NORFOLK, Va. - Petty Officer 2nd Class Felicia O'Lay, a native of Bradford, Pennsylvania, serves aboard USS Gerald R. Ford, homeported in Norfolk, Virginia.
O'Lay graduated from Bradford Area High School in 2013.
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Bradford.
“At home, I learned hard work pays off, just like it does in the Navy,” said O'Lay. “Balancing and managing two work centers while completing my maintenance is challenging, but rewarding.”
O'Lay joined the Navy nine years ago. Today, O'Lay serves as an interior communications electrician.
“I joined the Navy to better myself and to serve my country,” said O'Lay. “I've been deployed four times and participated in worldwide conflicts. All of this has helped me grow as a person and a leader.”
The crew recently completed an eight-month deployment, which was the first deployment for the Navy’s newest aircraft carrier.
The Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group was extended 76 days following the outbreak of conflict in Israel and operated in the Mediterranean Sea to deter further escalation and support Israel in its right to self-defense.
While in the Mediterranean, the carrier strike group participated in and supported numerous multinational exercises and vigilance activities to increase NATO capability and deter aggression in the region. The carrier visited ports in Croatia, Greece, Italy, Norway and Türkiye. Other ships in the strike group visited Belgium, Cyprus, Montenegro, Spain, and Sweden.
“The Gerald R. Ford is everything our nation hoped it would be, and more. I am so proud of the crew, who breathed life into the world’s most technologically advanced warship and stood the watch in defense of our national interests,” said Capt. Rick Burgess, Gerald R. Ford’s commanding officer. “Though extended, we were the right ship at the right time to answer the call, and our sailors performed admirably. Ford sailors honored our namesake’s legacies of hard work, integrity, and courage.”
In 239 days underway, the ship’s crew conducted 43 underway replenishments, logged more than 17,826 flight hours and 10,396 sorties, sailed more than 83,476 nautical miles, and safely transferred 20.7 million gallons of fuel with zero mishaps. The Ford crew conducted 33,444 flight deck moves, 3,124 hangar bay aircraft moves, 2,883 aircraft elevator moves, 16,351 aircraft fueling evolutions, and transferred 8,850 pallets of cargo and mail. The Gerald R. Ford culinary team prepared and served 3.1 million meals, which included approximately 48,000 dozen eggs, 24,000 gallons of milk, 131,000 hamburgers, 367,000 pounds of chicken, and Gerald R. Ford’s favorite, 79,000 chocolate chip cookies.
With 90% of global commerce traveling by sea and access to the internet relying on the security of undersea fiber optic cables, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity of the United States is directly linked to recruiting and retaining talented people from across the rich fabric of America.
O'Lay serves a Navy that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation's prosperity and security.
"We will earn and reinforce the trust and confidence of the American people every day," said Adm. Lisa Franchetti, chief of naval operations. "Together we will deliver the Navy the nation needs."
O'Lay has many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during military service.
“I'm proud of how far I've come. I came into the Navy as an E-1 and was promoted to E-5 in five years and now, in my ninth year, I'm up for promotion again,” said O'Lay. “More important than my accomplishments is how proud it makes me to see the people I trained have success.”
O'Lay can take pride in serving America through military service.
“Serving in the Navy means I have a chance every day to continue bettering myself,” said O'Lay. “It means even more when I can help other sailors do the same.”
O'Lay is grateful to others for helping make a Navy career possible.
“There was a retired master chief that made sure the recruiter gave me the straight story and explained things to me that I wouldn't have otherwise understood,” added O'Lay. “My parents, Nicole Gamet and Douglas Stroup, have always supported my decision to serve and that means the world to me.”