FROM THE CO S DESK

FEBRUARY 2012 VOLUME 3 ISSUE 2

INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
CMCs Call
Ccc news
2
2
CALENDAR OF
EVENTS
OMBUDSMEN
MEMOS
3

4
FRG
Around town
5
6
RESOURCES
MILIUS CREW
PHOTOS
7
8-9
MILIUS frontline
news
10

USS MILIUS COMMAND NEWSLETTER
January has been a busy month for MILIUS. We
came back from holiday leave and POM (Pre-Overseas
Movement) leave, finished our deployment preparations, and
deployed on time for destinations west. Because of the dis-
tance from San Diego to the places were going, weve had a
lot of time this month transiting the Pacific to conduct train-
ing. Weve done a main battery gun shoot, 3 General Quar-
ters Drills, over 6 Damage Control Repair Locker drills, 7
anti-terrorism force protection training sessions, 2 strike
scenarios, 5 sets of engineering drills, 4 man overboard drills,
2 underway replenishments, 1 flight quarters for Deck Land-
ing Qualifications, ESWS (Enlisted Surface Warfare Special-
ist) Training, general military training for advancement, and
much, much more. Weve also settling in to our underway
watch teams, and many people have completed or made
significant progress on their underway qualifications. We
finished off January with a port visit to Guam standby for
pictures next newsletter and on the MILIUS facebook page.
Im impressed every day Im on MILIUS by the tenacity of
MILIUS Sailors to fix things when they are broken, something
they prove every day as they keep the ship in top working
order you can all be very proud!
Bravo Zulus this month:
BZ to the Communications Division (ITmen) on chang-
ing over communications between theaters of operation
in just 8 minutes - a process that can take hours to
accomplish. Well done!
Bravo Zulu to HT1 Ribeiro, MR1 Matovich, HT2
Willen, and HT3 Trevino for completing a critical
underway voyage repair to our firemain system. They
utilized complex welding techniques to repair a hole in
the firemain loop, allowing MILIUS to stay on mission
and maintain our schedule. Well done!
Great job by Supply Department on our first deploy-
ment Steel Beach Picnic
Bravo Zulu to the SPY techs for not giving up with a
casualty to their systems and for putting in that extra
effort to keep SPY up. When I informed CDRE Dalton
we'd repaired SPY, his comment was, "Great news.
Nice work by your team on this."
Bravo Zulu to the CTT's on a successful SLQ-32 range
run and to the GM's and FC's on a successful gun shoot
Accolades and 96 hour liberty chits to the four fastest
Physical Readiness Test runners from November/
December: ENS Coslick 7:56, ENS Adeimy 8:47,
LTJG Smith 9:37, BM2 Libbey 11:42 (fastest female).
Four people earned Outstanding's on the PFA: ENS
Coslick, ENS Adiemy, LT Norris and IT2 Pisciotto.
LT Norris and IT3 Pisciotto both have earned 72 hour
liberty chits.
BZ to GSM3 Castle for averting a major casualty to a
fuel transfer heater controller. His procedural compli-
ance and vigilant watch standing led him to notice a
leak from a water tank on the deck above, which he
quickly isolated preventing damage to the equipment
and multiple hours of troubleshooting and repair. Well
done!
BZ to CE Division and the GSEs on fixing a casualty to
the steering system, I know the bridge watchstanders
are especially grateful because the alarm was sounding
every 10-15 seconds.
BZ to QMSN Newbanks for the best uniform at the
Navigation / Admin department uniform inspection.
Great job by the Family Readiness Group (FRG) on
their first and second events, sounds like there was a
good turnout (25 families for the Valentines banner
event alone) and much fun had by everyone who was
present. We have a fund raising event scheduled on the
ship to raise money for the FRG with a khaki auction
(make the khaki work for you!) coming up in early
February. If you are in San Diego and havent gotten
involved with the FRG yet, please read later on in the
newsletter for more information and points of contact.
Deployment fun facts:
Every other Sunday we are having a steel beach picnic
where we barbeque on the flight deck. The Ward-
room, Chiefs Mess, First Class Association, Junior
Enlisted Association, and Supply Department are hav-
ing a cook-off competition this deployment to see who
makes the best steel beach meal. Supply cooked the
first one, but not for judging (its only fair to give them
time in port to get special ingredients).
We change our clocks at 7 p.m. each time we need to
change clocks and it becomes 6 p.m. again, this makes
our evenings one hour longer. When we crossed the
date line, we lost Monday, January 23.
Weve seen two albatrosses soar behind the ship. The
albatross, a nomadic bird that covers great distances
over the ocean, is considered a sign of good luck to the
Sailor.
Were conducting command Physical Training on the
flight deck every day at 3 p.m. Sometimes its a strug-
gle to get the mats to not blow away, other times its
the heat but overall BMC Badio has been running good
sessions. (we do take Sundays off)
We have a morning wake up song played at 0600.
Different Sailors get to pick the music each day, start-
ing with the Sailor longest onboard and counting down
until we return to home port (well run out of days
before Sailors but its fun to know whos been here the
longest).
Sincerely,
CDR Nikki Bufkin
PAGE 2 USS MILIUS COMMAND NEWSLETTER
Hello, MILIUS Families.
Deployment is just beginning but your Sailors are doing very well. We are doing a lot of
things to improve Quality of Life. First we have begun Command PT every day on the flight deck. All
Sailors have to workout three times a week and we are making it a priority. As operations ramp up
the time or frequency might change but this program is a very effective tool for keeping Sailors
healthy throughout our deployment. Next we have begun formal classes for Enlisted Surface War-
fare (ESWS) Qualification and Professional Military Knowledge (PMK) training. ESWS is a required
qualification which takes months to complete but with training every night it is possible to qualify
most of the crew before we return from deployment so they have the maximum time at home once
we are back. PMK training is to prepare for advancement exams so your Sailors can advance to the
next pay grade. We have had a LOT of participation in these classes. We have Command Indoctri-
nation for Sailors who have checked on in the last 6 months. This is an over-view of Navy programs
and the Command structure. So even though we have more time while deployed we are keeping
every minute of every day very full! I thank you all for your support for your Sailor! We need you
there supporting us so we can focus on our Mission! Take care!
Sincerely,
CMC
CMCs CALL
FROM THE COMMAND CAREER COUN-
SELOR



Aloha again MILUS Crew, Family & Friends,



This month I would like to touch on Stay Navy and helpful
tools online for every Sailor and their families.
On the NPC webpage, Stay Navy located here:
http://www.publi c.navy.mil/bupers -npc/career/staynavy/Pages/
default.aspx
You will find a wealth of information and online resources to help you get the
most from your Navy Career.
Online Calculators include: Pay and Compensation, Selective Reenlistment
Bonus (SRB), and Retirement.
Information from Career Management Resources to Learning and Develop-
ment Roadmaps are here for your reference.
A Sailor may log into Navy Knowledge Online (NKO) and click the hyper-
links to view a wealth of information and resources supporting their profes-
sional and personal growth.
If you have any questions, please ask your Sailor.
Aloha and have a great Valentines Day!

If you have any questions, please ask your Sailor.


Sincerely,
NC1 (SW/AW) B. Baraoidan
Reenlistments
PS1 (SW/AW) Raymond Alston
CS2 (SW/AW) Corey Mace
EN2 (SW) Magallon

Navy Commendation Medal
DCCS (SW) Mayfield
CSCS (SW/AW) Cipriano
GSM1(SW) Sammons

Navy Achievement Medal
LTJG Harper
YN1 (SW) Moning
HM3 Guerrero

Command Advancement
PS1(SW/AW) Raymond Alston

Senior Sailor of the Quarter
FC1(SW) Derrick Wilson
Junior Sailor of the Quarter
YN2 (SW) Nathan Sheddy
Blue Jacket Sailor of the Quarter
GSM3 John Garcia
A big BRAVO ZULU to the following
Sailors on their recent Reenlistments,
Advancement, and Awards:
Happy Birthday to all our February birthdays!
Happy Anniversary to all those celebrating an anniversary!

February 2 Ground Hog Day
February 8 Flying Space AMilitary Air Travel Info
9:30 to 10:30 FFSC Village at Sera Mesa
February 11 FRG OPSEC Meeting at Murphy Canyon
Youth Center 11:00 to 1:00 pm. RSVP for Childcare by 2/4
February 12 Lincolns B 'day
February 14 Valentines Day
February 15 Dealing with Stress 5 to 7 pm FFSC NBSD
February 20 Washington's B 'day (NO SCHOOL)
February 22 Ash Wednesday
February 23 Military Discounts: Your pocket in San Diego
9:00 to 10:00am FFSC NB Coronado
February 29 Leap Year


* Annotates in-port, away from home port
Pink highlighted boxes annotate underway periods
PAGE 3 VOLUME 3 ISSUE 2
FEBRUARY
USS Milius
A
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c.:
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..:
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12 13 14 15 16 17 18
19 20 21 22 23 24 25
26 27 28 29
February 2012
r- --.- -/ ., ---
. - --,-
-t-- +-ts- :-.--
* * *
* * *
FRG
V Day
Ground
Hog Day
We all face our own unique set of challenges and
accomplishments when our sailors deploy. Now is
the time to focus on important priorities: encour-
age coping skills, maintaining a connection with
your sailor and learning how to want your
spouse, but not need your spouse. Deployment
provides you the opportunity to learn how to be
independent.
Prolonged separation is difficult on the best of mar-
riages, but those hardships can remind you why
you fell in love in the first place. Scribble small
sentiments in a card and mail it to your spouse.
Write letters, that include your feelings and your
stresses, be positive and let your spouse know you
are doing great and succeeding. Even though we
have Facebook, email and phone calls; a hand writ-
ten letter from you to your spouse or a little spray
of their favorite perfume on the letter is tangible
for them and gives them something physical from
home.
Kids are tough, they can sense when mom/dad are
unhappy, stressing out or just not themselves. This
makes them uneasythey may be thinking, whats
wrong, is something gonna happen and this per-
son , are they going to leave too! As parents we
have to keep it together. Teresa and I cannot
stress this enough, get into a routine. Kids like to
know what is going to happen next, they function
better that way . Maintain some kind of normalcy,
if they are not involved in something already, get
them involved in a sport, art class, karate class,
gymnastics, music; anything to get them out of the
house so they can exert energy and you can have a
break.
Communication on the ship will be trying, espe-
cially throughout a long deployment. Depending
on the mission at hand you may not have regular
OMBUDSMAN MEMO
PAGE 4 USS MILIUS COMMAND NEWSLETTER
Ombudsman Info:
[email protected]
OMB Phone 619.417.9980
Careline 619.338.1754
communication with your spouse. The email,
phone system and general mail could be down or
delayed.
Its ok to feel sad, angry or lonely, but hopefully
these are starting to fade and you are becoming
confident, calm and hopeful that you can succeed
and have a great deployment. If you feel like
youre getting into a rut, contact Teresa or I. We
can give you suggestions on things to try or just go
with you and get a cup of coffee or a drink (if youre
not a coffee person) and just talk.
Try to avoid comparing how often you speak to
your spouse with other Milius spouses. Remember
to focus on what works best for your connection
with your spouse.
All our workloads have increased in some shape,
form or fashion, so we need to look for ways to re-
lax and decompress. Some people like to write, or
journal daily events, you may want to find a corner
and read a good book, take a relaxing bath, or get a
sitter and have an adult night out.
The key is to find something you enjoy and take time
for yourself.
We are all experiencing the challenges of this de-
ployment differently; Teresa and I are here to help
keep you focused, healthy, and secure. By the end
of this deployment we hope you are all a little
stronger, with improved self-sufficiency and self-
identity. The best way you can help your sailor, is
to care of yourself.


We are all in this together,
Jeri and Teresa
PAGE 5 USS MILIUS COMMAND NEWSLETTER

OPSEC, THE KEY TO KEEPING OUR SAILORS SAFE

Want to know the dos and donts for sharing deployment information? Are you curious which details
can be disclosed and in what context? Do you ever question whats OK to post on social media websites?
Speculate no more, after the next Milius Family Readiness Group meeting!
Tracy Genica will delve into all things related to military Operational Security, more commonly re-
ferred to as OPSEC. Genica, a Milius spouse who has formal Information System Security Office training, will
share a presentation on OPSEC and answer questions.
Learn how you are a vital part of the Milius success by upholding all aspects of OPSEC. Discover how
you can help protect your sailor by safeguarding the information you know.
Mrs. Genica will also discuss the emotional stages of deployment.
Join us for the next FRG meeting from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Feb. 11 at the Murphy Canyon Youth Center,
located at 4867 Santo Road, San Diego, CA 92124
FROM OUR FRG:
VOLUME 3 ISSUE 2 PAGE 6
The F*O*C*U*S Program
Focus presents a workshop for military children (ages 6-10)

"Deployment Club"
We invite your child to join us for a four week series ...
Participants will use arts and crafts to:
Learn tools to identify and express feelings in appropriate ways
Develop strategies for thinking before acting
Practice to get along with other family members
Meet other children with deployment experiences
Take home his/her own hand-crafted toolbox of skills

Kids Ages 8-10: Tuesdays, Feb. 28 - Mar. 20, 2012
4:00-5:30pm

Kids Ages 6-7: Thursdays, Mar. 1 - Mar. 22, 2012
4:00-5:30pm

Location: FOCUS San Diego
NBSD, Bldg 265, Dolphin Alley
PAGE 7 USS MILIUS COMMAND NEWSLETTER

Deployment Resources & Information
Naval Base San Diego FFSC (619) 556-7404 or (866) 923-6478
American Red Cross (877) 272-7337 www.redcross.org
Military OneSource (800) 342-9647 www.militaryonesource.com
FOCUS (619) 556-6075 www.focusproject.org
NBSD Legal (619) 556-2211 www.jag.navy.mil/legal_services/nlso/nlso_southwest.htm
TriWest Healthcare Alliance (888) 874-9378 www.triwest.com
TRICARE Dental Program (800) 866-8499 www.TRICAREdentalprogram.com
NMCRS (619) 238-1587/88 www.nmcrs.org
USO Downtown Center (619) 235-6503 www.usosandiego.org
Naval Base Chapel (619) 556-2658 www.chaplincare.navy.mil
Armed Services YMCA (858) 751-5755 www.militaryymca.org
Child Development Center (619) 556-8491
Operation Home front (866) 424-5210 www.operationhomefront.net
211 www.211sandiego.org
Sittercity www.sittercity.com/dod
Women, Infant, and Children (WIC ) Program (800) 500-6411 www.sandiegowic.org

Monthly Bread Ministries & Monthly FREE Food Ministries (858)688-5015
Bring your ID card, bags to carry food items. Please contact them for locations and times.

We have plenty of other resources for you from Healthy Military Families and Toddler
Time to Furniture and Used Items to Websites and Re Sale Goods Items. Call the Om-
budsman for more details.
PAGE 8 VOLUME 3 ISSUE 2
BINGO NIGHT
SUNDAY BRUNCH ON MILIUS
PAGE 9 VOLUME 3 ISSUE 2
Steel Beach Picnic
IN PORT PEARL HARBOR
The first month of deployment is almost coming to a
close and already so much has been accomplished.

After a week out at sea, the crew has a quick break
while in Hawaii to gather some last minute items at
the Navy Exchange, grab a quick bite to eat and say
another hello to hear their loved ones back home.

MILIUS made the quick stop in Hawaii to refuel and
stock up on some necessary supplies and parts.
It was a short stop but a nice break from being un-
derway.

While out to sea, the crew accomplished numerous
drills to include firefighting, tactical maneuvering,
first aid and engineering.

New Sailors were able to stand new watches and
learn the ropes of being underway from driving the
ship, tracking other ships in the area on radar or
landing helicopters during flight operations.

The ships Morale, Welfare and Recreation commit-
tee kicked off the weekend with Bingo night and
Supply department took care of the crew as Sunday
was welcomed by the crew with brunch and the first
of many Steel Beach picnics.

Both had a great turnout and were enjoyed by the
crew.
PAGE 10 VOLUME 3 ISSUE 2
MILIUS FRONTLINE NEWS
By Ensign Rhianna Cole
If you have questions, comments or suggestions for MILIUS
FRONTLINE NEWS, please email the Public Affairs Officer
at [email protected]. Also, please check the Facebook
page and contact our Ombudsmen for more information!