Tri Cities, Tenn. will host the city's first Navy Week since the creation of the Navy Week program when the Navy visits the area for a week of events April 3-9, in conjunction with the Food City 500 Dirt race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Tri Cities Navy Week brings Sailors from across the fleet to the area to emphasize the importance of the Navy to Tri Cities, the state of Tennessee, and the nation.

More than 60 Sailors will participate in education and community outreach events throughout the city. Participating Navy assets include: USS Tennessee (SSBN 734), USS Greeneville (SSN 772), USS Constitution, Navy Talent Acquisition Group Nashville, Naval History & Heritage Command, Navy Band Northeast, Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron 4, U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, Office of Small Business Programs, Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron 12, Navy E-Sports Team, and U.S. Fleet Forces.

The Navy's senior executive host is Rear Admiral Stephen Jackson, deputy director, Operations and Integration Directorate Defense Threat Reduction Agency. During Tri Cities Navy Week, he will participate in community engagements, meet with students, and speak with local businesses, civic, education, and government leaders.

“I am thrilled to represent America's Navy at Tri Cities Navy Week, and I am looking forward to the opportunity to talk about the great things our Sailors are doing for our nation,” said Jackson. “I am looking forward to getting to know the area and share how the Navy has helped me develop into the leader I am today.”

Navy Weeks are a series of outreach events coordinated by the Navy Office of Community Outreach designed to give Americans an opportunity to learn about the Navy, its people, and its importance to national security and prosperity. Since 2005, the Navy Week program has served as the Navy's flagship outreach effort into areas of the country without a significant Navy presence, providing the public a firsthand look at why the Navy matters to cities like Tri Cities.

"We are excited to bring the Navy Week program to Tri Cities," said NAVCO's director, Cmdr. Anthony Falvo. “Seapower and America’s Navy are more important now than ever before. The U.S. Navy remains our nation’s most powerful instrument of military influence and Navy Weeks allow us to showcase how the Navy serves America at sea, in the air, and ashore.”

Throughout the week, Sailors will participate in various community events across the area, and residents will also enjoy free live music by Navy Band Northeast at the Toy F. Reid Eastman Employee Center at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5, and at the Downtown Center in Bristol at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 6. Additionally, all Navy Sailors participating in Tri Cities Navy Week will be at the Bristol Motor Speedway on April 8 and 9 for the Pinty’s Truck Race and Food City 500.

Tri Cities Navy Week is one of 15 Navy Weeks in 2023, which brings a variety of assets, equipment, and personnel to a single city for a weeklong series of engagements designed to bring America's Navy closer to the people it protects. Each year, the program reaches more than 140 million people -- about half the U.S. population.

Media organizations wishing to cover Tri Cities Navy Week events should contact Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Chambers at (901) 874-7069 or kevin.l.chambers4.mil@us.navy.mil.