PENSACOLA, Fla. — Students at Information Warfare Training Command (IWTC) Corry Station participated in a multiple-sport competition after completing their holiday safety training, Nov. 18.
The competition, nicknamed "Warrior Day," gave "A" and "C" school students the opportunity to get out of the classroom and compete against their fellow Sailors, Soldiers and Marines or to join together and participate in a formation run around Naval Air Station Pensacola (NASP) Corry Station. Events included flag football, bowling, soccer, ultimate Frisbee, volleyball, darts and bag toss.
"Our goal was to build up a spirit of teamwork and to remind our students that we are warfighters first," said Master Chief Petty Officer Eduardo Mejias, IWTC Corry Station's command senior enlisted leader. "While today is still dedicated to training, this is a different type of training than we usually do. We wanted to build on our students' sense of camaraderie and esprit de corps with some healthy fun and competition."
Before gathering at the track and other fields around NASP Corry Station, students attended a safety stand down briefing in their classrooms. The annual training reinforced key topics such as responsible drinking, motorcycle safety, suicide prevention and sexual assault prevention and reporting. Students were also provided training on topics specific to safety during the holiday season.
Warrior Day was organized by the IWTC Corry Station staff, and food and drinks were provided by NASP Corry Station Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) team.
"Events like Warrior Day give us all a chance to unwind a little bit while still building on teamwork," said Seaman Thomas Anderson, a "C" school student in the information systems technician rating. "The leadership did a great job of providing a wide variety of events that everyone can participate in regardless of their athletic ability."
Cmdr. Christopher Eng, IWTC Corry Station's commanding officer, said Warrior Day helped boost the command's morale and brought together Sailors from all of the schoolhouses to show their competitive spirit.
"As I walked through the compounds this morning, I saw a lot of spirit in the faces of the students," said Eng. "It was great seeing our students show so much enthusiasm for healthy competition. This was also an exercise in resiliency, because not everybody can win their event. We wanted our students to know that they can still contribute to their team if they don't win by moving past their loss and cheering their teammates on to victory."
Information Warfare Training Command Corry Station, as part of the Center for Information Warfare Training, provides a continuum of training to Navy and joint service personnel that prepares them to conduct information warfare (IW) across the full spectrum of military operations.
For more news from the Center for Information Warfare Training organization, visit www.navy.mil/local/cid/, www.netc.navy.mil/centers/ciwt/, www.facebook.com/NavyCIWT, or www.twitter.com/NavyCIWT.