Coast Guard says thank you with rare open house

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The local branch of the U.S. Coast Guard will be opening up its 87-foot cutter Osprey for tours this 4th of July. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., community members can visit the boat at the Benedict Street dock behind the Harborside Inn, to learn about what the Coast Guard does, tour the boat and meet the local crew. Executive Petty Officer Kyle Wood said after speaking with many people around town, he realized that many people did not have a clear understanding of the Coast Guard’s role. He said not only is this event meant to help people better understand the Coast Guard, but it is also a “thank you” of sorts to the Jefferson County community. When the U.S. government shut down for 35 days from December to February this past year, many federal employees, including members of the Coast Guard, had to continue working without pay. This put a significant amount of stress on local crew members, Wood said, and without any prompting community members began to drop off donations of food, household supplies and hygiene products to help make ends meet. “It was humbling,” Engineering Petty Officer John Webber said. “You could just feel it, that the community was behind us,” Wood said. “We felt like we needed to do something to show our appreciation.”