Sandra and Tom Jones, directors of the Broward County (Florida) Council of the Navy League of the United States, joined their son, prospective commanding officer Cdr. F. Curtis Jones, USN, for the christening ceremony for the amphibious transport dock ship USS New York (LPD-21).  Dotty England, wife of Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England, christened the ship on March 1, 2008, at the Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding yards in New Orleans, LA.

This USS New York is the sixth ship with that name to serve the U.S. Navy. Crew of the USS New York (BB-34), the fifth in line, were on hand. Coincidentally, the keel of the original ship was laid on Sept. 11, 1911 -- exactly 90 years before the terrible events of the 2001 disaster. She was the right ship for her time and served with distinction in WWI and WWII.

The bow of the New York is built with metal recovered from the World Trade Center site. The ship’s motto is “Strength, Forged Through Sacrifice. Never Forget."