MIAMI -- Brigadier General David W. Coffman, commander for U.S. Marine Corps Forces South, hosted a fall family day at the Miami Seaquarium for the Marines and their families under his command Sept. 6, 2014.
After enjoying lunch and drinks the Marines and family members gathered around as Coffman, along with his wife, addressed the members of the crowd. Coffman emphasized the importance of the support of the family unit and how it contributes to mission success.
Support of the family is the cornerstone of the Marine Corps mission and their support allows the Marines to train partner nation militaries, thus helping them combat shared-regional security challenges, he said.
Master Gunnery Sgt. John E. Trotta, the operations chief and Family Readiness Officer for Marine Forces South, expanded on Coffman’s comments. He said Marines and their families stationed in a non-traditional duty station can leave a void and disconnection compared to more orthodox units and bases.
“Families can lose the sense of military community they are accustomed to on traditional facilities, sometimes generating a feeling of isolation,” Trotta said. “Family days like this serve as an opportunity to bring our families together, develop relationships between families and other spouses they may not normally get in contact with because of the obstacles of different living communities and strengthens our families faith in the command that we do indeed care about them, their families, their well-being and that we truly appreciate the sacrifices made on behalf of both the service members and their families in support of mission success.”
“General and Mrs. Coffman, genuinely care deeply for our Marines and their families and the family days are just one opportunity they use to show their appreciation,” he added.
After lunch the Marines and families roamed from exhibit to exhibit at the Miami Seaquarium, which was South Florida’s first marine-life attraction, first opening its doors in 1955 according to their website.
The command’s single Marines participated in an exhibit called Sea Trek Reef Encounter, where they dawned oxygen-hose feed scuba helmets and then walked around the bottom of a 300,000 gallon ocean-reef tank. During this expedition, the Marines were able to come face-to-face with common marine-life native to the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.
To wrap up the day, the Marines with children gathered across the park for the Dolphin Encounter, which is an exhibit where participants get in the water with bottlenose dolphins and their trainers as they interact and demonstrate fun -flipper tricks.