U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Rusty Pang
PEARL HARBOR – There’s a U.S. Navy ship unlike most floating in the waters of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. It's a Navy warship that honors the name of a female who has set the standard of excellence for those who have followed.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Anthony Averett has served in the Navy for two-and-a-half years and works as a Navy information systems technician, serving aboard the Pearl Harbor-based guided-missile destroyer.
Averett credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned in Greenacres.
“My stepfather was in the Army and was a big influence in making things easier because of the discipline he gave us which made it easier to make the decision to join,” said Averett.
The sailors’ jobs aboard USS Hopper are highly specialized, requiring dedication and skill. The jobs range from maintaining engines to handling weaponry along with a multitude of other assignments keeping the ship mission-ready at all times.
As a Navy information systems technician, Averett is responsible for helping to troubleshoot computers and set up phones for ships providing communication and network opportunities.
More than 300 sailors serve aboard the ship named for the pioneering computer scientist who served in the Navy for 43 years.
Though Rear Adm. Hopper joined the Naval Reserves in 1943 after being an associate professor of mathematics at Vassar College, retired from the Naval Reserve with the rank of commander at the end of 1966. She was recalled to active duty in August 1967 for a six-month period that turned into an indefinite assignment. From 1967 to 1977, Hopper served as the director of the Navy Programming Languages Group in the Navy's Office of Information Systems Planning and was promoted to the rank of captain in 1973. Hopper was promoted to commodore by special Presidential appointment in 1983. In 1985, the rank of commodore was renamed rear admiral lower half. She retired from the Navy on August 14, 1986. Owing to the breadth of her accomplishments and her naval rank, she is sometimes referred to as "Amazing Grace."
Navy guided-missile destroyers are multi-mission ships, equipped with tomahawk missiles, torpedoes, guns and a phalanx close-in weapons systems, that can operate independently or as part of a larger group of ships at sea.
Being stationed in Pearl Harbor, often referred to as the gateway to the Pacific in defense circles, means Averett is serving in a part of the world that is taking on new importance in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances, and reforming business practices in support of the National Defense Strategy.
“Our priorities center on people, capabilities and processes, and will be achieved by our focus on speed, value, results and partnerships,” said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer. “Readiness, lethality and modernization are the requirements driving these priorities.”
The Pacific is home to more than 50 percent of the world's population, many of the world's largest and smallest economies, several of the world's largest militaries, and many U.S. allies. The Navy has been pivotal in helping maintain peace and stability in the Pacific region for decades.
Serving in the Navy is a continuing tradition of military service for Averett, who has military ties with family members who have previously served. Averett is honored to carry on that family tradition.
“My step-father and brother were in the Army and my other brother and I are first generation Navy,” said Averett.
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Averett and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“Team work and not being selfish when someone asks you to do something is a big reason why I serve in the Navy,” added Averett. “A lot of it is doing it for the Navy and for your country and your shipmates and eventually it will help the bigger picture. It means a lot when out on deployment and you have a schedule and purpose every single day and get lost in your work.”