The mother of a Medal of Honor winner has had a unique relationship with the Navy ship named after her fallen son.
Dollia Gonzalez may not know any of these sailors personally; but she considers each of them as her own.
Dollia's own son, Sgt. Freddy Gonzalez, was a marine platoon commander who was killed in action in Vietnam.
He was awarded a Medal of Honor and was chosen as the namesake for the USS Gonzalez.
Since then the crew has made it their mission to treat Dollia as the ship's mother, writing letters and calling her during deployments and inviting her to special events like today's change of command ceremony.
"It means the life in my blood, it's for my boy. This is my life. My son is here with me" said Dollia
During commander Brian Fort's last duty as the ship's commanding officer he made it a point to thank Dollia for all that she's done for his crew, giving her a plaque honoring her son.
"She makes our life on board here extremely enjoyable. Knowing she means all this to my sailors" said Fort
As the ship's new captain steps in, Commander Lynn Acheson says she's not only excited about training with her new crew, but also developing her own relationship with Dollia. Acheson she says is a model of the honor and sacrifice heroes like Sgt. Freddie Gonzalez have made.
"She's got a special relationship with the crew. I hope to continue with my own personal relationship with her . a lot of respect for that lady."
Dollia Gonzalez may not know any of these sailors personally; but she considers each of them as her own.
Dollia's own son, Sgt. Freddy Gonzalez, was a marine platoon commander who was killed in action in Vietnam.
He was awarded a Medal of Honor and was chosen as the namesake for the USS Gonzalez.
Since then the crew has made it their mission to treat Dollia as the ship's mother, writing letters and calling her during deployments and inviting her to special events like today's change of command ceremony.
"It means the life in my blood, it's for my boy. This is my life. My son is here with me" said Dollia
During commander Brian Fort's last duty as the ship's commanding officer he made it a point to thank Dollia for all that she's done for his crew, giving her a plaque honoring her son.
"She makes our life on board here extremely enjoyable. Knowing she means all this to my sailors" said Fort
As the ship's new captain steps in, Commander Lynn Acheson says she's not only excited about training with her new crew, but also developing her own relationship with Dollia. Acheson she says is a model of the honor and sacrifice heroes like Sgt. Freddie Gonzalez have made.
"She's got a special relationship with the crew. I hope to continue with my own personal relationship with her . a lot of respect for that lady."
