Sailors assigned to the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) came together with Lincoln Acres Elementary School in National City to form a “Partner-Ship,” Feb. 20.

Capt. Rich LeBron, Bonhomme Richard’s commanding officer, represented the ship and its crew in galvanizing the relationship with the school’s principal, Raymond Ruiz. The “Partner-Ship” as LeBron calls it, is one where Sailors volunteer a day out of their week to spend time with students in their classes, help with school work, answer questions, eat lunch, and participate in recess time on the school’s playground.

“Though we are focused on getting our ship ready to go back to sea, it can be easy to forget the importance of setting aside some time in our day, our week, our month, to pursue other interests that make us better people, better Sailors, better Americans,” said LeBron. “Projects like this one, where our Sailors can go out and make a positive difference in the lives of our kids, make that possible.”

Bonhomme Richard’s relationship with Lincoln Acres makes it possible for Sailors to give back to the community and foster our role in “Mentor-Ship.”

“We have a unique opportunity to reach into the student’s lives and educational experience,” said Ruiz. “These volunteers can be role-models to the students in a way the class teacher is not meant to be.”

Since the program launched, the number of volunteers has increased several times over. 

“Initially, we had about 15 volunteer applications,” said Delia Arancibia, Lincoln Acres’ assistant principal. “And now that the “Partner-Ship” is up and running, the applications have multiplied. We’ve identified four classes spanning from kindergarten through sixth grade we believe could benefit from the direct interaction with our volunteer participants.”

Lincoln Acres teaches more than 500 students, K-6, daily. The volunteers will visit the four classes weekly, working with students on class assignments. Because there are more members of the ship’s crew willing to volunteer than there are classes to visit, they will be rotated on a weekly basis to give the students a variety of personalities to work with, and all of the Sailors interested in volunteering, a chance to participate.

Arancibia said as the number of volunteers increases she sees a bigger opportunity for the Sailors to volunteer by taking part in larger, long-term projects.

“Sailors will come in and be special guest readers, giving students the chance to ask questions and interact in a way that stimulates their imagination and interest in whatever material they might be studying,” added Ruiz. “They also participate in other areas, helping students with their math, art projects and so on.”

The partnership between Bonhomme Richard and Lincoln Acres Elementary School is a part of a larger concept Capt. LeBron recently initiated for the ship’s crew named “Rise Above.”  Meant to encourage every Sailor assigned to the ship to strive, making the most of their time by focusing on personal and professional growth. “Rise Above” also empowers the crew to look for opportunities serving the community who supports them.

“We want to inspire our Sailors to aspire for excellence and serve as a model of what we can achieve Navy-wide with the right focus and the right message.” said LeBron. “We want to develop ‘Renaissance Sailors’ who can do more than just fight.  We want to develop Sailors who can think, be creative, ideate, collaborate, and innovate. This is about changing mindset from struggling to survive, to striving to succeed.”

Bonhomme Richard is in its homeport of San Diego.

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