Good morning. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention, please? At this time, I need everyone to take their seats as we get ready for the arrival of the official party and the elders blessing of the ship in the ceremonial stomp dance. Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats. In the event of anyone needing medical attention, we have medical personnel at the back of the formations throughout the pier. Restrooms are at both ends if you are in need of a restroom. Ladies and gentlemen, silence your phones. Please stay seated as we get ready for the elders and the blessing of the ship and the arrival of our official party. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. Chukma. Hello. Greetings from the Chickasaw Nation. Our headquarters located in Ada, Oklahoma. My name is Eddie Posto. I'm the director of cultural resources. I am here today with the Chickasaw Nation dance troupe. We are ambassador to the Chickasaw Nation. It is our honor to be here today with you. And what we're going to do today, we're going to have our elder come up and bless the USS Fort Lauderdale ship. And after that, we're going to conclude with two ceremonial stomp dance. Our ceremonial stomp dance is a dance that we would perform for our warriors when they were going to go into a battle or when they came back from a battle. So what an appropriate day to have this today for our all of our veterans. So at this time, I'm going to turn it over to our elder Carlin Thompson. If you can please stand, please stand with us. If you're not able to just remain seated. Chukma ski. Thank you. Chukma. I will do the blessing in Chickasaw and in English as well. It's a great day today. What a beautiful celebration of the Fort Lauderdale. Yes, our and I started out with the creator, giving the blessing to the creator. How she couldn't. How she to look. How she flama. How she flama. How she looks up. Don't give up. Any of us. She who are. None of them is done or none of them. It's such a joke. None of them feel good. None of them are. Our God, our creator, that bring us all together at the All-Mari and into battleship, you know, US Fort Fort Lauderdale, USS or USS Kettini, you know, Spisan Joshke, who Spisan Joshke, none of them are Chukma Kina. She, you know, up here in Ishto Chito, we thank you, Father, for for this ship. Fort Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale, Father, I ask you to bless this ship. Father, in the safety of all all the veterans and the military, Navy, Army, Marines and Coast Guard all, Father, I ask you continue to bless them and the captain and each and every one, Father, God, for their safety and wherever they go, whatever they do, Father, God be with them. Spilan, I ask you, Kana, I ask you, Spahiki, I ask you, and none of them are Chukma Kina. If I'm all my Jesus Christ, if I'm none of them are Shai, I ask you, Father, we thank you for the safety and the blessing of this ship. And we thank you, Lord. God, Father, we thank you for each and every one here that's represented here today. And bless each and every one, Father God, and watch over them. And we thank you, Father, for this great honor today. Fort Lauderdale, USSR Fort Lauderdale ship. We thank you, Father, for this ship, the great blessing and everyone that made it possible, bless each and every one. I pray, Heavenly Father, we thank you for all things. All say it in Jesus' name. Amen. Chukma Kina. Thank you.  Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the Venice of America, beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and the commissioning of the city's namesake ship, the USS Fort Lauderdale. I am Commander Robert Foster, the ship's executive officer and it is my privilege to be your master of ceremonies today. We're here today to commission the 12th San Antonio-class Amphibious Transport Dock Ship and the first ship to proudly bear the name Fort Lauderdale. Our ceremony today is a time-honored tradition that began with the commissioning of our first warship, a captured British schooner, the Margareta, in 1775. Since then, thousands of ships have undergone the transformation from silent hulls to fully alive warships. Our commissioning crew, hereafter known as plank owners, are in formation among you and ready to bring the ship alive. In just a few moments, the ship Navy Band Southeast will render honors to the honorable Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Will the guests please rise and remain standing for the arrival of our official party, honors, and the presentation of Colors and the National Anthem. Ladies and gentlemen, our official party. In our audience are maids of honor, Miss Charlotte Berger, Miss Molly Messing, and Miss Catherine Messing. On the deus, Lieutenant William Daniel Jr., Chaplain Corps, United States Navy. Commander Christopher Matassa, United States Navy, LPD 17 Class Program Manager's Representative, Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Gulf Coast. Captain Cedric McNeil, United States Navy, Amphibious Warfare Program Manager. Miss Lynn Alsasser, our long class presenter. Miss Patricia Dumann, Chairperson, USS Fort Lauderdale Commissioning Committee. Miss Carrie Wilkinson, President, Ingalls Shipbuilding. Rear Admiral Thomas J. Anderson, United States Navy, Program Executive Officer, Ships. The Honorable Lamar Fisher, Vice Mayor, Broward County, Florida. The Honorable Dean Trent Alice, Mayor, City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Admiral Daryl Caudill, United States Navy, Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Northern Command, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Strategic Command. General Eric M. Smith, United States Marine Corps, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps. The Honorable Carlos Del Toro, the 78th Secretary of the Navy. Ladies and gentlemen, our ship sponsor, the Honorable Meredith Burger, escorted today by Command Master Chief James McGee, United States Navy, USS Fort Lauderdale Command Master Chief. Ladies and gentlemen, the Honorable Debbie Wasserman Schultz, United States Representative, State of Florida, 23rd District, escorted today by Captain James Corsimo, United States Navy, USS Fort Lauderdale Commanding Officer. Ladies and gentlemen, honors to the Honorable Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Laform and Salute. Advance the colors, Laform and Salute. Chaplain Daniel will now deliver the invocation. Good morning. Let us pray. Holy Father, we have arrived this week in waves of care and concern, obligation and experience from various homelands and odyssey that are now crashing upon this one vessel of American diplomacy and forged steel. We have paused now to honor you. Though our times and affairs and concerns churn and change in the stormy basin of human nature, you are ever faithful and true, graciously guiding and providing for those who love and follow you. And so Holy Father, we specifically thank you for bringing together the many hands that have skillfully crafted and dutifully supported this gorgeous gray lady rode in glory, all flowing from the vision of the late Senior Chief Chuck Black. Now please road Captain Corsimo, Commander Foster and Command Master Chief McGee, our Chief's mess and wardroom in your truth and wisdom as neither resources nor rank safeguard the human heart from temptation or evil. Please bond us all together as one Navy, Marine Corps and family team for lives of service and mission that please you, bless our homeland and bring honor to our families as together we fight. Under the name of USS Fort Lauderdale, amen. Thank you, Chaplain Daniel. We would like to thank Elder Carolyn Thompson and the ceremonial dancers of the Chickasaw Nation for the blessing of the ship and traditional stomp dance as well as the Navy and Southeast and the Fort Lauderdale Squadron Sea Cadet Color Guard for their support this morning. Additionally, we wish to thank and acknowledge the support of Fort Everglades and the Broward County Sheriff's Office. Will the guests please be seated? Ships Company, parade or rest. Ladies and gentlemen, the Honorable Dean Trent Hallis. Good morning, everybody. Welcome to Fort Lauderdale. Thank you all for being here today. My name is Dean Trent Hallis and very honored to be the mayor of the city at this very, very historic occasion of the commissioning of the USS Fort Lauderdale. Beautiful ship, right? So distinguished guests, Secretary Del Rio, Secretary Berger, Captain James Carrasimo, the entire crew of the ship, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, our wonderful Congresswoman, Vice Mayor Lamar Fisher. I thank you all for being here this morning and welcoming the beginning of this new journey. On behalf of our great city, it is my privilege to welcome USS Fort Lauderdale here today. After six years, it was first announced that the Navy's newest amphibious transport dock would be named after our city. The USS Fort Lauderdale is now ready to serve our nation. This ceremony is a momentous occasion, not just for the military, but for the almost 200,000 people who call Fort Lauderdale their home. And this is the first time the city's namesake is being designated for service. But Fort Lauderdale is no stranger to the demands of maintaining our freedoms. A legacy of service to America can be traced to the beginning of our city. Fort Lauderdale is named after U.S. Army Major William Lauderdale from the namesake forts built in the area in the, excuse me, in the 1830s. Again, during World War II, Fort Lauderdale became a major site of operations for the Navy and the Coast Guard. A base was established here at Port Everglades to support the Guard and Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale was built to train pilots. Radar operators were Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport now stands just up the road. Now, following the four years of unyielding construction and months of rigorous testing and trials, the USS Fort Lauderdale will roar into life, beginning a new chapter in our city and the Navy's history. It has taken the time and dedication of hundreds, if not thousands of individuals, to bring us to this moment. Well, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the work of the Navy League of Brar County and the United States, the late community leader and Navy veteran, Charles Chuck Black, the USS Fort Lauderdale Commissioning Committee, shipbuilders Huntington Ingalls, former Mayor Jack Seiler for all the work you did in bringing this together and the former Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mavis. Captain Corosimo, as you and your crew embark on your mission, guided by the motto, together we fight. I know that the enduring American spirit, the same everlasting force that is built and defended this country, will lead you to victory. In these unsettled times around the globe, this imperative cannot be understated. As American freedoms and as peoples must remain vigilant, both at home and as a beacon to others who seek to emulate us. Through the merits of your service, the officers and crew of the USS Fort Lauderdale will operate this cutting-edge vessel with the level of expertise required to overcome any challenge you are called to meet. So on this special day, I welcome the USS Fort Lauderdale to the fleet, and I wish you all who sail her fair winds and friendly seas. May God bless our servicemen and women, the city of Fort Lauderdale and its people, its leaders, its institutions, and indeed, may God bless America. Thank you, everybody. Thank you, Mayor Chantalus. Ladies and gentlemen, Ms. Kerry Wilkinson. I will be brief. I stand here this morning a grateful shipbuilder with the privilege of representing the more than 11,300 English shipbuilders in Pascagola, Mississippi. What an honor it is to be here today to invite you to the commissioning of the Fort Lauderdale LPD-28. I must also express what an honor it is to be keeping such company here today. It is humbling to be standing on this platform. To each of you, to everyone in the audience, and to all of our resilient and steadfast Fort Lauderdale sailors and marines, thank you for having us here today. As shipbuilders, we are a community of diverse, passionate, and tenacious people with sincere purpose and an important mission to build great ships for our nation and for those who dedicate their lives to protect our freedoms. Shipbuilding is a people business and our collective participation here today reinforces the importance of the connection we share with one another in this way of life. That connection is important and I am beyond proud to be standing in front of this ship to represent and speak on behalf of those who built her. People from every part of this country bring their best selves to work each and every day to make a ship like this become a reality. Not just the shipbuilders at Ingalls, but all of our suppliers and industry and customer partners. Everyone on this team leverages essential and unique abilities to design, estimate, engineer, plan, procure, fit, weld, install, test, and ultimately deliver a ship that is so much more than just a product. And just like the extended shipbuilding family that built her, her crew has come from all corners of our country to provide their very best to the Navy and Marine Corps in order to protect and preserve our ideals and freedoms. It is a privilege to have been on this journey thus far and to provide this ship the focus of our professional and oftentimes very personal lives for the past several years. More than 10,000 of our Ingalls shipbuilders touched this ship over the course of her life to this point. Cutting and shaping thousands of raw steel plates, pulling and connecting millions of feet of cable, and installing hundreds and thousands of feet of pipe. And with nearly a million and a half discrete parts and pieces of equipment provided by more than 500 suppliers across this great nation, I can say firsthand that this industry is indeed a partnership, even before we forge our most important partnerships with the crew that will ultimately call her home. I believe I speak for our entire network when I say how proud we are as a community as we see this ship come to life under the command and care of America's best and brightest. Knowing we have served you and will continue to do so, together we fight. We believe this ship is destined for greatness and your Ingalls shipbuilders are proud to be a part of this legacy with you. A very special to you for welcoming us here today. As I offered at our christening not so very long ago, a sincere and open, outstretched hand to the crew of the soon to be USS Fort Lauderdale, we are here to support you, your families, and your mission. We thank you for your service, your sacrifice, and your steadfast commitment to our nation. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Wolkinson. Ladies and gentlemen, General Eric Smith. Hey, good morning. It is a genuinely good day. Now I'm supposed to, by protocol, call out each of the individuals up here on stage. I'm gonna skip with that.  One is the people of Fort Lauderdale and two is the crew of this magnificent warship. A lot of us don't have homes anymore. We've been in this business for 20 or 30 or 35 years. We haven't been home.   So today there's really just two kinds of people. There's people from Fort Lauderdale and people who wish they were in Fort Lauderdale. There's actually a subset of that second category which is people who are gonna just say there from Fort Lauderdale and I'm part of that today but don't hold that against me. The second piece, the second VIP is this magnificent crew. The vessel is fantastic, but the crew is what brings it to life. So from Captain Q down to Command Mass Chief McGee to the most junior Marine and Sailor, they're owed our thanks because we don't pay them a lot.  They come from every corner of this country and they're the best that we have and they are truly phenomenal. So when we talk about this crew and talk about this ship, I get to do the Marine part very briefly. There's a saying that says nobody likes to fight but somebody has to know how. That's actually not our case for Marines. We are ready to fight and together we fight with this ship and when it's fully ready to go, you'll see attack helicopters, you'll see assault support helicopters, you'll see landing craft air cushion, you'll see landing craft utility, high mobility artillery rocket systems, you'll see intelligence operators, you'll see the ability to do everything that this ship needs to do. It is the Swiss Army knife of the fleet. It's highly sought after. It is a national strategic asset that'll be on the water for 40 years. It's a Navy and Marine Corp asset but it's a national asset and you're getting every bit of your money's worth out of this vessel for the next 40 years. And I've been doing this for 35 years and I've seen this ship or one that looks just like her, whose strike lethal blows for adversaries in Syria and Iraq and Afghanistan and I've seen a ship just like this one evacuate Americans out of Liberia and Albania and Lebanon and I've seen it bring aid to our allies in the Philippines and Bangladesh and Haiti. This is the Swiss Army knife. We need it. Lieutenant General Dave Bell and Commander Marine Forces South said in a recent christening, we fight so hard for these ships because we have to fight from these ships. And this is a warship and that makes war less likely for us as Americans. So to the people of Fort Lauderdale and to this magnificent crew of sailors and Marines, thanks for what you do. The birthdays you'll miss, the births that you'll miss, the anniversaries you'll miss, on our behalf, we are grateful. Thank you all, Semper Fidelis. Thank you, Colonel Smith. Ladies and gentlemen, the Honorable Carlos Del Toro. Good morning, Fort Lauderdale. Before I begin my official speech, five minutes standing in there about ready to begin the ceremony, I turned to the chaps. I said, chaps, we got five minutes. Can you please pray for a breeze and some shade? And I want to thank the chaps for coming through. I'm the good Lord too. What a great day for our United States Navy and Marine Corps. What a great day for the great city and people of Fort Lauderdale. General Smith, Admiral Coddle, General Richardson, thank you for awning us with your presence here today. I'd like to take a very brief moment to introduce someone who's very special to us, very special to the United States, Ambassador Macarrova, would you please stand? Thank you for being with us here today. And more so, for your leadership during these very trying times for your nation, Ukraine, our entire country, our entire country, along with all the free and democratic nations around the world stand with you and Ukraine. Thank you, Madam Ambassador. Assistant Secretary Berger, thank you for serving as sponsor for this great vital worship. It's indeed an honor to serve with you in the Pentagon as the acting Under Secretary, as the Assistant Secretary, and now as sponsor of this great ship as well too. Congressman Schultz, Mayor Trentalis, and all the leaders here today, thank you for welcoming us to this beautiful and historic city as was said before. During World War II, many of the pilots who won the skies over both Europe and the Pacific trained right here as was said by the mayor. And it was a Marine from Fort Lauderdale, Second Lieutenant William Willis who earned the Navy Cross for his valor and his leadership in the amphibious assault on the Pacific Island of Pelelu. I just returned yesterday from touring the Indo-Pacific where the legacy of those World War II heroes continues in the peace and prosperity of that vast region. I have the honor of meeting with our allies and our partners in Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines. They remember clearly how our sailors and our Marines fought to help bring freedom to the Indo-Pacific and they understand the need to defend that freedom today. In the face of rising aggression from authoritarian states like China and Russia, we must stand with our allies and partners to defend the sea lanes and the shorelines with a credible and versatile allied force. During my trip, I joined leaders from across the Pacific at the kickoff of Brim of the Pacific 2022, the world's largest international maritime exercise. Right now, over 25,000 personnel on 38 ships, three submarines from 26 nations continue working together to sharpen the edge and strengthen our combined integrated deterrence that the common alluded to. It was inspiring to see firsthand the level of cooperation and skill exhibited across our allied and partnered force. In all of my interactions with our allies and partners, it was clear how much they valued the agility, persistence, versatility of our amphibious ships. I can assure you that the performance of the Mount Whitney, the Curesauge, the Gunson Hall, and the Baltic, operating with our allies as one force spoke louder than ever regarding our commitment to NATO and our partner nations in Europe and elsewhere. Our amphibious platforms, these ships, indeed send a strong message to our friends and our potential adversaries that we are prepared to always maintain the peace and respond with force from the sea when needed. As General Smith detailed, the speed, the lethality, and capabilities of LPDs like Fort Lauderdale increase our capability to operate in any contested or disaster-stricken environment. Now, to the sailors and Marines who will sail overboard at the Fort Lauderdale, thank you and your families in advance for the service that you will fulfill and sacrifices that you will endure. And I'd like to ask all the family members of this crew to please stand up and be recognized. The moment that we bring this amphibious transport dock to life, you will strengthen the integrated deterrence capability of our entire joint force. Revolutionary War Captain John Paul Jones once said, I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast, for I intend to go and harm's way. Today's Marines and sailors share that same intention. They are ready and willing to go and harm's way whenever their nation calls. It is our collective duty to ensure that they have the most agile, ready capabilities possible. And that is why I am so grateful to every member of the team that brought us here today, from the shipbuilders, to the plank owners, to our partners in Congress, and most importantly, to you, the American people, for supporting our sailors, our Marines, our Department of the Navy, our Department of Defense. We cannot thank you enough, the American people, for the support that you provide our military. Thank you. And I'm deeply thankful that one of our greatest congressional leaders is here today. As chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, she has worked tirelessly on behalf of our military personnel, our veterans, and their families, and I have seen it personally. Throughout her career, she has fought for justice, equality, and opportunity for all Americans. She has been a staunch advocate for government reform, environmental responsibility, and global leadership on climate change. And it was her partnership with the late senior chief, Chuck Black, that helped decide the selection of Fort Lauderdale as the namesake of this ship. And thank you, Secretary Mavis, for that decision. So it is now my pleasure to introduce Representative of the Florida's 23rd Congressional District, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz. Mr. Secretary, thank you so much for that very meaningful and kind introduction, and welcome to Fort Lauderdale in front of the USS Fort Lauderdale. This is such an incredibly momentous occasion for our community. I think if you look around at the folks who helped make sure that we could reach this day, it is impossible to wipe the smiles off of the faces of the folks who dreamt of this day, who fought for this day, and who helped make this really incredible honor for our community, the ultimate possibility. And we're just absolutely thrilled. I'm thrilled to be able to be here today as your principal speaker. I'm trying to wrap my mind around that, even as a personal aside, it's just an honor to stand with those and stand up for those who defend our nation. Because today we officially commissioned the USS Fort Lauderdale, the Navy's newest San Antonio class ship. It is an exciting day for the crew and their families who have such a critical job to do in protecting our nation. The USS Fort Lauderdale is a reminder of the special relationship between the sailors and Marines who will work hand in hand on board this ship to complete thousands of missions to come. And Commander, and to our sailors and Marines that are going to make sure that you represent our community each and every day proudly, we are so thankful. That is why the ship's motto, together we fight, is so fitting. I'm proud of Fort Lauderdale's rich naval history and I will ask you all to indulge me for a few minutes while I share some additional highlights. Fort Lauderdale's ties to the US Navy dates back to the early 1830s. The first Navy troops in Florida reinforced Major William Lauderdale's Army troops who were stationed along the North Bank of the New River where they constructed the first Fort Lauderdale. The city of Fort Lauderdale also became an important naval training center during World War II. Radar, gunnery, and parachuting schools operated at the Naval Air Station, Fort Lauderdale. That site today serves as Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport at Danya Beach. Although I hear the TSA lines were a bit shorter back then. In addition, in addition, I read it, I don't necessarily write it. In addition, West Prospect Airfield, known today as Fort Lauderdale Ex-Executive Airport, was an important training facility for naval aviators, including former President George H.W. Bush. Naming this ship to Fort Lauderdale not only recognizes the city's long-time commitments to the Navy and its distinguished role in naval history, but it also honors the thousands of retired Navy sailors who call for Lauderdale and our surrounding areas home. As your representative in Washington, I will continue to use my voice and my vote to ensure that you, your families, and all military members have the tools and resources you need to successfully do your job protecting and defending our nation. And let me just give a important shout out to Secretary Meredith Berger, who I have known since before she was an adult and who I am so proud is the ship's sponsor and does a remarkable job, even when she's testifying in front of my subcommittee and we don't necessarily agree. But that only happens occasionally.  You see, my subcommittee is responsible for funding the infrastructure at our bases and the entire budget for the VA system as well as our military cemeteries nationwide, worldwide, and our battle monuments. It's the only subcommittee in the Congress that makes policy and provides funding for the entire life cycle of an individual's servants from their time in the military to when they leave to join the ranks of our nation's veterans. In fact, we just passed a partial budget out of the house for fiscal year 2023, which includes the funding for this critical subcommittee. We steer $15.1 billion to critical military infrastructure like new barracks and child development centers and we ensure family housing is clear of mold led and contaminants. We invest in climate and energy resilience projects and devote $200 million to PFAS contamination cleanup at old installations. The quality of life of our service men and women is our top priority. We increase funding for NATO security and support the infrastructure necessary for wartime peace and deterrence operations. It is vital that we bolster training requirements to confront Russia's growing aggression and truly protect our European allies. Ambassador, it really is an honor to have you join us today and our community and our country stands with the people of Ukraine. Thank you so much for honoring us with your presence today. Critically, our bill will improve the quality of life on military installations for service members and their families and it honors their service by making sure that after leaving the military, our veterans receive the care and support they have earned. Now it's my honor, I hope, to make three brief presentations. To honor the city of Fort Lauderdale and the ship named after it, I present Fort Lauderdale Mayor, Dean Tran Tallis, with this flag, which I had flown over the United States Capitol in honor of this special occasion. Wait, there's more. To the women and men of the USS Fort Lauderdale and honor of your service on this magnificent vessel and for your service to our nation, I present this flag flown over the United States Capitol in honor of this special occasion to Commander Jayne Corisomo. I think I might need to go faster. Today's commissioning ceremony would not have been possible without the years-long effort of Chuck Black. After serving in the Navy for 20 years, Chuck made Fort Lauderdale his home. In March, 2016, the U.S. Navy announced it would name a ship after the city, and tragically, we lost Chuck that July. In honor of the work he did to make this happen and everything that our community fought so hard to achieve to accomplish this day, I'd like to present this flag flown over the United States Capitol to Chuck's wife, Lynn Elsasser. Thank you for that indulgence. I know my support for the military is unwavering, and I am so honored and proud to be a part of this special moment where we will add another chapter to the unique history, tradition, friendship, and respect that we have established with the Navy and the community of Fort Lauderdale. I will always stand by all our service members and veterans and honor those who continue to serve as well as the memories of our fallen and to the Commander and the remarkable crew of the USS Fort Lauderdale, I pledge to you that I will stand with you each and every day as together we fight. Thank you so much, and congratulations to our community and to the United States Navy. How about another round of applause for the chaplain for that little sprinkle? Ladies and gentlemen, it is now my distinct honor as the Secretary of the Navy, and on behalf of the President of the United States, I hereby place the United States Ship Fort Lauderdale into commission. May God bless and guide this mighty warship and all the brave women and men who shall sail in her. Captain, congratulations.  Thank you again. Thank you, Secretary del Toro, for placing us into commission. Executive Officer, hoist the colors in the commission pennant. Aye-aye, sir. Ship's Company, attention. The commission pennant in professional national navies began to take form late in the 17th century. All ships at that time were sailing ships, and it was often difficult to tell a naval ship from a merchantman. Navies began to adopt long, narrow pennants to be flown by their ships at the main mast head to distinguish themselves from merchant ships. The commission pennant will fly continuously until the ship is decommissioned. Ladies and gentlemen, please rise. I direct your attention to the ship's mast as we hoist the colors in commission pennant. Quota master, hoist the colors in commission pennant. Aye-aye, sir. Captain, the colors in commission pennant are flying proudly over USS Fort Lauderdale. Very well. Ladies and gentlemen, please be seated. I will now read my orders. From Commander Naval Personnel Command to Captain James Cora CMO United States Navy Subject Bupers Orders Number 9580 of 1 April 2020 when directed by reporting senior detached from present duty and report to pre-commissioning Fort Lauderdale as commanding officer upon commissioning of USS Fort Lauderdale report for duty as commanding officer. Admiral Cotto, United States Ship Fort Lauderdale is in commission and I am in command. Executive officer, set the watch. Aye-aye, sir. Ship's Company, at ease. Ship's Company, attention. Finish off the watch. Set the first watch. The officer of the deck is the commanding officer's direct representative and while on watch is responsible for the safe operation of the shipping crew. The long glass is the traditional symbol of an officer of the deck's authority and a ship of the line. We are honored to have Ms. Lynn El-Sasser with us today. Lynn's late husband, United States Navy Senior Chief Retired Charles Chuck Black was a driving force in the naming of the USS Fort Lauderdale. She will pass the long glass first officer of the deck to the Commander Crystal McFadden from Chicago, Illinois. Heading off to the watch is Cryptologic Technician First Class Jessica Kalinowski from Belton, Texas. The messenger of the watch is hospital corpsman and second class Jason Chung from Brooklyn, New York. And the boss is made of the watch is boss is made third class Ashley Wallace from San Jose, California. On deck, section one. Watch is set. Very well. The spirit of a U.S. Navy warship is the embodiment of her sponsor. Our sponsor, the honorable Meredith Burger has imbued this ship with a sense of service and grace. She's a steadfast champion of our Navy in this shipping crew. Meredith Burger christened the ship in Pascagoula, Mississippi on August 21st, 2021. Madam Secretary, I would be honored if you would give the order to man our ship and bring her to life. Together we fight our ship's motto. A forcing function, a battle cry, a commitment. Whenever we choose to fight, we're making a commitment. It's taking a side. Taking a stance. And it takes everything you've got. The USS Fort Lauderdale started with a fight. One of the best kinds. The good fight. Senior Chief Chuck Black and his mighty band of warriors. They came together and they steadily, consistently advocated for a ship named for this great city. As he mounted his fight, he found an ally in Secretary Mavis. That's the thing about the good fight. When you're doing the right thing, you get the attention and support of the right people. And luckily for me, Secretary Mavis thought that a member of his staff from Fort Lauderdale just might be able to do this fine ship justice as its sponsor. I'll tell you, it is one of the greatest honors for this hometown girl. And I've got a healthy amount of fight in me. It is said, as the captain mentioned, that the character and spirit of the ship's sponsor and Rich's guides protects the ship and her crew. And for Lauderdale, we're scrappy. Another honor of my life is to get to serve in the Department of the Navy, first under Secretary Mavis, now under Secretary Galtoro, and alongside General Smith and Admiral Caudill and every person that you see here in uniform today and wherever you see them. Each day we, and that's the people up here behind me, whether they're in uniform or not, we fight for our sailors and Marines who fight for us. We fight to keep our Navy and Marine Corps the best fighting force the world has ever known. We fight to give our warfighters every advantage. And every single person is part of this fight. You're part of this fight. Together we fight to enhance quality of life because we value our people. Together we fight climate change because we value our future. Together we fight for equality and inclusivity because we value our differences. They make us stronger. And when we include we're whole. And together we fight to remove barriers, enable our warfighters, our Marines and our sailors and maintain that superiority so that your Marine Corps and your Navy can fight to defend these values. And that's what the Fort Lauderdale will do. Your sailors and Marines fight the good fight wherever that fight may bring them. Now one of my favorite parts of a commissioning ceremony is when the ship comes to life. I'll give the order and it will happen right before your eyes. It's magic. Watch as the sailors and Marines run aboard the life blood of the ship. Listen to their footsteps and their medals clink against their chest the heartbeat of the ship. Hear the technology hum whir and sound the eyes, ears the voice of the ship and see the decks illuminate and the flags fly proudly the face of the ship. And I can think of no better officer to be at the helm than Captain Karasimo. I know that the sailors and Marines aboard the USS Fort Lauderdale are in your most capable. Fort Lauderdale boasts a talented and determined crew.  If my spirit makes them scrappy your leadership makes them strong. And to the crew every time you have set a high bar and you've exceeded it keep knocking down targets and banking wins I'm so proud to be part of you. So to the officers of the mighty Fort Lauderdale together next to the people of Fort Lauderdale and all of Florida join in with the crew together and finally everybody together officers and crew of the USS Fort Lauderdale man our ship and bring her to life. Salutes Secretary Del Toro request permission to break your flag sir. Master break the flag of the secretary of the ladies and gentlemen Captain James Corsimo United States Navy commanding officer USS Fort Lauderdale I'm certain that I'm going to miss some folks but first I'm going to thank my family for being here today my wonderful wife Leanne my son James my daughter Amanda my brothers and sisters for showing up here today apparently when you pay for people to come down they'll thank you for showing up here today and for those of you that are out watching virtually and couldn't make it thank you I cannot do what I do without all of you and all of your support Secretary Del Toro, Secretary Berger admirals, generals, members of Congress local official community leaders and our ship building leadership from Huntington Ingalls thank you for being here today and thank you for making this day a reality and of course I would be remiss if I didn't mention Pat Dumont for heading up our commissioning committee to our namesake city of Fort Lauderdale thank you for having us here we are blessed to have so many honored guests and friends we truly are if we're ever bonded to all of you for we could not be as good as we are without the support we're receiving from our friends and family here in our great city today is what we call a great Navy day today we introduce a new ship your ship the mighty United States ship Fort Lauderdale into the fleet and I know this did not happen by accident there were many people working behind the scenes to make USS Fort Lauderdale a reality many of you are here today and unfortunately some have moved on from this world but their impact is with us still it's through the hard work of members of the community like retired Senior Chief Chuck Black who dedicated years of planning efforts to see a ship named Fort Lauderdale his efforts were the catalysts that turned an idea into reality that was no longer with us but his anchors will sail with us forever as they were placed in the mass-stepping box which is permanently mounted on board his legacy will live with the ship for eternity beautiful ship she is ready for action and it is vitally important that we always are as we look around the globe there is much going on in the world right now that screams why Navy's are vital importance and having the best of the best as Parama and that is what we have here today when we talk about how important Navy's are one only need to look at the war in Ukraine multiple ships out of action on both sides and commercial shipping disrupted significantly it bears remembering that with more than 90% of all trade occurring over the water is critically important that we maintain the sea lanes of communication open and free from encumbrances and our dependency on the sea continues to grow in fact over the past 25 years global waterways have become more congested maritime traffic has increased by magnitude of 4 over that time period additionally we rely on the sea to carry nearly all of our digital information via trans-oceanic cables I cannot overstate the importance of maintaining a strong naval presence and as I said I know it doesn't happen by accident but it happens instead through the hard work of everyone here to ensure our nation has what it needs to conduct prompt and sustained combat operations in the harshest environment on earth the sea that's right there are no foxholes at sea to slide into there are no trenches and the fortified defenses are comprised of the ships that you are sailing with you fight and you win or you swim we must be ready now more than ever as we look to new challenges that are on the horizon we are competing in a world of great powers and there is much at stake for the free world China and Russia are the two biggest countries that seek the thwart of free world and are directly challenging us across the globe first to sure we will not allow those challenges to go unchecked for we in the surface forces are in the business of being prepared to fight and win at sea for it is the freedom of the sea that plays a critical role in global security, stability and prosperity and the United States will continue to challenge excessive maritime claims around the world regardless of the identity of the claimant and we will support lawful uses of the sea to all nations that is what we have done since the inception of our great nation and what a great nation we are yes we must maintain the freedom of the seas with that strong naval presence and today we welcome the newest member of that presence the mighty the fighting USS Fort Lauderdale with their keel certified to be truly fairly laid by our sponsor the honorable Meredith Burger on October 13, 2017 our Navy's 242nd birthday it has been 4 years 8 months and 17 days since that keel landing and the fighting Fort Lauderdale is now fully complete and combat ready let me take just a minute to tell you about this lovely lady you see when ships are built they are designed as flights to identify when significant changes take place flight one being the first of the class although technically still a flight one I like to think of her as a flight 1.5 as she is leading the way to transition to flight 2 ships to be built later Fort Lauderdale is designed with many changes and improvements from previous ships in the class whether operating as part of an amphibious ready group an expeditionary strike force or independently the capabilities of Fort Lauderdale are impressive for Fort Lauderdale is American design she is American built from American steel and she is crewed by heroes 684 feet long and 105 feet wide as sovereign US territory she is a large ship displacing 25,000 tons on board we have over 360 of the best women and men our country has to offer and she can embark roughly 650 Marines for combat ashore those Marines those Marines they are our main battery and trust me when I say with the enemy to their front and the sea to their back there is no fiercer fighting force than those Marines and with the speed of lightning and the sound of thunder our job is to transport land those Marines their equipment supplies by our embark landing craft air cushion, el-cax our conventional landing craft our LCU's and today in the steel belly of the fighting Fort Lauderdale I have two of our great Navy's newest el-cax used for just that purpose all of this will be augmented by the CH-53 or attack helicopters and we also carry a complement of MV-22 Osprey the vertical takeoff landing aircraft that you see on our flight deck today all of this specifically designed to support those Marines ashore we are also built with reduced radar cross-section to make us more difficult to detect and we are equipped with state-of-the-art combat systems controlling two rolling airframe missiles launchers to protect us from air threats we employ two Mark 46 30 millimeter guns both four and half and no less than nine 50 caliber machine guns for the close-in flight and look out because we have the best gunners in the whole damn fleet designed to support amphibious assault special operations or expeditionary warfare missions we also serve as a secondary aviation platform for all types of amphibious operations although our warfighting capabilities at the forefront we also support humanitarian missions around the globe we are with a fully equipped hospital of 24 beds including six ICU units along with two medical operating rooms and two dental operating rooms we can easily support people in need around the globe for we are as compassionate as we are lethal ships motto together together together who ya represents the unstoppable power of our Navy Marine Corps team supported by our family and friends at home and that's you and you an impressive variety of aircraft amphibious craft and advanced technological systems on board the driving force of the shippers crew these dedicated, proud, talented sailors and Marines represent the best our nation has to offer we truly are getting the best of the best they are born in the eye of a hurricane and rocked in a cradle of a wave they are made of salt water and excellence oh yes, king Neptune would be proud of these sailors and Marines among our crew are many first generation Americans who proudly serve our great nation and since I have taken command I have had the privilege of promoting 83 sailors to their new ranks additionally in the span of less than three months on board the mighty Fort Lauderdale our team has established a fully operating combat capable city from high speed communication networks to a restaurant full of culinary specialists from damage control repair stations equipped to fight our way out of any battle damage to a fully operational well deck for launching Marines to a certified flight team ready to launch aircraft that can rain hell from above down upon an enemy to a chapel for finding peace we have reached full operational capability and our sailors and Marines have done it all with remarkable speed and efficiency allowing for the certification of multiple warfare areas completely ahead of schedule as plank owners our sailors and Marines will be the first to claim such accomplishments finally, if it's one thing that history has shown us from the days of antiquity is that the stakes of the competition for the control of the seas are high and for our part USS Fort Lauderdale stands ready to deliver naval power to any place on any day at any time and those that may wish to challenge us they should pause for we are equipped with America's unstoppable secret weapon that our enemies will never be able to duplicate and that is the fierce dedicated unstoppable men and women of the United States Navy and Marine Corps thank you may God bless you all all who serve and may God bless America will the guests please remain standing for the benediction that will be offered by Chaplain Daniel sir I don't know that I could follow that let us bow our heads and pray please Holy Father first of all we ask your good blessings and mercy on Lieutenant Commander Fadden we pray that you would touch her and heal her in your name and we also thank you for bringing us here today and for this joyous celebration you have entrusted us with this beautiful vessel of power and peace manned and ready with her crew may we prove faithful as we leave from here whether by road or by sea may we and our families know you and your good shepherd in hand as the hymn writer composed Eternal Father strong to save whose arm hath bound the restless wave who bits the mighty ocean deep its own appointed limits keep O hear us when we cry to thee for those in peril on the sea


Well, it's a very bit of jazzy over jazby's case breaks calm This is a quick random number block randomizer for 2019 pinning needs spectra football two bucks break between number two And this is 21 team R&B high-end teams and also as a little added bonus We're doing a little $200 hit list giveaway meaning at the end of this break or at the end of the spectra break We'll take all the customer names and whoever went hit lists Meaning you got no autos or relics in the break Top four names will win 50 bucks and break credit a little added bonus I'll get back some money for going hit lists, which is a pretty sweet deal And this random number block randomizer includes the Cardinals bills Panthers bears Cowboys Packers chees Raiders Rams Vikings Patriots Saints Giants Jets Eagles Steelers 49er Seahawks Bugganeers Titans and Redskins and then has a little added bonus guys If you guys sold it out today tonight only on Monday 7 20 I was gonna throw in an extra 50 bucks just to the customers that bought in so at the end of the break of this video I'm gonna give away 50 bucks. So appreciate it guys and then it works like any other random number block We're in our website, but only for these teams in this specific break So everybody gets a random number from zero through nine and as an example if you get number three randomized to you We'll get all cards with three being the first number next to the dash on the left side of the dash So as an example if you hit a card that is 13 out of 99 That'll be your hit for block three three out of 25 43 out of 49 93 out of 99 and so on the number three We'll get that card our redemption cards that pop out of this break We'll go to spot zero even if we know it's a one-on-one. It's still gonna go to spot zero And I think spectra football has all numbered cards But if there is any unnumbered cards for these teams will randomize them in one lot at the end of the break to one customer as well So let's do the randomizer like we guys this roll the dice and we got a five and one for six times One two three four five and six Five and one Janik at the top down to Sean six times here is over nine one two three four five And it was a six seven down to eight All right, so Janik have seven nick with five Jonah last module six Matthew with four Dean with three brandy You have zero so any and all redemptions for these teams Josh Bruce any one-on-ones will be yours for these teams Sean with two Matthew with nine and Sean with eight So there you go guys now coming up next in a separate video is the break itself and now in a separate dice roll a randomizer Let's give away 50 bucks for you guys to buy it that bought in sold it out today So you got a new dice roll it and it is a four and a six for ten times number one gets 50 bucks two Two there you go man three four five six seven eight nine and ten Boom Branded congratulations man after ten times And get 50 extra bucks in break credit. Appreciate it guys coming up next is the break


Sooner the Oklahoma Sooners this team. It's the only thing that stands between me and Inflating my ego so much the only thing that stands between me and thinking I have the fattest Pack that's ever existed in this entire galaxy bro Oklahoma Sooners I have gone undefeated on every single team Consecutively until this final game on top of that we have two wins with the Gators two wins with the Longhorns and two wins with The Ducks, I don't know the math on it, but I'm pretty sure I'm 13 and oh right now This is episode number 10 the finale of my little mini series of campus legends I wanted to just play a game with every single team But somehow we haven't lost and it all leads up to this x6 ever 69 We better not choke if I choke right now bro. I probably wouldn't even sleep tonight I would be so so upset with myself and be unbelievable. This is a must win also a huge Thank you to dr. Squatch for sponsoring today's video. You've probably heard of dr. 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Squatch It's incredible I can definitely definitely vouch and the big reason I love everything they make the bars of soap the deodorant the shampoo Conditioner is it's natural for the longest time. I always use that giant synthetic body wash tub You know I'm talking about with the pump on the top You're probably using it right now if you're not using dr. Squatch those things are so artificial They are not good for your body, and they really just don't smell that good dr. Squatch is natural. It's that earthy manly scent I actually get comments on it all the time whenever I run out of a bar of soap I'm instantly ordering another one. I pretty much always have a pintar bar on me at this point If you can take any from this all I can say is try one bar of soap You'll never go back trust me plus new customers can get 20% off on orders of $20 or more use my code DSC MMG and click the link in the description below after Squatch.  We got Hollywood Brown with 90 speed We got CDs nuts with 89 speed Mark Andrews Dimitri flowers Sterling Shepherd Kyler Murray our quarterback has 92 speed theme is Craig We also have Joe mixing a half back and for some reason we don't want Adrian Peterson, which trust me.   I was really hoping for a blocking Momentum, but that is totally fine Because we're gonna play a great game regardless X is wide open CD lamb. He stayed in bounds, but we could have a lot more Let's try and secure the edge.  He's sending blitzes and they're coming up the middle We just got to find a way to get Adrian Peterson on this edge. Yes, sir. That's how we do it I'm gonna run right through you. You know I'm gonna do it. God. He shrugged him off like he was a child I love you Adrian Peterson. All right. Let's hit him a play action. We've been just grilling him grilling him grilling him. Oh Mark Andrews on the playmaker. He's there. Establish yourself in bounds. You better not be It's illegal. It's cuz he stepped out. He's not allowed to touch the ball at all. That is so shitty I don't know what Mark Andrews is thinking, but we're gonna hit the edge again. Let's see if he can get there He's definitely sinking to that side, but Adrian Peterson and those blocks are Hotter routes enabled we can hot route faster We have been lights out on our two-point conversion to now that I form stretch has given him a lot of trouble I'm thinking Sterling Shepard should be able to snag this. Oh, oh, oh, it's not there At least it wasn't intercepted for two. So on defense. We got Gerald McCoy, Tony Casillas, Tommy Harris, Leroy Selman, Jordan Evans Brian Bosworth, he's got to be the 95. Kenneth Murray, Tony Jefferson, Roy Williams, and that's pretty much it on defense Our 95 is Roy Williams. Okay, that makes that makes as much sense as Bosworth, I guess I think I prefer a safety. So that's fine. He's in gun with Trevor Lawrence It's got the angle route I've got it clamped. I've got the underneath with Bosworth. That's fine Ooh a slip screen. I did not see that coming, but Casillas did. Thank you for your service.  Oh, it's the Andre Hopkins. I do not want to mess with the hop throws a laser I don't know how that was caught, but I'm impressed. I can't believe he hasn't used de hop yet That's really all I'm worried about Oh, he's going to a Roy Williams. That's why we got a 95 safety for that exact moment Come on, bro. I got to win this game. Let's see it, boss.  Bosworth, Bosworth broke it up somehow. I think he's gonna do a corner route Yeah, there's the corner route. I see it. I see it, but can I get to it? I can't because I'm a little Roy Selman. Should have been on anybody else and I could have done that Can I get to that?  Trevor Lawrence is wheeling right now. Can he get in the end zone though? First thing goal. Oh, he actually runs the football. It's absolutely rocked by the boss Peaks own bubble. I respect that so much, but I know that play, buddy I was built to run that shit. All right, definitely a pass. An actual pass Oh Travis at the end. Good God. Fourth and goal He's stepping up. We got the best cellie, too. That's actually got me amped.  He could not handle this. He was struggling with this so bad And he still is. You're forgetting, AP's got the wheels, buddy. Let's go! Six rushes 76 yards Am I gonna stretch this guy to death? Welcome to Madden 20, buddy And by the way, you can't stop it You can't stop it. Oh, yeah, Brian Dawkins is one of the few men who could do that right there. Ah, there he is I'm Brian Dawkins But he's out of position He's out of position Well, just give it right back to the man. I love to see you stop this I'm serious. I would love to see it Come on Dawkins Dawkins is meeting me though.  Let's hit Hollywood Let's hit Hollywood in the end zone.  I'm so dumb. Why did I throw that? Oh, X is gonna be open. Please no Okay, get picked. Get picked. Yes. Let's go, Tony. Wait, dude, we got so much room Let's go. Feel go range. We gotta get a little bit of yards. I still have two timeouts.  Timeout Perfect.  That's a sack He's back so far at the four. He runs the same play action. That's really bold He wants to go deep for sure He got he wants to go to beat. That's mine That's mine The boss We're getting in the end zone, baby Started out your age quitting. He's your age quitting. We're going undefeated, baby Adrian Peterson right up the middle.  Show him right now Show him right now. Show him right now Come on Dawkins. Maybe in the hole Dawkins. Let's go That's a fumble.  He's gone. That's zero. It is 17 to zero and I have possession That's what I was looking for. Yeah I just went 15 straight full games four minute quarters of madden with even teams and I did not lose I know the good players are in mud, but this is a huge accomplishment for me Thank you boys for being part of this journey. I'm not gonna end it off there.  I won't spam stretch this time. I just really really wanted my win His gamer tag is de ford off side. Oh my god. How many of you remember that play, bro It's when the chiefs almost beat the patriots I think it was the finals like right before the super bowl and de ford was off sides And they got a reset of downs when the game would have been over We're gonna try to counter these plays are historically shitty But we're gonna give it a go Oh, honestly, if he had gotten around that it was a touchdown. So let's see if marquis brown's gonna get big on his man No, but kyler is fast. Give me a block. Give me a block. Give me a block Wow kyler. Murray is fast. We gotta just juke this man I tried to juke and I got lit up a kyler does not fumble What a stud we're gonna go inside zone ap third one not a good play He ults to a blitz and he's still got it. Let's go. How are pitches in this game? I've got cd lamb and hollywood blocking on the edge. Not sure how I feel about that, but He's so good. He's literally so good. Just ignore that tag. There's no other animation that would have worked there All right cd lamb on the slant. That's kind of my only read here.  Is this god himself reincarnated as a kick returner? Although it is the classic I was on my phone during the kick return. I get kick returned on so much when I do that Wait, he got the two point was I on my phone for that? I might have been on my phone for that He likes the onside kick. All right, it's eight to eight. This is a ball game Let's use these wide receivers, baby. We got some stunts. We got to use them.  This place called double china And we're gonna look for mark andrews who we've not really incorporated yet So I wouldn't mind hitting him. Oh, he dusted him Kylie throws his first bad ball of the day on the double china He is in a goal line set. Could I tell you why? No, I could not Oh, he's so open. It's just too open though. I don't have some fun with this Were you out of bounds? Did you step out of bounds? I'm gonna score on this through three straight times I scored on him with mark andrews, but I missed the pass scored on him with cd You got a penalty and I'm gonna score on him again right here Three for three I hope you're passing this ball, sir Yes, this is a steam rolling. Oh, I gotta get the pitch That was not my smartest move of all time Go to a Go to a Oh, can it do it, buddy? Yes Let's see if cd lamb can actually get open here. Come on, baby. Come on, baby. I believe in you Are you there?   Jerell McCoy with two huge sacks. What do you mean by that? They're in 16. He goes with the handoff fourth and 15 eight rushes nine yards Play action my favorite. I'm on him. Uh oh Motley. All right, the best pitch in the world. Is it? No, is he gonna go in the end zone? Why was he down? He could have ran that into the end zone. I don't have a deep blue on the field right now No way. He runs it and he does not get it. He reached for it too and he didn't get it All right, let's go get a touchdown guys. The sadness that I'm experiencing from playing so poorly is starting to actually Effect my mood. I'm gonna throw a laser to mark andrew's for a tutty. Okay. He's not open at all Who's B go B? Who are you? Hollywood. All right first in 10 looking for marky mark. I really want to hit him Oh, there he is. Wait, he switched his route Marky poo. Oh go up CD He's got it.   We're splitting the distance. What's half of half? There's a brain twister for you after that touchdown. Okay, if I need to get to the door Okay, the door is 10 feet away and I need to get to the door in order to get to the door I must first go half the distance to the door and in order to get half the distance to the door I must also go half the distance of that distance and it infinitely divides So how is it possible that I can actually reach the door if I have to go half the distance every time I guess we're gonna go with a counter.  That's so bad, but we do have a nasty play action game right now Marky mark run through baby Stay on your feet. I'm telling you bro. Our play action game is just naughty right now Oh, that's a touchdown. Oh and a roughing the passer on top of it And that's a sack. Oh, I dove at the ankles. Good god. I think that's supposed to be a penalty That's two range fits for the Sooners two We have officially completed the Deca gauntlet of campus legends. That sounds kind of badass It's not bad.  I love you. I'll see you in the next video. Peace


What's up guys, welcome to the madbeck show. This is August 2nd. I got that bull and eyes with me What's up, dude? Not too much. Well, actually there was a lot that's been up But like nothing like this show nothing you want to go over right now If you wanted to go down with my July that was like slam packed we can but we don't need to well We've been live since July, but you did have a big weekend. I did so I found out that I can camp still Yeah, tell me about this So I haven't heard anything about your camping trip because we just ran into each other right now But you went away for the weekend into the woods. Yeah, like like actual camping actual camping like I don't want to say Actual camping. I mean like we didn't just pull up to our campsite and unload the Jeep right we parked the Jeep on this Shady trail that was like made of gravel and dirt right by the cliff I was actually a little worried that I was gonna come back and find out that there was a mudslide And my Jeep was at the bottom of the hill. Okay, and that we were gonna have to do jeep things to get it back Up the Jeep things jeep things. Okay, so but is this a trip you would recommend to people because oh hands down I don't know how many people camp out there But oh I would definitely recommend it But like just know that like you don't get a cell phone signal about like two miles away from like the road that you take To get in and then you hike two to three miles into the site. How'd that go without a cell phone? Awesome Yeah, it was like one of those that like came back feeling super recharged super refreshing you look recharge We camped right in between two creeks where two creeks meet so we were at the inside part of the V Okay, to the right of us was a Like a cove and to the left of us was a waterfall going into the lower creek. Oh, that's pretty awesome. Yeah, okay, so we So we missed you while you were gone. We did a video shoot with Paul. I know I'm excited to hear about that Yeah, so the shoot was good. We had Colin Caruso and Nuggetai Outdoing color and style videos. So that was really fun to them are awesome Like like Colin and his color and Nuggetai and styling like yeah, we're not style guys and we've talked about how We like watching him. Yeah, we got a lot of style tips that day. So it was really cool having them in the studio People might be having some people just have different phones and have issues But hopefully guys let us know if you can't hear that well But there's always somebody they can't we'll address they'll be recording just in case it's still recording. Yeah So, um, all right, so we have some great questions from some people on Instagram And also a little bit of Facebook questions as well. I thought you're gonna go. We have some great questions from some great people Just once I would like to hear somebody say we have some great question from some okay people Yeah, right. So we uh, so let's just start off. We'll kick off the questions And then and we'll go from there. So first question is from beauty hive by Nicole She says do you have any suggestions for new guest consultations before an appointment? I've had issues with clients online booking and Misbooking appointments because they think it's one thing, but it's actually another so I know you had an opinion on this a Little bit. So do you want to yeah, my pin? I don't like the concept of online booking like we have online requests Which are great because it allows people to request an appointment online. Yeah, but if you're gonna do online booking like I would almost See if like the company that you're working with has a feature where like they have to be a previous client, right? And you have a disclaimer that's like pops up in the actual appointment thing Like like where it says like your name here have like if you book this appointment There are no there might not be add-ons like we might not be able to add additional services or some site type of disclaimer Because we've had people who call up who are clients who say I'm calling for a color in a haircut Yeah, I mean is a full head of balayage right root touch-up and a haircut So, yeah, I agree. I know her problem is somebody might call up saying I'm looking for a single color and then Maybe see cleanup right and like they think that cleanup is just a trim when actually it's just going around The haircut of a short haircut along the neckline right so then they they've booked an hour and 45 minutes When they really need like two and a half three hours, right? That's just not happening. Yeah, you're fully booked on a Friday or a Saturday. So yeah, so that's that's my thought as well but I I think with your online booking you put simple services in there But then also have it written out if you would like like they can't book highlights online They can't book if you want to book a haircut. Maybe that we don't do online booking at the salon The reason for that is exactly what you're saying. We do Book consultations before I know last week. We actually had a guest call in and she she wanted her kid wanted to have like rainbow he has really long hair and he wants rainbow colors in his hair and You don't know how long that's gonna take so we didn't even book the appointment We booked a consultation and then we're bringing him in. We're gonna talk to him. We're gonna talk about price We're gonna talk about time all of that stuff goes into play So I think that it's most important to to even if online booking is just booking consultations You know like make that happen plus have an online request like we have so you can request what you want And then we'll talk to you about it and we'll get you booked There's no reason why you should make it convenient online for people to book things, right? Absolutely or at least get the word out that they want it because they're gonna be online and some other salon is gonna have online Booking and then you're gonna miss out because they're gonna go book with that salon because you didn't offer that I think that you need something like it like we have with demand force We can get an appointment request in we can text them back. We can email them back. There's all different Types of ways that we can reach out to them, but they can't actually put an appointment in our book We have to call and take care of that and I mean like at the end of the day You can't eliminate all confusion because even with the online request we have people who make an online request and Don't realize that it's a request. Yeah, I think they booked it Yeah, they think that they've booked an appointment at Wednesday at two like we've had like I think maybe like one person come in They're like, oh, well, I had an appointment. Yeah, I was gonna say I would say that's a lot less than yeah If we allowed them to actually put it. Yeah, absolutely I can only imagine the headache say you go through by allowing them to Book the appointment. All right, cool. So I So Nicole, I hope that helps you. So Jay Makinta, I'm guessing is I actually don't know how to say his last name, but he's been following us forever Um, I should ask him that like personally when I see him Hi Matt, I'll try to join you live, but in case I don't my question is hopefully you're on live um My question is when will you be holding your next class now that I'm back in NYC? I would love to do to make the drive over. Oh, cool. This class is actually tomorrow. Are you ready? Yeah, just kidding Just kidding. We haven't booked any classes because we are opening the new salon We have been opening the new salon for a while. So our number one priority is getting that open Hopefully that will be open soon We're waiting on some approval stuff and then Once the salon is running and we're good, then we'll start scheduling out the classes So I'm hoping sometime before the end of the year. We'll have another class, but it may be Beginning of next year. That's really far off the list of things even though I love hosting the classes and having people here. The problem is We We do so many classes online. We're doing so many videos and we're putting out so much stuff It's hard to take an entire day to have a class So we will and I also want to have the whole team involved in those classes So there will be a lot more of that kind of thing next year for sure Hopefully the end of this year. He also has one more question. Did you want to just say for all of you out there? Right to our that'll do a class Right to our local legislator and yeah, you want FSE open faster. Yes Stay bored if you could help us out that would be somebody else who says that they can only hear you talking now So I decided that you're since rain me. Yeah, I actually write that up there. I said Matt's in strain me only hear me talking Why don't you turn your well? Let's not mess with it because I got to edit it later. Okay, so okay. Just talk louder All right, so he has another question One more question is do you have any any chance you could have the people from pivot point on the show to explain the process of making their mannequins? I think that would be interesting. It is interesting. I Love I love the process of making the mannequins now. Here's the thing I actually because of your question brought this little guy that has no hair So this doesn't show you anything. I was gonna say that that's like one way of like like change That's an option for a mannequin, but I wouldn't say that that's how they make this is not how they make them But this also is the snap cap Head which I'll see if I can show it closer So this is the snap cap head that this removes and you can just replace the hair You don't have to replace the head first off That's a lot better on the environment and throwing away everything and all of that But the other thing about the other ones that use Is this little tag on it that says SAI compliant It's basically it's a standard established by SI AI and one of the world's Premanent social standards. It's a tool for implementing International labor standards to protect workers along each step of the supply chain this is the thing this is the reason I use pivot point mannequins because They go through all the steps to make sure that the way that the mannequins are being made is Not by paying workers super cheap wages and You know and in getting around everything that way. That's why their mannequins are a little bit more expensive But also they're done by basically artists that hand put in each hair into the head So that's the kind of thing that where Sometimes when you buy a cheaper mannequin It's all of a sudden just shot up in the in the front because they have a machine that just places everything in there in one Direction all the way back so In a pivot point they'll place it The way that the hair would normally fall and grow and that's why I have more success cutting these mannequins as opposed to as opposed to the The cheaper mannequins out there, so it would be a really cool video. I believe that I had some pivot point people on a podcast once talking about it, but Maybe I didn't so I'll see if I can look that up if I find it I'll repost it if not. We'll try to get pivot point wants to come out here and see the studio So I'm sure eventually we'll get them on here to talk about everything Oh Man, I just Everything seemed good so far. Yeah, I accidentally hit home button. I was like damn it now I'm gonna have to figure out how to get back to your page. Well, here's the other thing too So I've been editing this now Starting last week editing it right away to put it on iTunes. So people don't have to watch us. They can just listen That's cool. So um, so if you guys want to there'll be an edited version of the audio portion of this on iTunes You guys can listen to it. Just look up freesal on education on iTunes podcast All right. Last question is Ryan's heel. I think Ryan probably has Ryan's our friend. He's been on the show He was just on a couple weeks ago Um, I think this question is probably more in general because I'm sure he has a lot of opinions about this as well but his question is how do you and you and or the professional hairdressing community feel about the new Amazon direct shipping of salon products pro Equals product prices will be regulated Amazon wide meaning no undercutting which I agree with the hair salon prices and Con it's driving sales from the salon to the internet. It's like the uber or Airbnb of hairdressing. So So basically what Ryan's saying is Amazon has a whole salon section now. They have Amazon salon or something. Okay, and what it is Professional products and manufacturers are now selling directly through Amazon. Okay, so My initial thought is it's inevitable. It's gonna happen The pro like what we have against Amit like so everybody got upset because CVS and Walgreens and all these different companies started selling professional products Right diversion that whole thing came out Manufacturers trying to fight it now. No one's trying to fight it. Everyone's just saying yes. We do We sell. Yep. Yep We palm it. Oh, I don't want to say that because we don't know who is yeah, exactly. So But it's more like I I understand why company you The sales channel through salons is probably great. I mean, I don't sell products. It's probably great But the sales channel through big corporate companies is is huge as well Oh, yeah, if I was L'Oreal if I was like Devin as I say I correctly this time Yeah All the other like companies like I would be wanting my product out in all many like in all forms So I mean like yeah, it sucks for us, but like we got talked to our clients and exactly, right? Have our clients trust us that we know what's gonna be best for their hair and like Like like talk to them. Yeah, you can't be upset about Like your client going to a store to buy it when You have the the entire ear of your client for two hours when they come in right to talk to them about the products that you have And they can buy you know, I have had clients who like I've talked to them and I've said hey This is what we've used on your hair. This is why I've used on your hair This is how you use it on your hair. Yeah, and they say okay.  I'll either be back where I'll check on Amazon. Yep, and at that point you're just like Yeah, like because like at that point you can't do anything about it like like you did all that you can do Yeah, and honestly, I mean we have to look at Obviously retail is a big thing for a salon for a salon owner for sure But it's it's not the end-all thing like we have to come up with new creative ways We have to advance as well. The the industry is advancing. It's becoming more online There's nothing you can do about it. The great thing is they can't get their treatments deep conditioning treatments They can't sit under hot lamps. They can't do there's a lot of other things that we can do like The palm of your product color craft that just came out Yep, like you can't order color craft on the internet. I probably can order You can but you're gonna get just the conditioning part, right exactly There's gonna be some funky colors and to explain to you guys that don't know what color craft is out there It's a and there's other companies that have it as well similar, you know products but it's a it's a treatment conditioning treatment and then the hairdresser applies Pigment to it and that allows you to customize whatever so you overlay it over your guests You do a professional application in the salon. It's different. It's more pigment Then you send them home with less a less pigment version of it But it helps them maintain it That is something you can't you can't get over Amazon. I mean at the end of the day You could also like if you're really really struggling like really struggling you can talk to your client I don't know you as a business owner might Have a better way of spending this but basically buy a local type deal buy a small business like yeah, you can get this This wax on Amazon. Yeah I'll say Ruzel because I know Ruzel's on Amazon. Yeah, you can get Ruzel on Amazon But it's the same price from me and you know me, right? I think Tommy boys The whole movie Tommy boys based on that. Yeah, you can buy a big corporate or you can buy from me I think that they were charging more for their brake pads, but yeah And this is the thing too and that's what Ryan was saying if Amazon now has regulated pricing then when you look up the product on Amazon and it's the same price as it is in the salon then You're not battling with that whole thing like you're not battling with Amazon Prime and it's cheaper than you have it You're just battling with the fact that you know They can conveniently get it from their couch if they want to right but they can conveniently get it from you where you were recommending it and Make sure you have a good return policy because a lot of manufacturers have Great rich like Distributors have great return policies if your client doesn't like the product right you should be able to just quickly take it back from your guest Return it give them something else that you recommend so that they're not searching the internet for a hair product I really don't think I know that it's big business buying hair products online But I really think that people are better off listening to their hairdresser if their hairdresser is Actually knowledgeable about hair products right problem is The majority not saying that people are watching this show but the majority of There's a lot of hairdressers millions of hairdressers right so They're not all studying up and becoming educated and really talking about products are talking about all this other stuff While they're behind the chair, so they're wasting their time and then they're complaining about Amazon and complaining I don't have a complaint about Amazon because First off, I know you guys are talking about product right they go to Amazon and buy it after you've talked to them about it for forever It is what it is. I'm I'm already thinking about how do we advance it? We do things like color craft We do things like so another question it for me is if Amazon's allowed to sell it online Are we allowed to are we able to have a section on our website? They are now that says okay That's my stylist. I want Ruzel. Please ship it to me well, we're allowed to so Even companies so we sell palm and chill in the sun. That's the only reason I keep referencing it But Paul Mitchell a long time ago. You could not sell right products online on your website now It's different now. You can if you want to I still don't Shipping hairspray and doing all that is not that's why Everybody's going to Amazon like even distributors don't want to ship It sounds like it's like asking for a headache because I think of how many times like people come back to the salon with like That their hairspray is clogged or that little that little cap broke I can only imagine like shipping that like in How many of those come back but think about the advancements of like different products like you have Ola Plex Where you can do those kind of treatments in the salon things that you couldn't do before You have keratin treatments that you can do in the salon Not the big crazy stinky ones But like you know like the the quick ten minute ones that are things that they're not doing at home on themselves You know up your game that way Then you have companies again We're talking about Paul Mitchell because like we use it in the salon Yeah, but they have companies who are going to help you battle that as well with Creating color craft right like you said like color craft is going to add pigment like so you can if you have a red head You add red to the leave-in conditioner Yeah, or not it's not leaving is a deep condition. It's a deep condition. Do you add red to the deep conditioner? So it's refreshing your red heads while they're at home, right? They can't just order that on Amazon right so because you're customizing the pigment So you're saying well I'm gonna put this much pigment in it because she's got dark red hair or light red hair and then You're selling that $40 conditioner And if they're coming in to buy that and that they can maintain throughout and tell their next visit So their hair doesn't fade like those are you know, it's a it's a great thing Turn it there. We're gonna have to reset them all so Here's here's the question to everybody out there because This conversation since up here. It shouldn't be just me and dad's opinion. So what is your thoughts on? Amazon Selling hair products. What are you doing to counteract it? I'd love to continue that conversation post in the comments below if you're listening to this on iTunes and go to our Facebook page and post in the comments below as well also Will be and then we'll read we'll kind of re-talk about it next week cuz I'd like to yeah Yeah, I like to expand off of like what people comment on yeah with this one because this is like an initial thought This is my initial thoughts on it. I'll think about it for the week see what we're doing We're gonna meet back here every where we should all write angry letters to Amazon to see if they'll take it off They're But they'll get a lot of angry letters Let's go. I mean that's pretty much it. Uh, what time is it? Time to do hair time to do hair. So follow that bad bow nice that bow nice Also follow his Facebook page if you want to you're on Facebook type it in right now That bow nice on Facebook. Oh nice. Yep. Good job. Yep. Facebook comm slash that bull nice probably We still don't know how to spell it though Iced All right guys, so thank you guys so much for watching the show follow us everything at freesline education also This is why I need to follow us on YouTube and I did just put out Another color video. So I've done two weeks. So I'm Running Olaplex's YouTube channel and now I've made it Just a mad back take over to where yeah, so we're taking it over We're gonna have a different artist on it and everything, but I've posted two videos in the last two weeks We're gonna post a video every single Tuesday So go check them out a couple really cool color videos live models not mannequins Which is another thing. So I said, all right Olaplex. I'll do this and And I'm gonna bring live models because normally I'm a mannequin guy, but so go check that out Thank you guys so much for watching the show and again, we'll be here next Wednesday morning as well So thank you guys for watching. We'll see you on the next show