Navy Customs Mission Makes History

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Navy News | Lt. Karin R. Burzynski | August 07, 2007

Williamdburg, VA. -- A team from the Naval Historical Center wrapped up a four-day visit collecting oral histories about the Navy Customs Battalion missions at the Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG) in Williamsburg Aug. 2.

Since December 2004, NAVELSG has been mobilizing Navy reservists to fulfill a customs inspection mission for Operation Iraqi Freedom. Dr. Randy Papadopoulos, a historian at the Naval Historical Center, recommended that oral histories be collected on the Navy Customs Battalions for inclusion in future publications about the global war on terrorism.

In response, three members of the Navy Combat Documentation Team Detachment 206 traveled to Navy Weapons Station Yorktown, Cheatham Annex in Williamsburg to conduct the interviews.

Key NAVELSG headquarters staff personnel were selected to participate in the historical project based on their experience regarding the Navy customs missions in various areas of expertise: mobilization, predeployment training and customs inspections.

Personnel Specialist 2nd Class (AW) Jesus E. Gelly, who deployed with the Navy Customs Battalion PAPA, the second rotation of customs inspectors, said this was the first time he had participated in such a project.

“I was a bit nervous,” Gelly said. The format was less structured than he anticipated and the field representatives from the Naval Historical Center quickly put him at ease and soon he was relaxed sharing his story.

Gelly explained his role as a customs inspector in Kuwait and Iraq. He also spoke of off-duty activities, such as, Bingo, comedy competitions, swimming and shopping. He especially enjoyed being invited to share lunches with local contractors who brought in specially prepared food from their countries of origin.

While deployed, Gelly, a native of Mexico, completed the requirements for and became a naturalized U.S. citizen. When asked about the homecoming reception he received in Norfolk, Gelly smiled, recalling how special it felt to return to the U.S. as a citizen. “I will never forget it,” he said.

Yeoman 2nd Class David Fraley shared what he considered the highlight of his deployment: a brief, but special, trip to Djibouti, Africa to conduct a variety of customs inspections. During some down time, Fraley and his shipmates volunteered at an orphanage run by French Catholic nuns. They spent their time in the infant room.

“We held them and played with them,” Fraley said, adding, “It was just a few hours out of a few days but it made me feel part of something bigger. We wanted to let these babies know that somebody cared, somebody loved them.”

Integral in the predeployment training for the Navy customs inspectors, Senior Chief Storekeeper Larry Blackwell has been scheduling all the required training for five rotations of customs battalions. Admittedly, Blackwell says there are lots of challenges in coordinating all the different aspects of the training for the 450-strong customs battalions; however, he adds with emphasis, “we’re here for problem resolution.”

Master Chief Personnel Specialist (AW/SW) Bob Powers, who served as command master chief for Navy Customs Battalion PAPA, said he enjoyed participating in the oral history project.

“It was unique and a privilege to be a part of,” Powers said. “I hope history will show [the customs inspection mission] to be a milestone of accomplishment for the Navy.”

Rear Adm. Sharon H. Redpath, Commander, NAVELSG, appreciated the interest of the Naval Historical Center.

“The nuts and bolts of the mission are well-documented already in official reports. The NAVELSG staff was thrilled at the opportunity and interest in telling the human side of the Navy Customs Battalion mission,” Redpath said. “The [field representatives] appeared to really enjoy their work and they seemed to appreciate the strong work ethos and dedication of NAVELSG staff.”

The field representatives are part of Navy Reserve Navy Combat Documentation Detachment 206 in Washington D.C. One of the representatives, Capt. David Townsend, said he was pleased with the interviews.

“I personally was impressed by the level of professionalism, maturity and expertise of all the personnel, both officer and enlisted that we interviewed,” Townsend said. “Their stories were touching, compelling and inspirational.”

An audio copy of the interviews will be archived at the Naval Historical Center in Washington, D.C. and available to the public for years to come.

“I hope that some day many, many years from now some present or future member of my family will read or listen to the interview,” Fraley said. “I hope they laugh at the right times and I hope they appreciate what we did.”

NAVELSG is part of the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, which consolidates, aligns and integrates diverse expeditionary capabilities and combat support elements to create consistent expeditionary practices, procedures, requirements and logistics in the battle space.

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