SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- Nearly 3,500 Sailors and Marines of Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 3 returned to San Diego Aug. 16 following a six-month deployment to the western Pacific and the Persian Gulf. ESG 3 participated in maritime security operations, protected Iraqi oil platforms in the Persian Gulf and participated in various multinational exercises. Numerous family members, friends and other supporters eagerly gathered at the base for the group’s long-awaited come back. “I can’t wait to see my husband,” said Anita Elevado, as she held their four-month-old son while waiting for Boatswain’s Mate 3rd Class Francis Mark Elevado assigned to...