Cheers, signs and hugs greeted sailors as they stepped off the USNS Mercy Sunday following a four-month-long deployment.
The hospital ship departed on May 17 in support of the Pacific Partnership 2015 for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief preparedness. The ship visited Fiji, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Vietnam.
It was an emotional reunion for families waiting back at the dock for their loved ones.
Chief Naval Officer Larry Hopkins deployed just three weeks after his son was born.
When he saw his son again at the homecoming Sunday, he said seeing how much he had grown put his deployment into perspective.
"No words, no words really," he said. "Really, really, happy to be at home. It's been a quick four months but it seems pretty long being away."
During their deployment, sailors provided health care and surgical procedures and hosted engagement events and community relations events with host nations.
The medical team performed nearly 700 surgeries aboard the ship, the dental team helped more than 3,800 patients and engineers completed 10 renovation and new construction projects.
The Pacific Partnership started as a military-led humanitarian effort after the devastating 2004 tsunami swept through parts of Southeast Asia. In the years after the initial trip, the effort grew in size and scope.
