Sailors and Department of Defense personnel of Naval Support Facility Deveselu embarked on a MWR-sponsored weekend excursion April 2, taking advantage of the services offered at the installation.

The group travelled to the medieval Corvin Castle in Hunedoara, followed by the historical Monastery of Horezu the following day, both firsts for them and for the installation's Morale, Welfare and Recreation staff.

The excursion is a milestone for both NSF Deveselu and MWR, considering its size, location and short history. With its establishment in October 2014, NSF Deveselu is the newest base in the Navy, with most of its operations and personnel only months old. MWR has quickly developed a program there and built this test model two-day, nearly 400-mile round trip to give service members a weekend getaway.

"It's cool, seeing the people, getting to know the culture. It's nice," said a Logistics Specialist 3rd Class Sailor of Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System, NSF Deveselu, who participated in the retreat. "It's always a nice escape from work. It's nice having MWR here. They're really supportive."

With maximum participation, MWR provided a touring bus with a driver for the travel, the itinerary, and admission to the castle with a guided tour. MWR also provided admission to the monastery the next day, a place to shop for local pottery and souvenirs and have lunch. The activity-packed excursion enabled them free-time for dinner, a choice of hotels, and a chance to see a window-view of the countryside from two routes.

For MWR specialists, it's a challenge to create trips in such remote areas where nothing has been done before. Experience and careful planning is a prerequisite. MWR Recreation Specialist Bunny Merritt, who organized and led this particular weekend trip, is keenly aware building these trips, as difficult as it may be, has a greater payoff at the end.

"MWR here is brand new trying to figure out its legs. It was harder than I thought figuring out the process, but most Sailors seem to enjoy these opportunities - especially when they're in remote locations. Bases like Deveselu and Djibouti, MWR is more salient than other large city base locations with resources. They are not easily going [out] to find the fitness centers and cultural activities in the local community," said Merritt.

Merritt is working for MWR in NSF Deveselu on a 3 1/2-month temporary assignment from Naval Station Great Lakes to help augment permanent staff here. She is one of three MWR staff in Deveselu planning all the trips, tours and a wide-range of on-base activities. It's all done for a higher purpose.

"MWR is important to bridge the gap for service members' basic quality of life functions, so they can have happy and healthy lives," said Merritt.

A shore installation of Commander, Navy Installations Command, NSF Deveselu operates the first Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System, supporting NATO's overall ballistic missile defense security efforts.

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