Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Robert Hartland | Illustrator Draftsman 2nd Class (Ret.) Michael McGrath poses following his retirement...... read more read more
Shipmates, family, and friends gathered at the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post #1 in downtown Denver to honor McGrath, 23 years after leaving military service.
Lt. Cmdr. Jason Becker, executive officer, NIOC Colorado, expressed his gratitude for the volunteer effort and planning that was required for the event.
“I believe the retirement ceremony provided DM2 McGrath the just recognition and closure that he deserved,” said Becker. “This event represented a positive community effort in which NIOC Colorado Sailors, Young Marines and VFW worked together to ensure this time-honored event took place.”
During his service in the Navy, McGrath documented retirement ceremonies and expected he would have his own ceremony when finishing his service.
“As a Public Affairs Coordinator, I covered many retirement ceremonies and when hearing a retiree being piped ashore, I thought for sure that this would be the manor of my departure,” said McGrath. “However, I was not awarded the privilege of a proper send-off at the end of my military career.”
Navy retirement ceremonies are time-honored traditions complete with military gestures of respect for the departing Sailor and ceremonial actions that invoke the rich history of the Navy.
Cryptologic Technician (Technical) 1st Class Benjamin Mold said, “Coordinating the retirement ceremony for Michael was the largest honor I have ever had and I’m glad to have been a part of it. Michael is an amazing man and he deserved this ceremony decades ago.”
The support provided by active duty and retired service members helped to properly send off a shipmate who served his country with honor.
“Having the NIOC Colorado and VFW Post #1 sponsor and assist with my official Navy retirement ceremony, was a huge milestone in my life’s journey,” said McGrath. “Considering that my rating no longer exists in today’s Navy, I am more than proud to say that I was part of a unique community of Sailors who called themselves Illustrator Draftsmen.
McGrath joined the Navy in June of 1974 as a Postal Clerk and in 1979, converted rates to his true calling as an Illustrator Draftsman (DM). During his career, he completed three Western Pacific cruises on three different Navy vessels and visited nearly 20 countries.
The DM rating was disestablished in 2006 when the Navy merged those Sailors with Photographer’s Mates, Journalists, and Lithographers to create the Mass Communication Specialist rating.
As a Navy DM, McGrath has drawn, designed, painted or drafted training manuals, officer calling cards, engineering log sheets to slide artwork for training purposes, familygram newsletters, and memorial service programs for fleet and local commands.
“I served my country to the best of my ability, and with the greatest amount of pride and confidence,” McGrath said. “I wasn’t a perfect Sailor, but I knew my job well and I taught my subordinates how to do their job to the best of their abilities.”
McGrath’s duty assignments include U.S. Naval Forces Europe, USS South Carolina (CGN 37), Naval Air Station Moffett Field, Naval Security Group Activity Skaggs Island, and USS Jason (AR 8).
Since his retirement from active duty, McGrath attended the Colorado Institute of Art and Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design. He graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2007 from Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, where he majored in Illustration with a minor in Sculpture.
NIOC Colorado/CTF 1080 is a subordinate command of U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/U.S. 10th Fleet. Based at Buckley Air Force Base, its mission is to provide ready, trained and motivated Information Warfare Officers, Cryptologic Enlisted Personnel, and expertise to support fleet, combat forces, and national intelligence operations requirements worldwide.
Since its establishment, FCC/C10F has grown into an operational force composed of more than 16,000 Active and Reserve Sailors and civilians organized into 27 active commands, 40 Cyber Mission Force units, and 27 reserve commands around the globe. FCC serves as the Navy component command to U.S. Strategic Command and U.S. Cyber Command, and the Navy's Service Cryptologic Component commander under the National Security Agency/Central Security Service. C10F, the operational arm of FCC, executes its mission through a task force structure similar to other warfare commanders. In this role, C10F provides support of Navy and joint missions in cyber/networks, cryptologic/signals intelligence and space.
For more news and information from Commander, U.S. Fleet Cyber Command / U.S. 10th Fleet, visit www.navy.mil/local/FCC/C10F/ or follow us on Twitter @USFLEETCYBERCOM.
| Date Taken: | 03.24.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 04.09.2018 10:13 |
| Story ID: | 272263 |
| Location: | DENVER, CO, US |
| Web Views: | 401 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Sailor Receives Retirement Ceremony 23 Years after Leaving Military Service, by PO1 Robert Hartland, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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