PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii - Seaman Apprentice Rocio Zavala-Ramirez, a native of Sacramento, California, serves aboard USS Carl Vinson, a U.S. Navy warship operating out of San Diego, California, and participating in the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in and around the Hawaiian Islands.
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| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Isaiah Williams |
Zavala-Ramirez graduated from Grant Union High School in 2021.
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Sacramento.
“While in my hometown, my dad, a hard worker, taught me the value of diligence, and my mom taught me empathy, communication, and networking. These lessons have been instrumental in my job,” said Zavala-Ramirez. "My hometown also taught me that it is okay to fail because failure is an opportunity to learn, as my teachers taught me."
Zavala-Ramirez joined the Navy one year ago. Today, Zavala-Ramirez serves as a mass communication specialist.
“I joined the Navy because I wanted more direction for my career and a clearer life purpose,” said Zavala-Ramirez. "I was working at Costco and realized I didn’t want to do that for the rest of my life. I wanted to pursue something bigger than myself, so I decided to join the Navy."
As the world’s largest international maritime exercise, approximately 29 nations, 40 surface ships, three submarines, 14 national land forces, over 150 aircraft and more than 25,000 personnel will participate in RIMPAC 2024. This exercise provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring safety at sea and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2024 marks the 29th exercise in a series that began in 1971.
The theme of RIMPAC 2024 is “Partners: Integrated and Prepared.” The participating nations and forces exercise a wide range of capabilities and demonstrate the inherent flexibility of maritime forces. These capabilities range from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting. The relevant, realistic training program includes, gunnery, missile, anti-submarine and air defense exercises, as well as amphibious, counter-piracy, mine clearance operations, explosive ordnance disposal and diving and salvage operations.
Zavala-Ramirez plays an important role in the exercise.
“During RIMPAC, my role is to document and display the significance of our international partnerships,” said Zavala-Ramirez. "I think it's beneficial to hold exercises and events with other nations. I covered a sports competition between the U.S. and New Zealand. I felt it helped connect people from these nations personally, building bonds and strengthening our alliances."
Zavala-Ramirez serves a Navy that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation's prosperity and security.
“Being in the Navy makes me proud to serve my country. Playing a role in something as significant as this gives me a sense of purpose,” said Zavala-Ramirez. "Every job has its importance, and what I do and who I serve has provided me with valuable learning experiences that I am grateful for."
Zavala-Ramirez is grateful to others for helping make a Navy career possible.
“I would like to thank my recruiter, Terence Litton. As a first-generation military member with no one in my family familiar with what I was signing up for, he provided me with a lot of information about the jobs and coached me well on what to study and ex,” said Zavala-Ramirez. "I also want to thank my family for supporting me in my journey. Although they were worried at first, their calls and letters helped me a lot in adjusting to a new environment. Additionally, I would like to thank my fiancé for his unwavering support and reassurance. His experience in the Navy and supportive words and advice helped me get through hard times."
Zavala-Ramirez offered words of advice for those considering joining the military.
“If you're going to join, be 100% sure of it. Do it because you want to, not because someone else told you to.,” added Zavala-Ramirez."It has to be your decision. Prepare for all tests diligently."
Hosted by Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, RIMPAC 2024 will be led by Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet, Vice Adm. John Wade, who will serve as Combined Task Force (CTF) commander. For the first time in RIMPAC history, a member of the Chilean Navy, Commodore Alberto Guerrero, will serve as deputy commander of the CTF. Rear Adm. Kazushi Yokota of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force will serve as vice commander. Other key leaders of the multinational force will include Commodore Kristjan Monaghan of Canada, who will command the maritime component, and Air Commodore Louise Desjardins of Australia, who will command the air component.
During RIMPAC, a network of capable, adaptive partners train and operate together in order to strengthen their collective forces and promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. RIMPAC 2024 contributes to the increased interoperability, resiliency and agility needed by the Joint and Combined Force to deter and defeat aggression by major powers across all domains and levels of conflict.
More information about RIMPAC is available here: https://www.cpf.navy.mil/RIMPAC/