INDIAN OCEAN – U.S. Navy sailors serve and protect the nation from strategic locations around the globe, and one of those dedicated service members hails from just east of Murfreesboro in the quiet Hillsboro community of Coffee County.

Quartermaster Seaman Amanda Delgado is currently stationed aboard the USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114), a guided-missile destroyer now operating in the Indian Ocean—a vital body of water situated between Australia and Madagascar.

Delgado, who grew up surrounded by the rural charm of Coffee County, is now part of a global mission, serving with Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15. The squadron is the largest of its kind in the U.S. Navy and plays a crucial role as the principal surface force of the Navy's 7th Fleet.

Prior to her current deployment in the Indian Ocean, Delgado and her shipmates were in the East China Sea near the Republic of South Korea. Such missions are vital to maintaining peace, readiness, and cooperation with U.S. allies across the Indo-Pacific region.

Destroyer squadrons, known in the Navy by the acronym DESRON, typically consist of three or more destroyers or frigates. While not operational combat units themselves, DESRONs are tasked with training, equipping, and managing the ships under their command. When grouped with other types of vessels, they may form a cruiser-destroyer group.

The USS Ralph Johnson is named in honor of Private First Class Ralph Henry Johnson, a Marine who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during the Vietnam War. Johnson gave his life by throwing himself on an explosive device, saving a fellow Marine and stopping the enemy from breaching their perimeter. He died instantly at the age of 20, just over two months into his deployment.

As Delgado serves aboard the ship bearing Johnson's name, she continues the proud tradition of sacrifice and service that defines the U.S. Navy.