JBAB bids farewell to Mays; welcomes new commander

Photo By Michelle Gordon | The change of command ceremony for Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C. was held Feb. 24, 2017 at the Bolling Club. During the ceremony, Navy Capt. Clyde F. Mays, Jr. was relieved by Capt. Jose L. Rodriguez. Mays, a native of Hickory, North Carolina, served as JBAB commander from March 2014 until February 2017. The ceremony concluded with the traditional Navy retirement poem, “The Watch,” which paid homage to the guidance, leadership, friendship, and expertise Mays gave during his 34 years of active duty service.  

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES

02.24.2017

Story by Michelle Gordon 

Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling

JBAB bids farewell to Mays; welcomes new commander

By Michelle L. Gordon
Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling Public Affairs

Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling welcomed a new base commander Feb. 24 during a two-part change of command and retirement ceremony for Navy Capt. Clyde F. Mays, Jr.

In keeping with Navy customs and traditions the ceremony was hosted by Mays, the officer being relieved. The guest speaker for the event was the commandant of Naval District Washington, Rear Adm. Charles W. Rock, who joked about Mays’ fascination with the weather, and then highlighted the accomplishments of JBAB under his watch.

“Unlike weathermen, who can be wrong 75 percent of the time and still keep their job, in the installation business, we have to get it right all of the time, and [Capt. Mays], you did just that,” Rock said.

“During his tenure, Capt. Mays completed $73 million in base improvement projects – including four dormitories, three of which received awards for customer service excellence. He also ensured the base’s number one environmental initiative stayed on track – a 7.2 megawatt solar-power project, which helped meet the Secretary of the Navy’s renewable energy generation goals.”

Rock also mentioned Mays’ impact on service members and their families. He specifically acknowledged Mays’ role in the reaccreditation of all three JBAB Child Development Centers, his persistence in maintaining a public school bussing program, which transports more than 275 JBAB children to 44 schools throughout Washington, D.C., and his advocacy for establishing a base charter school, which led to the approval of the Military Installation Public Charter School Amendment Act of 2016.

All of these efforts contributed to JBAB winning Naval District Washington’s 2016 Commander in Chief’s Installation Excellence Award as the region’s best base, said Rock.

“Capt. Mays has done a fantastic job ensuring that every one of the 1,100 Sailors, Airmen and civilian personnel under his charge where properly trained, mentally and physically fit, and prepared to meet the demands of JBAB’s highly-demanding joint mission. Their success is no doubt due to the experience and leadership of their commanding officer,” he added.

Rock then presented Mays with the Legion of Merit, on behalf of the president of the United States, for his 34 years of active duty service, including his three years onboard JBAB. Following the award presentation Mays thanked his family for their service and support, and he reflected about his time at JBAB.

“There is no doubt there was a lot of history made here on the banks of the Potomac and Anacostia,” said Mays. “I knew when I arrived here, it would be very important to preserve not only the history, but also the pride and traditions of each service. After three years, I think we have done a good job at preserving the history and heritage of both services while also establishing our own joint base heritage.

“For those of you who aren’t familiar with the installation, there is no runway. It was decommissioned over 50 years ago to make way for National Airport. We don’t have a port; we have a small marina. What we do have is a network of mission partners, residents and support staff which make-up one of the most cohesive, yet diverse teams I’ve ever seen.”

The change of command ceremony continued with the formal reading of military orders by both Mays and the officer relieving him – a Navy tradition dating back to the Civil War.

The retirement portion of the ceremony included the reading of “Old Glory” accompanied by an American Flag demonstration featuring service members from both the Air Force and the Navy since Mays served eight years with the Air Force prior to his Navy commissioning in 1992.

The ceremony concluded with the traditional Navy retirement poem, “The Watch,” which paid homage to the guidance, leadership, friendship, and expertise Mays gave during his 34 years of active duty service.

Mays was relieved by Navy Capt. Jose L. Rodriguez.

Originally from Queens, New York, Rodriguez is the fourth naval officer to command JBAB since its inception in 2010.

• Date Taken: 02.24.2017
• Date Posted: 03.03.2017 09:33
• Story ID: 225560
• Location: WASHINGTON, DC, US
• Hometown: HICKORY, NC, US