MCPON Campa 'Saddened' at Passing of Former Master Diver Carl Brashear
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS060726-05
7/26/2006
image: Top News Story
By Chief Mass Communication Specialist Michael Foutch, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Public Affairs
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- With the passing of former Master Diver Carl Brashear July 25, “the Navy has lost a great shipmate,” Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) Joe R. Campa Jr. said.
“I was tremendously saddened at the word that Carl Brashear had passed on,” Campa said. “We’ve lost not only a friend and a shipmate, but one of the most inspirational people who have ever served our Navy."
Brashear, whose life story was immortalized on the big screen in the movie, “Men of Honor,” passed away at Portsmouth Naval Hospital, Va. He was 75.
Born in Tonieville, Ky., and graduating from a small segregated school nearby, Brashear enlisted in the Navy as a steward in 1948. After a tour handling aircraft at Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 1 in Key West, Fla., he became a boatswain’s mate and served aboard USS Palau (CVE 122) and USS Tripoli (CVE 64), where he received training in salvage operations.
At the time of his enlistment, opportunities for minorities in diving and salvage operations were very limited. Brashear overcame not only the strenuous physical requirements, but the discrimination he faced on his way to successful completion of the school. He became the Navy’s first African-American deep sea diver.
In January 1966, an accident on a salvage mission off the coast of Spain left his left leg badly injured. After fighting through continual infections, Brashear asked his doctors to amputate the lower portion of his leg, avoiding years of painful medical procedures and with a hope he could one day return to full duty.
“His perseverance through grueling physical struggles,” Campa said, “not to mention his amazing will to succeed despite the barriers placed before him by the society of his time, will continue long into the future to define what it means to be a hero.”
Brashear successfully fought attempts by medical survey boards which attempted to medically retire him due to his injury. Two years later, he became the first amputee in the Navy to be certified as a diver. In 1970, he earned his Master Diver pin, the first African-American to do so, and served for nearly a decade beyond that, including tours at Harbor Clearance Unit 2, Naval Air Station Norfolk, Experimental Diving Unit, submarine tender Hunley (AS 31), USS Recovery (ARS 43), Naval Safety Center, and Shore Intermediate Maintenance Activity Norfolk. He retired in 1979 as a Master Chief, and subsequently retired from civilian government service in 1993.
“The story of his Navy career,” Campa added, “is an example of how one person can make a lasting difference through their strength of character and sheer determination. He didn’t make the Navy a better place by just doing his job as a diver, he did that by not accepting the limits placed on him because of his race. He insisted that opportunity be measured by potential and one’s ability to do the job.”
Campa added that Brashear will continue to inspire Sailors for generations to come.
“Carl Brashear will be missed,” Campa added, “but his legacy will live on through the opportunities we now pride ourselves in offering for all those who wear the uniform of a United States Sailor.”
For related news, visit the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Navy NewsStand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/mcpon/.
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