JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — They are the force that protects America, and there are a lot of them. An estimated 1.4 million people serve in the branches of the United States military and many of those people need to travel for duty at the drop of a hat.
In this week's Stories of Service, First Coast News highlights a sailor at the Naval Air Station Jacksonville who keeps track of all of those moving parts and ensures that people and cargo arrive on time.
When planes, cargo and people travel through NAS JAX, Thiago Rodrigues is the one who coordinates it.
"I am the terminal assistant leading Petty Officer," said Rodrigues. "My job is to transfer passengers throughout the terminal and cargo for deploying commands."
Hundreds of people cross through the terminal every week, but the concept of traveling is quite familiar to Rodrigues. He and his family moved to the United States from Brazil when he was eight years old.
"If it wasn't for the United States, I wouldn't have the opportunity to do a lot of the things I do today," said Rodrigues. "I take a lot of pride knowing that I am setting something different for the future generations of my family, setting a standard."
After serving six years in the Navy, the standard that Rodrigues sets has been noticed by his commanding officers as well. He was named NAS JAX Sailor of the Year.
"It's a great honor, being recognized for the work we do here day in and day out and all the other things I do around the base," said Rodrigues. "It's a great honor to be recognized as somebody who is performing well."
Thiago Rodrigues was a Petty Officer 2nd Class when First Coast News interviewed him for Stories of Service, but just two days later, he was advanced to Petty Officer 1st Class by the NAS JAX commanding officer.
If you have a Story of Service that you would like First Coast News to profile, send us an email to storiesofservice@firstcoastnews.com.