USS New Mexico

A commissioning is a time-honored naval tradition and marks the official entry of a ship or submarine into the fleet. While the Commanding Officer recommends the location and date for his ship’s commissioning, it is the Secretary of the Navy who has the final say and makes the selection official. For planning purposes, it is anticipated that NEW MEXICO will be commissioned at Norfolk Naval Base, VA in late October 2009.

As the host state, New Mexico has many responsibilities in making sure the commissioning is a world-class event. While the Navy supplies the submarine, crew and pier, the rest is up to the Commissioning Committee.

The USS New Mexico Commissioning Committee is part of the Navy League’s New Mexico Council. It is this committee that led the 5-year statewide grassroots initiative to have the sixth Virginia-class submarine named NEW MEXICO. It has been involved in construction milestone ceremonies and crew support activities for the past four years. The Navy League is a civilian support organization for our nation’s sea services.

Commissioning ceremonies always occur on a Saturday but during “Commissioning Week”, there are other associated events leading up to the commissioning ceremony. These include the following:

The Commissioning Committee is responsible for the planning, coordinating, financing and implementation of all events except the actual naval ceremony. The Committee has partnered with the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce for fund-raising and with the Navy League’s Hampton Roads Council for local support. It is working closely with the Commanding Officer and his crew, the Ship’s Sponsor, and the Navy’s Commissioning Team in planning for NEW MEXICO’s Commissioning Ceremony.

What Can You Do to Help?

The Navy League - Hispano Chamber partnership is called Club 779, taking its name from the hull number 779. In the short-term, Club 779 is the fund-raising arm for the commissioning ceremony; in the long-term, Club 779 will take on the role of “adopting” the submarine. This means Club 779 will maintain strong connections with the crew for the life of the ship, arrange for crewmembers to visit the state, and organize trips for New Mexicans to visit the submarine.

Club 779 is managed by an Advisory Board composed of the following business leaders and Navy Leaguers:

Randy Sanchez, Coronado Center
Dick Brown, Navy League New Mexico Council
Phil Castillo, Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce
Carlo Lucero, Sparkle Maintenance
Merritt Allen, Vox Optima
Edna Lopez, COMPA Industries
Robert Sachs, Team Technologies
Andrew Baca, Abba Technologies
Sherman McCorkle, Technology Ventures Corporation
Don Power, Jaynes Corporation
Matthew O’Brien, Sandia National Laboratories
Thomas Briones, Briones Law Firm
Matthew Martinez, Networx, Inc.
Loretta Armenta, Qwest
Mark Schaefer, Navy League New Mexico Council
Steve Paternoster, Scalo Northern Italian Grill

You can take an active role in helping to sponsor commissioning ceremony events for New Mexico’s namesake submarine. See the schedule of sponsorship levels (below). We would be happy to welcome you to Club 779 as a sponsor and leader in promoting submarine NEW MEXICO.

To arrange to make a contribution contact the 779 Committee through the Contact/Email Update. We will send you an invoice that lists your benefits and answer any questions you may have.

USS NEW MEXICO Sponsor/Contributor Levels

Make checks payable to Navy League New Mexico Council, P.O. Box 91554, Albuquerque, NM 87199 or use the Google Checkout feature to make a credit card payment for contributions up to $5000.