2
The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 1 | Thursday, September 16, 2021
Information Systems Technician 2nd Class, Martin Lavelle, holds a box of donated food on the last day of Naval Station Norfolk’s Feds Feed Families food drive. 2021 marked the 12th annual food drive event hosted by the NAVSTA Norfolk Chapel. (MC2 EMILY CASAVANT)
Naval Station Norfolk celebrates 12th annual food drive By Operation Specialist 2 nd Class Yelayza Rivera Torres Naval Station Norfolk Public Affairs
NAVAL STATION NORFOLK — Tuesday, August 31, 2021 marked the end of Naval Station Norfolk’s annual Feds Feed Families food drive for 2021. The event began June 13th and was organized by the staff at the Naval Station Norfolk Chapel. The annual food drive was established in 2009 and every year it runs from the middle of summer through the end of August. This 12-year tradition has been a labor of love from NAVSTA Norfolk with the goal of
giving back to the community of Hampton Roads and surrounding areas southeast of Norfolk. “The goal from the beginning was to collect as many meals as possible,” said Information Systems Technician 2nd Class, Martin Lavelle, who coordinated this year’s event and helped with last year’s food drive as well. This year, COVID did not stop IT2 from continuing the Chapel’s tradition. Every week on Wednesday and Thursday, IT2, with the help of Sailors from NAVSTA’s Transient Personnel Unit, would collect food donations from boxes placed at different drop off
points around the base. The areas included the Norfolk Navy Exchange (NEX), Mini NEX’s, the Commissary and other buildings throughout the NAVSTA Norfolk. “Our current Leading Petty Officer was on maternity leave and I felt like someone needed to step up and handle the challenge,” said IT2, when asked by his chain of command if he could lead this year’s food drive. “So I went ahead and took some weight off the shoulders of RP1 [Religious Program Specialist 1st Class] to help the community.” IT2 Lavelle’s first time coordinating the event was more than successful, collecting
7,367 pounds of food, equalling about 4,911 meals for the community. Last year, during 2020, only 20 pounds of food was donated due to low staffing and other effects of COVID-19, making this year’s large collection even more monumental. The Chapel at NAVSTA Norfolk does many other events to help and assist the community, such as holding an annual toy drive for Christmas where they collect toys and donate them to those families in need with kids, a holiday assistance program that takes place in the months of November and December, where they give junior Sailors gift cards so they can buy meals and other needs for the holidays. “We love helping our junior Sailors,” said Religious Program Specialist 1st, Class Christopher Atwood. “This can be the first time away from home for them. Being there for them is about making their time here a little better.” For more info contact the Franzier Hall (chapel) administration at 757-444-7361
Navy posthumously advances Sailor killed in Afghanistan By Office Of The Secretary Of The Navy WASHINGTON - As a result of his brave actions in support of fellow service members, the Navy posthumously advanced Navy Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak to the rank of Hospital Corpsman Third Class. He was also awarded the Purple Heart and Fleet Marine Force Corpsman warfare badge. Soviak, a Berlin Heights, Ohio native, who was assigned to the 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, was killed Aug. 26 during an attack at the Abbey Gate of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan while supporting Operation Allies Refuge. “Petty Officer Soviak gave the ultimate sacrifice in service to this country,” said The Honorable Carlos Del Toro, Secretary of the Navy. “While this promotion and the Fleet Marine Force Corpsman warfare badge are awarded posthumously, I have no doubt his dedication to this nation, his displayed skill as a Hospital Corpsman, and devotion to the mission at hand warrant this recognition.”
WASHINGTON (Aug. 28, 2021) An undated portrait of Navy Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak during recruit training released by his family. (COURTESY PHOTO)
Editorial Staff Military Editor | MC1 Maddelin Hamm, maddelin.hamm@navy.mil Managing Editor | Ensign James Caliva, james.caliva@navy.mil Graphic Designer | Trisha Irving, trisha.irving@virginiamedia.com
Flagship, Inc.
MNV Military Manager | Ski Miller, ski.miller@virginiamedia.com Advertising Inquiries | Ski Miller, ski.miller@virginiamedia.com Free Classified Advertising, 757-622-1455 Distribution/Home Delivery, Distribution@pilotonline.com
Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic (CNRMA): Rear Adm Charles W.“Chip”Rock Regional program manager for Navy Region Mid-Atlantic (NRMA): Public Affairs Director | Beth Baker The Flagship® is published by Flagship, Inc., a private firm in no way connected with the Department of Defense (DOD) or the United States Navy, under exclusive written contract with Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic. This civilian enterprise newspaper is an authorized publication for members of the military services. Contents of the paper, including advertisements, are not necessarily the official views of, nor endorsed by, the U.S. Government, DOD, or the Department of the Navy (DON). The appearance of advertising in this publication, including inserts and supplements, does not constitute endorsement by the DOD; DON; Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic or Flagship, Inc. of the products or services advertised. Everything advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase,use, or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, marital status, physical handicap, political affiliation, or any other non-merit factor of the purchaser, user, or patron. If a violation or rejection of this equal opportunity policy by an advertiser is confirmed, the publisher shall refuse to print advertising from that source until the violation is corrected. Editorial content is edited, prepared and provided by the Public Affairs Department of Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic. Stories may be submitted via email to news@flagshipnews.com. The Flagship® is published every Thursday by Flagship, Inc., whose mailing address is located at PO Box 282501, Norfolk, Va. 23510. © 2021Flagship, Inc. All rights reserved