Cleveland has been selected as one of 15 cities where America’s Navy will “come home” in 2012, giving area residents an opportunity to meet Sailors and learn about the Navy’s capabilities and relevance to national security.

Navy Weeks are designed to educate Americans on the importance of Naval service, understand the investment they make in their Navy, and to increase awareness in cities which might not otherwise see the Navy at work on a regular basis.

Each year, about 20 Navy Weeks are led by the Navy Office of Community Outreach. Cities are selected based on a wide range of criteria with consideration given to aspects such as anchor events, Blue Angels air shows, asset availability, city size, demographic make-up, geographic region, relationship building, relationship sustainment and new outreach opportunities.

Navy Weeks typically are organized around a large anchor event, in this case, the Cleveland National Air Show.

On tap during the festivities: Blue Angels, (Navy Flight Demonstration Team), Leap Frogs (Navy Parachute Team), visiting U.S. Navy Ships, sailors from the USS Cleveland, and the Navy Band.

Navy Week Cleveland will run Aug. 27 through Sept. 4.