KINGS BAY, Ga. – As citizens of Hooks go about their daily lives, members of the U.S. Navy’s “Silent Service” work beneath the ocean’s waves, continuing a tradition that only a small fraction of military members will ever know: strategic deterrence. 

Petty Officer 3rd Class William Whigham assigned to USS Maryland hails from Hooks, Texas, and is a 2016 graduate of Hooks High School, takes on the task to execute one of the Defense Department’s most important mission of strategic deter...