A standing room only crowd in the Moffett Building atrium hears Pax River Commanding Officer Capt. Glen Ives start the welcome home celebration.

The 18 were part of a parade down Buse Road, after which they walked down a red carpet in the Moffett Building and were each recognized to applause from the crowd attending the event.

Pax River Commanding Officer Capt. Glen Ives opened the ceremonies by noting, ‘‘We have a great mission here at Pax River and truly great people to achieve that mission. The V-22 is in theater right now in Iraq, and there are many of you here today who had a lot to do with getting them.”

He continued, ‘‘That’s only one of the literally hundreds of examples of the way you directly support our Sailors and Marines serving in harm’s way, and that includes our individual augmentee shipmates.”

However, ‘‘Nothing gives me a more sincere sense of pride than what I see here this afternoon in this atrium,” said Ives.

NAVAIR Vice Commander Rear Adm. William Shannon thanked the augmentees and their families, and noted the importance of such service. ‘‘Navy-wide, there are over 10,000 individuals now serving as individual augmentees in support of our war against terrorism, and also in support of nation-building where terrorism may not have taken root yet or impoverished areas where we are trying to prevent that.”

During October, there were 267 individual augmentees deployed from Pax River alone, according to Shannon.

He continued, ‘‘All of you served with pride, discipline and accountability. One of the things that commanders in Iraq, many from sister services, talk about is the ability of our Sailors to arrive in theater and go right to work no matter what the environment. They are incredibly impressed by the ability, ingenuity and versatility of our folks.”

Individual augmentees and their families enter the Moffett Building atrium to cheers and flag-waving at last Thursday evening’s IA Homecoming celebration.

Shannon stated, ‘‘You did everything — medical care, dental care, intelligence, special ops, contracts and more. You assisted in building infrastructure. What you did was important on the strategic, nation-building and allied support level, and also on the tactical level battling terrorism around the globe. As many of you experienced, it was important on a very personal level to the many lives you touched.”

What makes the IA tours especially challenging, Shannon said, ‘‘is that in many cases you did it alone or in very small groups, unlike normal deployments where units deploy as a ship, squadron, company or brigade. That is an extraordinary challenge.”

He added, ‘‘You don’t have the normal support of a unit, which takes a special skill and level of dedication. It is an extraordinary sacrifice for you and your families.”

The individual augmentees recognized Thursday included:

Lt. Cmdr. Mark Anderson served in Djibouti, Africa from December 2006 to June 2007 and was responsible for logistics support of Combined Joint Task Force—Horn of Africa, which included contingency operating locations (COLs), civil affairs missions and humanitarian assistance and counter-terrorism operations. He coordinated the efforts of eight officers and five enlisted personnel and provided logistics support that spanned major COLs in Kenya and Ethiopia and numerous smaller operations in seven African countries supporting 300 plus trainers and operators.

CWO3 Alvin Campbell was assigned to Joint Task Force Bravo, Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras as Deputy Director and J2 Operations Officer from March to September 2007. He provided key intelligence support for over 40 missions conducted by JTF-Bravo to include counter narcotics, disaster relief and humanitarian assistance. His professionalism and leadership led to the accreditation of the new Sensitive Compartmented Intelligence Facility by the Defense Intelligence Agency inspection team, completing the topmost critical task to the expansion of the intelligence architecture of USSOUTHCOM.

Pax River employees, families and friends go through a receiving line to thank the augmentees for their service.

Lt. Cmdr. Michael Collins went through Fort Jackson, S.C., and served first on Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar and then with the International Security Assistance Force Headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan from December 2006 to July 2007. He served as a fixed wing airlift LNO, planner and execution officer for ISAF. Collins was responsible for C-17, C-130 and C-160 ISAF flights in Afghanistan, to which six coalition partners contributed, and moved thousands of troops and thousands of tons of equipment and supplies.

Lt. Cmdr. Clay Davis served from June 2006 to April 2007 as Executive Officer of a provincial reconstruction team that was responsible for reconstruction efforts in the Paktika Province, Afghanistan. He was responsible for a joint Army-Navy (active, reserve, and National Guard) 125-member team that supported counter-insurgency operations through civil-military operations facilitating and enhancing governance, reconstruction and security.

Lt. Cmdr. James Fabby served as the Chief of Commodities at the Regional Contracting Center, Camp Victory, Iraq from April to October 2007. He was responsible for providing leadership to 13 joint service personnel serving in two joint buying activities providing direct contract support to two combat divisions and the multi-national corps headquarters, consisting of more than 60,000 Iraqi security and coalition forces engaged in combat operations. Fabby oversaw the execution of over 2,000 contract actions, while supporting JCC-I⁄A’s implementation of the critical ‘‘Iraqi First Initiative.”

Lt. Cmdr. Dean Fuller served in Bagram, Afghan-istan, providing inter-theater support for Special Operations from April to October 2007.

HM2 Barry Goode served as the Leading Petty Officer for the dental department on Camp Lemonier in Djibouti, Africa. With no hygienist aboard, Goode performed oral prophylactic cleanings for the Guam Army National Guard and the Djiboutian nationals who worked alongside U.S. forces. He also served as an Emergency Medical Technician and duty sick call corpsman, and during mass casualty situations performed clinical security and acted as communication liaison between the Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps. Goode also supported various community service projects and volunteered countless hours to feed children at a local orphanage.

Col. Tim Gowen served as the Commanding Officer of Task Force Aviation Classification Repair Activity Depot from June 2006 to October 2007 where he led a team of 235 military and 200 contractors. His unit was based out of Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, and he traveled throughout Afghanistan and other areas in support of his unit.

PSSN Robert Hicks served in Iraq at a detainee detention facility from May 2006 to July 2007. The facility housed more than 18,000 people and was supported by Army, Air Force and Navy personnel. When asked about his service in Iraq, Hicks said ‘‘serving in Iraq has taught me so many valuable lessons not only about humanity but about life itself which makes me a better all around person and a valuable team player.”

ABH1 Kevin Jasey served on USNS Comfort from May to October 2007 and supported the movement of more than 8,000 passengers and 350 loads of cargo totaling over 400,000 pounds, prioritizing and directing critical resources to the various mission sites. He also ensured that over 1,100 sorties were completed safely and expeditiously in support of Partnership for the Americas and contributed to over 400 mishap-free fueling evolutions. He also supported community service projects in Peru, Ecuador and Nicaragua.

PSSN Kiel LaPlante served on USNS Comfort from May to October 2007 where he was responsible for the check in of 1,000 active duty and civilian personnel, completing 150 family separation allowances ensuring members were paid in a timely manner, and ensuring a daily accurate muster of more than 700 personnel. He also constructed battle records for 150 staff who reported without them, built and maintained a civilian emergency contact phone binder and maintained and updated all service records, purging and filing. He also filed 200 Shellback Certificates in Service records.

Lt. Cmdr. Jadon Lincoln was attached to Joint Contracting Command-Iraq, Baghdad, Iraq and served as a contracting officer and commodities team chief supporting Multi-National Security Transition Command—Iraq from March to September 2007. He led a team of nine military and civilian contracting officers providing the full spectrum of logistics support to the security forces of the Iraqi Ministries of Defense and Interior. He and his team ensured over $214 million in critical commodities and services were delivered to support major combat operations.

ABH1 Kevin McMahon served on USNS Comfort from May to October 2007 and supported the movement of more than 8,000 passengers and 350 loads of cargo totaling over 400,000 pounds, prioritizing and directing critical resources to the various mission sites. He also ensured that over 1,100 sorties were completed safely and expeditiously in support of Partnership for the Americas and contributed to over 400 mishap-free fueling evolutions. He also supported community service projects in Peru, Ecuador and Nicaragua.

Lt. Cmdr. Scott Murray served for one year in Djibouti, Africa as camp safety manager Camp Lemonier where he utilized operational risk management to ensure the utmost safety of over 6,000 personnel assigned to the camp during his tenure. He was recently awarded Navy Commendation Medal from Fifth Fleet for his proven performance as a top-notch IA supporting the war on terrorism.

HM3 Ronald Navalta served on Camp Lemonier in Djibouti, Africa, from January to July 2007. He provided Emergency Medical Service, Emergency Vehicle Operations, and worked in dental, preventive medicine, the pharmacy and various laboratories. He initiated a computerized system for ordering spectacles and conducted a nutrition clinic on Sundays, his day off. Navalta also supported community service projects including visiting local orphanages and the AIDS center.

ABH3 Manuel Palagua-chi served from May 2006 to August 2007 in Camp Bucca, Iraq. As assistant quad section leader, he supervised five Sailors and an Iraqi interpreter guarding 250 hardened detainees. He participated in all compound activities including detainee movement, visitation, discipline and communication with Iraqi leaders. He was an integral part of the team responding to a large-scale disturbance involving nearly 800 detainees, and performed physical security upgrades to deter escape attempts.

ABH2 Eric Pride served on USNS Comfort from May to October 2007 and supported the movement of more than 8,000 passengers and 350 loads of cargo totaling over 400,000 pounds, prioritizing and directing critical resources to the various mission sites. He also ensured that over 1,100 sorties were completed safely and expeditiously in support of Partnership for the Americas and contributed to over 400 mishap-free fueling evolutions. He also supported community service projects in Peru, Ecuador and Nicaragua.

Cmdr. Keith Quincy served in Iraq and was attached to the Joint CREW Composite Squadron ONE supporting the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division and then the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Brigade as the Brigade Electronic Warfare Officer from March 2006 to January 2007. He was responsible for the Counter Radio Controlled Improvised Explosive Device Electronic Warfare equipment, coordinating tactics, training and logistics in support of combat operations.