Fair Winds and Following Seas CDR Downey

Well, this is my first official blog as Commanding Officer of MSST 91103 so I apologize upfront if the formatting is not perfect at this point in time (I will get better I promise). I want to personally thank CDR Downey for her help throughout the relief process in getting me setup for success in my new position. I speak for the entire unit in wishing you fair winds and following seas as you enjoy some well-deserved time off in anticipation of your new assignment to the Rand Corporation Fellowship. As you can tell from the above pics the Change of Command turned out to be a beautiful day and our members of the crew (that were not deployed) looked extremely sharp. I'd like to personally thank them for their help during relief week in getting me up to speed on anything and everything related to the unit!

Qualifications/Certifications

Congratulations to PO Johnson and PO Rodriguez for their recent H&C and VI Instructor qualifications from the southeast. They continue to lead from the front with their maturity and professionalism.

Congratulations to PO Arnold, PO Montano, and PO Aceituno for their BTM certifications. Similarly congratulations to PO Snyder, PO Perry, PO Domingcil, and PO Knee for their recent BO certifications. Job well done!

Advancements

Congratulations to SNGM Aceituno for advancing to GM3 and most recently SNHS Renfro advancing to HS3! Keep up the good work!

CG Day

I would be remiss if I did not mention the efforts put in by PO Gross and PO Caswell for their boat-building skills during the CG Day boat building/sailing contest. They blew away the competition (1 other boat entry) and actually provided a SAR platform as the competition started to take on water! (Pictures to be provided at a future date)

I'd like to officially welcome back all of our members who were not present for the Change of Command due to deployments. As some of you may know we had members of MSST 91103 deployed on the west, east, and gulf coasts for various events. A few of our members had very little time off after returning from the Deep Water Horizon spill before they were deployed again for another deployment. Please note your performance and efforts did not go unnoticed and we appreciate your adaptability in accomplishing the mission - Thank You!

I'd like to say to all of the MSST 91103 members and families that I appreciate the sacrifices you have made and will continue to make to serve our country and protect our homeland. This past year has been filled with many challenges and chances for our unit to shine and it is obvious to me that you all have done exactly that! I am honored to be able to serve as your Commanding Officer and look forward to the days, weeks, months ahead as we embark on new journeys together! Please note I do intend on providing frequent updates to the blog to keep the communications going!

V/R

LCDR Tim Margita