They Had to Go Out

Part I. Retired Chief Aviation Survival Technician (ASTC) Claude Morrissey talks his first case as a rescue swimmer, saving fishermen washed from a jetty during Hurricane Claudette, refining his greeting to survivors, flying hundreds of miles into the Atlantic to rescue the crew of a demasted luxury catamaran, earning a rescue swimmer T-shirt, life and death in the Bering Sea, rituals prior to leaving the runway, 60s vs 65s, and starting his own business - Morrissey Stump Grinding and Tree Service in Camden, North Carolina.

Former Quartermaster Chris Campbell talks being recalled to the CGC Sedge in the midst of a violent winter storm in an effort to save the crew of a foundering fishing vessel off the Alaskan coast, the effort to clear ice and keep the cutter afloat, an inspiring speech from his CO explaining why Coast Guard crews have to go out, ATON, mailing beards to Washington after facial hair was outlawed by the uniform regs, lasting leadership lessons from a BM3 in charge of Deck Force, simulated liberty, patrolling the Florida Keys aboard CGC Thetis, QM ‘A’ School and pre-GPS navigation, and quelling a near riot of migrants detained on deck.

Chief Boatswains Mate Steve Denning (Ret.) talks the nighttime race to rescue nineteen people, fourteen of them children, from a capsized boat at the entrance to the port of Los Angeles/Long Beach, the struggle to conduct a search beneath an overturned hull, commanding a Coast Guard station as its Officer in Charge, rescuing and repatriating dozens of Haitian migrants after weeks at sea, breaking in coxswain at Station Barnegat Light and signing his letter as the crew runs to the sound of a SAR alarm, lessons in boat handling and seamanship from a Surfman mentor at Tillamook Bay, balancing risk to a boat crews with the demands of missions at sea, stopping a boat in a high speed and uncontrolled spin in one of his first cases, crewing black hulls and working CG-6P lanterns, deploying for counter drug patrols on more than forty naval ships with PACTACLET, managing the demands of family with those of military service, applying officer discretion during a boarding that didn’t feel right, meeting Davey Jones and Neptune’s court at the equator, and intercepting arms, munitions, and suspected mercenaries aboard a boat bound for South America.

Former AMT and HH60 Flight Mechanic Alex Mangum talks a massive effort to save three commercial fishermen after their boat grounded in a remote Alaskan Bay during the worst storm many at the airstation had ever experienced, his first case as a flight mechanic and its textbook MEDEVAC from the deck of a cruise ship, training to perform helicopter hoists in the severe weather, how operational crews deal with incidents that truly shake them, staring in the inaugural episode of Coast Guard Alaska, and how the benefits gained through service helped him to achieve his post Coast Guard career goals.

Former Engineman Rick Kunz talks life and service on Lake Ontario’s Galloo Island where the Coast Guard maintained both a station and a lighthouse, four decades of uniform, grooming, and protective equipment advances at Station Oswego, ranking the coasts on a scale of painful seas, picking the right boat for the right weather, taking a 30 footer with him as he left the service, and how the Coast Guard Auxiliary offers boat owners, pilots, and other volunteers a chance to make a difference.

Retired Maritime Enforcement Specialist ‘Thunder’ Dan Merrick talks standing up Maritme Safety and Security Teams (MSST) in the aftermath of 9/11, securing the Persian Gulf aboard CGC Monomoy, deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan with the Redeployment Assistance and Inspection Detachment (RAID), and training the navies and coastguards of the world with the Mobile Training Branch.

Senior Chief Radioman Mike Kreynus (Ret.) talks a lasting lesson in leadership and open door policy from the CO of the CGC Comanche, his time as a plain clothes Coast Guard Intelligence agent, being Chief of the Boat for the last of the screaming sea captains aboard CGC Boutwell, running a west coast command center, the founding of the Chief Petty Officer’s Association, and his thoughts on the practices of the greatest leaders.

21st Commandant of the Coast Guard and former Acting Secretary of the Department is Homeland Security James Loy talks a lesson in leadership early in his career during a dangerous maneuver in heavy seas, commanding patrol boats on the Virginia coast and in wartime Vietnam, delivering a baby on the flight deck of an underway cutter, ending the pursuit of a drug trafficker with a well aimed fire hose, leading the service on 9/11, how flags and Commandants make decisions with servicewide and national impacts, and his experiences leading at the highest levels of government.

After you listen, read Admiral Loy’s books, “Character in Action: The US Coast Guard on Leadership” and “The Architecture of Leadership: Preparation Equals Performance”

CDR Gary Thomas (Ret.) talks deploying into heavy seas as a cutter swimmer to rescue a man overboard, commanding a Key West patrol boat during the tragic sinking of a Haitian ferry, working to support LORANimals, and how these events illustrate the servicewide impacts individuals can have in the Coast Guard. He also discusses his work with the National Coast Guard Museum Association and the Association for Rescue at Sea, both partners of They Had to Go Out Podcast.

Captain Martha Kotite (Ret.) talks the attempted takeover of a cutter by a group of migrants detained on board, serving as the XO of a Key West patrol boat, flying in style aboard the Commandant’s Gulfstream, and high level public affairs efforts during a series of defining events for the service.

Learn more about Martha, book her for a speaking event, and read “So Others May Live”, “Changing the Rules of Engagement”, and “My Name is Old Glory” at http://www.marthakotite.com/