NAVSAFECEN Announces Safety Professionals of the Year 2019

Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Isaac Champlain | Commander Naval Safety Center (NAVSAFECEN) announced their selections for Naval Safety Center Safety Professionals of the Year (SPOY). Marine MGst Corey Bush was the recipient of the Enlisted Safety Professional of the Year 2019. Image by MC3 Isaac Champlain, U.S. Navy.  

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES

11.25.2019

Story by Leslie Tomaino 

Naval Safety Command

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) – Commander, Naval Safety Center (NAVSAFECEN) announced the 2019 Safety Professionals of the Year last week. Navy Lt. Jose Mercado was the recipient of Officer Safety Professional of the Year and Marine Corps Master Sgt. Corey Bush was the recipient of the Enlisted Safety Professional of the Year.
The annual awards recognize service members stationed at NAVSAFECEN, who best represent an ever-growing group of dedicated safety professionals who serve as role models of professionalism and personal dedication. The officer and senior enlisted member recipients embody the core values of their service.
Rear Adm. Mark Leavitt, Commander, NAVSAFECEN, recognized the awardees during an all hands call and awarded each recipient the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal. This year’s awardees were from the same office, in the Expeditionary Safety Directorate.
“Both Lt. Mercado and Master Sgt. Bush represent what is great about the Naval Safety Center,” said Leavitt. “They work every day to ensure we are doing things that help preserve readiness and protect our most vital resources, our Sailors and Marines.”
Mercado, originally from New York City, has been in the Navy for 20 years and assigned to NAVSAFECEN since spring 2018, where he has served as Expeditionary Safety Deputy Director. In addition to his administrative duties, over the past year, he led six Expeditionary Operational Safety Assessments (EOSA), two working groups, assisted on a Diving Operational Readiness Inspection for the Coast Guard and went out to sea for 10 days in support of the Commander, Carrier Strike Group 15 (CSG-15) evaluation.
“Lt. Mercado has consolidated numerous Dive, Jump, and Expeditionary assessment reports to identify cross-community and cross-service issues. His findings have led to several safety promotion items and messages and regularly provides input to OPNAV, NAVSAFECEN policies and directives,” said Don Ciesielski, Expeditionary Safety Director. “Lt. Mercado embodies the spirit of where the Naval Safety Center is heading. Collecting and sharing data while identifying trends to create lessons learned and best practices for the fleet is evident in the execution of his day-to-day duties.”
Mercado has been a driving force of EOSA moving away from the traditional checklist-driven inspections of old. This shift allows NAVSAFECEN to assess units using the four pillars of risk management and address concerns in terms of risk to mission or risk to force. This new assessment, in turn, helps the fleet’s units meet the intent of the safety policies and allows personnel like Mercado to help them build up areas where they currently are not.
“I have to acknowledge my team because the success of a leader is based on the success of his subordinates. They are a great group of consummate professionals that get the job done,” says Mercado. “I truly appreciate my supervisor and coworkers who have invested their time and wisdom.”
Bush is originally from Columbus, Ohio, and has been in the Marine Corps for 21 years. He joined NAVSAFECEN in May 2017 and serves as a Marine Corps Parachute Analyst in the Expeditionary Safety directorate.
Bush has promoted and shared safety information, lessons learned and best practices throughout his time at NAVSAFECEN. He has one-on-one dialogue and provides mentorship to individuals during his safety assessments. He is a stellar advocate for safety when he presents in conferences to large groups and senior personnel for the Navy, Marine Corps and the Department of Defense.
In his role at NAVSAFECEN, Bush understands the importance of safety in the high-risk activities of the Navy and Marine Corps. He is recognized as the Marine Corps parachute safety subject matter expert, entrusted to conduct paraloft inspections across the service. Bush stressed that as a parachute rigger safety is always at the forefront of everything he does.
“Every time you pack a parachute, someone is trusting you with their life. ‘I will be sure always’ is the motto that all parachute riggers have ingrained into our DNA out of basic school, ‘until men grow wings,” said Bush. “Safety for yourself and all other parachutists is the most important thing about my job, which is why the position at the safety center exists. We always check each other’s work, and my job is to be the commander’s outside set of eyes to check his unit’s work.”
Bush’s dedication to the mission was apparent with his many other safety promotion efforts, regularly providing written reviews of new parachute equipment and additions to the “Authorized for Navy Use” list of equipment. Bush influenced safety policy by developing and writing recommended changes for Navy and Marine Corps parachute orders and instructions through his work as the preeminent Marine Corps subject matter expert.
“I’m honored to be recognized for this award and represent my office and the Marine Corps,” said Bush. “In the end, I’m just here to make sure everyone is utilizing risk management in everything they do.”
For more news from Naval Safety Center, visit www.navy.mil/local/nsc/.

• Date Taken: 11.25.2019
• Date Posted: 11.26.2019 14:19
• Story ID: 353542
• Location: NORFOLK, VIRGINIA, US