WIXLIB

INTR ODU CINGNEW MECE P:Staff Sergeant HughesStaff Sergeant Hughes was born in December1988 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and graduatedfrom Orange High School. Staff Sergeant Hughesentered the Marine Corps in April 2008. Upongraduation from recruit training, Staff SergeantHughes reported to Marine combat training inCamp Lejeune NC. Immediately following this, hereported to Marine Corps Logistics School in CampLejeune, NC. Upon graduation from Logistics school,Staff Sergeant Hughes reported to H&S Battalion,Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island for dutyas a maintenance management specialist inOctober 2008. While at Parris Island, Staff SergeantHughes was meritoriously promoted to LanceCorporal and Corporal. In April 2010, Staff SergeantHughes reported to 8th Engineer Support Battalionin Camp Lejeune NC for duty as the Battalionmaintenance management chief. In November2011, he was meritoriously promoted to the rank ofSergeant. In March 2012, Staff Sergeant Hughesdeployed to Afghanistan in support of OperationEnduring Freedom as the battalion maintenancechief. Upon returning from Afghanistan, hereported to recruiter’s school at Marine CorpsRecruit Depot San Diego in July 2013. Oncecompleted with recruiter’s school, Staff SergeantHughes reported to Recruiting station Raleigh forduty. While there, he held the billets of recruiterand Staff Non Commissioned Officer in Charge ofRecruiting sub-stations Greensboro and DurhamNC. Staff Sergeant Hughes was promoted to therank of Staff Sergeant in March 2015. In July 2016,he was selected to participate in the MarineCorps Enlisted Commissioning Education Program(MECEP). Two months later, he reported to OfficerCandidates School (OCS), in Quantico VA. Upongraduation from OCS, Staff Sergeant Hughes wasadmitted to the University of North Carolina tocomplete his undergraduate education, where heis majoring in political science and geography.Staff Sergeant Hughes’ personal awards includethe Navy and Marine Corps CommendationMedal, Navy and Marine Corps AchievementMedal, and the Good Conduct Medal with 2bronze stars in lieu of 3rd award.Staff Sergeant Hughes is married to the formerJessica Dean of Graham, NC. They have 2children, Taylor (5yrs) and Wesley (1yrs).Fall 20179

A N C H O R S AW E I G HSAMPLING THE FLEE TOne Wee k a t a Time䡵 MIDN 3/C Verwoerdt’s CORTRAMID Experience 䡵who discussed how to lead our Sailors and Marinesin lieu of the world’s uncertain future. I had twomain takeaways from my CORTRAMID experience.One was that regardless of which community Ijoin, life as a junior officer will be challenging andwill force me to grow as a person. I will have a lotto learn and will assume immediate responsibilityfor the lives, careers, and well-being of dozens ofSailors, and that is something not to be takenlightly. The second is that my relationship with myChief will be vital to the command climate of mydivision. As a newcomer and a budding leader, myChief will be a valuable resource when it comes tohelping me make important decisions. In all, stayinghumble, hard-working, and being unafraid to askfor help were my main takeaways,I am much better for the training I receivedthis summer. The opportunity to have many of myquestions answered and to talk in depth withpersonnel from each community was a greatexperience and has made me think harder aboutwhat community I would like to join once Icommission.As a Midshipman, who will be an officer inthree years, CORTRAMID was an invaluable learning tool. It was a four-week long orientation of thefour main communities in the Navy: Surface Warfare, Aviation, Submarine Warfare, and the MarineCorps. During these four weeks, Marine and Navyoptions alike were exposed to all the Navy had tooffer. We were able to do things we might neverexperience again, such as clearing buildings usingsim-rounds with Marines, flying a T-34 trainingplane, conducting a live-fire exercise on aDestroyer, and going underway on a submarine forthree days.I greatly appreciate the Navy’s effort tofamiliarize its future officers with the fleet. Welistened to many guest speakers, including admirals,Fall 201710

SWO-tallySWOtiva ted!䡵 MIDN 2/C Reagan’s Surface Cruise Experience 䡵While in port, midshipmen were able totake leave and explore the San Diego area. As Iwas so close to Coronado, I was not about to passup the opportunity to go there! I spent two days atthe Coronado ‘Amphib’ base meeting andworking out with Navy SEALs. I also spent time atthe Combat Training Tank and toured the Grinderand the rest of the compound. I was invited to a sitdown with a Commander who further strengthenedmy desire to enter the Special Warfare community.The Chiefs that I met were fantastic andeverybody wearing the Trident had an intensitythat I found inspiring.My second class summer cruise was a brilliantopportunity for me to understand more about thesurface community. The time I took to reach out tothe SEALs was time well invested. I’ve gained amassive respect for the surface component of theNavy. However, the brotherhood of SEALs has myheart. This cruise allowed me to network with othermidshipmen from ROTC units as well as the NavalAcademy. It opened doors and lines ofcommunication that may be drawn upon in thefuture. Thank you to the finest city!San Diego. It’s known as America’s finest city.Having seen many of America’s cities as an Armydependent, the title is debatable, however,my experience was phenomenal.I spent two weeks in the Naval Station SanDiego area; about half of that was underway onLSD 45, the USS Comstock, an amphibious surfaceship. I had many opportunities while on board toparticipate in or witness flight and well deckoperations. We spent numerous hours on thebridge picking the minds of the Navigator and themembers of the piloting team. A highlight of theunderway time was when Marines came aboardvia AAVs. Watching everything that went intocoordinating this movement was eye-opening.Navy SEALs/SWCC also came onto the ship at onepoint to do some tests in the well deck. As anaspiring SEAL officer, I immediately jumped tospeak to them about their line of work and seektheir advice in training and life.Fall 201711

A N C H O R S AW E I G HUNDER TH E SEA䡵 MIDN 2/C Gill’s Submarine Cruise Experience 䡵This summer, I had the opportunity to spendeight days with the crew of the USS Connecticut, oneof only three Seawolf-class submarines. This rarechance allowed four other midshipmen and me totalk with, observe, and learn from some of the finestofficers the Submarine Navy has to offer. It gave mea deeper understanding of what the submarinecommunity is all about, and the high demand it hasfor competence from its personnel. It was motivatingfor me to continue to pursue excellence in all myendeavors, and to strive to be the best future officerthat I can be.There were many lessons that I learned inthose eight days, but among them, I have several keytakeaways. One, that you need to always put the people under your command first. When on asubmarine, it is easy to want to give into yourexhaustion and shift responsibility to other people.But it is up to you to take responsibility for both yourjob, and for your people. Taking care of yourshipmates needs to be your number one priority.The second major lesson was that being asubmarine officer means you need to be constantlystriving for excellence in all your pursuits. To keep upwith the demanding workload, you must maintaincompetence and continually strive for it too. Andfinally, being on duty while in port was not a funexperience. However, both Seattle and San Diegohave some great city life, so learn to both workhard and play hard to enjoy a successfulcareer!Fall 201712

CR UIS IN’ ALONG!䡵 MIDN 1/C Stephenson’s Surface Cruise Experience 䡵This summer, I had the opportunity to trainaboard the USS Higgins (DDG 76) out of NavalBase San Diego. I spent three weeks underway asthe ship’s crew underwent a busy cycle ofpre-deployment certification exercises. While theopportunity would have been extremely beneficialfor any midshipman, it was a unique opportunityfor me as it was my first summer cruise ever!I was paired with an Ensign running mateand was assigned to the ship’s watch bill. Everyday from 0530-0830 and 1730-2030 I was on thebridge as an assistant to the conning officer. Aftera few days, they let me take the con. Workingdirectly with the Officer of the Deck, I gave courseand speed commands to the helm to safely andefficiently navigate our ship. One of the coolestopportunities I received was the chance to con areplenishment at sea (RAS) alongside an aircraftcarrier. I felt privileged to experience that raremoment while a mere midshipman! BecauseConning Officer is typically the first watch positionheld by junior officers, I feel far more prepared toarrive at my first ship and get to work!We also performed live-fire exercises withthe 5-inch gun, CIWS, 25 mm, and 50 calibermachine gun. I got a firsthand look at the preparationand cooperation that went into safely andeffectively firing all of our weapon systems. I alsogot to be a part of small boat operations, day andnight flight operations, replenishments with an oiler,firefighting training, and sub-hunting operations.My three weeks underway with the Higginswere extremely busy, but the experience I got wasinvaluable in preparing me for arrival at my firstship. I learned what helps create an efficientwatch team, what goes into firing surface weaponsplatforms, and what resources I have to help mebe an effective division officer. This being my firstsummer cruise, I certainly learned the vital rolethese trainings play in developing the best juniorofficers in the US Navy and Marine Corps.Hooyah, Never Quit!Fall 201713

A N C H O R S AW E I G HTAKING FL IG HT䡵 MIDN 1/C Patel’s Aviation Cruise 䡵This summer, I spent 25 days at NavalStation Norfolk on my 1/C Aviation Cruise. I had thegreat fortune of being one of only five midshipmenplaced with the “Blackhawks” of HM-15,and I caught a glimpse of what it is like to be apart of the MH-53E Sea Dragon community. It wasinteresting to see the various challenges faced bythe helicopter squadron, especially in themaintenance department. Though the SeaDragons have been in the process of phasing outfor years, it was apparent that the sailors who workon or around these giant helicopters are incrediblypassionate about their craft. Seeing the level ofenthusiasm of the pilots, aircrewmen, maintainers,parachute riggers, and all other personnel at thecommand captivated me. It wasnot until I stepped out onto theflight line and saw a Sea Dragonpreparing for takeoff that Iunderstood exactly why this was.Simply just being in the presence ofthe aircraft was incrediblyawe-inspiring. After my first trip tothe flight line, the pilots continuallyscheduled us for a variety ofsimulators, flights using night visiongoggles, and gun flights, and evengave me the opportunity to takecontrol of the aircraft for a few minutes. All of thiswas incredibly educational and exposed me tothe many capabilities and mission sets of theMH-53E. My 1/C Aviation Cruise strongly reaffirmedmy desire to join the naval aviation communityand, without a doubt, proved to be the mostpivotal professional experience of my career.Fall 201714

THE R OAD TO THE TRI DENT䡵 MIDN 1/C Singley’s SOAS Experience䡵My name is Thomas Singley. I am the BattalionExecutive Officer for the fall 2017 semester and Irecently attended and passed Navy SEAL OfficerAssessment and Selection (SOAS) for my 1/C Cruise.SOAS is a two to three-week course designed toevaluate a midshipman or Officer Candidate’sperformance at the Naval Special WarfareCompound in Coronado, California.SOAS consisted of individual physical eventson land, individual physical events in water,team-based activities on land, writing assignments,speeches, debates, psychological interviews,personal interviews, and a general sense ofgetting to know what life would be like as a NavySEAL Officer. The first week of SOAS is known as“Assessment Week,” where each day consisted ofmultiple evaluated events. Individual timed eventsoccurred each morning in the form of land andwater-based evolutions and team-based eventsoccurred every afternoon. Water-based eventsoccurred each night. Following the water-basedevents, we would either have a writing assignmentor a speech and debate event that we preparedand executed for the SEAL instructors. Theculminating event in Assessment Week is known as“Hell Day.” On this day, each SEAL Candidatewent 36 hours straight without sleep and performedindividual events on land and water, team-basedactivities on land and water, classroom-basedevents, ruck marched, and surf “torture” multipletimes over the course of the 36 hours.Once Hell Day was secured, the survivingSEAL Candidates moved on to “Interview Week,”during which a psychological interview withthe Special Warfare psychologist or a personalmeeting with various SEAL Team membersoccurred every other day.All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed SOAS. I didmy best, was honest in my interviews, stepped upand was a leader and a team player when Ineeded to be. I feel I represented UNC’s NROTCUnit as best I could. Through it all, I knew how tokeep going. Success is leased, and rent is dueevery day. Go Heels!Every Prospective SEAL aims to one dayearn the famous “Trident” pinFall 201715

A N C H O R S AW E I G HONCE A MARIN E ,ALWAYS A MARINE䡵 MIDN 1/C Buhr’s OCS Experience 䡵This Summer, I wentto Marine Corps OfficerCandidate School(OCS) in Quantico,Virginia to continueprogressing towards mydream of becoming aMarine Corps Officer.OCS is the mostchallenging andintensive training I have ever done. Candidatesare placed in realistic training environments thatpush them to their limits, physically and mentally, inorder to see how they react in a stress-filledenvironment. This six-week training program ishighlighted by 16-23 hour long days, academictests, rigorous physical training, drill, weapon’smaintenance and plenty of “games,” as theSergeant Instructors like to call them. The challengingenvironment forces candidates to dig deep,rely on one another, and learn about their ownleadership style.OCS is meant to develop leaders, andnobody can lead by themselves. One thing inherentto leadership is that it is a group activity.During my initial struggles, my rack mate constantlytold me “teamwork makes the dream work,” andhelped me depend on others and to allow themto depend on me. By challenging me to think ofthe mission and the platoon before myself, my rackmate helped meget through the toughest times ofOCS because I was no longer thinking of mypersonal problems.The training, despite its rigors and thecountless hours running to touch random objectstruly does help build camaraderie between all ofthe candidates. Enduring swimming through someof the smelliest water on earth in the “Quigley”and running or hiking miles with gear on forces youto develop unit cohesion and ensures you developa common identity as a United States Marine, atitle that stays with you for life.Fall 201716

Candidates School (OCS), in Quantico VA. Upon graduation from OCS, Staff Sergeant Hughes was admitted to the University of North Carolina to complete his undergraduate education, where he is majoring in political science and geography. Staff Sergeant Hughes' personal awards include the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation