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USS New York becomes symbol of healing


The amphibious USS New York sails past
the Statue of Liberty on her way to commissioning Nov. 7.
A UMNS photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Eric M. Durie, U.S. Navy.

By Linda Bloom*
Nov. 6, 2009 | NEW YORK (UMNS)

The long lines for public tours of the USS New York, berthed on the West Side of Manhattan, are the first clue that this is no ordinary Navy vessel.

Many touched by the tragedy of 9/11 – from first responders to family members of those killed in the terrorist attacks to average New Yorkers – have been drawn to the Navy's newest amphibious warship, which has seven and a half tons of Twin Towers steel welded into her bow.



Command Chaplain Laura Bender commissioned three symbols –
a Christian cross,  Jewish Star of David
and the Islamic crescent – for the ship’s chapel.  A UMNS photo by Linda Bloom.
 

Since the USS New York steamed up the Hudson River Nov. 2 and docked next to the Intrepid Museum, Command Chaplain Laura Bender, a United Methodist pastor, has realized that the ship is a symbol of healing.

“All week long, the whole crew has been hearing these stories,” she says. “Everybody who comes on board has a story to tell.”

In her role as the ship’s coordinator for the activities surrounding the Nov. 7 commissioning of the USS New York, Bender has had contact this week with everyone from Mayor Michael Bloomberg to a chronically ill steelworker who worked at the World Trade Center site in the months following Sept. 11, 2001.

As the public tours open for the day on Nov. 5, Bender is leading a small group down the dock toward the ship when she is stopped by George Lutz and Kathryn Cross, representing a Virginia-based organization called Honor and Remember Inc. Could she help them present a flag to the ship’s commanding officer?

Kenneth Anderson, Bender’s husband, watches the exchange. Such encounters, planned or random, have occurred every day. “It’s all important stuff,” he notes. “It gets to the point where she has to say no, but can’t.”

This time, Bender manages to catch the attention of Commanding Officer Curt Jones, also a United Methodist, as he leaves the ship on his way to ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

Jones is running late, but listens attentively as Cross and Lutz, who have both lost sons serving in the military, tell him about their goal for congressional recognition of the Honor and Remember flag.

Memorials to 9/11

Other groups have donated some type of memorial to the ship itself. On display for visitors, for example, is a sculpture donated by FDNY VFW Post 12033 in memory of the New York firefighters who lost their lives on 9/11. Among other symbols, it contains a piece of one of the planes that hit the World Trade Center.



Commanding Officer Curt Jones of the USS New York (second from right) and Bender (right), visit with Kathryn Cross
(left) and George Lutz.
A UMNS photo by Linda Bloom.

Bender had her own idea about symbols for the ship’s chapel. She requested that a Christian cross, Jewish Star of David and Islamic crescent be made from the Twin Towers steel. The symbols, which sit on the altar, are a gift from the World Trade Center Tribute Center.

This isn’t the only significant post that the 50-year-old chaplain – a Brooklyn native and clergy member of the United Methodist New York Annual (regional) Conference – has had since joining the military shortly before her 40th birthday.

Bender’s first assignment as a military chaplain was at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, just as the detainees were being sent there. In 2003, she shipped out with a medical unit during the initial Iraq invasion and followed the Marines north for four months. More recently, she spent the 2007-2008 academic year at Boston University, courtesy of the Navy, studying religion and conflict transformation.

She was the 16th person to check in for duty aboard the USS New York -- her first position on a ship -- and has been taking candid photos of the 360 permanent crew members for the last 16 months. Some of those photos will be projected on large screens in Times Square during the commissioning ceremony.

Joyous celebrations

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While there is respect for the somber significance of the ship, Bender and other crew members have enjoyed the celebrations in New York.

When the ship entered local waters on Nov. 1, it carried nearly 1,000 people, including the crew and a large contingent of Marines. That evening, the crew launched a “beach assault” on Brooklyn and picked up the mayor, who watched a World Series game on board with them.

The fanfare the next morning included a 21-gun salute across the World Trade Center site as the ship sailed up the Hudson River to the George Washington Bridge, turned around and docked at Pier 88, where the welcome party included various dignitaries and members of the New York Naval Militia, New York Army and Air Force Guard.

Bender also has had “breakfast at Tiffany’s,” said hello to former Mayor Rudy Guliani and attended banquets in their honor. Jones watched the New York Yankees win the World Series in a seat next to the mayor.

“The response that this ship has received from the city – at all levels – has been incredible,” she says.

She thinks the Navy’s new motto, “A Global Force for Good,” ties in with the spirit of healing and reflects the many humanitarian missions the Navy performs.

“Nobody wants peace more than the people who serve,” Bender says.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org

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Resources

Higher Education and Ministry: chaplains

USS NEW YORK

Commissioning Web site

WTC Tribute Center

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