Hello again, this week in our journal we are bringing you news from over 2000 miles away. To put that into perspective ESCANABA has traveled further than the distance from Boston to Denver, Colorado, and we aren't even half way through our trip yet.

The first part of the week proved to be very busy for the crew. Between flying the helicopter, gunnery practice and small boat operations, we were feeling the need for a port call, so our mid-week stop in San Juan, Puerto Rico was a welcome opportunity for some relaxation. We pulled into San Juan at 10 AM Wednesday morning and by noon the crew was out on the town. The port call was highlighted by LTJG Chris Rue's "wetting down" (a party thrown by an officer to celebrate a promotion), and a trip to El Yunque National Forest to hike in the rainforest. San Juan also gave people a chance to use their phones and talk to their loved ones for the first time since leaving Mayport, FL. Even better, BM3 Dayron Lopez, who grew up on Isla de Vieques (only miles from Puerto Rico), got to spend the port call with his fiancé! He wanted me to tell her that "he had an amazing visit, wishes her a happy birthday and can't wait until this summer when he moves down there with her." BM3 Lopez is transferring to station San Juan in June. Overall, the time in San Juan was a great success for the ship.

However, relaxing in San Juan was not the only thing the crew did this week. On Monday ESCANABA conducted training with another Coast Guard ship. The day was spent exchanging personnel, as well as conducting small boat and visual signaling training. A lot of the Coast Guard's success comes from its ability to work with other units and agencies. Working with local, state, federal and even foreign or multi-national authorities greatly increases the Coast Guard's effectiveness, whether we are doing counter narcotics in the South Pacific, fisheries enforcement in the Northeast or search and rescue cases along the Mississippi River. This patrol is the epitome of that sort of cooperation.

On Tuesday we conducted training on the .50 caliber machine guns. This was the first gun shoot of the patrol and was a great opportunity to complete a lot of training. Despite the broiling sun and the long sleeve uniforms worn by the gunners, they seemed to have a lot of fun. GM2 Tom Mullen ended the shoot with a marksmanship demonstration, as he sank the last barrel with an M-16 rifle from a range of several hundred yards.

The final adventure of the week came at about 11:30 on Friday night when the Captain got on the loudspeaker and informed the entire crew that they needed to get out of bed and get moving because were we about to begin a migrant case. This was the first time in nearly three years ESCANABA has been involved with migrants. Only a few senior personnel on board had any experience working with migrants, and no one had recently worked with migrants onboard ESCANABA. Despite the lack of experience the crew stepped up to the challenge and did an incredible job. By about 3 AM, 41 migrants had been rescued from their overloaded boat.

As I close for the week I would like to publicly recognize all the support the families and loved ones of our crew members provides ESCANABA. The smile on a crewmember's face when he gets an email from home is recognizable from across the ship. It is difficult to for those onboard the ship to be gone on patrol for two months at a time. Yet we all know it is that much more difficult for the families, girlfriends and fiancé's back home. It is the backing and support of those families, girlfriends and fiancé's that make our jobs worthwhile. With that thought in mind I'm saying, "Thank you for your continued support and patience."

This week we are putting the "Combat Information Center" (CIC) division in the spotlight. Each week we are going to highlight a different division. The CIC division has been crucial to our mission success thus far. CIC is made up of OSC Lebeouf, OS1 Stravinsky, OS1 Smith, OS2 Macnab, OS3 Newland and OS3 Finch. The following blurb was provided by OSC Leboeuf, the division chief.

“When working in the Combat Information Center, these Coasties are responsible for the Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (C4I) side of the house. Whether dealing with counter narcotics, fisheries, migrant interdiction or search and rescue; these Operations Specialists work with shore side assets, aircraft, surface vessels and electronic information to get the job done."

Shout Outs


Katie, Shawn, and Kevin
I love and miss you all…can't wait for those bike rides to Minot beach!
~Love Dad

To My Minot Beach Friends
I'm very much looking forward to those lazy Sunday afternoons with a few cold cocktails while we listen to the Sox at the beach. All My Best…
~Commander

Pop, Annie, Shawna, and Jessie,
Love you all. Wish you were here. Talk at ya guys again soon, Love ya!
Love, ~Steve

Hey Sarina,
Yo girl whats going on? I'm really excited to see you. Only 30 more days! I'm doing great but I haven't had much sleep lately. I love you and I will talk to you soon. Yup!! Yup!!
Love, ~Tommy

Hey Dawn, I've taken some great pictures, better than what I e-mailed. I'll send from our next stop.
Love, ~me

Nicole, Beanie and Emmy,
I miss you guys so much. I can't wait to see you.
Love, ~Chris / Daddy

Hey Guys,
Hope all is well, and everyone is OK. I can't wait to see you guys again, almost there!
Love, ~Billy

Krasna Lenka,
Have a great trip! You can relax now because Obi is enjoying his time with the food lady. I can't wait to see you again.
Love, ~Mike

Denyell,
You are the best wife and mother that I or our kids could ever hope for. I want you to know that I appreciate all that you do for us. You have the hardest job in the world and you do it better than anyone.

Brynn, Brandon, Bailey & Summer, I think about you every day that I'm gone I miss you and love you. Be good for Mom
Love, ~Pete

Hey Steph, Sweet Pea and Little Man,
Daddy misses you and thinks about you all the time, I'll be home before you know it.
Mom and Dad
Everything good here, hope all is well there.
Love, ~Scott

Hi Mom, Dave, Grandma, Bill and Tom,
See you when I get home.
~Paul

Tina and Joey,
It was great to hear your and Joey's voice this week. We are almost at the halfway point and I am hoping the time goes quickly! Give the baby a kiss from me. I will talk to you soon.
Love, ~Joe

Hi Nai,
Big Daddy is coming home soon.
Signed, Big Daddy

Hey Kevin,
Hope all is well. Thanks for being around so much this week to help out.
With Love, ~Your Crew

Wife,
Love and Miss you to no end. Don't worry I'll be home safe and soon.
Love, ~Chris

Family,
Love and miss you all. We'll talk about my adventures soon.
Love, ~Chris

Hey Mom,
I hope your feeling better. Tell the boys I said HI and I'm going to try to get down there after I get home.
Love and miss you guys, You Son,
~Justin

Mom, Dad and Dave,
I miss you all and can't wait to visit you again. Good luck mom, everything will workout just fine.
I love you!
~Bean

Photos

The ship's 15 passenger van getting hauled away after breaking down on the side of the road on the way to the rainforest in Puerto Rico.

A picture of the 15 passenger van that broke down on the ship's trip to the rainforest.

A view of the rainforest in Puerto Rico.

Another shot of the scenery in El Yunque.

BMC Welsh conns the ship from the bridge wing.

Crewmembers line the front of the bridge to pose for a Kodak moment.

GM2 Mullen communicates with the bridge during the .50 cal gun shoot.

Crewmembers take turns training on the guns.

Crewmembers take turns training on the guns.

CDR Sabellico and BM2 Burke pose on the bridge during the gun shoot.

ENS Tesler runs the show from the bridge during the gun shoot.

BM2 Leger acts a phone talker on the bridge.

A view of Old San Juan during the inbound transit.

The focs'le team gathers and poses for a picture prior to pulling into San Juan.