Photo By Edward Jones | SAN ANTONIO – (June 30, 2022) Lt. Cmdr. Tracy Lewis salutes during “Old Glory”...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE – (June 30, 2022) Accumulating twenty-two years of service, Lieutenant Commander Tracy Lewis, currently serving as the Medical Officer Recruiter Officer for Navy Talent Acquisition Group (NTAG) San Antonio, retired from the United States Navy during a ceremony held in her honor at the Gateway Officer Club, Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) - Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.
Love and admiration for Lewis was on full display as family, friends, and members of her current command were on hand to celebrate her distinguished career. One common theme throughout the ceremony was Lewis’ love for her family and military family alike. Guests included Lewes’s father and mother, Richard and Patricia Lewis, husband, Jules Cumberbatch, daughters, Leila and Zoe, and NTAG members.
Navy Counselor Chief Petty Officer, Ryan Evans served as the Master of Ceremonies, and NTAG Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Stephanie Simoni served as the presiding officer and guest speaker.
Lewis, a graduate of Edward Little High School, joined the Navy in May 2000. Lewis attended Hospital Corpsman “A” School shortly after basic training and completed her studies at the Surgical Technologist “C” School in Portsmouth, Virginia in 2001 and then reported to the National Naval Medical Center (NNMC) in Bethesda, Maryland, in July 2001, where she worked as a surgical technologist in the Main Operating Room and later as the command’s Medevac Coordinator in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF).
During her tour at NNMC, Lewis had the opportunity to deploy on the USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) to the Baltic region for MEDCEUR 02 and to the Persian Gulf in support of OEF/OIF. It was during this deployment that Lewis was meritoriously advanced to HM2 in March 2003. In 2006, Lewis was assigned to the USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) in Newport News, Virginia, where she earned the Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist (ESWS) qualification and was selected for a commission through the Medical Service Corps In-service Procurement Program.
Commissioned in February 2007, Lewis attended Officer Indoctrination School in Newport, Rhode Island, and was assigned to the Army-Baylor Graduate Program in Health and Business Administration at the Army Medical Department Center and School in San Antonio, Texas, where she earned her MHA and MBA.
Lewis completed her graduate residency at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED) from June 2008 to July 2009 and then reported to U.S. Naval Hospital Naples, Italy where she served as the Division Officer for the Dental Directorate, Command Emergency Management Officer, Safety Officer, Department Head for Operations Management/Plans, Operations, and Medical Intelligence (POMI), and Department Head of Human Resources.
In February 2013, Lewis checked onboard USS Essex (LHD 2) in San Diego, California, as the Medical Admin Officer (MAO) and earned the Surface Warfare Medical Department Officer (SWMDO) warfare qualification.
Lewis transferred to Naval Medical Center San Diego in 2015 where she led the POMI division and later the Human Resources Department. From March to June 2016, Lewis deployed to the USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) as the interim Medical Admin Officer filling a critically gapped billet so the ship could get underway.
In August 2017, Lewis transferred to Naval Medical Research Unit Two (NAMRU-2)/ Navy Medical Research Center - Asia (NMRC-A) in Singapore, as the Director for Administration until August of 2020, when she transferred to Navy Talent Acquisition Group, San Antonio, Texas, recruiting the next generation of Navy Medicine leaders as a Medical Officer Programs Recruiter.
Lewis’ leadership extends beyond her primary assignments her social resume includes over ten years of volunteer service with the American College of Healthcare Executives. Her board membership roles include serving on the Planning Committee, Lewis E. Angelo Professional Symposium (LEAPS); Webmaster, Network of Overseas Healthcare Executives; Member, Navy Regent’s Advisory Council; Military Liaison, San Diego Organization of Healthcare Leaders; Pacific Local Program Council Chair, Network of Overseas Healthcare Executives; Committee Chair for Advancement, Deckplate Education, and Local Chapter Involvement, Navy Regent’s Advisory Council; and Executive Director, Fellow Accelerator Program.
Lewis earned a Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Management from Southern Illinois University, a Master’s degree in Healthcare Administration and Business Administration from Baylor University and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE).
Lewis’ personal awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal (4 awards), Navy Achievement Medal (4 awards), Navy Good Conduct Medal (2 awards), and several other unit and campaign awards.
The ceremony concluded with Lewis’ closing speech where she reflected on her career. “It is hard to believe this day has finally arrived! First and foremost, I would like to thank God for all the incredible opportunities that I have been given throughout my career,” said Lewis. “It has been an honor and a privilege to serve alongside so many incredibly talented people throughout my career and would not be here today without the hard work and dedication of countless others working together to get the job done! I have always been surrounded by great people, who challenged me to learn and grow to be the very best version of myself. I want to thank those who have mentored me over the years and provided numerous opportunities for growth and development and shaped me into the leader I am today. My experience in the Navy has given me all that I could have ever imagined and more, a career of service, education, travel, and adventure!”
The beauty of the moment shined as Lewis addressed and thanked her family, starting with her parents. “To my parents, you have always been so supportive of my career choice to serve our nation, and I would have never made it this far without your guidance and encouragement,” said Lewis, “You both continued the legacy of service in our family, following in the footsteps of your fathers, and it only made sense for me to join the Navy and follow in your footsteps as well.”
The tears were flowing throughout when Lewis addressed her husband and daughters. Wiping tears from her eyes, Lewis gazed at her family and expressed her love and thanks for their support. “To my husband Jules, you have made so many sacrifices to support me in my career over the past few years,” Lewis said, “You willingly gave up the life you created in sunny San Diego to follow me and my job halfway around the world and start a new life together in Singapore.
“You have been my travel companion and best friend. Our family has grown, and you have given me two amazing daughters! It has not been without its challenges, like PCSing halfway around the world in the middle of a global pandemic, with a 6-month-old and a 2-year-old, living in hotels for months in transit between multiple COVID quarantines, and required training for my new job here.
“I am gifting you a watch, as a symbol of the time you have spent by my side supporting me in these final and most challenging years of my career, the amazing times we’ve spent adventuring around as a Navy family, the time we have spent apart due to my service commitments, and most importantly, to represent the time to make new memories, together and as a family, as we begin this new chapter.”
In addressing her precious daughters, Lewis said, “To my daughters, Leila and Zoe, I am so proud of you both! These first few years of your lives have been quite a whirlwind! You both have been so resilient through all the changes, leaving your first home and moving to another country, starting a new school, and leveraging technology to spend time with family and friends from afar. I am looking forward to being more present with these two most of all! To say thank you for your support and sacrifice, I would like to present you each with a bear and a flower.”
Lewis closed by leaving everyone with a takeaway. “I wanted to come up with an easy way to remember how to do this. So here goes. As leaders, how do we change the world, you ask? With the acronym PIE,” said Lewis, “The letter 'P' is for people. Always take care of your people. If their needs are met, and they feel valued, they will move mountains to ensure mission success. They are your most valuable resource. Period.
“The letter 'I' is for inspiration. What is your why? For me, it’s always been a desire to be an agent of change, it started out with a desire to help people, to leave things a little better than I found them, and now that has become more refined into wanting to create a better world for my children to grow up in and to raise them to be global citizens. Being inspired does not necessarily remove any of the barriers or challenges you will face, but it gives you direction.
“Lastly, the letter 'E' is for excellence, just like in the last line of the Sailors Creed, ‘I am committed to excellence and the fair treatment of all.’
“Be excellent in all you do. I cannot tell you how many times I was given the advice to bloom where I was planted. Regardless of the task or role you are assigned, strive to be the best you can be. So how do we change the world? The answer is with PIE! If we all focus on making incremental positive change, within our own sphere of influence, we can change the world for the better.”
NTAG San Antonio’s area of responsibility includes more than 30 Navy Recruiting Stations and Navy Officer Recruiting Stations spread throughout 144,000 square miles of Central and South Texas territory.
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| Date Taken: | 06.30.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 07.04.2022 18:19 |
| Story ID: | 424298 |
| Location: | SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 171 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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