Grunts and cheers ensued as the Junior Enlisted Association members participated in the Push to Care pushup fitness contest at the Naval Health Clinic Friday aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico.

The fundraiser included a mango piña colada and strawberry banana sunrise smoothie sale to raise money to send care packages to deployed sailors. 

As part of the fundraiser, JEA members held a contest to see how many pushups they could complete in four minutes. Petty Officer David Cooley won the contest with 161 pushups.

Nancy Walker, health promotion coordinator at NHCQ, set up an education display on the importance of eating more fruits and vegetables at the event. 

“The Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center released the 2014 Fleet and Marine Corps Health Risk Assessment Annual Report in May which indicated the leading health risk was low fruit and vegetable consumption for both services,” said Mrs. Walker.

The JEA, part of the Naval Health Clinic of Quantico command, is composed of currently 15 active volunteers who raise funds to support other sailors. 

Their goals include instilling leadership and organization skills in members.

As part of their fundraisers, the JEA holds car washes and other events to help the community while raising money to support fellow sailors. 

So far, within the last two years, the group has raised over $42,000, according to Petty Officer Marco Defenbaugh, president of JEA.

— Writer: cbrown@quanticosentryonline.com