More than 100 Sailors assigned to the future USS Portland (LPD 27) engaged with the community by volunteering, April 16 through April 18, in the ship's namesake city.

Sailors dedicated their off-duty time to 10 different organizations over the course of three days, including Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals, children's hospitals, homeless shelters and various nonprofit organizations.

"The Sailors seemed to really appreciate the opportunity to get out into the community and experience another perspective," said Lt. Twig Sargent, Portland's command chaplain.

One community service opportunity allowed Sailors to feed dinner and prepare shelter for the local homeless population at City Team Ministries.

"For some Sailors it was very sobering, but they were appreciative to be able to give back," said Sargent. "They were able to experience a broader sense of life and people from every walk of life."

Members of the community were grateful to the Portland Sailors for their service in the local area.

"It's a blessing to have [the military] in our community," said Don Miller, City Team Ministries shelter supervisor. "We really appreciate all the assistance the team has provided us."
Another service opportunity for Sailors was delivering backpacks packed with essentials and toiletries directly to the homeless.

"It felt great to give back to the city of Portland," said Hull Technician 2nd Class Marcos Marmolejo, assigned to the ship's engineering department. "We were able to interact with the homeless and give them something useful. They were so welcoming and grateful."

Portland is in its namesake city for its official commissioning ceremony scheduled to take place April 21.

Portland is the 11th San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship built by Huntington Ingalls Industries. It is the third ship to bear the name USS Portland; however, it is the first ship to be named solely for Oregon's largest city.

Amphibious transport dock ships are versatile players in maritime security, with the ability to support a variety of amphibious assault, special operations or expeditionary warfare missions, operating independently or as part of amphibious readiness group, expeditionary strike groups, or joint task forces. In addition to performing the primary mission, the San Antonio-class ships are able to support anti-piracy operations, and provide humanitarian assistance and foreign disaster relief operations around the world.

For more news from Expeditionary Strike Group 3, visit www.navy.mil/.