Change of Command Aboard Coast Guard Cutter Willow Friday

NEWPORT, RI—A change of command ceremony will be held Friday at U.S. Naval Station Newport when Lt. Cmdr. Mark W. Crysler will relieve Lt. Cmdr. Daniel J. Twomey as the commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Willow.

The 225-foot Seagoing Buoy Tender is homeported in Newport and its crew primarily services short and long range aids to navigation.

They also respond to law enforcement actions, conduct homeland security operations, break ice, engage in searches and rescues and respond to environmental pollution problems.

"The change of command ceremony is a time-honored military tradition," the Coast Guard said in a news release. "It is a formal ritual conducted before the assembled company of the command. It conveys to officers and enlisted personnel of the cutter that although the authority of command is relinquished by one person and assumed by another, it is still maintained without interruption."

Photo courtesy: U.S. Coast Guard.