stationed on Oahu, I know first-hand the importance of military housing in areas like this,” said CGMA Chief Executive Officer Cari Thomas, also a Coast Guard rear admiral (retired). “We are grateful to have helped over 200 families and will supplement the Coast Guard’s efforts wherever we can.”
Jan. 11 marked the birthday of ‘The Father of the Coast Guard.’ Alexander Hamilton was born 267 years ago. He was an accomplished soldier, lawyer, scholar, economist, founding father of the United States, member of Congress, and the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. He recognized that our newly-formed nation needed a way to protect our shores and combat smugglers seeking to avoid paying import tariffs. He advised Congress to build a fleet of 10 cutters to help direct ships to specific ports of entry along the East Coast. Congress adopted Hamilton’s plan on Aug. 4, 1790 and the Coast Guard celebrates this as its birth date. Hamilton’s small fleet helped establish a revenue marine—later known as the Revenue Cutter Service, which was the precursor to the Coast Guard.