Nearly 100 Sailors and Marines assigned to the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) teamed up with local volunteers from Groundwork New Orleans (NOLA) April 20 as part of a community service project during Navy Week NOLA.

The service project gave Sailors the opportunity to support an outdoor classroom focused on educating children and young adults on environmental conservation.

"At Groundwork New Orleans, we run a job training program for high school students and work force development for young adults," said Alicia Neil, executive director of Groundwork NOLA. "We focus on building resiliency through storm water management and addressing environmental hazards and conservation. We want to create more green space in underserved communities."

Working with Groundwork NOLA, volunteers from Kearsarge pulled weeds, planted flowers and trees, and painted rain barrels to place around the city.

"It's amazing to be out here helping the community," said Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class James Lukas. "Something that seems small like cleaning up a garden or planting trees can actually have a huge positive impact."

Sailors and Marines working with volunteers from Groundwork NOLA accomplished more than a week's worth of work in just a few hours, including clearing two blocks of trash and debris from the surrounding area.

Navy Week NOLA provides an opportunity for the citizens of New Orleans and visitors to meet nearly 2,000 Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, as well as see, firsthand, the latest capabilities of today's sea services.

Navy Week New Orleans is scheduled to run from April 19 to April 25.

For up-to-date information on ship locations and tour schedules, visit the official Navy Week New Orleans website at www.nolanavyweek.com and "Like" www.facebook.com/Nolanavyweek.

For more news from USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), visit http://www.navy.mil/local/lhd3/.

For more information, visit www.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/usnavy, or www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), visit www.navy.mil/.