Photo By Chief Petty Officer Brian Morales | Vice Adm. Yancy B. Lindsey, Commander, Navy Installations Command (CNIC), Commander,...... read more read more
WASHINGTON – A Hopkinsville, Kentucky native currently assigned to Commander, Fleet Activities Sasebo, Japan was selected as the fiscal year 2021 Shore Enterprise Sailor of the Year during a ceremony at the National Museum of the U.S. Navy on board the historic Washington Navy Yard, May 11.
Master-at-Arms 1st Class (MA1) Brian Allocca was selected from among 70 other installation Sailor of the Year recipients to earn the prestigious award.
“Our finalists are proven performers and proven Sailors of the Year,” said Vice Adm. Yancy Lindsey, Commander, Navy Installations Command. “Every single one of them are already winners and represent our regions, the shore enterprise, and the Navy with great honor. I am proud of each of you, and I look forward to witnessing your future accomplishments. Congratulations to MA1 Brian Allocca for being selected as the 2021 CNIC Sailor of the Year! All of our Sailors of the year handle the mooring lines in supporting the fleet, fighter and family”
Allocca, representing Commander, Navy Region Japan, was among the four finalists who went before the CNIC Sailor of the Year board conducted by a panel of senior enlisted leaders.
“Serving in the Navy is the fulfillment of my childhood dream,” said Allocca. “The Navy allows me to work with the best people in the world. It allows me the opportunity help my junior Sailors grow and improve their lives for the better.”
The other three candidates who competed for the CNIC award were Master-at-Arms 1st Class (MA1) Jimi Bilon, from Dededo, Guam representing Joint Region Marianas; Air Traffic Controller 1st Class (AC1) Mark Grenda, from Blackwood, New Jersey representing Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic; AC1 Damon Haney, from Hookstown, Pennsylvania representing Commandant, Navy District Washington.
“I grew up without a father but had an uncle who filled that role as a father figure, he always believed in me and challenged me to set goals while helping to achieve them,” said Bilon. “This has taught me as leader to do the same for my junior Sailors.”
“My proudest accomplishment in the Navy is the tour I am currently on at Naval Support Activity Lakehurst,” said Grenda. “When I arrived here, I was given the tools to succeed and was assigned to lead an entire division of Sailors. With the room to guide Sailors my way, I quickly learned what worked and what didn't and was able to grow personally and professionally alongside my Sailors. These three years have, by far, been my most rewarding and proudest time in the Navy.”
“Serving in the Navy has provided me the opportunity to grow as a person and see things that otherwise would never have been an option for me,” said Haney.
“Growing up in my hometown taught me the importance of family, not just immediate family, but friends who are always there for you,” said Allocca. “These people are the ones who support you when you need it and you support them when they need it.”
The four Sailors of the year competed in a final board that tallied traits in job performance, contributions to command climate, peer group involvement, educational accomplishments, physical fitness standards and participation in community service activities.
Last year’s CNIC Shore Enterprise Sailor of the Year, Chief Master-at-Arms Erin Ripley, from Racine, Wisconsin, facilitated the official announcement as the master of ceremony. She also joined the finalists as they toured the Chief of Naval Operation’s house, the Arlington National Cemetery, the National Mall and attended a Washington Nationals Game.
“With the encouragement from their families and other support networks, they continue to make some incredible things happen in not just the Navy but our supporting communities. I just want to say thank you for your support and service. Thank you for all you do for our Navy and our nation,” said CNIC Force Master Chief Jason Dunn.
Allocca joined the Navy in 2009. His prior assignments include: Strategic Weapons Facility Marine Corps Security Force Battalion on Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Georgia; Coastal Riverine Group-2 Detachment Bahrain; Commander, Fleet Activities Okinawa, Japan; and Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay.
“The best part of being a Master-at-Arms is interaction with Sailors on a daily basis,” said Allocca. “I look at each interaction and try to see how I can help the Sailor in front of me, or how I can improve safety and security of the Sailors on my base.”
In 1972, the Chief of Naval Operations established the SOY Program one Sailor who represents the best of the Navy in professional and personal dedication, and only recognized Atlantic and Pacific Fleet Sailors.
The program was expanded in 1973 to recognize one outstanding Sailor representing those serving in shore establishments Navy-wide.
In 2020, the CNO expanded the program to recognize 18 Sailors that will be meritoriously advanced to the rank of chief petty officer.
Sponsors for the CNIC Shore Enterprise Sailor of the Year events were USAA and the CNIC Chief Petty Officer Association.
CNIC oversees 48,000 employees located around the world and is charged with sustaining the fleet, enabling the fighter and supporting the family. For more news from CNIC, visit www.cnic.navy.mil or follow the command’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
To view the announcement event, visit https://www.facebook.com/NavyInstallations/
For more information about Navy Installations Command, visit http://www.cnic.navy.mil
For more news from Commander, Navy Installations Command, visit www.navy.mil/local/cni/.
| Date Taken: | 05.11.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 05.12.2022 10:36 |
| Story ID: | 420549 |
| Location: | WASHINGTON NAVY YARD, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, US |
| Web Views: | 851 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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