Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Theron Godbold | COLUMBUS, Ohio, (JUNE. 20, 2023) - Rear Adm. Tracy Hines, a Columbus native and Navy...... read more read more
Columbus, OHIO – Rear Admiral lower half Tracy Hines, a Columbus native and Navy cyber security division director in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, D.C., visited with future Sailors and high School students, among many others, from the Columbus area during a Navy Office of Community Outreach (NAVCO) Executive visit Tuesday and Wednesday.
Admiral Hines was thrilled to be showcasing America’s Navy to the youth of her hometown and said that the Navy is really trying to appeal and cast a wider net with its slogan “Forged by the Sea” so that America’s Navy can increase awareness around the country about the opportunities it has to offer.
”It was funny because a gentleman I was talking to said, ‘You know what, we didn’t even know you existed, didn’t even know that they had someone from Columbus Ohio, that was an Admiral,” Admiral Hines said after talking with a group of high school students. “I think that just seeing themselves a little bit in me and my humble beginnings is encouraging and motivating.”
Luke Stumphauzer, a future Sailor, who recently graduated from Hilliard-Darby high school, said that getting to meet with Admiral Hines was a really great opportunity to get to know some of the higher-ups and see what the Navy could be like for him.
“She is very energetic and happy about it all,” Stumphauzer said after hearing the Admiral speak with 10 fellow future Sailors. “It was a good thing to see, positivity spreads to other people.”
Tuesday evening Admiral Hines spent two hours talking with Future Sailors in a conference room at Ohio’s Veterans Memorial Museum and then toured the facility with the 10 recruits.
“I am truly inspired by our youth,” Admiral Hines said during her interview Wednesday. “I’m inspired by my hometown and that we have these young wonderful minds,”
During the two-day visit she told audiences about her background and how she joined as an E-1 in the Navy and used many of the programs America’s Navy has to offer to help her navigate her way to the position she is in now, a Rear Admiral.
On Wednesday, Admiral Hines presented videos and anecdotes on her time in the Navy to a packed classroom of students attending a summer program at the Ohio State University.
The Admiral relayed a story of what she described as one of her most difficult learning experiences in the Navy; how to complete maneuvering boards or MO boards as she called them.
She remembered being on the bridge of an aircraft carrier as a young officer and how she had trouble with the task at first. She described how it made her work to learn more about the task and how that drive to always keep working towards learning has helped her get to the position she is in now.
After completing her presentation to the students Wednesday, she turned the classroom over to Navy Talent Acquisition Group Ohio River Valley (NTAG ORV) recruiters who then presented the class with opportunities like college scholarships, nuclear engineering pathways and the Navy’s warrior challenge program.
“We have these programs that we are really working on, and really trying to encourage our youth and open the aperture to let them know that there are a lot of things that [they] can do.” Admiral Hines said.
| Date Taken: | 06.21.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.26.2023 13:39 |
| Story ID: | 447961 |
| Location: | COLUMBUS, OHIO, US |
| Web Views: | 334 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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