PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii - Petty Officer 2nd Class Maria Cervantes, a native of South Sioux City, Nebraska, 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 3rd Class Marissa Johnson |
Cervantes graduated from West High School in 2014.
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in South Sioux City.
“I learned to be optimistic because my hometown didn't always have a lot going on,” said Cervantes. "I always tried to find things for my sister and me to do. In the Navy, we have long hours and sometimes it starts to drag, so I try to bring some fun to the work and lighten things up."
Cervantes joined the Navy seven years ago. Today, Cervantes serves as a yeoman.
“I joined the Navy because I wanted to be independent and I wanted to travel,” said Cervantes. "I had a chance to be stationed in Japan when I first joined and I can't wait to go back there."
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.
Cervantes plays an important role in the exercise.
“This is my first RIMPAC and it is pretty amazing,” said Cervantes. "It's great to see all of these different countries in one location working toward the same goal."
Cervantes serves a Navy that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation's prosperity and security.
“Serving in the Navy means I am my own person,” said Cervantes. "I know that since I've been serving I have become stronger and more independent."
Cervantes is grateful to others for helping make a Navy career possible.
“I want to thank my mom, Maria, and my sister, Guadalupe, for supporting me in my career, even though it took me far away,” added Cervantes.
“I am looking at staying in the Navy until I can retire,” said Cervantes."I also want to finish my human resources degree that I began at my last command."
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/