The civilian contract crew and other civilian contractors working aboard Military Sealift Command (MSC) Maritime Prepositioning Force ship USNS LCPL Roy M. Wheat (T-AK 3016) donated more than $8,000 July 27 to assist Marines and Sailors wounded in the line of duty.

The ship operating company that employs the crew also contributed to this donation.

Wheat, a noncombatant cargo ship, operates exclusively for the Marine Corps and is typically deployed in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea carrying food, fuel, tanks and a range of other equipment and supplies ready for rapid delivery to Marines ashore if needed.

Wheat's crew of 27 civilian mariners work for a private ship operating company under charter to MSC. An additional five contractors working for the Marine Corps are also assigned aboard Wheat, maintaining the Marine Corps equipment carried in the ship's cargo holds.

"Wheat is a special ship, and there is a special bond between the crew and the Marine Corps," said Capt. John Mattfeld, Wheat's civilian master. "This donation is to show support for our troops fighting overseas and to demonstrate our gratitude for their service."

The Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund will receive the money. It is a nonprofit organization that provides financial assistance and support to Marines and sailors injured in the line of duty after Sept. 11, 2001, and their families.

Members of Wheat's crew and contract maintenance department personally donated $2,175 to the fund. The crew also gave an additional $1,225 from the ship's welfare and recreation fund that could have been used to purchase entertainment equipment on board, and a $3,000 bonus which was awarded by the ship operating company for three years without a pollution incident. The company also donated an additional $2,175.

"Their gracious decision to donate these funds to help wounded service members and their families is not only indicative of their professionalism and dedication, but is also very much in line with the spirit of their ship's namesake Lance Cpl. Roy Wheat," said Marine Corps Col. Steven Peters, commander, Marine Corps Support Facility Blount Island in Jacksonville, Fla., where Wheat is currently pierside while the Marine Corps conducts maintenance on its equipment. The checks were symbolically presented to Peters in a small ceremony.

Wheat's crew members have donated their wages to the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund in previous years, most recently in 2007. The crews of MSC Maritime Prepositioning Force ships USNS 1ST LT Harry L. Martin (T-AK 3015) and USNS 1ST LT Jack Lummus (T-AK 3011) have also made similar contributions.

Wheat is named in honor of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Roy M. Wheat, who died in 1967 during the Vietnam War and was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for sacrificing himself to save the lives of three other Marines.

MSC operates approximately 110 noncombatant, civilian-crewed ships that replenish U.S. Navy ships, conduct specialized missions, strategically preposition combat cargo at sea around the world and move military cargo and supplies used by deployed U.S. forces and coalition partners.