Uniformed Response : Beverly Hills Police Give Strapped Seabees, Families a Helping Hand

A young Seabee, recently returned from Saudi Arabia, sat quietly with his wife in the office of the Naval Relief Center at the Port Hueneme base.

The couple had come looking for food, clean diapers and a little moral support. They did not have enough money to feed their 2-month-old baby, they said.

On Friday the couple and others like them trying to survive on low military pay got some of the help they need courtesy of the Beverly Hills Police Department.

Shortly before noon, the police officers arrived with a truckload of food and other supplies--valued at about $4,500--to assist sailors and their families during trying times.

Hard-luck stories abound at this tiny wooden Naval Relief barracks in the heart of the Naval Construction Battalion Center. It’s the place where sailors and their families come when they need help.

And the police decided it was a day to do more than wave flags and wear yellow ribbons in honor of the troops, said Motor Officer Gary Gilmond.

“We wanted to do something that would help the servicemen and their families directly,” said Gilmond, a Thousand Oaks man who organized the Police Department’s food drive.

Gilmond said he started the drive by encouraging members of the department to drop off canned food in collection boxes at the station.

But the effort quickly spread.

Teachers and children from the Campbell Hall School, a private school in North Hollywood, noticed the food-drive boxes when they were touring the police station and decided to give the department 400 cans they had collected for the troops.

Next, the Beverly Hills Police Assn. donated $1,000 to buy food and other supplies.

“Pretty soon the room where we were keeping the food was overflowing,” Sgt. Mike Hines said. “We thought it was high time to bring it to the base.”

The Seabees said they were thankful for the donation.

“Utilities are expensive and rent’s a killer,” Petty Officer Richard Mosser said. “A lot of guys depend on the Naval Relief.”

According to Dianne Kerekffy, the executive director of the relief operation, a first-level sailor only makes about $700 a month.

“We’re seeing young Seabees coming out of boot camp with wives and babies,” Kerekffy said. “So many times they’re just living from day to day. If something comes up where they need money, they’re in hot water.”

Kerekffy said that after the crisis started in the Middle East, the number of families and sailors requesting assistance from the center increased by about 25%. She said that number is expected to rise as the troops return from Saudi Arabia.

“If they were living in Gulfport, Miss., they would have a better chance of making it,” Kerekffy said. “When you get orders to Ventura County, where it’s expensive, it’s tough.”

The relief center, which serves all naval personnel in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, averages about 260 calls for help each month, Kerekffy said.

“Sometimes we can make the difference between them making it or not,” Kerekffy said. “We keep very busy.”

The center operates strictly on donations and with the help of volunteers.

Kerekffy said the Police Department’s contribution is the largest the center has received.

“It’s something we could do to help out, pay back and support the troops,” said Detective Steve Miller, who helped deliver the food.

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