By CAITLIN M. KENNEY | STARS AND STRIPES Published: January 21, 2021
Stars and Stripes is making stories on the coronavirus pandemic available free of charge. See other free reports here. Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter here. Please support our journalism with a subscription. WASHINGTON Two more service members have died from the coronavirus, bringing the number of deaths to 17 as military cases surpass 130,000, according to the Pentagon. Petty Officer 2nd Class Abdigafar Salad Warsame, 52, was a Navy Reserve logistics specialist assigned to Navy Operational Support Center in Columbus, Ohio, when he died Jan. 8 at a local hospital due to complications associated with the coronavirus, Cmdr. Ben Tisdale, a Navy Reserve Force spokesman, said in a statement Thursday.
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NEWPORT, R.I. Secretary of the Navy Kenneth J. Braithwaite met with Reserve Sailors assigned to Navy Operational Support Center (NOSC) Newport and Maritime Security Squadron 8 (MSRON 8) aboard Naval Station Newport, Jan. 9.
This was the first visit to a NOSC by a Secretary in recent memory. During the visit, Braithwaite congratulated the Reserve Sailors and NOSC staff for their outstanding work during COVID-19 pandemic relief efforts last year.
“Many of you probably know I retired from the Navy after 31 years of combined active and reserve service. I am proud of that and want to thank each of you for your dedicated service and the sacrifices you endure to serve our country,” said Braithwaite. “The nation sends its gratitude to the over 3,000 Reserve Sailors, many who mobilized in less than 48 hours, that deployed in the fight against COVID-19.”
(Photo from PMC / MANILA BULLETIN)
Vice Admiral Giovanni Carlo Bacordo, Flag Officer in Command of the Philippine Navy, presided over the joint change of command and retirement ceremony held at the Marine Barracks Rudiardo Brown in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City last Friday.
Bacordo expressed confidence that the Marines will be able to sustain its operational gains under the leadership of Caculitan, whom he described as “an accomplished and highly-skilled Marine officer.”
Caculitan belongs to the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) “Makatao” Class of 1989 and has several top notch awards under his name.
He graduated on top of his class at the AFP Command and General Staff Course Class 45 in 2007. He also earned the “Best Flying Award” as a naval aviator and an awardee of the 2015 “Ten Outstanding Filipino Soldiers” by the Metrobank Foundation.