SASEBO, Japan – A Philadelphia native and 2016 Cheltenham High School graduate is serving in the U.S. Navy with the forward-deployed unit, Naval Beach Unit 7.
Seaman Apprentice Leticia Goode is a culinary specialist operating in Sasebo, Japan.
A Navy culinary specialist is responsible for operating kitchen and dining facilities, budgeting for food service management and ensuring morale aboard the ship.
Goode is proud to serve in the Pacific and fondly recalls memories of Philadelphia.
“I learned to stay focused from my high school. You can’t get distracted by the small things because the small things can become big things eventually,” said Goode. “There were so many times that I wanted to quit things, but why quit things so small. My mom always told me to never get too comfortable with things.”
Goode thus far is proud of her job. It is what keeps her going in life. She strives to be the best she can be to support the overall mission.
Moments like that makes it worth serving around the world ready at all times to defend America’s interests. With more than 50 percent of the world's shipping tonnage and a third of the world's crude oil passing through the region, the United States has historic and enduring interests in this part of the world. The Navy's presence in Sasebo is part of that long-standing commitment, explained Navy officials.
Commissioned in August of 2012, Naval Beach Unit 7 was formed to combine the three forward deployed naval forces detachments in Japan.
Personnel from the command are responsible manning and operating either the landing craft—such as the landing craft air cushion or the landing craft utility—or manage landing operations from the beach.
NBU 7 landing craft serve an important function for the Amphibious Force 7th Fleet in being able to move personnel and equipment from ship to shore.
“Being out here is a big push, long days and long nights to get LCACs and LCUs up and running and out the door,” said Goode. “You feel good that you’re a part of getting the boats out and contributing to the mission. I’m a much better person since joining the Navy. I’ve humbled myself so much. I’ve made the little things not bother me. Things that I thought were impossible, being in the Navy makes them seem possible.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Goode and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“I love going out to sea with LCUs. I like the togetherness, it’s like a family when underway, everyone’s looking out for each other,” said Goode. “I love cooking for everyone. They compliment me on my food. It makes me proud to be a culinary specialist when I cook.”
Seventh Fleet, which is celebrating its 75th year in 2018, spans more than 124 million square kilometers, stretching from the International Date Line to the India/Pakistan border; and from the Kuril Islands in the North to the Antarctic in the South. Seventh Fleet's area of operation encompasses 36 maritime countries and 50 percent of the world’s population with between 50-70 U.S. ships and submarines, 140 aircraft, and approximately 20,000 sailors in the 7th Fleet.