SAN DIEGO – Chief Petty Officer Eugene Douglass, a native of Queens, New York, was inspired by a family member to join the Navy.
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| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jackson Brown |
“My sister joined the Air Force four years before I joined the Navy,” said Douglass. “I loved how she was independent and didn't have to rely on our family financially.”
Now, 14 years later, Douglass is stationed in San Diego at the Center for Surface Combat Systems (CSCS), which specializes in training sailors in the employment of shipboard weapon systems. Specifically, Douglass was hand selected to help oversee the Navy’s warfighting curriculum in its newest combat trainer known as Combined Integrated Air and Missile Defense / Anti-Submarine Warfare Trainer (CIAT), a state-of-the art tactical simulator that allows instructors like Douglass to train a more capable fleet.
Douglass, a 2003 graduate of Malverne High School, is an operations specialist credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned in Queens.
“Never give up and always work hard,” said Douglass.
Now, 14 years later, Douglass is stationed in San Diego at the Center for Surface Combat Systems (CSCS), which specializes in training sailors in the employment of shipboard weapon systems. Specifically, Douglass was hand selected to help oversee the Navy’s warfighting curriculum in its newest combat trainer known as Combined Integrated Air and Missile Defense / Anti-Submarine Warfare Trainer (CIAT), a state-of-the art tactical simulator that allows instructors like Douglass to train a more capable fleet.
Douglass, a 2003 graduate of Malverne High School, is an operations specialist credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned in Queens.
“Never give up and always work hard,” said Douglass.
CSCS’s mission is to develop and deliver surface ship combat systems training to achieve surface warfare superiority. The Command provides over 538 courses and trains over 38,000 Sailors each year. CSCS delivers specialized training for Officer and Enlisted Sailors to tactically operate, maintain, and employ shipboard and shore-based weapons, sensors, and command and control systems utilized in today’s Navy.
“Douglass represents the very best of our Navy team,” Lt. Cmdr. Reisheid Dixon, the officer in charge of CSCS San Diego, added. “The high level of knowledge and tactical expertise of our instructors ensures we are providing the most challenging and valuable training to the waterfront.”
There are many reasons to be proud of naval service, and Douglass is most proud of making chief in 2018.
“It's an honor to don the anchor and lead sailors,” he said.
America is a maritime nation, and the nation’s prosperity is tied to the ability to operate freely on the world’s oceans. More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water; 80 percent of the world’s population lives close to a coast; and 90 percent of all global trade by volume travels by sea.
“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.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Douglass and other sailors and staff know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes, serving as a key part of the Navy the Nation needs.
“Serving in the Navy means a lot," said Douglass. "I'm able to protect my family along with the families of other sailors I serve with. The thing I like most is the ability to learn and help others.”