Women at Sea: Lincoln Sailors Form Association for Females in the Navy

By Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Ellen E. Long, USS Abraham Lincoln Public Affairs

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (NNS) -- Female Sailors aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) formed the first Women at Sea association and hosted their first meeting for the command, Aug. 7.

The first meeting opened up a forum for the attendees to introduce topics for future meetings and featured a question-and-answer session with Lt. Cmdr. Ingrid Hoden and Lt. j.g. James Lessard, the ship's primary care physicians.

"I encourage all female Sailors to get involved with this program," said Operations Specialist 2nd Class Shayla Horne. "If you need female advice or have any issues at work, Women at Sea is the place to be."

The meeting began with opening remarks from Lt. Jessica Woody, primary officer mentor for the group, about why she helped to form this association for female Sailors.

"We thought it would be a good idea to give some of the girls a place where they can talk about issues that they might be a little afraid to talk to their chain of command about," said Woody. "This is an opportunity to give them more personal mentorship then what they were getting out to sea."

Over 30 Sailors attended the initial meeting and introduced themselves and spoke about their experiences in the Navy thus far.

"I feel like this group will be great to be involved in," said Operations Specialist 3rd Class Centraya Kenny. "As a junior Sailor and single mother, this group will give me the mentorship I need. I recommend this group to everyone."

According to Woody, the Lincoln's Women at Sea association will meet twice monthly and as further opportunities develop they will meet more frequently. Woody further discussed future goals for the association adding that plans for recreational activities or volunteer opportunities in the local community are avenues of interest the association is considering.

"You may not know the extent of your full potential until you talk to someone who's been there before," said Woody. "We want to get people in touch with one another without it being frightening."