For the Reporter
Auburn’s Kayleigh Eisenbacher is experiencing military life on the beach.
The U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class is assigned to a beach group operating out of Virginia Beach, Va, these days. The yeoman with the Naval Beach Group TWO (NBG 2) is an administrative assistant to the commanding officer.
“I like interacting with people,” said Eisenbacher, a 2011 Auburn Riverside High School graduate. “I am a people-person.”
Commissioned in 1948, NBG 2 is designed to organize, man, train and equip forces to execute, combat support and combat service support missions.
Eisenbacher serves with Assault Craft Unit TWO 2, which operates the Landing Craft Air Cushion and provides combat-ready craft that fully meet operational tasking worldwide, on time, every time.
“I am able to learn more since it is completely different from a ship where I would only be handling yeoman duties,” Eisenbacher said. “Here I am able to do a lot more.”
Approximately 30 officers and 300 enlisted men and women make up the beach group. Their jobs are highly specialized and keep each part of the command running smoothly. The jobs range from operating boats to maintaining engines and handling weaponry.
“The sailors here never cease to impress me with the effort they put into their daily work,” said Capt. Jeffrey Hayhurst, commodore commander of NBG 2. “Their dedication and hard work make me proud to be in command of Naval Beach Group Two.”
Although NBG 2 is made up of four separate commands, they all work together to complete their mission of providing Navy personnel and equipment to support an amphibious operation or exercise.
These exercises can include evacuation of American citizens from a hostile territory, delivery of food and medical supplies after a natural disaster, the bulk delivery of fuel or fresh water from a ship anchored off the coast through a pipeline to a shore facility, and nearly any other task that involves moving from ships offshore to the beach.
“I have become more outgoing since joining the Navy,” Eisenbacher said. “I have also become more disciplined.”
