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Petty
Officer 2nd Class Marissa Gaeta, left, kisses her girlfriend of two years,
Petty Officer 3rd Class Citlalic Snell at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek
in Virginia Beach, Va., Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2011 after Gaeta's ship returned
from 80 days at sea. It ís a time-honored tradition at Navy homecomings - one
lucky sailor is chosen to be first off the ship for the long-awaited kiss with
a loved
one. On Wednesday, for the first time, the happily reunited couple was
gay.
(AP Photo/The Virginian-Pilot, Brian J. Clark)
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VIRGINIA
BEACH, Va. (AP) -- A Navy tradition caught up with the repeal of the U.S.
military's "don't ask, don't tell" rule on Wednesday when two women
sailors became the first to share the coveted "first kiss" on the
pier after one of them returned from 80 days at sea.
Petty
Officer 2nd Class Marissa Gaeta of Placerville, Calif., descended from the USS
Oak Hill amphibious landing ship and shared a quick kiss in the rain with her
partner, Petty Officer 3rd Class Citlalic Snell of Los Angeles. Gaeta, 23, wore
her Navy dress uniform while Snell, 22, wore a black leather jacket, scarf and
blue jeans. The crowd screamed and waved flags around them.
"It's
something new, that's for sure," Gaeta told reporters after the kiss.
"It's
nice to be able to be myself. It's been a long time coming."
For the
historical significance of the kiss, there was little to differentiate it from
countless others when a Navy ship pulls into its home port following a
deployment. Neither the Navy nor the couple tried to draw attention to what was
happening and many onlookers waiting for their loved ones to come off the ship
were busy talking among themselves.
David
Bauer, the commanding officer of the USS Oak Hill, said that Gaeta and Snell's
kiss would largely be a non-event and the crew's reaction upon learning who was
selected to have the first kiss was positive.
"It's
going to happen and the crew's going to enjoy it. We're going to move on and it
won't overshadow the great things that this crew has accomplished over the past
three months," Bauer said.
The ship
returned to Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story following an
80-day deployment to Central America. The crew of more than 300 participated in
exercises involving the militaries of Honduras, Guatemala Colombia and Panama
as part of Amphibious-Southern Partnership Station 2012.
Both women
are Navy fire controlmen, who maintain and operate weapons systems on ships.
They met at training school where they were roommates and have been dating for
two years, which they said was difficult under "don't ask, don't
tell."
"We
did have to hide it a lot in the beginning," Snell said. "A lot of
people were not always supportive of it in the beginning, but we can finally be
honest about who we are in our relationship, so I'm happy."
Navy
officials said it was the first time on record that a same-sex couple was
chosen to kiss first upon a ship's return. Sailors and their loved ones bought
$1 raffle tickets for the opportunity. Gaeta said she bought $50 of tickets, a
figure that she said pales in comparison to amounts that some other sailors and
their loved ones had bought. The money was used to host a Christmas party for
the children of sailors.
Snell said
she believes their experience won't be the last one for gays and lesbians in
the military.
"I
think that it's something that is going to open a lot of doors, for not just
our relationship, but all the other gay and lesbian relationships that are in
the military now," she said.
Snell is
based on the USS Bainbridge, the guided missile destroyer that helped rescue
cargo captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates in 2009.
Online:
Brock Vergakis can be reached at www.twitter.com/BrockVergakis
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About the Challenges of Being a Gay Man – Oct 23, 2010 (Saint Germain channelled by Alexandra Mahlimay and Dan Bennack) - “You see, your Soul and Creator are not concerned with any perspective you have that contradicts the reality of your Divinity – whether this be your gender, your sexual preference, your nationality – or your race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, or anything else.”
"The Akashic System" – Jul 17, 2011 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: Religion, God, Benevolent Design, DNA, Akashic Circle, (Old) Souls, Gaia, Indigenous People, Talents, Reincarnation, Genders, Gender Switches, In “between” Gender Change, Gender Confusion, Shift of Human Consciousness, Global Unity,..... etc.)
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