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Guam Seabees Celebrate 71st Birthday

Navy News Service

Story Number: NNS130320-04
3/20/2013

By Shaina Marie Santos, Joint Region Marianas Public Affairs

TUMON, Guam (NNS) -- Service members from the Navy, Air Force, Army and Marines gathered in an explosion of enthusiasm and pride to celebrate the Seabee's 71st birthday during this year's Seabee Ball at the Hotel Nikko Guam in Tumon March 16.

The event paid homage to the Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB), or Seabees, Civil Engineer Corps and Naval Facilities Engineering Command's (NAVFAC) rich histories with the theme, 'Preserving our past, forging our future.'

Rear Adm. Tilghman Payne, Commander, Joint Region Marianas, highlighted the significance of celebrations, such as the Seabee Ball, which uphold an organization's history.

'Preserving your history is important because the history of an organization is what forms the culture,' he said. 'It's what forms the reputation. It's the legacy of all those who have gone before.'

Capt. John Heckmann, NAVFAC Marianas commanding officer, echoed Payne's remarks and added that the celebration of the Navy's history connects today's Seabees and Sailors with their past.

'Having anniversaries like this give us a sense of belonging and a connection to our predecessors, and those predecessors are very important to us,' he said. 'Because that's a legacy we want to continue as we go into the future.'

Heckmann also highlighted that the event was not exclusive to the Navy, but also included other branches in their celebration. Recently, the Army's 84th Engineer Battalion (EN BN) took control of Camp Covington on U.S. Naval Base Guam and became the first Army battalion to be stationed at the camp.

'We have a large contingent of Army engineers here,' he said. 'I'm very happy to see that joint atmosphere of military engineers coming together tonight to help us celebrate.'

84th EN BN Sgt. Clarissa Wood said the ball was a great opportunity to share the camaraderie of the Navy and Army.

'I think it's a really good experience for us to unwind with the Navy since we've been working so hard with them,' she said. 'It's kind of nice to decompress from all the work load we have going on.'

Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 5 Construction Mechanic 3rd Class Derek Ellis said he appreciated his first Seabee Ball.

'I joined to be a Seabee,' he said. 'So being here, representing the Seabees is a great opportunity for me, I really enjoy it.'

Heckmann said he hoped for all Seabees to enjoy their day in celebration of their history and hard work.

'We worked very hard throughout the year, so having this opportunity to stop and pause all our work events, and just go out and celebrate the legacy and the traditions that we have is very important to us,' he said. 'Happy birthday all the Seabees, happy birthday to all the civil engineer corps officers and finally, happy birthday to all the NAVFAC professionals out there, we've earned an evening to celebrate.'

For more news from U.S. Naval Forces, Marianas, visit www.navy.mil/local/guam/.