Bon Homme Richard (LHD 6) - Naval Cruise Book

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li it ithe greatest demand, Jones said Bonhomme W , . . . , Ulr',if2 Richard is also assisting the Indonesian New government in assessing Sumatra's infra- HW, structure. Shui 'We are helping them to turn the medical, 1' dental and civic infrastructure back to iesqhg normal, Jones said. 'sr .. . E The ability to quickly put a large amount - 04. ..,,,g.,, . , . ,,,,,,, ,Of U y s i t nc supplies where they need to go is another advantage of the versatility, mobility and reach of naval forces, Jones added. We're a multidimensional ship with the capabilities to influence events ashore, Jones said. ln this case, we're using those capabilities to deliver hope and help to the people of Sumatra. Bonhomme Richard is the flagship of Expe- ditionary Strike Group 5, currently conduct- ing humanitarian relief operations off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. in dw 'fi IW Nl. new mf 0 ,M 4 Q: no i W 1. ,. ll w Marines quickly adapted to their new mission, and thought of many creative ways to provide extra hope and comfort to the people of Sumatra. BHR's Bake Shop made cookies, brownies and cornbread for distribution on the island, and the ship's Sailors and Marines raised more than 310,000 to donate to the Ameri- can Red Cross for their tsunami relief efforts. lt's amazing how the human desire to help was transformed into this mammoth all- hands effort, Jones said. They were literally working around the clock to get the aid where it needed to go, and we got it there. Jones said he was particularly impressed with the ship's response to medical emergency during the final days of the operation, when an American reporter sus- tained a life-threatening injury to her leg. Within two hours of meeting a Marine landing zone ofhcer ashore, she was in BHR's surgical room receiving the best care from some of the best doctors our nation has to offer - Navy surgeons, Jones said. Now she is recovering. The ship's Executive Officer, Capt. Steve Greene, said he was also impressed with the magnitude of the effort. Our Sailors and Marines saw the opportu- nity to contribute to a truly noble cause and they seized the day, Greene said. They worked day and night, planning missions, staging relief supplies, and preparing aircraft and LCACs to deliver humanitarian aid to the people of Meulaboh and Calang. Their efforts were inspirational. BHR's Command Master Chief CMDCM CSWIAWQ Dan Dyar said he saw a renewed sense of determination on the faces of the crew every day the ship operated off the tsunami-stricken coastline of Sumatra. This is a great team of Sailors and Marines, Dyar said. They can do anything, and what they did here was truly incredibIe. Jones said the Navy and Marine Corps team came together on Bonhomme Richard to save lives, mitigate pain and provide hope. They put their hearts into this mission, said Jones, and the results speak for them- selves. 85

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1 x J iii ri J ii l 1 , ll , X ' Y' i if E ' if X FJ A V mi 1 K 1 i I f 1 N, Q K ,J I X A ix 5 YN l ' t X AHOARU USS FJONHUNIME RICHARD, At Sea lNN!5J In support of Operation Unified lwririlzrrrce, the rrrultipurpose amphibious armairlt rihip USS Bonhomme Richard tBHRi IIHD 69 and the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit delivered 102 tons of badly needed irurrrarritarian aid to tsunami victims on the lrrrlormrriarr island of Sumatra Jan, 14, Since Jan. 3, the San Diego-based ship has been flying aboard hundreds of thousands of pounds of disaster relief supplies from both support ships and warehouses in Sumatra rn preparation to deliver it to the hardest hit areas of the island. According to BHR Commanding Officer Capt, J, Scott Jones, the San Diego-based, ship has entered the 'precision assistance stage of operations, I , ., , . 1' in if he if , bd! , fl 'lt'i4 'V!QHMira,--sig: 1 , g ,ttitirl ABOARD USS BONHOMME RICHARD, At Sea tNNSl -- During their nine days of humanitarian assistance operations in support of Operation Unified Assistance, the multipurpose amphlbious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard tBHRi QLHD 67 and the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit QMEUJ deliv- ered more than a million pounds of humani- tarian aid to tsunami survivors on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, Bonhomme Richard concluded operations in the urea, turned over with USS Essex QLHD Bi and steamed toward the U.S. Central Command area ol operations Jan. 18. During Bl-lR's time on station, the San ltrogulnrsr-rl ships embarked helicopters ,rim lnrtlrrrn .'r.rtl, .ur cushion rLCACl .1 1 ,.w , I ,V , . Lg 3 , Y. , . A, , f A 'f ,, , . ' H., 'A '. vf'UW'p' , ' .V , t f V, , .V .,,, hovercraft delivered food, medicine and thousands of gallons of fresh water ashore, helping to save lives, mitigate suffering and prevent the onset of tsunami-related epidem- rcs. BHR's helicopters also transported experi- enced relief workers to inaccessible areas of the island, and the ship set up dental services in the town of Meulaboh. Bonhomme Richard was dispatched to the region after a 9,0 earthquake and tsunami caused one of the worst natural disasters in recorded history. The ship cut short a port visit to Guam and skipped a planned port call to Singapore to deliver desperately needed aid ashore in Sumatra. We've reached the stage where we are providing massive amounts of material alma locations throughout the island now,' Jones said, 'We are providing the precise appriCa,2mm tion of aid, In wartime, we call it precision targeting. At this stage of this humanitarian operation, we call it precision assistance? Along with delivering vast quantities of fresh water to the areas of the ' ' island where its in reall re -We ale dental l riormal According to BHR Commanding Ofhcer Capt. J. Scott Jones, BHR and her embarketl' Sailors and Marines showed that their compassion is equal to their might. Jones, added that BHR's versality 'as multidimen-l sional assault platform' gave the ship the unique ability to target aid to where it W35 needed the most, no matter how inaoc6S-I sible that place might be. 'What was amazing was the ability of OHV Sailors and Marines to easily convert what they did in training for a strike mission I0 3 humanitarian mission, Jones said. intelligence gathering and intefpfetationl skills were translated into life-saving infprma' tion that got aid where it needed to 90- .lones said Bonhomme Richard's Sailors 3 ndp Mari miss to p Peel BHl and and lll0l can 'its WH: hai W0 Wh Jo Wil

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RX. KPN' CDR Feyedelem grew up in Norwalk. Ohio and graduated from Purdue Universigf in I989 with a B.S. in Nuclear Engineering. After completing the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Programs training pipeline in Orlando and Idaho Falls, he reported to Surface Warfare Officers School Pacific in Iuhf I990. Upon graduation, CDR Feyedelem reported to USS CALIFORNIA ICGN 36l where he served as Repair Division Officer and Damage Control Assistant during a Refueling Complex Over- haul. Following his first sea assignment, CDR Feyedelem reported to the Naval Postgraduate School in September I993 where he earned a Mechanical Engineers Degree with distinc- tion. Upon completion of Department Head School, CDR Feyedelem served as Combat Systems Officer on USS KINKAID IDD 96Sl and Main Propulsion Assistant on USS CARL VINSON ICVN 709, completing a Western Pacific Deployment on both, including par- ticipation in Operation DESERT FOX, CDR Michael Feyed CSI Officer In March 2000, CDR Feyedelem reported to Washington, D.C. where he served as the Surface Nuclear Officer Communigf Manager fNI33C2J and Nuclear Programs Diversity Coordinator He repolted as Executive Officer USS VALLEY FORGE ICG SOI on lul I9 2002 During his , y , . tour VALLEY FORGE completed a 7-month Arabian Gulf deployment in support of ENDURING FREEDOM and IRAQ FREEDOM, a complete Inter-Deployment Training and a 3-month Counter-Dru de lo ment. CDR F d l g p y eye e em reported to USS BONHOMME RICHARD ILHD 6l in September 2004 as CSI Officer. LCDR Glasheen, C. LT Bonser. S. LT Martin, W. LT Murphy, M. LTIG Demberger, L. LTIG Guinto, C. LTlG Uniewski, T. F ENS Bush. D. ENS Hagan, N 'Q if , , v P l 5 X J lgsi,pq,i'.g H -5'-.,f': z,.-,,. .' 1. 'X 7r 353 F X 5 W lf? aff ,half -f .: I 4 L 'fx x I I