Rev. Jimmy Gawne

This summer, after a decade as a Lieutenant in the US Navy Chaplain Corps, I was selected for promotion, and at the beginning of December, I was officially promoted to Lieutenant Commander!
When I graduated from the Bethany Fellows clergy development cohort in 2018, I received a set of Lieutenant Commander rank from my mentor, Rev. Dr. John Myers, CDR, USN (ret.), and those are the rank insignia that Caitie and my father pinned on my uniform at my promotion ceremony.

Hey, folks in the Pacific Northwest, this sweet boy is still looking for a home after a full year at Homeward Pet. He was one of my favorites to take for walks around Woodinville, even if he did get a little grumpy when I wouldn't let him go to Wendy's, or Chipotle, or Red Robin. 😂
If you've got room in your heart and your home (and your yard, that's an important consideration) for a gentle pitbull that just wants to be loved (without other dogs around, another important consideration), Hank would very much like to join your family.

A note from Jim, our Operations Director:

Hank was transferred to Homeward Pet from an overcrowded shelter in Eastern WA. Nine months ago!

But most of his time with us has been spent being examined and diagnosed, treated, medicated and in recovery. First, it was addressing his anxiety. Then, Hank needed major surgery to repair torn ACL’s – in both knees.

An amazing foster home stepped up to keep this toy-loving, ball-chasing, stuffie-destroying 7-year-old Pit mix quiet through more than 4 months of rehab, and through it all, Hank was just Hank. An enthusiastic, happy-go-lucky, fun, friendly guy.

Your donation not only gave Hank the surgeries he needed, but the time for rest and rehabilitation. Fully recovered and finally cleared for adoption in early February, now all handsome Hank is waiting for is his new home.

Please consider donating during this Give Big Washington week to help us continue to commit to Hank and other long-stay animals like him.

https://bit.ly/hpac-givebig24

You may have heard this week that a USMC CH-53E crashed east of San Diego during the storms we had here earlier this week.
The Department of the Navy has now confirmed that the helicopter was from HMH-361, at MCAS Miramar in San Diego. The Marines on board were Lcpl. Donovan Davis, Sgt. Alec Langen, Capt. Jack Casey, Capt. Benjamin Moulton, and Capt. Miguel Nava. Sgt. Langen was a Phoenix native; Lcpl. Davis was from Kansas City.
Though this kind of thing is not unfamiliar to us in the military, it is never easy. Five families have lost loved ones, and a squadron has lost five of their own. And while the chaplain and RP at HMH-361 and their colleagues at MAG-16 are more than well equipped to care for the squadron, the Marines and Sailors of HMH-361 can still most assuredly use our prayers.

5 Marines Killed in California Helicopter Crash Identified as Families Grieve The Marine Corps has identified five service members who were killed after their CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crashed in Southern California on Tuesday.

Final thought for the night:
Are there certain advantages to bigger churches? Sure.
But the last three Sundays, I went to Christ Church Uniting Disciples and Presbyterians in Kailua, HI, while I was at Pearl Harbor conducting training. And yes, they're a smaller congregation, but it was nice to go there and have a significant portion of the congregation
1) know my name and who I was
2) know why I was there, and
3) know that I was leaving today but still put in the effort to be there.
Also, their services were simple and deeply satisfying to an old Disciples soul. If/when I end up back on Oahu on a Sunday morning, I'll definitely go back.

It saddens me greatly that Hank is still at Homeward Pet Adoption Center, nearly four months after I last saw him during my final dog walking shift before leaving Seattle.
He really is a very sweet and gentle boy, and he deserves happiness.

Hank has been waiting way too long to find his family, and we can’t figure out why. He’s snuggly, sweet, playful, and easy going. And, he comes with two brand new knees!

Hank arrived with some stiffness and pain, and it turns out he had torn cranial cruciate ligaments in both of his back knees. Our friends and partners at Animal Emergency and Specialty in Kirkland were quickly contacted, Hank went in for surgery - twice - and now he's able to chase all the tennis balls, go for walks, and jump onto the sofa for snuggles - all pain free.

And he's ready to find his new family to help him enjoy all the amazing adventures and blanket cuddles coming his way! If you've been thinking about adopting a best friend, you can stop thinking and make it happen.

Read all about Hank on our website and get started in the adoption process by filling out an adoption application. Hank is ready to meet you!

Apply now >>> https://bit.ly/hpac-hank23

The question of whether or not I'm a veteran is up for some debate, as I'm still on active duty and plan to continue for the foreseeable future.
However, in light of this being the day we commemorate our service, here's some of my particularly favorite moments to date:
1) Serving communion to Marines on Range 400 at MCAGCC Twentynine Palms, California
2) Conducting Advent 4 Sunday service for Marines at JGSDF Camp Soumagahara, Japan
3) Baptizing Marines in the Pacific Ocean off the beach at Camp Schwab, Okinawa
4) Baptizing a Sailor from the ship's bell on USS BARRY, somewhere in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Washington
5) Conducting evening prayer on the bridge of USS CANBERRA, somewhere in the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii

For the last year and a half, I've been volunteering at LeMay - America's Car Museum. As I've lived at least 1,000 miles from Caitie for my entire time as the chaplain on USS Chosin, I've had to ensure that I had "happy places" in my life, and ACM has definitely been one of them. From the distinct smell of a massive building full of beautiful old cars the moment I walk in the door, to getting to see these honest to goodness works of art in person every time I've gone in, to getting to talk about these cars with hundreds of visitors to the museum, every volunteer shift has been a real joy for me.
This last Sunday, I went in as a collections monitor, and it turned out I was the only one for several hours while we had quite a few visitors. I had conversations about everything from Studebaker's early 20th century electric cars to John DeLorean's revolutionary designs at Pontiac, and got to tell people about the incredible history of some of the cars in the museum along the way.
I'm going to try to fit in one last volunteer shift at ACM before I leave for San Diego, but just in case, I took the time while I was there to get pictures of my favorite cars in the museum. Here they are, in no particular order other than chronological.