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Message: Here's a great article I found at www.northwestnavigator.com: -- More than 40 Sailors assigned to USS Emory S. Land (AS 39) Beach Detachment participated in a community relations project at Fort Flagler State Park, Nov. 16. “Today we are renovating historical buildings used for campgrounds and cleaning up Fort Flagler State Park to help preserve this beautiful environment,” said Torpedoman’s Mate 1st Class (SW) Brandi Kelley, volunteer coordinator. “We are volunteering to show that we care about our community and want to help take care of our new home.” Sailors were divided into four groups to work on different sections around the camp grounds. Throughout the day Sailors painted old barracks, and picked up trash around the beach and cleaned up hiking trails. “This is the first ship who has volunteered their time to come out here,” said Jody Maberry, Assistant Area Manager of Fort Flagler State Park. “The Sailors are doing an outstanding job with helping us restore our old buildings and keeping our campgrounds clean. We really needed the extra help and are very appreciative of what they do for our country and our park.” According to Maberry, the campgrounds were used as an Army military base during the World War I, WW II, and the Korean War. “It feels great to be giving back to the community in anyway we can,” said Machinist Mate 2nd Class (SS/SW) Christopher Cales. “This is a wonderful park and I am happy to be part of this volunteer project.” For another Sailor, learning about the parks history was very educational. Fort Flagler State Park is a 784-acre marine camping park surrounded on three sides by 19,100 feet of saltwater shoreline. Many historic buildings remain at this 19th-century-established military fort. “This place holds so much history and it’s great to help keep the campgrounds clean and preserved so that others may continue to visit this historical site,” said Machinist’s Mate Fireman Scott Hansen. For other Sailors, volunteering was a way to build camaraderie. “We are here to do the same mission as a team and I think it’s important for the community to see that we really do care about the environment,” said Machinist’s Mate Fireman Ronald Onchwari. “This builds teamwork with my peers and at the end of it we know we made a difference.” USS Emory S. Land and the rest of its crew is currently in transit to Naval Base Kitsap (NBK), Bremerton from Italy. http://www.northwestnavigator.com/index.php/navigator/regionalnews/emory_land_sailors_lend_hands_at_fort_flagler/