Key keywords: USS Cleveland, LCS-31, US Navy littoral combat ship, naval commissioning ceremony, Cleveland downtown port, Great Lakes naval deployment, Cleveland community military event, active-duty Navy sailors “Man our ship and bring her to life!” The iconic call that marks the official start of a US Navy vessel’s active service will ring out across downtown Cleveland this weekend, as the newly built USS Cleveland (LCS-31) docks at the city’s downtown port ahead of its long-awaited commissioning ceremony. The 387-foot Freedom-class littoral combat ship is the 31st LCS to join the US Navy fleet, and the fourth military vessel to be named for the Ohio city, following a WWII-era light cruiser, a Vietnam War-era amphibious transport dock, and a WWII-era cargo ship. The vessel entered the Great Lakes via the St. Lawrence Seaway earlier this week, drawing crowds of onlookers along the shores of Lake Erie as it made its way to Cleveland’s 9th Street Pier, where it will be open for public tours across the weekend. Scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday, the commissioning ceremony is expected to draw more than 6,000 attendees, including senior Navy leadership, Cleveland city officials, dozens of veterans who served on previous USS Cleveland iterations, and thousands of local residents. The event will culminate with the ship’s sponsor giving the official “man our ship and bring her to life” order, prompting the roughly 100 active-duty sailors assigned to the vessel to board and take their posts, marking the ship’s formal entry into Navy service. Following the ceremony, the USS Cleveland will remain in Cleveland for three additional days of community outreach events, including crew volunteer shifts at local food banks and children’s hospitals, a public performance by the US Navy Band Great Lakes, and meet-and-greet sessions between sailors and local high school students interested in military careers. Cleveland mayor Justin Bibb noted in a press conference earlier this week that the city has not hosted a naval commissioning event in more than 70 years, calling the visit “a once-in-a-generation honor for our residents, and a chance to honor Cleveland’s long, proud history of supporting our military and national defense.” Public tour slots for Friday afternoon, Saturday post-ceremony, and Sunday morning are still available via the official US Navy commissioning website, with all attendees required to go through standard security screenings before boarding the vessel. After its Cleveland stay, the USS Cleveland will complete a series of training exercises in the Great Lakes before sailing to its permanent home port in San Diego, California, where it will begin operational deployments focused on coastal security, anti-submarine warfare, and humanitarian response missions.