II MEF News

U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Glenn Hainey, assigned to Navy Medicine Training Support Center, is presented the 2023 Capt. Joan Dooling Award “Information Professional Enlisted Member of the Year” by Dr. Michael McGinnis, the executive director for U.S. Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, at the 2024 Defense Health Information Technology Symposium in Dallas, Texas, Aug. 20, 2024. The Dooling Award is the ultimate recognition of professional achievement and accomplishment for deserving members of the Navy Medicine Enterprise information management and information technology community. - U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Glenn Hainey, assigned to Navy Medicine Training Support Center, is presented the 2023 Capt. Joan Dooling Award “Information Professional Enlisted Member of the Year” by Dr. Michael McGinnis, the executive director for U.S. Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, at the 2024 Defense Health Information Technology Symposium in Dallas, Texas, Aug. 20, 2024. The Dooling Award is the ultimate recognition of professional achievement and accomplishment for deserving members of the Navy Medicine Enterprise information management and information technology community.

U.S. Navy Corpsman Receives Dooling Award

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- Hospital Corpsman Second Class Glenn Hainey, a hospital

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City Bus Route Offers Patrons Affordable Transportation between Camp Lejeune and Jacksonville - Scarlett Express Bus Route Schedule, Jacksonville, North Carolina.

City Bus Route Offers Patrons Affordable Transportation between Camp Lejeune and Jacksonville

Jacksonville Transit’s Scarlet Express bus route was created to improve the quality of life for

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Servicemembers with 1st Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment, 2d MARDIV were awarded a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal for rendering aid to a Marine during a live fire exercise, ultimately saving his life. - A U.S. Marine and Sailors with 1st Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment, 2d Marine Division, stand-by to be awarded a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal on Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California, Aug. 11, 2024. Servicemembers were awarded for rendering aid to a Marine during a live fire exercise, ultimately saving his life. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Weston Lindstrom)

Marine and Sailors Awarded for Saving Marine's Life

MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER TWENTYNINE PALMS, CA. – One Marine and three sailors were

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II Marine Expeditionary Force: Ready for a New Challenge as a Joint Task Force Headquarters

A key transformational step in the Marine Corps’ journey of Force Design occurred in early July at

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Military Tropical Medicine Program - Military Tropical Medicine Program

2nd MLG Sailors Learn Military Tropical Medicine Abroad

During the month of August, U.S. Navy LT Jane Njenga, a critical care nurse, and LT Lauren Kalodner,

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Captain Jason Kellam's three Marine Corps lives: Service as an enlisted Marine, warrant officer and limited duty officer

U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Jason Kellam serves in the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW) as the assistant operations officer in the G-6 communications section. Throughout his twenty-year career he served first as an enlisted Marine, earning the rank of staff sergeant, then commissioned into the warrant officer program, earning the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 3. He now serves as a limited duty officer (LDO) at the rank of Captain. For Kellam, leading within each rank structure came not only with different expectations, but also provided different opportunities. Kellam initially considered joining the Marine Corps during his senior year in high school. Unsure of which jobs were available, at first he decided against joining. Later, faced with a growing family, he decided to enlist with a signing bonus into the 2841 military occupational specialty (MOS), ground radio repairer, now called ground electronics transmission systems maintainer. His early enlisted years included a deployment to Iraq as a member of a provisional rifle company, which in part inspired him to reenlist. "Other reasons that helped [me] to make the decision was that it was 2008, the housing market and economy had crashed, unemployment was high, and the Marine Corps was offering me a sizeable bonus, a decent duty station, and four years of employment," said Kellum. After achieving the rank of staff sergeant during his second enlistment and deploying twice to Okinawa with 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment as an electronics maintenance chief, Kellam began considering the Marine Corps warrant officer program. “These were the people in my MOS community that were able to make things happen,” Kellam said. “I enjoy solving complex problems and projects and that’s what warrant officers in my community do.” The warrant officer program is designed to provide the Marine Corps with technical specialists who perform duties that require extensive knowledge of a particular military occupational specialty, and can be assigned successive tours of duty in their primary MOS. After his appointment to Warrant Officer, Kellam was assigned to Communications Company, 4th Marine Division, and served as site support staff. After seeing the positive impacts made on the local community by the Marine Corps, Kellam then decided to request a commission as a limited duty officer (LDO). “Senior chief warrant officers in my MOS tend to stay more technically engaged with equipment specifics,” said Kellam. “LDOs tend to become more engaged with policies and procedures and also have opportunities to be company commanders.” Kellam decided to go the LDO route because he enjoyed working on large scale projects and leading Marines. The Marine Corps LDO program is designed to provide technically oriented officers to perform duties that are limited to specific occupational specialties, require authority and responsibility greater than that normally expected of a warrant officer, require strong managerial skills, and are outside the normal development pattern for unrestricted officers or for which no unrestricted officers are available. “It was rewarding to help young Marines develop new skills and mentor them in as many areas as I could,” Kellam said. “I realized that the scope of impact would be much larger as a limited duty officer and it is one of the things I’ve tremendously enjoyed, influencing Marines and having an impact on what we do and how we do it.” Since becoming an LDO and serving as a Captain, Kellam has been able to provide an even wider influence both within 2nd MAW and across his occupational field. Twice each year, Kellam participates in the ground electronics maintenance advisory group, a Marine Corps-wide event in which senior leaders and available ranks from the community gather to deliver updates, discuss issues, and work on projects regarding topics of interest to the community. Through this venue, Kellam is able to collaborate with representatives from 1st and 3rd MAWs on topics that affect communication systems maintenance across the Marine Corps. After twenty years of service, each day Capt. Kellam uses the lessons learned and skillsets he gained within three unique rank communities to support 2nd MAW's mission.

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U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Vradley Cerna, from Texas, a digital wideband systems maintainer with Marine Wing Communications Squadron (MWCS) 28, tests tele-maintenance capabilities at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, Aug. 21, 2024. Marine Depot Maintenance Command is experimenting with augmented reality technology as part of its effort to modernize its maintenance capabilities from industrial-era practices to technologies suitable and capable of meeting the demands of the Information Age. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Orlanys Diaz Figueroa) - U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Vradley Cerna, from Texas, a digital wideband systems maintainer with Marine Wing Communications Squadron (MWCS) 28, tests tele-maintenance capabilities at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, Aug. 21, 2024. Marine Depot Maintenance Command is experimenting with augmented reality technology as part of its effort to modernize its maintenance capabilities from industrial-era practices to technologies suitable and capable of meeting the demands of the Information Age. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Orlanys Diaz Figueroa)

Revolutionizing Marine Corps Maintenance with AR/VR Technology

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality are set to play pivotal roles in transforming tele-maintenance operations, ensuring that maintainers are always available to support the Marine on any front at any time.

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II Marine Expeditionary Force: Ready for a New Challenge as a Joint Task Force Headquarters

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, NC — A key transformational step in the Marine Corps’ journey of Force Design occurred in early July at the II Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF) headquarters in Camp Lejeune. During a visit by the Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Eric M. Smith, II MEF was officially validated as a Joint Task Force – Capable (JTF-C) headquarters on June 10, 2024. This milestone means II MEF is now ready to lead and coordinate complex operations involving different branches of the U.S. military and allied forces.

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U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Ryan Leblanc, a squad leader with 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2d Marine Division, holds a wreath during a ceremony at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, Belleau, France, May 26, 2024. The memorial ceremony was held in commemoration of the 106th anniversary of the battle of Belleau Wood, conducted to honor the legacy of service members who gave their lives in defense of the United States and European allies. (U.S. Marine Corps photo illustration by Sgt. Alexa M. Hernandez) - U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Ryan Leblanc, a squad leader with 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2d Marine Division, holds a wreath during a ceremony at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, Belleau, France, May 26, 2024. The memorial ceremony was held in commemoration of the 106th anniversary of the battle of Belleau Wood, conducted to honor the legacy of service members who gave their lives in defense of the United States and European allies. (U.S. Marine Corps photo illustration by Sgt. Alexa M. Hernandez)

A Legacy Remembered: 2d Marine Division Returns to Belleau Wood

Belleau, France – Every year, during Memorial Day weekend, a ceremony is held in Belleau, France to honor the legacy of fallen American service members who fought in the Battle of Belleau Wood, one of the bloodiest and most brutal battles of the First World War. As a visual reminder of reflection, an American and French flag are flown at half mast above thousands of white marble headstones at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, the final resting place for more than 2,000 American service members.

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Royal Norwegian Navy Chaplain Hans K. Sundsbo holds a Lutheran service for servicemembers aboard the Blue Ridge-class command and control ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) during Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 24 in the Baltic Sea on June 9, 2024. NATO chaplains have been cross-decking between U.S., French, Spanish, and Dutch naval ships to provide religious services for servicemembers and participants of BALTOPS 24, ultimately fulfilling their integral role of enhancing the overall spiritual readiness and well-being of service members while strengthening the bonds between allied nations. BALTOPS 24, the premier maritime-focused exercise in the Baltic Region led by U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa and executed by Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO, provides a unique training opportunity to strengthen combined response capabilities critical to preserving freedom of navigation and security in the Baltic Sea. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Josue Marquez) - Royal Norwegian Navy Chaplain Hans K. Sundsbo holds a Lutheran service for servicemembers aboard the Blue Ridge-class command and control ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) during Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 24 in the Baltic Sea on June 9, 2024. NATO chaplains have been cross-decking between U.S., French, Spanish, and Dutch naval ships to provide religious services for servicemembers and participants of BALTOPS 24, ultimately fulfilling their integral role of enhancing the overall spiritual readiness and well-being of service members while strengthening the bonds between allied nations. BALTOPS 24, the premier maritime-focused exercise in the Baltic Region led by U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa and executed by Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO, provides a unique training opportunity to strengthen combined response capabilities critical to preserving freedom of navigation and security in the Baltic Sea. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Josue Marquez)

NATO Chaplains in BALTOPS 24: Caring for the Many; Caring for the Few; Caring for the One

BALTIC SEA – Chaplains from 12 NATO nations concluded their collaboration during exercise Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 24. This was the largest cooperative chaplaincy effort in NATO to date.

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