VOL. 54 NO. 9 MARCH 5, 2015
SERVING NAVAL AIR STATION OCEANA, DAM NECK ANNEX, AND NALF FENTRESS
Oceana celebrates African-American History Month with two guest speakers
CHANGE OF COMMAND
JET
INSIDE
DAM NECK HOSTS REGIONAL CULINARY COMPETITION
BY AT2 JANEL PERKINS NAS Oceana Public Affairs
—Page 3 NAS Oceana celebrated African-American Heritage Month during a program Feb. 24, with guest speakers, retired Master Sgt. Curt Clarke, president of the Tidewater chapter of the Montford Point Marines Association (MPMA) and E. George Minns, president of Seatack Civic Community League. Both speakers stressed the importance of understanding and honoring not only AfricanAmerican history but also researching the history of each individual’s families. In addition to the two speakers, there was also a presentation highlighting influential African-Americans who have served in the U. S. Navy. Clarke is a descendant of a Montford Point Marine and has been the president of the Tidewater chapter of the MPMA for three years. Clarke also spent some of his Marine Corps career at the at Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit Oceana. Clarke spoke about the history of the Montfort Point Marines and the climate in which they fought for their country. “They fought for their right to fight,” explained Clarke. Montford Point was a segregated boot camp for the first black Marines, located at Camp Lejeune, N.C. It was established after President Roosevelt issued a presidential directive to allow African-Americans to serve in the Marine Corps in 1942. President Harry Truman issued an executive order in 1948 to end the segregation of African-Americans. Before Montford Point was deactivated in — See Heritage month, page 7
Capt. Kit Chope
Capt. Lou Schager Jr.
OCEANA CHANGES COMMAND MARCH 6 From NAS Oceana Public Affairs Capt. Kit Chope, commanding officer of NAS Oceana, will be relieved by Capt. Lou Schager Jr., at a 10 a.m. ceremony, March 6, at the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit Oceana. A native of Winston-Salem, N.C., Chope became the 42nd commanding officer of NAS Oceana on Aug. 16, 2013. He graduated from The Citadel in 1989, was designated a naval flight officer in 1990 and flew the A-6 Intruder and F-14 Tomcat at Oceana. Chope commanded Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 22, flying the Super Hornet from NAS Lemoore in California until 2009. Prior to becoming the executive officer of
NAS Oceana in March 2012, Chope served as the head of aviation junior officer assignments at the Navy Personnel Command in Millington,Tenn. Chope will also be retiring from the Navy during the ceremony Friday. Schager is from Palatine, Ill. and graduated from the Naval Academy in 1990. He earned his wings of gold in 1993 and for the first half of his naval aviation career, flew F-14 Tomcats. In 2006, following the Tomcat sunset, Schager transitioned to F/A-18 Hornets, eventually commanding the “Blue Blasters” of VFA-34 just prior to becoming the executive officer of NAS Oceana in 2013. Schager will be the 43rd commanding officer of NAS Oceana.
CSCSU DAM NECK TRAINS WATCH TEAMS FOR ROMANIA —Page 6
TEEN JOB FAIR Fleet & Family Support Center Oceana and Lincoln Military Housing are co-hosting Teen Job Fair 2015, March 6, 3 - 5 p.m. at Lincoln Military Housing Community Center, 1200 S. Birdneck Road, Virginia Beach. Workshops will include “How to Network a Job Fair” at 3 p.m. and “How to Get Money for College” at 4 p.m. For more information, contact the FFSC at Oceana at 433-2912.