By Mass Communications Specialist 1st Class Katherine Hofman
BUFFALO, N.Y.- Six chief select candidates from the USS De Wert (FFG 45) and two from the Naval Operation Support Center complete the transition process with the time honored pinning ceremony aboard the USS Little Rock while deployed to the Great Lakes region with the Navy’s Commemoration of the War of 1812 in Buffalo, N.Y., Sept. 14, 2012.
The honor of being selected for Chief Petty Officer is a life changing event in the life of a sailor. For a few aboard the De Wert it is a historical experience in both ceremony and content. Although they are not the last class for the De Wert to be honored with the selection to the Chief’s mess before it’s decommissioning in 2014, they are certainly pioneers for the Class of 2012.
De Wert Command Master Chief LaDon Washington, is enthusiastic for the journey the selects have taken and the once in a lifetime chance to accompanying the Commemoration of the War of 1812 journey.
“De Wert Chief Petty Officer selects are participating in one of the greatest opportunities that can be offered to a Chief Select, touring the Great Lakes in commemoration of the bicentennial of the War of 1812 and [The] inter action with the general public presented them with an opportunity to tell their story about becoming a CPO and the significance of the rank to the U.S. Navy,” said Washington.
The rich Navy heritage of the Chief’s Mess was also accentuated for the selects by the company they kept while underway.
“They have been meeting hundreds of genuine Chief Petty Officers, active, reserve and retired from various regions. We met one retired Chief in Cleveland, Ohio at a Chief Petty Officer Association function that was pinned as a Chief Petty Officer back in 1950's, WOW!” said Washington.
The process has not been easy for the selects who have had just as many challenges as opportunities and during the transition. The challenges have come in the form of the travel from city to city, limited resources, and of course limited time because of the extra watch standing required from the General Ship Tours.
Chief (Sel.) Gas Turbine System Technician – Mechanical (SW) Philip Brady, who has supported several of his fellow GSMs to the elite [chief], has had a positive attitude about the transition.
“There are ups and downs in the whole process. It makes it difficult to be on the ship,” he said. “It’s a unique experience, it’s what you make of it,” said Brady.
Senior Chief Culinary Specialist (SW) Timothy Hardin, De Wert Supply Leading Chief Petty Officer exalts the uniqueness of the process for the De Wert selects.
“The exposure they have had most chiefs don’t get at such a young age. It’s a lot of history for they charge boxes. That is something they will use for their careers. They have been introduced everywhere they go, they are almost celebrities,” said Hardin.
Not feeling the celebrity but more of the tradition of the Chief’s Mess was Chief (Select) Gas Turbine Systems Technician (Mechanical) (SW) Nick Burnworth explained.
“It rings home for me, my grandfather was a chief back in WWII,” said Burnworth. “[He] didn’t get the chance to see me [join the Navy] he passed away two years before I joined,” he said.
The reminiscence was not limited family but others who had touched Burnworth’s life during his Navy career. Burnworth who was stationed aboard the USS Cole (DDG 67) in October 2000 at the time of terrorist attack that took 17 lives.
“It is my biggest accomplishment. It is a tribute my friends and shipmates.”
For more information on the Commemoration of the War of 1812 go to:
http://www.ourflagwasstillthere.org/
Follow The USS De Wert (FFG 45) on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/USSDeWert45?ref=hl