Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Kallysta M Castillo | Senior Chief Hospital Corpsman Janae Smart, from East Patchogue, New York, assigned to...... read more read more
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Hospital Corpsman Make Their 123rd Solar Revolution
USS Gerald R. Ford Public Affairs
Story by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Dalton Lowing
ATLANTIC OCEAN — This year the Hospital Corpsman rate will celebrate 123 years of continued excellence in saving and maintaining Sailors’ lives throughout the entire fleet.
The history of the U.S. Navy Hospital Corps officially started on June 17, 1898, when President William McKinley signed a bill into law creating the first enlisted U.S. Navy medical career field. At that time the Spanish American War was brewing on the horizon and the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps needed well trained medical professionals. Since that day, hospital corpsmen have served on every continent, on every warship and submarine on every ocean alongside their fellow Sailors and Marines.
“The corpsman birthday is an important day to acknowledge the traditions and heritage of being a hospital corpsman in the U.S. Navy,” said Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Randy Cunningham, one of USS Gerald R. Ford’s (CVN 78) independent duty corpsmen. “The need for this is ever growing with respect to the newer generation of corpsmen.”
“There are corpsmen that do not have the experience of active deployments and the trials that come along with them,” stated Cunningham. “Recognition of corpsmen history and accomplishments offers the chance to see what perspectives Sailors should view in their line of work and hopefully add a bit of motivation to daily routines.”
In the past, many corpsmen learned their skills on the battlefield alongside U.S. Marines. Today, most corpsman learn their skills from the experiences of these Sailors.
“Now there is a middle generation of Sailors, myself included, who have taken direct training from the Sailors who earned their knowledge the hard way,” said Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Christopher Wellman, an aviation medical technician aboard Ford. “It is our job to pass down the lessons learned and uphold the spirit of dedication to service that has made us the most decorated rate in the Navy.”
Hospital Corpsman have served courageously on ships and valiantly on the battlefields of every conflict, caring for injured Sailors and Marines. To date, there have been 22 Medal of Honor recipients from the hospital corps; this is half of all the Medals of Honor received by members of the Department of the Navy. There have been 174 Navy Crosses, 31 Distinguished Service Medals, 946 Silver Stars and 1582 Bronze stars awarded to Hospital Corpsman since the establishment of the hospital corps. Additionally, there have been 14 naval vessels that have been named for hospital corpsman, and several hospitals and clinics also bear the names of courageous individuals that paid the ultimate sacrifice for our country and our freedom.
Wellman said the corpsman birthday means a lot to him because being a corpsman is what he loves to do. For him, being able to take care of patients from shore to sea, Marines, Army or Air Force, anyone really, fulfills his purpose.
“There is no other rate in the Navy that can afford you that kind of opportunity to positively influence Sailors’ lives,” declared Wellman. “I absolutely love being a corpsman and would not trade it for the world. This is what I’m good at and I work hard to live up to the expectations of the Sailors under my care.”
Senior Chief Hospital Corpsman Phillip Jean-Gilles, Ford’s medical department leading chief petty officer said that after 21 years in the Navy the COVID-19 pandemic has presented the most difficult challenges he has faced in his career and that this year’s corpsman birthday has ushered in a time of great celebration for him and his crew.
“I’ve served in the most extreme of circumstances and I’ve seen death in the field of battle, but COVID-19 was not an enemy with a face. None of us could see what was coming our way,” said Jean-Gilles. “The pandemic put an extraordinary strain on all of us and to be able to celebrate the anniversary our rate after such a time of struggle is truly amazing.”
Jean-Gilles explained how this year’s corpsman birthday is a special time to reflect on the accomplishments of the past and the contribution to future greatness, as the present is a distinctive time in the corpsman rate.
“We are making history right now with all the hard work we’ve done through this past year,” said Jean-Gilles. “We are a rate built on heritage, and now it’s time to continue carrying on that legacy.”
For more news from USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), visit www.dvidshub.net/unit/CVN78 or www.facebook.com/USSGeraldRFord.
| Date Taken: | 06.17.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 06.18.2021 09:34 |
| Story ID: | 399263 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 219 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Hospital Corpsman Make Their 123rd Solar Revolution, by SA Dalton Lowing, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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