SAN DIEGO - Airman Apprentice Issac Smith, a native of Moulton, Alabama, serves the U.S. Navy assigned to USS Theodore Roosevelt, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier operating out of San Diego, California.
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| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Caleb Kissner, Navy Office of Community Outreach |
Smith earned a GED diploma in 2023.
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Moulton.
“I’d say my lineman job helped by preparing me to be ready to leave at a moment’s notice and teaching me to work through hard tasks, even if they seem impossible,” Smith said. “In the Navy, we often have to leave for long periods. If I didn’t have that job in my background, I wouldn’t be used to that now. That background mentally and physically prepared me for the work that comes with this job.”
Smith joined the Navy one year ago. Today, Smith serves as an aviation ordnanceman.
“I kept failing in the civilian world,” Smith said. “I’d fall down in life, then get back up, but I kept falling. One day, I decided I was tired of failing, so I enlisted in the world’s greatest Navy. I joined the Navy to do something different. I wanted to learn a skill or a trade I could fall back on in the civilian world, something that I could have the necessary qualifications for.”
Aircraft carriers are the centerpiece of America’s naval forces. For more than 100 years, they have projected power, sustained sea control, bolstered deterrence, provided humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, and maintained enduring commitments worldwide.
Among the largest warships in the world, Theodore Roosevelt is longer than three football fields at 1,092 feet. The ship is 252 feet wide and weighs more than 100,000 tons. More than 5,000 sailors serve aboard these self-contained mobile airports.
“This aircraft carrier is one of the most powerful warships in the world, but it is our sailors that give the U.S. Navy our warfighting advantage,” said Capt. Will Mathis, commanding officer of Theodore Roosevelt. “For over 250 years, sailors have built the foundation of our readiness and resolve, enabled us to keep America safe and ensured the U.S. Navy remains the strongest and most capable maritime force in the world.”
According to Navy officials, aircraft carriers are versatile and have unique mission capabilities that make them a more strategic asset for the Navy than fixed-site bases. They are often the first response in a global crisis because of their ability to operate freely in international waters anywhere on the world’s oceans. In addition, no other weapon system can deploy and operate forward with a full-sized aircraft carrier’s speed, endurance, agility and combat capability of its air wing.
Smith has many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during military service.
“I’m most proud of being an honor graduate at boot camp,” Smith said. “I beat over 1,000 sailors in my training group in academics, physical fitness and military bearing. It’s the first time I’ve ever been recognized for being good at something.”
This year, the Navy is commemorating its contribution to the nation’s defense as the United States celebrates 250 years of independence. According to Navy officials, for more than 250 years, the Navy has sailed the globe defending freedom and protecting prosperity.
With 90% of global commerce traveling by sea and access to the internet relying on the security of undersea fiber-optic cables, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity of the United States is directly linked to recruiting and retaining talented people from across the rich fabric of America.
“For me, serving in the Navy proves that everyone who doubted me in life was wrong,” Smith said. “I became something by myself, and I acquired everything on my own.”
Smith is grateful to others for helping make a Navy career possible.
“I want to thank my wife, who’s been with me since I was stationed here in San Diego,” Smith said. “She’s pushed me to become a better man since the day we met.”