THE HEART OF THE NAVY

blockade hunger cold earthquake evacuation blood mercy and the helping hand or the kids to the four corners of the earth goes the United States Navy a navy trained in the split-second timing of battle and taking part in the business of protecting our interests in this country and on the sea lanes of the world this navy is made up of thousands of men from every walk of life from the city the town the shop the wealthy and the poor together in work in their mission of peace and at play these men make up the United States Navy and although much time is taken up with the duties of a massive Navy on the move there is always enough time in between to extend a helping hand to the people throughout the world who are the victims of war or the rages of nature in 1948 the Cold War tightened its grip on the split city of Berlin Germany supplies were cut off by the communists in the Eastern zone no trucks or railroad trains were allowed to go through into the Western Zone people were without food then from across the Atlantic came the ships of the United States Navy loaded with food and fuel for the people of Berlin's Western Zone supplies were transferred to the large cargo aircraft from the shore planes took off every few minutes for the Overland flight then so began the Berlin Airlift hundreds of Navy and Air Force planes rock clothes food and fuel again and again the planes roared over the city blended unloaded the needed items stowed inside and started back for another group of supplies food and milk were flown in Navy planes each brought 23 tons of coal a day into Berlin by air and the children were remembered to as a characteristic hello from the American servicemen to children throughout the world candy this time dropped from the belly of a plane on an otherwise deadly serious mission the efforts of top ranking officers and the men on whom they must depend the cooperation abilities and heart of these men as they extended the helping hand of freedom made possible the Berlin Airlift during the winter of 1949 deep blankets of snow suddenly covered the fertile plains of the southwestern United States power lines were down there was no way to rescue thousands of cattle caught in the blizzard while grazing on the plains and now cut off from food supplies for miles across the Prairie nothing moved in the hush of deep snow the loss of these cattle meant thousands of dollars to farmers and ranchers a supply of beef to the entire country once more American ingenuity and the helping hands of the American Navy proved itself within hours hundreds of bales of hay were being loaded aboard Navy plane there were last-minute instructions maps to be checked the location of the herds established then the planes to vault over the Arizona very flying low the cattle were sighted the crew prepares the hay and the fails were dropped to the hungry cattle marooned in the snow below the next day was the same more hey more feed until the farmers could get to their cattle this was operation Snowbird with services rendered eagerly and well by some of the thousands of men who make up the United States Navy during the summer of nineteen fifty-three beginning on August tonight and continuing intermittently for three days violent earthquakes devastated the southern ionian islands of cephalonia Zen tea and Ithaca destroyed beyond hope with the towns of August ollie xanthi ligurian and bothy as well as most of the villages on these three islands more than 93,000 people were made homeless casualties mounted to 424 killed nearly 1,000 injured more than 25,000 homes were completely destroyed and 4,000 bore destroyed beyond repair rescue procedures and medical relief went into operation by the ships and then from the United States 6th fleet heading the 10 United States ships was the heavy cruisers Salem flagship of the 6th fleet and the carrier Franklin D Roosevelt during this emergency Greek citizens who had lost their homes and most of their positions were clothed and fed by the Navy thankful smiles of appreciation bridged the language barrier between Greek and American the 6th the injured the old all were Jett be careful needed supplies were unloaded onto the Greek shores by Navy men and gradually Porter came back with a little island off the facebook on August night 9054 the South Vietnam premier s and the United States readily agreed to help evacuate from the northern Vietnam area Vietnamese citizens this area as a result of the Geneva ceasefire went to the communist-led Viet Minh these people were not military but civilians fleeing from the Communists as this passage to freedom got underway the American sailors took another step in winning the competence of the Vietnamese as no amount of broadcasting or free military equipment could do the genuine smile of the American blue jacket was all that was needed by sep tember 17th US Navy vessels had taken 100,000 civilian refugees to South Vietnam altogether more than 400,000 civilian refugees including dependence of Vietnamese military personnel were transported from communist slavery to the freedom of South Vietnam it was the same story at Hanoi Indochina in 1954 yet the people out and moved to a safe harbor where they will have the chance to begin again the passage to freedom will long be remembered by the peoples of Southeast Asia the greatest zenith in the world's history show these people that the free world is with them in their stand against communism storms to take their toll during October of 1955 thousands of hurricane ravaged people in Mexico were saved from the brink of flood disaster through the emergency relief efforts of ships of the atlantic fleet and navy helicopters diverted from their regular operations the Navy rushed to hard-hit areas in the Caribbean on the heels of Hurricane Janet the US Navy was credited with saving many lives with rescue helicopters medical supplies and emergency rations during the emergency helicopters from the United States Navy ships brought food to critical areas this became a routine job for the men flying the whirlybird and the assistants continued until the torrential rains had passed and the floodwaters receded grateful Mexicans looked forward to the landing of the great helicopter loaded with needed medical and food supplies this was the worst flood Mexico had experienced in many years through the quick thinking and materials available to the United States Navy it was possible to help the people of Mexico during this flood many hundreds of people were saved from injury and hunger once for the men of the United States Navy had made friends while extending help when the need was so great American servicemen the world over are exactly the same in their fondness for children the tradition of looking after the kid also takes shape in navy parties no matter what the holiday at all naval establishments and on board all Navy ships in port these parties take place all over the world from Yokosuka to New York it's a foregone conclusion that sailors can't miss his kids and kids can't resist sailors whenever there's a youngster in a tough spot the u.s. blue jacket or Marine is always ready to put out his hand in support among the desolate Hills so recently covered with battle is an orphanage where some of the many children who lost their parents in the harrowing days of war are once more learning the security and comfort of regular meals and a roof over their heads here at the orphanage of Eden in Korea there are swings playgrounds and tie and supervision these are the children who live at the orphanage of Eden entertaining their visitors with a round of songs the clothes the children are wearing were sent by many different men of the fleet who each year bundled together clothing of every size and color during a visit to Incheon Korea sailors of one ship distributed more than 12 tons of winter clothing food and medicine to Korean orphans other relief materials were delivered amounting to a hundred and seventy two barrels of clothing blankets and soap and three thousand dollars in medicine it is all part of the little-known side of this far ranging fighting force lending comfort and happiness to the destitute people of the world these people had to flee from their Korean homes immediately in front of the North Korean communists Ansan these found their homes in all positions swept away before their eyes by floods the Greek people found the walls of their homes crumbling about them when earthquakes struck the Greek islands during the summer of nineteen fifty three but on each occasion the largest Navy in the world spent the time and energy necessary to give these people another chance at a free life safety and comfort sufficient gratitude is expressed by the slow smiles in the faces of hundreds of children their parents and of the very old this is thanks enough for the American sailors who do the job the men who make up the heart of the Navy