USS Rodney M. Davis returned April 21 to the ship’s home port in Everett following a six-month deployment in the East Pacific in support of counter narco-terrorism.

The ship and crew were welcomed home to the Pacific Northwest with cheers and tears from loved ones awaiting their arrival on the pier.

“This is our first homecoming together,” said Kerra Rausch, wife of Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class (SW/AW) Jason Rausch. “I really couldn’t be more excited right now, this is just amazing. At our last homecoming meeting the drawing for first kiss came up and I almost couldn’t believe it, I never win anything!”

Rodney M. Davis and crew completed their mission with much success, seizing six tons of cocaine and 160 pounds of marijuana, as well as disrupting 18 tons of cocaine and three tons of marijuana shipments. Although this type of deployment may seem different from the ship’s primary mission, it is actually a common one within the frigate community.

Global reach from frigates completing this type of mission has proven to have positive effects for multinational relationships as well as national defense by slowing the flow of illegal drugs into the United States. 

According to Davis’ public affairs office, one of the most significant accomplishments of the ship and crew was the interdiction of two self propelled semi-submersible vessels and two fishing vessels each loaded with contraband.

Crew members also made great strides with community involvement in several of the ports they visited. The crew visited Casita de Mausi, Aldeas Infantiles SOS, as well as Escuela de los Estados Unidos, all in Panama.

“We have made every effort to do community relations projects, in conjunction with Project Handclasp, every time we pull into port,” said Davis public affairs officer, Ensign Tamara Szymanski. “The house mothers cooked us all lunch and we got to spend time with the kids,” she said of the orphanage visit.

From painting a school in Puerta Vallarta to orphanage visits to distribute basic hygiene products in Peru, the crewmembers of the Davis set out to make improvements wherever they could.

Davis is an Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate and named after U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Rodney M. Davis. The ship’s namesake was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism during the Vietnam War.

Commissioned May 9, 1987, the Davis has been home ported in Everett since 2005.