As part of the Navy Exchange Service Command's (NEXCOM) We Believe! holiday events, more than 30,000 deployed and forward-deployed Sailors and Marines will receive either a free $10 prepaid card or virtual calling minutes using a virtual personal identification number (VPIN).

Both the card and VPIN can be used aboard U.S. Navy ships or via shore-based telephone systems in the US and overseas.

“I remember military deployments, many over the holidays, missing Mom’s smile or the sound of her voice,” said Command Master Chief Shannon Howe, NEXCOM. “Since nearly half of our NEXCOM associates have some form of military affiliation, our team understands what it means to be away from loved ones during the holidays. We hope that providing a phone call home will help make that separation a little easier. We respect and thank you for your sacrifices.”

The ships that will receive the free prepaid phone cards or VPINs are: Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), amphibious transport dock USS Arlington (LPD 24), amphibious dock landing ship USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43), Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS McFaul (DDG 74), USS Gravely (DDG 74), amphibious command ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20), USS Donald Cook (DDG 75), USS Carney (DDG 64), USS Ross (DDG 71), USS Porter (DDG 78), coastal patrol ship USS Tempest (PC 2), USS Hurricane (PC 3), USS Monsoon (PC 4), USS Sirocco (PC 6), USS Squall (PC 7), USS Chinook (PC 9), USS Firebolt (PC 10), USS Whirlwind (PC 11), USS Thunderbolt (PC 12), mine countermeasures ship USS Sentry (MCM 3), USS Devastator (MCM 6), USS Gladiator (MCM 11), USS Dextrous (MCM 13), Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74), USS Essex (LHD 2), USS Anchorage (LPD 23), USS Rushmore (LSD 47), guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53), USS Decatur (DDG 73), USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93), USS Stockdale (DDG 106), USS Spruance (DDG 111), USS Ashland (LSD 48), USS Germantown (LSD 42), USS Green Bay (LPD 20), USS Wasp (LHD 1), USS Patriot (MCM 7), USS Pioneer (MCM 9), USS Warrior (MCM 10), USS Chief (MCM 14), USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19), USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), USS Antietam (CG 54), USS Shiloh (CG 67), USS Chancellorsville (CG 62), USS Barry (DDG 52), USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54), USS John S. McCain (DDG 56), USS Stethem (DDG 63), USS Benfold (DDG 65), USS Milius (DDG 69), USS McCampbell (DDG 85) and USS Mustin (DDG 89).

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