For the second time in 2024, Sailors from Information Warfare Training Command (IWTC) Virginia Beach volunteered at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens, noted as Virginia’s largest botanical garden.

On May 2, a group of nine Sailors comprised of staff and students assigned to IWTC Virginia Beach volunteered to help horticulturists plant spring seedlings and cleared grounds throughout the garden for spring.

“I volunteered at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens because the gardens are actually one of my favorite places to go in Norfolk with my family,” said volunteer Lieutenant Kevin Radford, Information Warfare Officer Basic Course Supervisor, IWTC Virginia Beach. “My wife and I bring our son to stroll around the gardens quite often. When I heard I could personally work to make the gardens more beautiful, I didn’t want to pass up that opportunity. For me, volunteering is an opportunity to improve the lives or landscape around me and it brings me joy to do so.”

The volunteers worked in three groups, which included Lt. Kevin Radford, Cryptologic Technician Technical 1st Class Ashley Ivery, Cryptologic Technician Technical 1st Class Hunter Abrams, Cryptologic Technician Technical 1st Class Amber Riggins, Lt. Tina Alberts, Lt. Alonso Sweet, Lt. Ave Vital, Lt. Samuel Loomis, and Ens. Jose Ortizacevedo. For two and half hours, they pulled out seasonal winter plants near various entrances and exhibits, and prepped spring flowers for plantation in the nursery.

“Every Sailor should positively invest in the communities we serve in, and volunteering in our local communities is a natural part of our service to the nation,” said Cmdr. John Copeland, commanding officer, IWTC Virginia Beach. “Volunteering can connect us to our neighbors with a shared sense of service and purpose. Volunteering alone doesn’t make our Sailors more competitive at evaluation time; it does seem that our already competitive Sailors are the ones conducting most of the volunteer work.”

IWTC Virginia Beach currently offers 74 courses of instruction in information technology, cryptology, and intelligence with an instructor and support staff of over 300 military, civilian, and contract members who train over 7,000 students yearly at five training sites. It is one of four schoolhouses for the Center for Information Warfare Training (CIWT) and also oversees learning sites at Fort Huachuca, Arizona; Jacksonville and Mayport, Florida; Kings Bay, Georgia; and Groton, Connecticut.

With four schoolhouse commands, two detachments, and training sites throughout the United States and Japan, Center for Information Warfare Training trains over 26,000 students every year, delivering trained information warfare professionals to the Navy and joint services. Center for Information Warfare Training also offers more than 200 courses for cryptologic technicians, intelligence specialists, information systems technicians, electronics technicians, and officers in the information warfare community.