MERIDIAN MERIDIAN FFALLALL 2008 Magazine of the National Naval Of2008 Magazine of the National Naval Officers ficers Association “Gateway to Success”Association “Gateway to Success”

WWW.nnoa.org

2008 NNOAConference:

GreatestAttendance

A FewMoments withCoast Guard’sAdmiral Thad

Allen

Balancing Workand Family: ADialogue with

Junior Officers

Takes a Village:NNOA MentorsDisadvantaged

Youth

GGreetings NNOAreetings NNOAMembers,Members,Family andFamily and

Friends,Friends,Thank you for supThank you for sup--

porting the 36th porting the 36th AnnualAnnualNational Naval OfNational Naval OfficersficersAssociation, Inc.Association, Inc.(NNOA) (NNOA) TTrainingrainingConference. Conference. The year'sThe year'sconference was a greatconference was a greatsuccess with record setsuccess with record set--ting attendance; 452ting attendance; 452ofofficers from the Navyficers from the Navy(291), Coast Guard (1(291), Coast Guard (116)16)and Marine Corps (45)and Marine Corps (45)registered for the conferregistered for the confer--ence. I am pleased toence. I am pleased toacknowledge the superbacknowledge the superbefefforts of the conferenceforts of the conferenceplanning committee ledplanning committee ledby the NNOAby the NNOA TTidewateridewaterchapterchapter..

The conferenceThe conferencetheme "NNOA,theme "NNOA,Developing Developing America'sAmerica'sFuture Leaders toFuture Leaders toEnhance MissionEnhance MissionReadiness and CulturalReadiness and CulturalAAwareness," emphasizedwareness," emphasizedthe importance of diverthe importance of diver--sity in the Maritimesity in the MaritimeSStrategytrategy. . The imporThe impor--tance of diversity wastance of diversity wasreinforced in the remarksreinforced in the remarksof of Admiral Admiral Thad Thad Allen,Allen,Admiral Gary Roughead,Admiral Gary Roughead,General General Amos andAmos andSecretary Secretary WWinterinter..

ProfessionalProfessionalDevelopment CommonDevelopment CommonThemes:Themes:

* Good leadership is* Good leadership isthe key to a successfulthe key to a successfulcareercareer. Leadership can. Leadership canbe learned. Some tenetsbe learned. Some tenetsof leadership principlesof leadership principles

are easier to understandare easier to understandand apply than others butand apply than others butevery one of them can beevery one of them can beacquired. acquired.

* Performance* Performancetrumps everything! trumps everything! ThisThiswas repeated throughoutwas repeated throughoutthe conference. Masterthe conference. Masteryour profession. your profession. TTake theake thehard jobs and do well.hard jobs and do well.Do your homework.Do your homework.

* Mentoring, mentor* Mentoring, mentor--ing, mentoring was aing, mentoring was acommon theme.common theme.OrOrganizations such asganizations such asNNOA, NNOA, ANSO, etc. helpANSO, etc. helpjunior ofjunior officers find menficers find men--tors. tors.

*Sit on promotion*Sit on promotionand administrativeand administrativeboards as a junior ofboards as a junior officerficeras soon as possible.as soon as possible.Sitting on a board willSitting on a board willhelp you difhelp you differentiateferentiatedegrees of performance -degrees of performance -good versus bad.good versus bad.

* Check your service* Check your servicerecord. Be a fanaticrecord. Be a fanaticabout your serviceabout your servicerecord; check it oftenrecord; check it oftenand know what it meansand know what it meansto have a good or badto have a good or badrecord. Ensure that thererecord. Ensure that thereare no gaps.are no gaps.

* Never stop learn* Never stop learn--ing. Seek residentialing. Seek residentialProfessional MilitaryProfessional MilitaryEducation, JointEducation, JointProfessional MilitaryProfessional MilitaryEducation, and/or a gradEducation, and/or a grad--uate degree programs inuate degree programs inyour field. your field. YYour educaour educa--tion should never stop.tion should never stop.

*Y*You can have a famou can have a fam--ily ily AND a career with aAND a career with asignificant support syssignificant support sys--tem.tem.

* Seek command* Seek commandearly and often. Expandearly and often. Expandyour leadership skill set -your leadership skill set -take care of your peopletake care of your peopleby listening to them andby listening to them andempowering them. Learnempowering them. Learnto take calculated risksto take calculated risksand don't be afraid toand don't be afraid tofail. fail.

The conference alsoThe conference alsoprovided great learningprovided great learningopportunities for familyopportunities for familyand friends. and friends. The spouseThe spouse

workshop provided anworkshop provided anexcellent forum for famiexcellent forum for fami--ly members to develop aly members to develop abetter understanding ofbetter understanding ofour role as Sea Serviceour role as Sea Serviceprofessionals.professionals.AdditionallyAdditionally, a "Y, a "YouthouthDay" program was heldDay" program was heldfor 155 students (ages 6-for 155 students (ages 6-16) to expose them to16) to expose them tothe opportunities availthe opportunities avail--able in the Sea Services.able in the Sea Services.USS KEARSARGEUSS KEARSARGEserved as the host shipserved as the host shipfor lunch and tours. for lunch and tours. TheThecollege prep workshopcollege prep workshoppresented by presented by VVice ice Adm.Adm.Fowler was particularlyFowler was particularlyenjoyable for the stuenjoyable for the stu--dents. dents. The The YYouth Dayouth Dayprogram was highly sucprogram was highly suc--cessful and we plan tocessful and we plan tomake this a standard feamake this a standard fea--ture of future conferture of future confer--ences. ences.

This past year theThis past year theNational Board chalNational Board chal--lenged NNOAlenged NNOA ChaptersChaptersto increase junior ofto increase junior officerficermembership by 25 permembership by 25 per--cent. I am pleased tocent. I am pleased toreport that we exceededreport that we exceededthis goal which wasthis goal which wasreflected in the recordreflected in the recordnumber of junior ofnumber of junior officerficerattendance at the conferattendance at the confer--ence. ence. This year I chalThis year I chal--lenge NNOAlenge NNOA ChaptersChapterswith increasing majoritywith increasing majorityofofficer membership byficer membership by5% and we look forward5% and we look forwardto seeing this focusto seeing this focusreflected in attendance atreflected in attendance atthe 2009 conferencethe 2009 conferencewhich will be held Julywhich will be held July20 - 24th in Houston20 - 24th in HoustonTTexas, exas,

Thank you again forThank you again foryour support to NNOAyour support to NNOAand diversity in the Seaand diversity in the SeaServices.Services.

VVery Respectfullyery Respectfully,,

Bernard L. JacksonBernard L. JacksonCAPTCAPT, USN (Ret), USN (Ret)

prpresident@nnoa.orgesident@nnoa.org

NNOANNOA2008-2009 Board Members

President: Capt. Bernard Jackson (USN Ret.)Immediate Past President:Rear Adm. Manson K. Brown (USCG)Eastern Regional Vice President:Cmdr. Margaret Calloway, USNWestern Regional Vice President: Maj. David Everly Central Regional Vice President:Lt. Cmdr. Lamar Johnson (USCG)Far Eastern Regional Vice President:Lt. Cmdr. Helen Murphy (USN)Secretary: Capt. Natasha McEacin (USMC)Membership Director: Lt. j.g. Ryan Baxter (USCG) Treasurer:Lt. Cmdr. Bea Henderson (USN, Ret.)Historian: Cmdr. Ron Casey (USN Ret.)Master as Arms:Maj. David Everly (USMC)Public Affairs Officer:Capt. Paul Croom (USMC)Navy Representative:Capt. Charles Stuppard, USN Coast Guard Representative: Lt. Cmdr. Will Watson (USCG)Marine Corps Representative:Maj. Gerald Thomas (USMC)Reserve Representative:Lt. Cmdr. Elaine Pearson (USNR)Retired Representative: Cmdr. Denise McCallaCreary (USN Ret.)Chaplain:LT Philip E. Ridley (USN)Judge Advocate: Lt. Cmdr. Bill Shelton (USCG Ret.)Cover and Edition lay-out:Lt. Karen E. Eifert (USN)

****If you have questions or concernsabout NNOA please contact the NationalPAO via email at pao@nnoa.org ****

(Reprinted with Permission)By Kate Wiltroutof the Virginian-Pilot

Sixty years after President HarryTruman integrated the military,the Navy's top admiral said

Thursday that more must be done todiversify the ranks -- especially at thetop.

"The lack of diversity in Navyleadership does not allow us to takeadvantage of varied perspectives, ofvaried experience. And as a result ofthat, we are a lesser service," Adm.Gary Roughead said. "The time fortalk is over. The only thing that mat-ters now is action."

Roughead, the chief of naval oper-ations, spoke to hundreds of militaryofficers attending the annual confer-ence of the National Naval OfficersAssociation. The association supportsthe development of a diverse officercorps in the Navy, Marine Corps andCoast Guard, through recruiting, reten-tion, and career development.

While blacks make up about 17percent of the total force, they are just9 percent of all officers, according todata obtained and analyzed by TheAssociated Press.

The rarity of blacks in the topranks is apparent in one startling sta-tistic: Only one of the 38 four-stargenerals or admirals serving as of Maywas black. And just 10 black men haveever gained four-star rank -- five in theArmy, four in the Air Force and one inthe Navy, according to the Pentagon.

As a result, younger black officershave few mentors of their own race.

The anniversary of PresidentTruman's order this week has ledDefense Secretary Robert Gates andother top officials to reflect on how farthe armed forces have come withracial integration and what they haveyet to achieve.

Best known among the four-stars isretired Gen. Colin Powell, who laterbecame the country's first black secre-tary of state, under President George

W. Bush. In a stirring salute in the Capitol

Rotunda on Wednesday, Powell saidthat as a youngster in 1948, it neveroccurred to him that he could rise tobe chairman of the Joint Chiefs ofStaff.

But when he joined the military 10years later, "they no longer caredwhether I was black or white, immi-grant kid or not," Powell told thecrowd, which was dotted with the redblazers of Tuskegee Airmen -- the firstgroup of black fighter pilots allowedinto the U.S. Army Air Corps that flewin World War II. "The only thing mycommanders ever told me from 1958for the rest of my career, is 'Can youperform?' And that's all we have everasked for."

Much progress has been madesince 1948, Roughead said, when lessthan one percent of Navy officers wereblack. That figure is now about eight

Above: Admiral Gary Roughead speaks at the 36t h NNOA Annual Conference held in Portsmouth, Va. at the Portsmouth Renaissance Hotel. USN Photo ...

MERIDIANMERIDIAN PPAGE 3AGE 3Navy CNO Speaks at NNOA Annual Conference: Calls for Action on Diversity

Continued on page 4

percent, he said. But the Navy's seniorleaders need to better reflect the U.S.population, which is about 13 percentblack and 15 percent Hispanic.

Roughead described various waysto bring more minority officers intosenior leadership positions, none ofwhich are quick solutions.

He stressed the importance of men-toring junior officers by steering themto posts that will help them ascend theranks.

Another important facet: bringingin officers through the Naval Academyand university commissioning pro-grams. Roughead talked about expand-ing preparatory school slots for poten-tial Naval Academy students.

Roughead said 16 historicallyblack colleges, including HamptonUniversity and Norfolk StateUniversity, have naval reserve officertraining programs, and the Navy isworking to add programs at sevenmore.

"If you do not seek out studentswho are at historically black colleges

to share with them opportunities thatthe U.S. Navy has, that is an opportu-nity missed," Roughead said. "It's anopportunity missed for the young menand women who attend that school, it'san opportunity missed for all of us."

Roughead wouldn't wait until col-lege to attract potential officers, how-ever.

"We need to look younger," thegray-haired admiral urged the audi-ence, drawing a roar of laughs.Roughead chuckled, then rephrased thestatement: "We really need to look atthe younger demographic: middleschools."

When students are applying to orvisiting colleges, it might be too lateto interest them in a military career, hewarned.

The four-star admiral said he does-n't envision recruiters canvassing mid-dle schools. Rather, he wants ordinarysailors to tutor students, get involvedin after school or summer programs,and talk about their experiences onsubmarines and ships.

"This is not a hard sell. This is notrecruiting. This is simply sharing withyoung men and women what we do,what is possible and what the opportu-nities are," Roughead said.

The chief of naval operationswould not comment on another person-nel issue in the news recently: the"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy thatbars gay and lesbian from servingopenly in the military.

On Wednesday, a congressionalcommittee heard testimony on thatpolicy for the first time in 15 years.

Asked whether the policy affectsrecruiting, retention and readiness,Roughead replied: "We've seen thenumbers vary for a variety of reasons.

"The position I have on Don't Ask,Don't Tell: It's the law of the land. Weabide by the law of the land."

Above: Admiral Gary Roughead answers questions from the audience at the 36t h NNOA Annual Conference held in Portsmouth, Va. at the Portsmouth RenaissanceHotel. Photo by Lt. Karen E. Eifert

FFALLALL 20082008CNO: Speaks at NNOA 36th Annual Conference Continued

Four Star Advice for Life2nd Lt. Jake Owens, USMC

The National Naval OfficersAssociation (NNOA) Conference washeld in Portsmouth, Va. where GeneralJames Amos , the assistant commandantof the Marine Corps, spoke on the impar-tiality of the service and life in generalduring the Marine Corps Day Luncheon.

He began by telling us about a compa-ny of Marines that recently graduatedfrom boot camp. He explained that eventhough 13% of these recruits were African

American, that fact would have no bear-ing on their starting point, nor would itplace limits on their ability to ascendthrough the ranks. Only in the Americanarmed forces will someone find this rareform of opportunity. An opportunity toexcel based on individual performancewith no respect to skin color or economicclass distinction. Everyone enters on thesame footing; their merits will decide therest.

The bulk and conclusion of his speechcentered around five life lessons to liveand lead by.

1) Dignity ... never remove it! At thecore of every injustice enacted lies theremoval of someone's dignity. We can notafford to lose perspective and devalue thedignity of another human being, or wemay be found guilty of intolerable cruelty.

2) Everything in life has a way ofchanging. "Be careful what you are will-ing to die in a ditch or fall on your swordfor." Policies, perspectives often changeand even people PCS. Our reputations as

Above: General Amos and Maj. Gen. Walt Gaskin pose with USMC officers who attended the 36th Annual National Naval OfficersAssociation Conference held in Portsmouth, Va. at the Portsmouth Renaissance Hotel. Photo by Lt. Karen E. Eifert

NNOA Marine Corps DayMERIDIANMERIDIAN PPAGE 5AGE 5

Continued on page 9

BB ehold howgood andpleasant it

is for brethren todwell together inunit (Psalms 133:1)

David is creditedwith writing thisparticular Psalm. Herealized the peace

and serenity that comes upon a communitywhen they live together or spend quality timetogether. He also realized dwelling together inunity makes ones' community stronger and moreproductive. Creating opportunities for like-mind-ed communities to come together and fellowshipis a premise that we should apply to our lives.

This summer our annual conference was anawesome experience! It was a great opportunityfor us to come together, renew old friendshipsand create new ones. Nevertheless, our comingtogether was a planned event with the sole pur-pose creating unity. Our conference was anoccasion for military officers serving in the seaservices to spend quality time together with theexpressed purpose of strengthening our existingdiverse officer corps and creating avenues forothers to join our ranks.

Although this was a well planned event, I seehow God blessed us this summer. Our speakerswere from various parts of the country and rep-resented different cultural backgrounds, yet theirindividual presentations emphasized the samepoints and were empowering.

However, one speaker in particular, ChaplainKing, who spoke during our combined PrayerBreakfast and CAPT Parham lecture series, cap-tured the essence of why we come together eachyear, and what it will take for the NationalNaval Officers Association to achieve its estab-lished goals as well as the vision set forth byeach of our service chiefs. In summary: CAPTParham felt that his life was rich and fulfilled ifhe could be credited for helping one person dur-ing the span of his life.

Chaplain King's challenge is for each one ofus to help one person during the course of ourcareers. Helping others achieve success in theirlives allows us to dwell together in unity.

Peace and BlessingsChaplain Phillip Ridley

Chaplain@nnoa.org

FFALLALL AAwards and Prwards and Presentations 2008esentations 2008

(We were extremely honored to havethe Secretary of the Navy, Donald C.Winter, join the NNOA NationalPresident Capt. Bernard Jackson, USN(Ret.) in awarding NNOA members fortheir significant contributions thatdirectly support the goals and objec-tives of NNOA. )

Distinguished Service AwardBayou chapter:Lt. Allison B. CoxBethesda Chapter:Lt. Richard Gilliard, Jr., USNEns. Nicole CuthbertsonWashington, D.C. Chapter:Capt. Edward W. Gantt, USN (Ret.)Rear Adm. Mack Gaston, USN (Ret.)Capt. Jerome Davis, USNCmdr. Stan Cunningham, USN (Ret.)Lt. Cmdr. Janet Cochran, USPHSLt. Cmdr. Stephen Williams, USN (Ret.)Cmdr. Connie Greene, USNLt. Cmdr. Beulah Henderson, USN(Ret.)Quantico Chapter:Capt. NaTasha McEacin, USMCMaj. Michael Williams, USMCCapt. Melissa Chestnut, USMCLt. Col. Hugh Elmore, USALt. Col Gregory King, USMCLt. Col. Michael Pitts, USMC2nd Lt. Askia Toure, USMC2nd Lt. Kerrissa Torres, USMC2nd Lt. Jake Owens, USMCJoseph Johnson (Civ.)Maj Nadrian McGill, USMCPamela Wilson (Civ.)Maj. Jonathan Loney, USMCMaj. Stacey Taylor, USMCMaj. Ty Walls, USMCCWO4 John Hawthorne, USMC

Outstanding Chapter Award: Quantico Chapter (President Maj. DaveEverly)

Outstanding Newsletter AwardQuantico Chapter

Outstanding Chapter ProgramWashington, D.C. Chapter (PresidentEdward Gantt)Established Chapter Membership

Award:

Group A: 1st place: TidewaterChapterGroup A: 2nd place: Washington, D.C.ChapterGroup B:1st place: San Diego ChapterGroup C: 1st place: Camp PendletonChapterGroup C: 2nd Place: Bayou ChapterNew Chapter Growth Award: Group A: 1st place: New EnglandChapterGroup A: 2nd place: Miami ChapterIndividual Membership RecruitingAward: Capt. Joel L. Parker, USN ofthe Bethesda Chapter

Outstanding Chapter PresidentAward:

Maj. Dave Everly, USMCCapt. Salle P. Kafer Mentoring

Award:Capt. Wanda Richards, USN BethesdaChapter

Golden Pen Award: Lt. Maria L. Roerick, USCG BayouChapter

Dorie Miller Award:Lt. Col. Dawn L. Harrison, USMC,Quantico Chapter-------------------------------------------------

Capt. Edward R. William Award forExcellence

The 2008 recipient of the Capt. EdwardR. William Award is Lt. Richard Howell,USCG. This awards is bestowed upon thosewho go above and beyond what is requiredto achieve, value and manage diversity. Lt.Howell devoted himself to improving diver-sity through active recruiting and diversityrelations throughout the Coast Guard.

Lt Howell also mentors about 20 juniorofficer and enlisted personnel, spearheadedthe establishment of a mentoring networkdedicated to the unique concerns of femaleand minority officers and negotiated cost-effective advertising in several publicationscatering to minority and female audiencesresulting in the second highest minority andthe seventh highest female recruitment ratesin Coast Guard history.

Lt. Howell's work with the leadership anddiversity advisory council has highlightedpolicy changes that will increase the careersuccess of female and minority coast guardpersonnel. Congratulations, Lt. Howell!

(Reprinted with permission)The Virginian-Pilot By Greg Gaudio

AAndrew Mebane decided to become adoctor the day his mother revealed asecret: She'd almost been pressured

into having an abortion."Ever since that day, I felt like I wasn't really

supposed to be here," the 16-year-old said. "Sothe one thing I want to do with my life is saveother people's lives."

Mebane, who lives at the Westhaven BoysHome in Portsmouth, said he's trying to decidewhether he should go through the military toaccomplish his goal. He was one of about 120Hampton Roads teenagers who climbed aboardthe amphibious assault ship Kearsarge onFriday for a youth program day sponsored bythe National Naval Officers Association.

"We reached out to the inner-city kids," saidLt. Cmdr. Michelle Layne, who chairs the asso-ciation's youth committee. "It's very importantto expose them to something positive."

The NNOApromotes the Navy, MarineCorps and Coast Guard in minority communi-ties and schools, and supports the developmentof a diverse officer corps. It held its annual con-

ference this week in Portsmouth.The teens began their day bleary-eyed, with

some rising as early as 4 a.m."Oh, they were sleepy, yes," Layne said.

"But you had plenty that were bubbly and readyto go." After a galley breakfast at Norfolk NavalStation, the teens embarked on a tour of the40,500-ton Kearsarge, a large-deck troop andhelicopter carrier. The ship maintains a regularcrew of 1,200.

On the flight deck, Lt. Clint Ceralde pointedout the surface-to-air missile system. "That oneup there that looks like R2-D2, it can fire 4,500rounds per minute," he said.

The teenagers stopped in the combat infor-mation center - "the brains of the ship" - and thesick bay before heading to the mess deck forlunch and a speech from Vice Adm. JeffreyFowler, superintendent of the U.S. NavalAcademy.

Fowler talked about the broad range of mili-tary careers, the importance of studying mathand science, and the differences between enlist-ing right out of high school and waiting untilafter college.

"I think you should set your dreams ongoing to college," he said. "The goal of theNavy is to get everybody a college educationeither way."

Keon Moore, 15, said he plans to enlistwhen he graduates from Booker T. WashingtonHigh School in two years.

"I don't want to live paycheck-to-paycheck,"he said. "I weighed out all the options. With thisone, I can travel the world and get paid."

Sixteen-year-old Alyssa Jessup, a junior atBayside High School, said she's keeping heroptions open.

"My main reason for going into the Navy isthey pay for college," she said. "Based on whatI've heard today, it could get me a lot of places."

Workshops later in the day touched on issuessuch as peer pressure, health and staying out oftrouble.

On Thursday, Adm. Gary Roughead, thechief of naval operations, spoke at the NNOAconference on the need to increase diversity inthe military, particularly in the upper ranks.Data show that blacks make up about 17 per-cent of the total force, but just 9 percent of offi-cers, the AP says.

Today marks the 60th anniversary ofPresident Truman's executive order to integratethe military.

Teens Courted in Visit aboard Navy Assault Ship MERIDIANMERIDIAN PPAGE 7AGE 7

Above: Ensign Weston Murray, at top of gangway, welcomes Hampton Roads Teens aboard the USS Kearsarge (LH3) for Youth Day. Photo by of the Virginian-Pilot)

By Lt. Karen E. Eifert, USN

Service members from the Navy,Marine Corps and Coast Guardattended a workshop entitled "See

you at the top: Balancing Career andFamily" on July 25 at the National NavalOfficer Association's (NNOA) 36th annu-al diversity conference held at thePortsmouth Renaissance Hotel inPortsmouth, Va.

The session was one of approximately20 held from Jul 23-25 that featured lead-ership from each of the sea services toinclude the Chief of Naval Operations,Admiral Gary Roughead; theCommandant of the Coast Guard, AdmiralThad Allen; and the AssistantCommandant of the Marine Corps,General James F. Amos. More than 400minority officers attended the NNOA con-ference, which is said to be largest minor-ity officer attendance to date.

The Balancing Career and Family ses-sion, which consisted of a six-personpanel of senior officers from each of thesea services, was geared toward offeringguidance to junior officers and assistingthem in achieving balance between lifeissues and better navigating their militarycareers.

"I have asked my wife to follow mearound the world," one Navy lieutenantbegan. "I have no worries that she willleave me, but I work long hours, am con-stantly away from home on deploymentsand don't have the time I would like tospend with my kids. You can only push aperson so far. My question is, 'when isenough, enough?'"

The response from the panelists camewith a mixture of firmness and compas-sion as they generally agreed there wereno easy answers, only strategies and tac-tics.

Responding to the lieutenant, NavyCommander Anthony Gordon, a surfacewarfare officer, quoted from the Bible,Luke 12:48 when he said "To him whommuch is given, much is expected."

Marine Corps Colonel Adele Hodges,who describes herself as "single by career,not by choice," seemed to agree when shesaid "I dedicated myself to my career."

Hodges, who is in command at the 1stMaintenance Battalion at CampPendleton, later acknowledged that afterforgoing marriage and a family, she feltsomething was lacking in her life.

Coast Guard Captain Rod Walker, whois the commanding officer of the NationalStrike Force Center, shared that he was

used to working long hours during theweek and frequently volunteered to workweekends. He suggested that doing sodemonstrated his commitment to theorganization and his determination toachieve. On a gentler note, he acknowl-edged that he took note if he saw a juniorofficer demonstrating that same level ofcommitment.

"If that particular officer wanted to bea captain or a flag officer, I would dowhat I could to at least make sure thatrecord was such that it he could compete,"Walker said.

A Navy ensign shared that she per-ceived a stigma attached to her currentpregnancy.

"It's as though, because I am an ensignI am not allowed to be pregnant. A lot ofwomen tend to wait 10 years before get-ting pregnant so they can get establishedin their careers, but not everyone is goingto do that."

She said she felt her superiors did notfeel she could get the job done and plain-ly asked the panel how she could be amother and a naval officer without havinga nervous break-down behind the scenes.

A female Navy lieutenant seemed tosecond the notion when she shared that

Senior Officers Give Advice on Balancing Career and Family at NNOA ConferenceFFALLALL 20082008

Above: Capt. Shirley Bowen, USN; and Capt. Rod Walker, USCG are amused as Col. Doarin Lewis,USMC shares unique ways he balanced his family lifeand career. Phot by Lt. Karen E. Eifert

Continued on page 10

Above: General Amos speaks at the 36th Annual National Naval Officers Association Conference held this year in Portsmouth, Va. LowerTop: General Amos takes time to help NNOA National President Capt. Bernard Jackson (USN Ret.) present an NNOA leadership award toMaj. Dave Everly. Bottom: Maj. Gen. Walt Gaskin talks to junior Marine Corps officers at a break-out session held at the conference wherehe re-iterated some of General Amos’ guiding principles for success.Photos by Lt.Karen E. Eifert .

officers are more valuable thanthe current fad.

3) Bloom where you'replanted… In our service, wemay not get the assignment orduty station we want. Themark of our character is deter-mined by what we do in timesof discomfort. If we strive forexcellence in what we aregiven, we will find that wherewe are is exactly where weneed to be.

4) Develop your instinctsand learn to trust them. Wemust train our intuitionthrough reading, practice andreflecting on lessons learnedfrom experience.

5) Set your priorities inlife… Gen. Amos recommendsthat your service should not bethe number one priority inyour life. You can be success-ful and have balance. By his

own example he encourages usto make sure our kids, ourwife, and our creator knowhow much we love them.

As a second lieutenant,Gen. Amos' speech remindedme of what is truly important.What impacted me most is thathe spoke with authority fromexperience more than rank. Hedid not present information in

an "I said so manner"but in a way a fathershares his life's strug-gles, successes andthe wisdom gleanedfrom both.

MERIDIAN Page 9MERIDIAN Page 9General Amos Speaks at the NNOA Conference

she voluntarily truncated hersix weeks of post-partum con-valescent leave, which isgiven to each mother follow-ing the delivery of a child, tothree weeks.

"I may have been overlyparanoid, but I felt I wasbeing treated as though I wasless competent than my peersbecause I took leave or had totend to a sick child. I also feltmy fitness reports were suffer-ing because I was now alsodevoted to being a mother."

Retired Navy commanderRuby Miller responded bysaying she had once been inthat same situation. She saidshe chose to put the Navy andher job first, then her son, thenher marriage, then herself.Miller said both her relation-ship with her son and healthsuffered as a result of herchoice in priorities.

"If I had it do over again, Iwould not make that deci-sion," Miller said, almost as awarning to the listening audi-ence.

Captain Shirley Bowen, anurse practitioner, agreed thatmaking the right career deci-sions has much to do withmanaging competing prioritieseffectively.

"Sometimes your prioritieswill shift," she suggested. Asan example, she said she onceopted for a recruiting job overa command tour at a timewhen she felt her family need-ed her to be at home more.

In making this decision,Bowen seemed to suggest twothings. Firstly, a person mightreconsider accepting a com-mand tour if they do not haveadequate the time to dedicateto the position. Secondly, a

family does not consistentlyrequire the same amount timeand energy. For example,since children become moreindependent with time a per-son might consider delaying acommand tour.

Marine Corps ColonelDoarin Lewis, who currentlyserves as a chief of staff, saidofficers should marry well,someone who understands thedemands of an active dutyservice member's career, aswell as their goals and aspira-tions.

"You cannot strive forcommand without yourspouse's buy-in," Lewis point-ed out.

A retired male Coast Guardwarrant officer sitting in theaudience agreed with Lewis.

"If you take the time toexplain to your spouses themilitary culture so they under-stand the importance of

attending command events,the military fitness reports andthe promotion system earlyyou'll get the buy-in that youneed," he said.

However, Coast GuardRear admiral Jody A.Breckenridge (upper half),who is the director of theCoast guard's StrategicTransformation Team andresponsible for aligning andsynchronizing the efforts totransform and modernize theCoast Guard, verbalized whatshe felt was the underlyingissue with respect to recruitingmore junior officers.

"In my generation we iden-tified with work. Work wasour identity," Breckenridgesaid. The generation cominginto the military today recog-nizes that about us and doesnot want that for themselves.If we do not address this, wewill not retain them."

The NNOA is an organiza-tion sanctioned by each of thesea services to promote therecruitment and retainment ofquality minority officers. Theorganization has been in exis-tence since 1972 and holdsconferences annually to fur-ther its goals and objectives.

(In an effort to promoteopen and honest communica-tion, the names of the juniorofficers speaking during thisbreak out session have inten-tionally been omitted. Allattendees were made aware ofservice-specific assistance withbalancing family and careersuch as the Navy’s Task ForceLife website and specific initia-tives the Coast Guard is imple-menting with their Strategic

Above: Cmdr. Anthony Gordon and Cmdr. Ruby Miller exchange amusing stories related to balancing work andfamily related to their military careers. Photo by Lt. Karen E. Eifert

FFALLALL 20082008Senior Officers Give Advice on Balancing Career and Family Cont’d from Page 8

Admiral Thad Allen currently leads the U.S.Coast Guard, the largest component of theDepartment of Homeland Security, comprisedof about 40,150 men and women on activeduty, 7,000 civilians, 8,000 reservists and34,000 volunteer auxiliarists. He serves at thehelm of an organization that serves theAmerican people by saving lives and propertyat sea, ensuring the safety of thousands ofprofessional mariners and millions of recre-ational and commercial vessels, protectingour ports and maritime infrastructure fromterrorism, securing our borders, maintainingaids to navigation, responding to natural dis-asters, defending our Nation, conductinghumanitarian operations, protecting our

marine environment, and keeping shippingroutes in the Arctic and Great Lakes open andclear of hazards. He recently spoke at theNNOA annual conference in Portsmouth andlater took time to share his vision for diversi-ty.

LT Eifert: I've been hearing a lot about thiswebsite that you've launched called "ICommandant.” Can you please tell me some-thing about it? I understand that after postingthe NNOA speech, you got 20-somethingcomments. Can you speak a little bit aboutthat?

ADM Allen: I sure can. Actually it's been an

evolution. First of all, I have on our dot-milwebsite, and I post all my speeches there, andwe also try and put them on You-Tube. TheNNOA speech received a lot of feedbackfrom both of those mediums. What we didyesterday was launch what we call "ICommandant" which is a link inside the newCommandant's Corner 2.0 that actually goesto a blog site and we're using a commercialdot-com blogger, a Google blogger capabilityto actually have a blog site for theCommandant which will enable anybody, nomatter where they're at, to be able to writecomments to me on the postings that areplaced on there. It's just another way of

Above: Admiral Thad Allen attends the NNOA Conference where he served as a keynote speaker and receives an NNOA polo shirt from NNOA National PresidentCapt. Bernard Jackson (Ret.). Photo by Lt. Karen E. Eifert

MERIDIAN PMERIDIAN PAGE 1AGE 111

Continued on page 12

A Few Moments with the Coast Guard’s Chief: Admiral Thad Allen (Interview vonducted by Lt. Karen E. Eifert)

expanding the conversation, mak-ing everything more transparent,and trying to make us moreaccessible to our workforce.

LT Eifert: In terms of reachingminority officers, what are youspecifically seeking with theseoutreach initiatives? Are youseeking numbers? Are you seek-ing quotas? What are you seek-ing?

ADM Allen: We're not talkingabout quotas or numbers. Whatwe're talking about are findingpeople who can make us morediverse and participate in theCoast Guard and provide theirskills and talents, and we canprovide them opportunity andaccess for careers in the CoastGuard. To do that, I think it's amistake to go out thinking quotasbecause there are a lot of legalissues associated with that. Youhave to go to the areas wherethere are populations that aremore representative of the UnitedStates, and do your recruitingthere.

LT Eifert: Diversity is one ofAdmiral Roughead's, Chief ofNaval Operations, key priorities.As such, we have a diversitydirectorate over here. But they'resoon to put in a full time officerinstead of a part time reservistwho is actually going to becharged with traveling around theUnited States to different pockets,different sectors, trying to accessminority populations. How doyou feel about that initiative? Doyou have anything like that inmind for the Coast Guard?

ADM Allen: I think connectivityand outreach is very important.What we're trying to do in theCoast Guard is a multi-levelapproach. First of all, I've askedevery flag officer in the field tobecome affiliated with a minorityserving institution to establish a

long term relationship. But wedon't want to go in looking likewe're headhunters looking forpeople to hire. We want to estab-lish long term relationships thatbring the value of our service totheir campus and allow us tounderstand what they're doing. Ithink that's the first step. The sec-ond step is to take a look at ourofficer and enlisted recruitingprograms and make sure thatwe're focusing on the right areato produce the viable candidate todo the Coast Guard operationswe need in the future, to alsooffer opportunities for a diverseworkforce for the country. I thinkafter that you have to look at theretention programs and how todecrease attrition, and keep bothenlisted and officer, whetherthey're minority or majority peo-ple in so they can be potentialsenior leaders in the Coast Guard.That's really what the goal is.

LT Eifert: Let's talk a little bitabout the millennial generation,which a lot of people see as beingextremely self-centered and self-absorbed and desiring immediategratification. How do you thinkwe, the military, can help thisgroup of people transfer from aperspective of self to a perspec-tive of service to the world?

ADM Allen: If you're visitingWalter Reed and Bethesda, I willtell you this is not a self-absorbedgeneration. They have a waythey want to serve this countryand they're more than willing todo it. They're sacrificing theirbodies and their limbs and theirlives every day for this country.There's no doubt in my mind thisnew generation is capable ofdoing everything this countryasks of them. We just need tounderstand how they communi-cate, how they deal with eachother, how they network, and justbecause they communicate differ-ently than we do doesn't mean

they're self-absorbed, in my view.This is a very self-sacrificinggeneration. Again, it would takeone trip to Bethesda to tell youthat.

LT Eifert: Do you see theminority flag population as beingrepresentative of the best mix interms of the Coast Guard's opera-tional goals? Are you satisfiedwith the current numbers?

ADM Allen: I am not. But youcan't start talking about diversityat the flag corps when you realizeit's going to take 26 to 30 years toproduce a flag officer. You haveto start very very early. Thecohort group we're dealing withnow in flag officers and the dis-tribution of our flag officers wascreated 30 years ago.Unfortunately, every step we takeand every success we have maynot be visible until 10, 15, 20years from now. But somebodyhas to make the commitment.Somebody has to start.Somebody had to keep the faith.

LT Eifert: Absolutely. Are thereinitiatives in place to bring alongthese high performing mid-gradeto senior officers to ensure thatthey are competitive for flag?

ADM Allen: We always look atthe demographics associated withour selection panels for everygrade of officers, and to theextent that we get feedback fromthe selection panels on how theofficers perform and how they'reconsidered, that gives us feed-back on how to mentor and dealwith these officers. But the factof the matter is every officershould have the opportunity exceland succeed. career specialistswho work with these folks, andthat's what we're trying to do inthe Coast Guard.

LT Eifert: The Navy has createda plan, I'm sure you've heard of

it, the 2037 plan which speaks tothe desired racial statistics toreflect the national demographicsin the flag ranks by the year2037. For instance, 10 percentAfrican Americans, 13 percentHispanics, and 13 percentAsian/Pacific Islanders.Sir, do you have a similar visionfor the Coast Guard?

ADM Allen: I'm not sure at thistime we have hard statistics nordo I think from the Coast Guard'sstandpoint that would be entirelywhat we want to do. I think whatwe want is a representative workforce recruited from areas thathave a propensity to serve, thatwant to stay in the Coast Guard,that we provide them fulfillingwork to do. that will shape in thelong run a flag corps that isdiverse and representative ofAmerica. You need to start withthe fact that you want to give[equal access] to everybody andeverybody has the opportunity tosucceed as officers. Then if yougo to the right population torecruit, I think you'll get whereyou need to be.

LT Eifert: Sir, in an effort toincrease female retention, the

FFALLALL 20082008

Above: Vice Admiral VivienCrea, USCG, takes time to readan issue of the Meridian. Photocourtesy of USCG.

Continued on page 16

Interview with Admiral Allen Continued from Previous Page

Reprinted with permission from theWashingtonianStory by Drew Bratcher

EEd Gantt paces in front of a dozenstudents at Frederick Douglas HighSchool in Upper Marlboro. Gantt's

Junior ROTC class has been asked to per-form colorguard duty at Andrews AirForce Base.

"Is there anyone willing to take thisresponsibility?" he says, his wrinkledhands clasped behind him. The Navy cap-tain is dressed as he has been for 40 years,in uniform. He turns and faces his stu-dents, who eye one another and the clock.

"Nobody?" Gantt says. "I thought wehad a bunch of people who wanted to beleaders. Getting out of bed on a Saturdaymorning to do something worthwhile-now,

that's leadership."It was on a Saturday in 1969 at an

Army recruitment station in DC that Ganttboarded a bus for Fort Bragg, NorthCarolina. The Prince George's Countynative, who grew up scraping penniestogether to buy model airplanes, washooked by the promise that he'd be a pilotshortly after his 18th birthday.

At boot camp, Gantt suffered throughpushups and indignities to try to earn hiswings. When assigned to lead drafteesolder than he was, he was uncomfortableand gave up the responsibility-only tohave his drill sergeant punish him by mak-ing him work late into the night digging acoffin-size ditch in the pine woods.

By January 1970, he was a door gun-ner on a Chinook helicopter flying mis-

Earning His Wings MERIDIAN PMERIDIAN PAGE 13AGE 13

Above: Capt. Ed Gantt (USN Ret.) poses above with a fellow ROTC instructor and some of his ROTC students from FrederickDouglas High School (F.D.H.S.) in Maryland. Below: Capt. Gantt promotes one of his ROTC student. Photos courtesy of F.D.H.S.

Continued on page 16

FFALLALL 20082008

Reprinted with permissionStory by Ian Shapira ofthe Washington Post

Alma Gravely saidthat her husbandfaced difficulties as

a black admiral but that hehad a lifelong affection forthe Navy. The Samuel L.Gravely Jr. ElementarySchool in Haymarket,named in his honor, offi-cially opens Thursday.Alma Gravely, 86, ofHaymarket was a bitincredulous when someonetold her a while ago thatPrince William Countyofficials were consideringnaming an elementaryschool after her late hus-band, Samuel Jr., a Navyman.

"Someone inGainesville who was activein the community calledme and said, 'What wouldyou think about Prince

William naming a schoolafter Sam?' " Gravelyrecalled with a chuckle."And I said, 'Well, I thinkthat's a great honor, butthere must be other peoplewho lived here longer, orpeople who were born andreared here, instead of myhusband.' And she said,'Yes, but they were notNavy admirals.' "

But her husband wasnot just an admiral. He wasthe nation's first AfricanAmerican to become a viceadmiral, one of the Navy'shighest-ranking positions.

On Thursday, aftermonths of anticipation,planning with Navy offi-cials and a ceremonialgroundbreaking, the PrinceWilliam school system willcut the ribbon to open theSamuel L. Gravely Jr.Elementary School onWaverly Farm Drive inHaymarket.

The school has a capac-ity of more than 800 stu-dents and is intended torelieve some of the crowd-ing that has emerged in theGainesville area in thecounty's western section.

The ribbon-cutting willfeature the president'sNavy honor guard, whichwill present colors, as wellas speeches by PrinceWilliam SuperintendentSteven L. Walts, SchoolBoard Chairman Milton C.Johns (At Large) and NavyRear Adm. Julius Caesar. Itwill also include thewhistling of a boatswain'spipe.

Caesar explained hisreasons for attending theceremony via e-mail: "I'mcoming to the ribbon-cut-ting out of great respectfor Vice Admiral Gravely,and his widow, Mrs. AlmaGravely. The Admiral wasa role model whom I

admired from afar. I methim on a few occasionsafter he retired. He was astriking figure who com-manded respect with histowering character andintellect yet he was veryhumble. He opened thedoor and inspired a genera-tion of African-AmericanFlag officers. Many are onactive duty today."

Philip Molter, a Navyspokesman, said the eventwill be meaningful. "Idon't think Navy people gothrough that many schoolribbon-cuttings," he said."This is a very significantevent from the Navy stand-point."

The ceremony will alsoinclude a short speech byAlma Gravely. In an inter-view, she described the dif-ficulties that her husbandfaced helping to commandships and other seamen.

School Named For Nation's First Black Vice Adm.

Above:Alma Gravely said that her husband faced difficulties as a black admiral but that he had a lifelong affection for the Navy. The Samuel L.Gravely Jr. Elementary School in Haymarket, named in his honor, officially opens Thursday. Photo by Dominic Bracco Ii

Continued on page 16

MERIDIANMERIDIAN PPAGE 15AGE 15

She also recalled how his overridingaffection for the Navy symbolizedhis life. He died in 2004 at the ageof 82.

"There were people who didn'twant to be on a ship with him. Thereweren't many blacks in the Navy,"Gravely said. "One time, he wastaken to jail in Key West, Florida,for impersonating an officer. He wasan officer, and he was in an officer'suniform."

Born in 1922, Samuel Jr. enlistedin the Navy Reserve in 1942 aftertwo years of college. In 1944, after

more training at the University ofCalifornia at Los Angeles andColumbia University in New York,he completed midshipman trainingand became the first AfricanAmerican to be commissioned as anofficer from the Navy ReserveOfficers' Training Corps, accordingto the Navy.

The couple married in 1946. Theyspent a lifetime traveling from dutyto duty, from California to RhodeIsland and later Hawaii. They hadmet through a mutual friend in col-lege in the 1940s.

When we were married, I hadonly seen him three times. It was thefourth time he came to marry me,"she recalled, laughing. "I said,'Listen! I don't know you!'

"But I loved him. I used to callhim Sammie the Sailor. We got mar-ried in Roanoke."

Gravely went on to work as an agri-cultural extension agent. The couplehad three children. The oldest,Robert, died in a drowning accident.The others, David and Tracey, live inManassas Park and Fredericksburg,respectively.

School Named for First Black Navy Vice Adm. Cont’d from page 14

sions in Vietnam. To Gantt, soaring overdark waters in the Mekong Delta with thedoors off was like speeding down a coun-try road in a sports car with the windowsdown.

By day, he fired a machine gun into thejungle, clearing the way for troops toresupply American and South Vietnameseforces. By night, he bunked with aKentuckian who hummed Merle Haggardsongs and a fellow gunner who'd been in ashootout with Los Angeles cops. This was

Vietnam, and it was also his first real tasteof America.

Returning from his year's tour, Ganttenrolled at Howard University, where heplayed football. But the pull of flyingplanes was too strong. He entered theNavy to fly carrier-based jets as a copilot,and in 1985 he helped capture the hijack-ers of the Achille Lauro cruise ship.

Gantt went on to command the Navy'sboot camp in Great Lakes, Illinois, but in2004 he returned to Prince George's

County to teach. Teenagers are moreunruly than midshipmen, and the 57-year-old wonders if he's making a difference intheir lives. But nothing shakes him of hisfaith in the military to teach responsibility.

"Now, is there anyone who wants totake this color-guard duty?" Gantt asksagain. One by one, hands rise.

Captain Edward Gantt serves as theNJROTC instructor at Frederick DouglasHigh School in Maryland.

Above: Capt. Ed Gantt (USN Ret.) poses above with some of his ROTC students from Frederick Douglas High School (F.D.H.S.) in Maryland. Photo courtesy. of F.D.H.S.

Earning their Wings Continued from Page 13

FFALLALL 20082008

Navy has implemented a pilotprogram where for two to threeyears females can do anythingthey want, whether it be start afamily, go pursue a degree, orjust take a break. That sabbaticalwould allow them to return toactive duty where they werewithout losing step. Does theCoast Guard have a plan likethat? We're doing it because wefeel it will help retention.

ADM Allen: The Coast Guardhas an authorized temporary sep-aration program not only forchild birth, but to pursue educa-tional opportunities and we liber-ally grant that and look forwardto officers returning and serving.

LT Eifert: The Coast Guard cur-rently has the highest retentionrate for females. Do you thinkthat has anything to do with thatplan?

ADM Allen: I think we areaccessing more female officersand our percentage at the CoastGuard Academy is higher thanother Academies, so we start witha larger cohort group to beginwith. But we like to think we'recreating career opportunities,equal access to command andalso an opportunity to take abreak if you think you need to foreducation or for family purposes.But we're trying to support thesefolks over their mid-grade yearsto make sure that we have a suc-

cessful officers.

LT Eifert: Sir, I understand yourfather served in the Coast Guard,so you're just kind of carrying onthe family profession. I'm justwondering what advice yourfather gave you before joiningthat you'd like to pass on to otherCoast Guard officers that wouldensure they have a successfulcareer.

ADM Allen: He had an opportu-nity to address the Chief PettyOfficers Association in Houston acouple of weeks ago. We canhave Tony send you the tran-script. But basically he felt hewas given an extraordinaryopportunity coming from a fami-

ly that the profession to become aleader and to have an impact onpeople. He had broken service.He got out of the Coast Guardand came back in. Because ofthat he was older than many offi-cers, his peers, and it made him anatural mentor and a leader. Hefelt it was his responsibility tobring younger people up, makesure they were successful in theCoast Guard. The best thing hepassed on to me was that.

Admiral Allen Interview Continued from page 12

Network News is for female Navy Surface Warfare Officers!Network News is a publication designed to acquaint female Surface Warfare Officers with other SWOs who have similarbackgrounds, valuable experiences, or useful information to share. Its goal is to promote a positive and informed career,camaraderie within the community, and retention within the Navy. If you would like to make submissions to this bi-monthly newsletter please email: NetworkNews@navy.mil or LT Kimberly Thompson at kim.thompson

Navy Surgeon General Vice Adm. AdamRobinson and Rear Adm. Christine M.Bruzek-Kohler attended the NNOA

conference in Portsmouth where they conduct-ed a break-out session geared toward the med-ical community. The two issued some words ofcaution to the listeners. 1. Anyone who is a medical professional mustdemonstrate how they stand out in their profes-sion. 2. Officers should look closely at their fitnessreports to ensure key words pertinent to theircommunities are present. Leadership ability isalways desirable. 3. Future promotion boards will likely have anincreased focus more on clinical expertise. 4. While it is important to practice esotericmedical research, those who do so may havedifficulty achieving the rank of 0-6 (Captain).

The Surgeon General and the Rear Admiralalso shared some statistics:

1. The Nurse Corps currently enjoys above-goalrecruitment numbers at 128%. The Corps is,

however, looking to attract more AfricanAmericans and Asian Pacific Islanders. 2. Statistics show commander and captainfemale officers decide to forfeit a family forcareer.3. Dental Corps has lowest diversity numbers.

Vice Admiral Robinson went on to speakfrankly on a few key issues. He acknowledgedthat while the Navy has not had the best reputa-

tion regarding diversity, the Navy is committedto improving in this area. He aid officers shouldnot try to go it alone in the Navy; they shouldlooking for mentors who are loyal and demon-strate high integrity. Mentors do not necessarilyhave to be the same race as the mentoree. TheVice Admiral finished his talk on a positive notereminding listeners that if appropriate action istaken today, the Navy can grow the number ofsenior minority officers.

Surgeon General Speaks to NNOA

Above: Navy Surgeon General Vice Adm. Adam Robinson and Rear Adm. Christine M. Bruzek-Kohler posewith members of the Nurse Corps and Medical Services Corps.

MAKE SURE YOU VOTE!!!Your country needs you to get out andvote. Voting assistance information canbe found can be found at www.fvap.gov.