Eye on the Navy
A Navy Tradition is Passed On
"Old Tar" Impressed with New Generation of Leaders
By Edward Lundquist
For Master Chief Mark Davidson, becoming the "Old Tar" doesn't mean he's old, it signifies he's a seasoned and experienced Surface Warrior, just like
the USS Constitution. Davidson, the command master chief at Navy Recruiting District St. Louis, recently was presented with the "Old Tar" award from the Surface Navy Association
(SNA), signifying that he has the earliest qualification date as an Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist (ESWS) among all Sailors in the U.S. Navy at a ceremony held next to "Old Ironsides"
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August 24th in Boston. Davidson and his wife, Linda, were guests of SNA as the CPO selects conducted their final day of training aboard the world's oldest commissioned warship as part of CPO Heritage Training Week Davidson, who enlisted in the Navy in 1977 as a machinist's mate, got underway on Constitution as the CPO selects helped to raise sails in Boston Harbor. Davidson was presented with a letter signed by the president of the Surface Navy Association, Vice Adm. Kevin Green. Davidson received his ESWS designation after successfully completing his board on USS Preble (DDG-46) on October 19th, 1981. The president of that board was Lieut. Cmdr. Kevin Green. "I recall very clearly your thorough preparations for that board, based on your years of service at sea, especially in that demanding destroyer," Green said in his letter to Davidson. "Our Preble was a steam-driven destroyer leader equipped with the Navy's best AAW system of the time, the long range Terrier missile system, along with the SPS-48C radar, Harpoon missiles, 5"/54 gun, PAIR sonar, NTDS, and ASROC. I mention those systems because as a Preble-qualified ESWS you knew them well. In fact, you mastered the whole ship, from the steam plant, where you stood engine room watches as part of M Division, to the combat systems, the two-level CIC, the ship's three boats, the signal bridge, the supply system, small arms, the main deck and replenishment stations, and of course the pilothouse. You learned it all and led the way to help qualify many others in that hard-working crew." Davidson said the audience was a very special one. "The Chief Selects are definitely the future of our great Navy. As Chief's are considered the backbone of the Navy, I consider no other task as important as that of training our future Chief Petty Officers. They will have to continue with the training, mentorship, and leadership that will define our Navy's future. I told them that I was humbled by their presence and that the future of the Navy depends on their leadership, guidance, and dedication. They must be the technical experts in their chosen field and that they must aspire to be the best leaders that they can be." The ship's company and soon-to-be CPOs impressed Davidson. "I marveled at the teamwork that the crew of the USS Constitution and how well trained and prepared that they were. The teamMaritime Reporter & Engineering News
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