NASCC welcomes six new chiefs

Six new chief petty officers (CPOs) from four local-area commands had their gold fouled anchors pinned on during the Chiefs Pinning Ceremony at the Catalina Club aboard Naval Air Station Corpus Christi (NASCC), Sept. 13.

ENC Joshua Haruff and MAC Eric Pierce of NASCC; MAC Michael Fechner and ABHC Diana Gomez of Navy Operational Support Center (NOSC), Harlingen; YNC Melinda Perez of NOSC, Corpus Christi; and HMC David Del Arco of Company C, 1st BN, 23rd Marines were all pinned to chief following six weeks of being mentally and physically tested during the chief’s initiation process.

The time-honored tradition of the chief’s initiation process teaches the chief selectees leadership and team building skills, along with further enhancing their knowledge of Naval heritage and history, as well as participating in overlapping training exercises focused on the Navy’s core values of honor, courage, and commitment.

More importantly, the process focuses on what it means for a chief to put their Sailors first.

The “Chief Petty Officer Creed” outlines the ideals, values and expectations of every CPO and the purpose of the initiation process.

One section of the CPO Creed states, “The goal was to instill in you that trust is inherent with the donning of the uniform of a Chief. Our intent was to impress upon you that challenge is good; a great and necessary reality which cannot mar you – which, in fact, strengthens you. In your future as a Chief Petty Officer, you will be forced to endure adversity far beyond what has thus far been imposed upon you. You must face each challenge and adversity with the same dignity and good grace you have already demonstrated. By experience, by performance, and by testing, you have been advanced to Chief Petty Officer.”

The rank of chief petty officer was established on April 1, 1893.

CPO remained the highest enlisted pay grade until the grades of senior chief and master chief were created on June 1, 1958.

The title of chief petty officer carries with it responsibilities and privileges no other armed force in the world grants enlisted personnel.

These responsibilities and privileges exist because for 126 years, chiefs have routinely sought out greater challenges and assumed more responsibility.