Vice Adm. James W. Crawford III, Judge Advocate General (JAG) of the Navy, and Master Chief Jondell Ritchie, Command Master Chief for Naval Legal Service Command, visited with JAG community personnel at three installations within Navy Region Southeast -- Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, and Naval Air Station Pensacola, Dec. 4-6, 2017.
At each site, Crawford met with leadership and staff to get a sense of the culture and needs of the JAG community at each installation. In New Orleans, he participated in a staff lunch and visited both the command services and legal assistance spaces. Throughout his visit, Crawford discussed the mission of the installation with personnel, asked how their work supports that mission, and inquired whether staff have the support they need to be successful in their work. In Gulfport, Crawford also met with staff over lunch and at their command service and legal assistance offices. He spent time getting to know the staff and discussing how technology resources could be expanded and new communications tools could be developed to enhance the work that they conduct.
In Pensacola, Crawford visited trial services, legal assistance, command services, and the brand new spaces for the Defense Services Office and the Medical Claims Recovery Unit, engaging with staff at each location about their work and experiences within and outside of the Navy. Crawford also took the opportunity to sit down in break-out sessions with judge advocates, enlisted staff, and civilian staff to discuss his thoughts on the recent Navy introspection, and his perspective on the biggest asset within the Navy JAG community – its people. Crawford's visit to the Southeast region provided him with a stronger understanding of the individuals who make up that collective asset, and it allowed the region staff to develop a stronger connection to our leadership and a better understanding of the vision for the Navy JAG community’s future.