After a very fulfilling 38-year Navy career, I completed a second career in the government. Now retired, I'm doing some of the other important things in life!
Other Comments:
A New Jersey native, after high school in 1968, I immediately enlisted in the United States Navy. Following basic training at RTC, Great Lakes, I was first assigned to USS ISLE ROYALE (AD 29) followed by the USS JOHN PAUL JONES (DDG 32) -- both home ported in Long Beach, CA. After a Viet Nam deployment, in May 1971 I was assigned to the A-6 Intruder training squadron, Attack Squadron Forty Two, at NAS Oceana, VA.
In August 1975, I reported aboard USS BORDELON (DD 881) as the Ship's Admin/Personnel petty officer in charge. After an at-sea collision with the USUAL John F. Kennedy resulting in BORDELON's decommissioning, I completed my sea rotation aboard USS SIMON LAKE (AS 33), also home ported in Charleston, SC where I was selected for Chief Petty Officer. In 1978 I was assigned to NAS, Brunswick, ME as the Asst Personnel Officer. During my enlisted career, I advanced to Senior Chief Personnelman, crossed the Equator, made several WestPac and Med deployments, and was one of the first Sailors to earn the Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist (ESWS) designation.
After submitting three applications for a direct commission, I was selected as an Admin Limited Duty Officer (LDO) and commissioned as a new ensign, in 1980. I was immediately assigned as Ship's Secretary aboard USS MOUNT WHITNEY (LCC 20) home ported in Norfolk, VA. In 1982, I returned to the West Coast as OIC of PSD Lemoore, CA. From 1984 to 1992 I served several tours in Pearl Harbor, HI -- first as Executive Officer Flag Allowance, Commander THIRD Fleet on Ford Island and embarked in USS CORONADO (AGF 11); then as the Admin Officer, Commander, U.S. Pacific Airborne Command Post (ABNCP), Hickam AFB; and as the Executive Officer/Commanding Officer and Flag Secretary, Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet. It was during my three tours in Hawaii that I was selected for the College Degree Program (CDP) and earned my bachelors degree in Business Administration in 1988 from Chaminade University of Honolulu.
In 1992 I returned to the East Coast and was assigned as the Director of Administration in the NATO Headquarters, Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic, Norfolk, VA. In 1996 I traveled cross-country again, this time as a geo-bachelor to Bremerton/Everett, WA aboard USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN 72) as the Admin Officer. In 1998, I returned to Norfolk and was assigned as Executive Officer, Personnel Support Activity Norfolk, VA. In 2000, I received a command assignment as Commanding Officer, Personnel Support Activity, Jacksonville, FL. In 2002, I was reassigned to the Navy Personnel Command in Millington, TN as Director, Field Support Division (Pers-33/673). In May 2004, I returned to Norfolk as the Chief of Staff, Task Force Warrior (Sea Warrior project). In February 2005, I reported to my last Navy assignment as Assistant Chief of Staff of Administration/Resources and Commanding Officer Staff, at Commander Operational Test and Evaluation Force in Norfolk, VA. After a fulfilling, 38-year Navy career, I retired from the Navy in 2006 and immediately began working as a consultant/senior analyst for a government contractor, C.A.C.I. where I accomplished a myriad of management projects.
In January 2012, I began the latest chapter in my career in the civil service as the Director Global Operations at the Navy Pay and Personnel Support Center, in Norfolk, VA in support of the 60 Personnel Support Detachments (PSDs) world-wide.
In February 2017, I retired from government service and beginning to write the newest chapter in my life.
A proud father of three wonderful children and a grandpa to seven adorable grand children, my wife and I currently reside in Northeast Florida. Life is Good!
Other Memories It was in the summer of 2003 while in Millington, Tennessee that I first heard that the Navy was going to stand up a task force to develop and fulfill a complex Chief of Naval Operations vision known as ?Sea Warrior.? As it was articulated then, the task force would be responsible to put some rigor and standardization in the tying together of multiple manpower, personnel, training, education and readiness systems that were in varied stages of development. The end result would be to synchronize them into one interoperable "system of systems." The concept was intriguing and the challenge was enormous. But it wasn't until I heard who was potentially going to be chosen to lead the task force that it really peaked my interest. The rumor was that my former commanding officer at Personnel Support Activity Norfolk and now a Flag Officer was about to be named as the Commander of Task Force Warrior. After making initial contact to see if there was any truth to that rumor, I learned that indeed she was going to command it, and was asked if I would be interested helping stand it up. Of course, I enthusiastically accepted -- even before I could have possibly contemplated the kind of political obstacles, funding constraints, manpower battles and logistical challenges that would confront us from the very start.
Even while we began to organize our small team of about 8 officers, 2 enlisted and one borrowed civilian employee, we were already on the road meeting the key Flag Officers and their staffs involved with their proprietary developmental systems. Our first step was to determine how much developmental funding was already involved, at what stage of development their particular system was in, and how much effort it would required to steer it towards interoperability with the other systems needed to part of the Sea Warrior initiative. From Washington, DC to Pensacola, Florida, and New Orleans, Millington, TN to Norfolk VA -- we were constantly on the go, despite the fact we hadn't even yet established a headquarters office from which to operate. Once we received approval to stand up the Task Force in Norfolk, as the Chief of Staff I flew ahead to begin the process of finding a suitable Task Force Warrior Headquarters location, and procuring the furniture, office and electronic equipment needed to accommodate our operational needs. Concurrently, I began doing battle with the manpower bureaucrats to get us the caliber of personnel we needed to perform our complex mission, tasks and functions. It took me several months of wheeling and dealing, begging and borrowing, and exhausting virtually every bit of tact and diplomacy I could muster. But, in the early part of 2004, we finally stood up our fully functional headquarters to hang our collective hat in the major fleet concentrated area of Norfolk, Virginia. And believe me, geographically it was clearly the best place to be in an otherwise politically charged environment.
I won't go into all the particulars of what those politically charged obstacles were, but suffice it to say we had our work cut out for us from the very beginning. We had no less than six superiors who all had a career-vested interest in seeing their portion of the Sea Warrior initiative would remain fully funded, and endeavored to see that each of the other systems would be resynchronized to conform to their developmental platform -- regardless the millions in costs or rework required. Stubbornness, hardheadedness and egos clearly blinded those we needed to rally as a team, find commonality and come together to see the Sea Warrior system of systems concept become successful. While much progress was made in this unprecedented project, its speed to execution was painfully slower than we would have hoped. For a little over a year in that particular assignment, I learned a great deal about my own capabilities and limitations. Things I could use to better serve the needs of the Navy regardless of where I would next be assigned.
