Navy Medicine East (NME) hosted a 2.44 mile run/walk around Hospital Point and the historic building 1 of Naval Medical Center Portsmouth (NMCP) Oct. 11. The run was conducted in honor of the U.S. Navy’s 244th birthday Sunday, Oct. 13. NME and NMCP personnel, past and present, participated in the event.

Rear Adm. Anne Swap, commander, NME, provided opening remarks, followed by comments from retired Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) Duane Bushey. Bushey served as the seventh MCPON from 1988-1992. He remarked on the fighting spirit he still sees in the Navy today.

“Wow, 244 years, “Bushy said. “If John Paul Jones was standing here today, he would be smiling on what he saw in how far the Navy has come. When he met the British, and the HMS Serapis was tied up with the USS Bonhomme Richard, the sails were torn, the mast was down, the decks were slippery with blood. The British admiral looked to him for surrender and John Paul Jones responded, ‘I have not yet begun to fight!’ That’s the spirit that was bred into us in the U.S. Navy.”

Bushey, 75, was honored to speak and participate in the run for the Navy’ birthday. In light of his John Paul Jones speech, he continued by telling all the active duty personnel to never give up and to always fight the good fight.

“We need to speak up, continue doing what we are supposed to do, fight as hard as we can fight, and keep that American spirit,” Bushey said. “We shall win. We will not surrender.”     

The NME 244th Navy Birthday Run/Walk was a voluntary event designed to offer reflection and celebration of the Navy's rich history and heritage, as well as to enhance the comradery of military personnel, veterans, and Federal employees serving in the local Naval Station Hampton Roads area.

As the U. S. Navy's oldest, continuously-operating hospital since 1830, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth proudly serves past and present military members and their families. The nationally acclaimed, state of the art medical center, including its ten branch and TRICARE Prime clinics, serves the Hampton Roads area and additionally offers premier research and teaching programs designed to prepare new doctors, nurses and hospital corpsmen for future roles in healing and wellness.

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