On a list of ports of call, it’s unlikely you’ll find Wichita Falls. But not only will that not stop the U.S. Navy from visiting, it’s also sort of the point.
Starting Monday, a different kind of uniformed service member can be seen around Fallstown — sailors. Navy Week, an outreach program of the sea service, will run through Sept. 20 with sailors participating and taking part in a range of community events during that time.
This year will be especially noteworthy as the U.S. Navy celebrates 250 years of service Oct. 13. But while that date will undoubtedly hold a weightier significance in communities like San Diego, Honolulu or Norfolk, in Air Force towns like Wichita Falls it may not make as much of a stir.
Enter Navy Week, which aims to educate otherwise landlocked communities about the naval service and its traditions. And nowhere is more landlocked than North Texas.
“Wichita Falls will be the 10th city we’ve been to in Texas. We’ve been to Texas more than any other state,” said John Hankemeier with the Navy Office of Community Outreach.
If you’re a Navy veteran or have spent an extended amount of time on any of the three coasts, you’re probably familiar with Fleet Week. That’s when Navy ships and their sailors visit a port city, invite the public aboard for tours, hold air shows and promote the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.
Navy Week is similar in spirit, if not in size. Over 60 Sailors, some with ties to Wichita Falls, will participate in educational and community events over the course of the week.
The U.S. Navy Band Northwest and U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard will give performances throughout the week while ceremonial guard presentations and other events will be scheduled individually.
Rear Admiral Alexis Walker will be the senior executive for Navy Week in Wichita Falls. He is the Carrier Strike Group 10 commander, skippering a battle group of at least seven warships, additional support craft and his flagship, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77).
Walker will meet with local businesses, educators and civic and governmental leaders. He will join crewmembers from three Texas namesake ships, the USS Fort Worth (LCS 3), USS Kingsville (LCS 36) and USS Oklahoma (SSN 802) — two littoral combat ships and a nuclear submarine, respectively — to mingle with the public and share their experiences.
“I think the sailors, of course, are the most ‘Navy’ thing we bring,” Hankemeier said. “Just being able to talk about some of those things that you don’t get to hear about directly, like to third or fourth graders, what someone does on a submarine.”
The sailors will also mentor local high school Junior ROTC students, attend the ribbon cutting for the Texas-Oklahoma Fair, visit the 94th Annual Clay County Pioneer Reunion and participate in pre-game and halftime performances as the MSU Texas Mustangs take on Eastern New Mexico University.
Also on hand will be Naval personnel from the U.S. Navy Bureau of Medicine, Naval History and Heritage Command, and sailors from Wichita Falls and the surrounding area returning home.
Wichita Falls’ own Center for Seabees and Facilities Engineering will also be involved in the week, another chance for locals to see and understand the Navy personnel already in their community.
“We like to incorporate some of those local groups that we have when we do Navy Week,” Hankemeier said. “There’s usually maybe a Navy Reserve center, but for Wichita Falls we already have the Sea Bees. We’re hoping to get them out with Habitat for Humanity and some of the other events we have going on.”
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Navy Week sets sail for Wichita Falls with 60 Sailors and a boatload of activities
Reporting by Ronald W. Erdrich, Abilene Reporter-News / Wichita Falls Times Record News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
