Photo By Chief Petty Officer Stephane Belcher | 221207-N-PG340-1008 GREAT LAKES, Illinois (Dec. 7, 2022) Quartermaster 1st Class...... read more read more
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Quartermaster 1st Class Heather Vautard, from Dover, Delaware, is a Battle Stations instructor, the Mid-Grade Instructor of the Year (MIOY) for U.S. Navy Recruit Training Command (RTC), and Instructor of the Year for Naval Service Training Command (NSTC).
RTC’s Commanding Officer, Capt. Kertrek Brooks named Vautard the MIOY.
Vautard loves to teach, so she enjoys her time as a Battle Stations’ facilitator. She has also grown as a leader since reporting to RTC.
“I came here as a second class,” said Vautard. “I was able to pick up first [class petty officer] right when I got here, and then leading petty officer (LPO) fell under my belt. It taught me mainly about leadership skills and how to manage a huge division.”
As a quartermaster in the fleet, she hasn’t had the opportunity to have an impact on as many people. At RTC, she’s in charge of at least 50 people. Vautard also became qualified as a master training specialist (MTS), goes to college, and volunteers in her off time.
“I think coming to RTC was good for my career,” she added. “I had a chief on my first ship who was a recruit division commander. He sent me a long message of everything to do and I’ve accomplished most of it.”
Vautard went on to explain why she thinks she was selected for such a competitive award. She already won a Mid-Grade instructor of the quarter, and was competing against instructors and recruit division commanders.
“The other people had strong packages,” she said. “They either won quarters, they have the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, or their MTS qualification. You know, all the wickets in order to be nominated.”
“I think what really put me at the top was being in an LPO position. I've always been a hard worker. I can't stop working. I feel like at that moment everything kind of just paid off.”
Vautard plans to give back to her Sailors by sharing her knowledge and helping others put in their packages.
“Paying it forward is making sure I have people who go up every quarter,” she said. “Making sure they have strong packages. Telling them exactly what they need to do to stand out, to be better.”
She explained how it’s important to remain steadfast, even when you don’t succeed.
“I would just like to tell people, if you have a goal, achieve that goal,” she said. “Believe you can achieve it. If you're consistent, then eventually you'll win, but you can't stop. You’ve just got to be consistent with it.”
Vautard joined the U.S. Navy in 2015, and has served aboard the USS Ross (DDG 71) in Rota, Spain and the USS Oak Hill (LSD 51) in Little Creek, Virginia.
Boot camp is approximately 10 weeks and all enlistees into the U.S. Navy begin their careers at the command. Training includes physical fitness, seamanship, firearms, firefighting and shipboard damage control along with lessons in Navy heritage and core values, teamwork and discipline. More than 40,000 recruits train annually at the Navy’s only boot camp.
| Date Taken: | 02.14.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 02.14.2023 15:43 |
| Story ID: | 438472 |
| Location: | GREAT LAKES, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 220 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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