MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- The head of the Navy and Marine Corps team kicked off his tour here Jan. 9 with a visit to the warriors of the 2nd Marine Division.
Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter began his day with a meet-and-greet breakfast with several leathernecks from 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, a unit that returned from Fallujah, Iraq in October 2005.
There, Winter lauded the troops on their accomplishments in fighting the Global War on Terrorism in Iraq.
“We told him about how we had trained the ISF (Iraqi Security Forces) in Fallujah, and how we were making progress over there,” explained Cpl. Alan Dull, an infantryman with the battalion’s Company B and native of Huntsville, Ala. “He told us he liked seeing (us) guys on the ground to get this sort of first-hand info.”
“Thank you for all of your service, and for taking the time to have breakfast with me this morning,” Winter said before handing several Marines a commemorative Secretary of the Navy’s coin.
After his morning meal, Winter received a flyover of the base and the neighboring Marine Corps Air Station New River, followed by a walk-through to Lejeune’s Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) facility.
He ended his tour with a visit to the Wounded Warrior Barracks, a place here where Marines and sailors injured while fighting overseas come to rehabilitate.
“I think its great that he (Winter) takes the time to drop by and see us,” Dull said. “It shows that he wants to be involved in how we’re doing and what’s going on.”
Winter was sworn into office Jan. 3 and serves as the 74th Secretary of the Navy. He oversees approximately 900,000 personnel and is responsible for an annual budget of $125 billion.