Sailors assigned to Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) Minneapolis-Saint Paul (LCS 21) participated as judges in a community sand modeling contest at Park Point Beach as part of Duluth Navy Week, July 18.

Emily Ranta, Executive Director of the Duluth Downtown Family YMCA, explained that while the event itself happens annually, this year it lined up with Duluth Navy Week.

“It was extra special to have the Navy here this year having fun with the community,” said Ranta. “A lot of people around here don’t often get the chance to interact with the Navy and it was just an awesome opportunity to have really positive interaction with the military.”

Sailors walked down the beach with score sheets, judging assorted sand sculptures based on various categories such as creativity and use of materials, and interacted with the children who created them along the way.

“The sand modeling contest was a great way for the Navy to interact with the people of Duluth,” said Operations Specialist 2nd Class Jacob Shatz, a Sailor assigned to PCU Minneapolis-Saint Paul. “It really was a nice way to build a bridge between the military and the city of Duluth and let them know that we’re here for them in any way we can be.”

Duluth Navy Week, the ninth of 14 scheduled Navy Weeks this year, is scheduled to continue through July 21, culminating with an air show featuring the Blue Angels, the Navy’s flight demonstration squadron.

The Navy Office of Community Outreach uses the Navy Week program to bring Navy Sailors, equipment and displays to approximately 14 American cities each year for a week-long schedule of outreach engagements designed for Americans to experience firsthand how the U.S. Navy is the Navy the nation needs.