Kids Enjoy Rare Tour Of Navy Ship

Danielle Dixon recalls hearing her brother talk about life onboard his ship when he was in the Navy. She saw firsthand when she and six kids from the Northwood Youth Empowerment Center in West Palm Beach toured the USS Doyle. "I was impressed by how big it is on the inside," said Danielle, 13, a student at Roosevelt Middle School. "You could never tell by looking at it from the outside." West Palm Beach Mayor Lois Frankel invited the youths to tour the ship, an Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided-missile frigate, with other dignitaries from her city, Riviera Beach and the Port of Palm Beach.USS Doyle FFG-39Several sailors in starched uniforms gave the visitors a look at the Doyle's weaponry, its damage-control and firefighting capabilities, helicopter pad, engineering room, high-tech combat information center, and bridge. The 453-foot-long ship, which calls Jacksonville its home port, has been deployed in the Mediterranean, Persian Gulf, Caribbean and Atlantic.