THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 28, 1996 TAG: 9606280441
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL SIZEMORE AND DALE EISMAN, STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 61 lines
Vice Adm. Harold W. Gehman Jr., a Norfolk native who grew up around the Navy as the son of a surface warfare officer, was nominated Thursday to become the Navy's No. 2 man.
Gehman, 53, deputy commander-in-chief and chief of staff at the U.S. Atlantic Command in Norfolk, will get his fourth star and become vice chief of naval operations if confirmed by the Senate. President Clinton selected him to replace Adm. Jay L. Johnson, who earlier this month was nominated to succeed the late Adm. Jeremy ``Mike'' Boorda as the nation's top admiral.
Gehman's nomination was announced by Defense Secretary William J. Perry during a seminar at NATO's Atlantic Command headquarters.
``I feel pretty humble . . .'' Gehman said later. ``It gives a person a bit of a pause to think about the challenges ahead.''
Gehman said he telephoned his parents, now retired and living in Florida, after he was informed Wednesday night that he would be nominated. ``I knew it all along,'' the senior Gehman told him. ``Which was a lie,'' the son added.
Though seemingly bred for a naval career, Gehman said he didn't have that in mind when he entered the Navy after graduating from Penn State with a degree in industrial engineering. ``I had some good experiences early, with good leaders,'' he said, and gradually became enthusiastic about the Navy's mission and lifestyle.
Gehman has been around Hampton Roads for much of his life, moving in and out of the area first with his parents and later as he pursued his naval career. He attended Norfolk Catholic High School before one of his father's transfers took him to Washington.
``We will always call this area home,'' he said Thursday.
Gehman went into the Navy from the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps program at Penn State.
His first tour of duty was as main propulsion assistant and damage control assistant aboard the Mayport, Fla.-based English. He later served as officer in charge of a detachment of seven swift boats in Vietnam.
After completing Destroyer Officer School in Newport, R.I., he served as engineer officer aboard the John King and as executive officer of the Mitscher, then as executive assistant to the deputy commander-in-chief at the Atlantic Command.
His subsequent sea duty included tours as commanding officer aboard the Conserver, Dahlgren and Belknap, and as commander of the Dwight D. Eisenhower carrier battle group.
Gehman has had several tours of duty in Washington, including stints at the Bureau of Naval Personnel and on the CNO's staff. ``I know where to park'' around the Pentagon, he joked Thursday.
In 1994 he served as deputy commander and chief of staff for the Norfolk-based U.S. Atlantic Fleet.
His awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star with combat ``V,'' the Meritorious Service Medal, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Navy Achievement Medal with two gold stars, and the Combat Action Ribbon.
He is married to the former Janet Fay Johnson of Cary, N.C. They have two children: Katherine, of Washington, and Christopher, a student at the University of Virginia. ILLUSTRATION: Vice Adm. Harold W. Gehman Jr. gets 4th star. by CNB