Rear Adm. Pete Gumataotao, commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic (CNSL) visited the amphibious transport dock ship USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19) while the ship is undergoing an extensive maintenance period Feb. 23.

During his visit to Mesa Verde, Gumataotao was given an extensive tour of the ship, including the barge wardroom, flight deck, aft mast, machinery rooms and the well deck.

"It warms my heart to see the training that Sailors are receiving," said Gumataotao. "Sailors learning the skills to maintain their ships once they go back out to the fleet is what this time should be used for."

Gumataotao held and all-hands call with the leadership of the Mesa Verde and was briefed on the maintenance needs of the ship.

"You can see that he [Gumataotao] cares about his junior Sailors and wants us to succeed," said Logistics Specialist 2nd Class Ashley Chafin. "You sometimes think that the hard work you do goes unnoticed, but when people see it and tell you 'thank you' and 'good job' it makes you want to keep working hard."

Mesa Verde is undergoing a maintenance availability at Marine Hydraulics International (MHI) shipyard in Norfolk, Virginia.

For more news from Expeditionary Strike Group 2, visit www.navy.mil/.