Navy's Top Enlisted Sailor Attends Chief Petty Officer Pinning Ceremony in Bahrain

Courtesy Photo | Forty-eight chief selects from NSA Bahrain, its more than 80 tenant commands and forward-deployed ships in the region, are promoted to the rank of chief petty officer during a pinning ceremony on board U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain, Sept.16  

MANAMA, BAHRAIN

09.16.2009

Courtesy Story

U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. 5th Fleet           

MANAMA, Bahrain - Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Rick D. West was the special guest at the U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain annual chief petty officer pinning ceremony held, Sept. 16, in the base gym when 47 new CPOs from NSA Bahrain's more than 80 tenant commands as well as forward-deployed ships in the Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command area of responsibility pinned on their Navy Chief anchors.

"This is the time of year that reinvigorates and re-generates our Chief Petty Officer Mess," said West. "We have a great core of Chief Petty Officers in our Navy and with the new folks being inducted it just makes our Navy stronger."

Newly pinned Chief Petty Officer Devron Felder, assigned to USS Sirocco, said becoming a chief petty officer means he is now part of an elite and integral part of the Navy that has been a driving force behind the success of the sea service ever since the Chief Petty Officer rank was established in 1893.

"The Navy is the only organization that has the 'Chief' - the leader of enlisted men and women," said Felder.

"For 116 years the Chief's Mess has guided and trained Sailors to make us the world's finest Navy. It's not the big guns we have, but it is the great leadership we have with the CPOs."

During the six-and-a-half weeks leading up to the pinning ceremony, the 47 newly-pinned chiefs participated in the CPO Induction training program on board NAS Bahrain.

The training was facilitated by the 248-member chief petty officer Mess on board NSA Bahrain and focused on leadership, teamwork, time management, U.S. Naval heritage, and organizational and personnel management skills.

For new Chief Petty Officer Carrington, assigned to Navy Information Operations Command, Norfolk and currently serving with Task Force 57 as an Individual Augmentee, CPO Induction taught her how to work effectively within the Chiefs' Mess in order to better serve as a CPO and leader for her Sailors.

"Some of the most important things I learned during this induction process are that you will always have someone to turn to, you have to be able to trust and communicate with each other, and you should always remember where you came from."

West shared some time-honored advice with the Navy's newest chief petty officers. "If I had just three words to say to our new as they pin on their anchors, it would be 'anchor up shipmate.' You hear story after story of successful personnel that at one point in their Navy career, had some Chief Petty Officer step up and challenge them to be better every day; adding strength to our Navy. I would not want to see our Navy without chief petty officers. The chiefs are the movers and the shakers. The officers run the Navy. The Chiefs make it run."

The rank of Chief Petty Officer was first established on April 1, 1893 for the Navy. Advancement to the rank of Chief Petty Officer is the most significant promotion within the enlisted naval ranks. Chief Petty Officers serve a dual role as both technical experts and as leaders, with more of an emphasis on leadership as they progress through the CPO ranks.

In the Navy, the Chiefs' uniform changes to reflect this change of duty, becoming very similar to that of a commissioned officer's uniform except for the different collar insignia. But perhaps the most significant change when a Sailor becomes a chief petty officer in the U.S. Navy is from then on, they will commonly be referred to as "the Chief."

• Date Taken: 09.16.2009
• Date Posted: 09.16.2009 10:53
• Story ID: 38841
• Location: MANAMA, BH