USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Celebrates Ship’s Heritage with 5K Run

The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) (Ike) hosted a 5K heritage run at Naval Station Norfolk to celebrate 35 years of the ship’s history, Aug. 17.

Six Sailors assigned to Ike planned the 5K to strengthen the camaraderie between past and present IKE and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 7 Sailors.

Aviation Electronics Technician 2nd Class Scott Cross, assigned to the ship’s Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance department (AIMD), served as one of the members of the planning committee and came up with the idea.

“I originally wanted to do a charitable run, ultimately for the benefit of a worthy cause,” Cross said. “I knew that as a command we were large enough and we had the resources to put that together to make a large event that a lot of people would attend.”

Because of the ship’s recent busy schedule including back-to-back deployments and ongoing preparation for an upcoming extended shipyard period, planning for the event took some time.

“This is the inaugural IKE Heritage 5K, and we knew it was going to be a lot of work to coordinate and pull off,” said Master Chief Avionics Technician Doug Dickinson, AIMD maintenance master chief and the mentor for the planning committee. “[Aviation Electronics Technician 2nd Class Scott] Cross and the committee have been actively working this event for six months. I am already excited to start planning for the second annual IKE Heritage 5K to celebrate 36 years of Ike heritage and expect it to be even bigger.”

More than 725 past and present Sailors and guests participated in the run and about 75 Ike Sailors volunteered to contribute to the event’s success.

“It feels good to come out and show up all these young guys and finish first,” said Cmdr. Darren T. Jones, the run’s first-place finisher.

Cross said that the run was a valuable learning experience about how to set up such an event and how to ensure maximum participation, awareness and enjoyment for the crew.

“I would be surprised if we didn’t double it next year,” said Cross. “What I’d really like is for this to be something that ties any crew member that has ever served on Ike together with all the others.”

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Press Release, August 22, 2013