By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Theodore Quintana, Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs
SASEBO, Japan – A Pittsburgh native and 2013 Gateway High School graduate is serving in
Seaman Melissa Adams is a undesignated seaman aboard the amphibious assault ship operating out of Sasebo, Japan.
A Navy undesignated seaman is responsible for maintaining the material readiness of the ship.
Adams is proud to serve in the Pacific and fondly recalls memories of Pittsburgh.
“I feel like I grew a lot more since joining the Navy,” said Adams. “I feel like I am more of the person that my sisters could look up to. I can teach them the adult responsibilities that I learned since joining the Navy.”
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 1986, Germantown is the second Navy ship named after the Revolutionary War Battle of Germantown. With a crew of more than 900 sailors and Marines, Germantown is 609 feet long and weighs approximately 16,000 tons. Designed specifically to operate landing craft air cushion small craft vessels, Whidbey Island-class dock landing ships have the largest capacity for these landing craft out of any U.S. Navy amphibious ship.
“Being forward deployed is what I signed up for and I like the diversity of my command,” said Adams. “The Navy teaches you to act like an adult and take responsibility for your actions.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Adams and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“Serving in the Navy I feel like I am a part of something bigger, I feel like I have a purpose in life,” said Adams.
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.