Sailors pitch in to help mother

House fixed up while both her sons are deployed

By CHUCK CRUMBO - ccrumbo@thestate.com

The U.S. and Iraq

Vicki Brown’s to-do list seemed as thick as the phone book.

First, she needed a dog run built for her family’s pooch, Sarge. Then, Brown wanted to fill in an ornamental pond in her backyard. Next, the fence along the rear of her property had to be fixed.

But with one son in the Navy and another in the Army, Brown, a single mom, needed help.

Thankfully for Brown, a group of Navy reservists came to her rescue.

The sailors volunteered because they know what it’s like for families when loved ones are deployed, Chief Petty Officer J.P. Miller said.

“If I’m helping, maybe someone will help my family when I’m gone overseas,” said Miller, a Navy Seabee from Columbia.

Brown’s sons, Adger, 28, and Matthew, 20, started the work by draining the pond, which was filled with stagnant water.

But Adger, a petty officer assigned to the destroyer USS James E. Williams, was called away to deploy to the Persian Gulf region for several months.

Then Matthew, an Army specialist, went with his unit to Iraq.

Brown couldn’t wait for her boys’ return.

That’s because Brown’s daughter, Heather, was moving in with her 2½-year-old daughter. Daughter and granddaughter would be living in the schoolteacher’s Shandon home while Heather’s husband, an Army medic, served in Iraq.

One day at church, Brown told fellow parishioner Pat Sullivan of her dilemma.

Sullivan is a master chief petty officer and senior enlisted leader at the Naval Reserve Center at Fort Jackson. About 200 sailors report to the Reserve Center.

Sullivan contacted Miller and the Seabees.

The Seabees are the Navy’s engineers. They can build anything from a runway to a hut, usually working under combat conditions. But when they’re not on active duty, the Seabees volunteer on civic projects.

Volunteering benefits sailors, too, Miller said. “It’s good, hands-on training.”

The Seabees spent the first few months cleaning up the yard and the pond, building the dog run and fixing the fence, Miller said.

Before they could finish, however, the Seabees were notified that they’d be deploying this fall to the Persian Gulf region.

To make sure they had enough time to train for their deployment, Miller’s unit handed the job off to the Navy cargo handlers unit, headquartered at the Fort Jackson reserve center.

Petty Officer Kevin Hogan, who is heading the cargo handlers’ efforts, said their work is just about complete.

A 10-foot-by-12-foot wooden deck was nearing completion and a load of topsoil to fill the 2½-foot-deep pond is due to arrive any day.

Local businesses also pitched in — donating lumber, soil and even a swing set for Brown’s granddaughter, Sullivan said.

Brown is grateful for the sailors’ efforts.

“Doing these things are beyond me,” she said. “The sailors stepped up to the plate and really have been helping me out.”

Reach Crumbo at (803) 771-8503.