America’s Navy sails into Detroit for Navy Week

Detroit will host the Navy Week program July 11-18 bringing Sailors to the Motor City for a week of events leading up to the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, The Blue Angels, performance at the Thunder Over Michigan Airshow.

Detroit Navy Week brings Sailors from across the fleet to the area to emphasize the importance of the Navy to Detroit, the state of Michigan, and the Nation.

Participating Navy organizations include USS Detroit (LCS 7), Navy Band Great Lakes, Naval Oceanography Operations Command, U.S. Navy Parachute Team, Navy Talent Acquisition Group Heartland, U.S. Fleet Forces, Unites States Naval Academy, Naval History and Heritage Command, Naval Reserve Center Detroit and University of Michigan NROTC.

More than 50 Sailors will participate in education and community outreach events throughout the city, including the Detroit Navy Week – Law Enforcement Explorer’s Youth Day Farwell Field on Wednesday, July 13. For more information and to register visit https://tinyurl.com/Explorersyouthday. All participating commands will follow DOD, CDC, state, and local guidelines for safety during the current pandemic.

The Navy’s senior executive host is Rear Admiral William Greene, Fleet Maintenance Officer, U.S. Fleet Forces Command. During Detroit Navy Week Rear Adm. Greene, an Ann Arbor native, will participate in community engagements and speak with local businesses, civic organizations, educational institutions, and government leaders.

Navy Weeks are a series of outreach events coordinated by the Navy Office of Community Outreach designed to give Americans an opportunity to learn about the Navy, its people, and its importance to national security and prosperity.

Since 2005, the Navy Week program has served as the Navy's flagship outreach effort into areas of the country without a significant Navy presence, providing the public a firsthand look at why the Navy matters to cities like Detroit.

“We are excited to bring Navy Week to Detroit,” said NAVCO’s director, Cmdr. John Fage. “Navy Weeks give us the opportunity to help connect Americans to their Navy. We are looking forward to safely and responsibly building those connections in the Detroit area and showing everyone why their Navy is so important.”

Throughout the week, Sailors will participate in various community events across the area, including engaging with multiple summer programs and volunteering with Gleaners Food Bank, Forgotten Harvest, and Habitat for Humanity Detroit.

Residents of Detroit and the surrounding area will also be able to enjoy free live music by Navy Band Great Lakes at venues throughout the week. The complete schedule of performances can be found at https://www.outreach.navy.mil/Navy-Weeks-2022/Detroit-2022/.

Detroit Navy Week is one of 13 Navy Weeks in 2022, which brings a variety of assets, equipment, and personnel to a single city for a weeklong series of engagements designed to bring America’s Navy closer to the people it protects. Each year, the program reaches more than 140 million people — about half the U.S. population.

Visit Detroit is a private, not-for-profit organization whose mission is to market and sell the metropolitan Detroit area on a worldwide basis as a destination for leisure and business travel including conventions, trade shows, corporate meetings, tours and incentive travel to maximize additional visitors, visitor expenditures, state and local tax revenues and job opportunities.

More than 700 businesses are represented in Visit Detroit’s membership. Visit Detroit was founded in 1896 as the world’s first convention and visitors bureau. visitdetroit.com