Coast Guard Foundation Activates Coast Guard Family Support Program

Relief for Coast Guard Members Impacted by Government Shutdown

A crew aboard the 52-foot Motor Life Boat Invincible II from Coast Guard Station Grays Harbor prepares to tow a disabled vessel while a second Station Grays Harbor boat crew aboard a 47-foot Motor Life Boat standby near Grays Harbor, Washington, Jan. 7, 2019.
(U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of Station Grays Harbor)

 The Coast Guard Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to the education and welfare of all Coast Guard members and their families, announced today that the organization is sending an initial $250,000 in family support to assist Coast Guard families impacted by the government shutdown.

As noted by the U.S. Coast Guard Commandant, this is the first time in the Nation’s history that service members in a U.S. Armed Force have not been paid during a lapse in appropriations.

A Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules aircrew flies over the 650-foot Sincerity Ace on fire 1,800 nautical miles northwest of Oahu in the Pacific Ocean, Dec. 31, 2018. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by HC-130 Hercules 1720)

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Alameda-based Coast Guard cutter and crew depart for Western Pacific patrol

On a gray and foggy morning, tears intermingled with rain as family members braved the elements to say goodbye to the 170 crewmembers of Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf (WMSL-750), a 418-foot national security cutter, which departed Alameda, California, Sunday for a patrol in the Western Pacific Ocean.

The U.S. Coast Guard has an enduring role in the Indo-Pacific going back over 150 years. The service’s ongoing deployment of resources to the region directly supports U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives in the Indo-Pacific Strategy and the National Security Strategy.

“The United States is a Pacific nation,” said Vice Adm. Linda Fagan, commander Coast Guard Pacific Area, who was present to see the cutter depart. “We have deep and long-standing ties with our partners in the region, and more importantly, we share a strong commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, governed by a rules-based international system that promotes peace, security, prosperity and sovereignty of all nations.”

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