United States Navy Mass Communications Specialist Sophia Simons was born and raised in Washington state, and she enlisted in the Navy in January 2020. Her first duty assignment was with the Naval Support Element West, a support unit that operates out of San Diego, California.
While at Naval Support Element West, Sophia deployed on the Arleigh Burke-Class Destroyer, USS Michael Murphy, and the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, operating out of 5th fleet (Middle East) and 7th Fleet (Asia) respectively. MC2 Simons also deployed on the Mercy-class hospital ship, U.S. Naval Ship Comfort, providing medical aid to five different countries throughout Middle and South America. Her awards and decorations include two Flag letters of Commendation and one Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal.
MC2 Simons’ proudest military moment was on during her last deployment aboard the US Naval Ship Comfort when in Cartagena (say: Cart-ah-hey-nah), Colombia. Sophia was covering a woman’s shelter there that focused on girls between the ages of 12-20 years old who had conceived children under terrible circumstances and provided them with free childcare while they attend classes to get jobs. Her unit was providing free medical care to not just the young women, but the children as well. On one of Sophia’s last days there, while in conversation with one of the young women, Sophia was handed over a pair of earrings as a thank you gesture. The young woman refused to take no for an answer. It is a moment Sophia will cherish forever and reinvigorated her primary reason to serve, to help others however she can.
Today, Sophia is a student in the esteemed Military Visual Journalism program at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.
