THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, May 28, 1996 TAG: 9605240010
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 45 lines
If anything positive is to come of Adm. Jeremy ``Mike'' Boorda's tragic death, may it be a renewed dedication among naval personnel to meet their professional responsibilities.
At all levels, from high-school NJROTC students and Naval Academy plebes and midshipmen through the enlisted and officer ranks to commander in chief, may the oaths taken be honored with constancy and consistency.
Do the job assigned to one's personal best. Take care of personnel under one's responsibility. Be accountable for one's actions. lead by example. Live to the letter of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Keep up with paperwork. Heed the constant, no-tolerance message on sexual harassment. Work as a team toward mission accomplishment without gender or racial bias. Set egotism and vainglory aside.
Anyone who has ever failed, on or off duty, to meet the standards and requirements of naval service, myself included, personally contributed to Admiral Boorda's death and must assume that burden.
The Navy is not just a mob. It is a total commitment to the very principles upon which this once-great country was established. Navy personnel should ``get with the program'' or get out!
Had we been true professionals and the Navy, therefore, not been under such scrutiny as in the recent past, surely the disclosure of alleged inappropriate wearing of ``combat V'' recognition could have been surmounted.
As it is, Admiral Boorda made the ultimate sacrifice rather than potentially further embarrass the Navy, within whose ranks are individuals who grievously disregard Navy regulations with unwarranted regularity.
I hope those still in uniform will reflect thoroughly and rekindle a spirit of pride and professionalism in the Navy. Admiral Boorda dedicated his entire career to achieving no less. We let him down in his life; let us not continue to do so in his death.
SHARON ANN WAGNER
Lieutenant commander, U.S. Navy (ret.)
Editor's note: Lieutenant Commander Wagner says she met Admiral Boorda when he was commanding officer, USS Farragut, in the mid-'70s. She later worked directly with him when both were assigned to the office of chief of naval operations. In the late 1980s and early '90s, Wagner served in programs under Adm. Boorda's purview as chief of naval personnel. by CNB