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 Cecilia Hartwell has served in the Navy for three years and works as a Navy machinist's mate aboard the Pearl Harbor-based guided-missile destroyer.
Hartwell credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned in Weslaco.
“I learned hard work and discipline from growing up in Texas,” said Hartwell. “It has made me perform better at my job and be a more resilient sailor.”
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 machinist's mate, Hartwell is responsible for the repair and maintenance of auxiliary machinery and damage control equipment.
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."
“I had served on a bigger platform ship before, but I feel much better suited serving on a smaller ship because I'm more focused on my job,” said Hartwell. “The fact that this ship is named after a female makes me strive more. There aren't a lot of females in my career field, so it makes me work even harder."
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 Hartwell 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.
Though there are many ways for sailors to earn distinction in their command, community, and career, Hartwell is most proud of earning Junior Sailor of the Quarter for the Region Legal Service Office North West.
“I'm really proud earning that recognition because I went above and beyond,” said Hartwell. “I was working outside of my usually job. I felt great joy recieiving the award because I knew my parents would be proud of me because I'm the first person in my family to join the military.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Hartwell and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
"Serving in the Navy is something I didn't think I was going to do, but I do not regret it," added Hartwell. "I would do it all over again. It makes me feel like I'm doing something incredibly important for our country.”