Seabees assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 4 participated in joint construction operations in support of the 22nd annual Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Indonesia exercise, from July 21 to Sept. 3.

CARAT is a series of annual multilateral military exercises conducted by the United States Pacific Fleet with several member nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The exercise focuses on increasing interoperability and advancing regional stability within Southeast Asia. Engineering activities support maritime security, contingency and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HA/DR) response through the targeted demonstration and practical application of innovative design and construction. This year's naval exercise series was between the United States and Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Timor Leste.

The Seabees and Indonesian TNI-AL ZENI battalion were tasked with planning, estimating, budgeting and constructing a school in a 44-day timeframe. The Seabees and Indonesian personnel built friendships and strengthened professional skills during joint construction operations on a two-room school house for local students.

"I believe education is a right that every child should have; being given the opportunity to build a school so that more children from the community can attend class is an honor that I will take with me for the rest of my life," said Utilitiesman Constructionman Jacob Brown. "The partnership that we built with the Indonesian marines is also something I will never forget, and I'm excited to share the memories and stories with others."

The construction team, students and Cemandi community members attended the ribbon cutting ceremony, Sept. 3, officially opening the school house. Commodore, Destroyer Squadron (COMDESRON) 7, Capt. H.B. Le expressed his gratitude to the team for their hard work during his speech as the honorary guest. The ceremony concluded with food, singing, dancing performances and the official signing of the school opening.

"It's been such a great opportunity for the Seabees to work alongside our TNI-AL counterparts here in Indonesia," said Ensign Michelle Fitzgerald. "Not only have we been able to learn from each other's construction methods, we have truly strengthened our partnership and built lasting friendships. By working together as one unit, we were able to give back to the community by building a school house that will be used for years to come."

NMCB 4 is the forward-deployed Pacific NMCB ready to support major combat operations and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations and to provide general engineering and civil support to Navy, Marine Corps and joint operational forces. Homeported out of Port Hueneme, California, NMCB 4 has detachment sites deployed throughout the United States and Pacific area of operations, including Cambodia, Diego Garcia, Guam, Japan, Philippines, Republic of Korea and Timor Leste.

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