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- OTHER SERVICES VOICES:
- MARINES
 - NAVY
- AIR FORCE
- ARMY
- COAST GUARD
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An up close and personal interview with Coast Guard Veteran and Togetherweserved.com Member:
CWO2 Steven Carriere, USCG (1989-2010)
WHAT PERSUADED YOU TO JOIN THE SERVICE?
 I graduated high school in 1984, and attended Thomas College for two years. I dropped out, and then bounced around with a few jobs as well as going through a short failed move out to California. After returning, I couldn’t get my old job back as an assistant manager with a drug store chain, and had been fired from a construction job. I started selling books door to door and working in radio advertising in late 1988. In early 1989, I found out I was going to be a father. At that point I knew the path I was headed on wasn’t going to be a good source of support for my new family. I had been contemplating joining the services for some time, and when I heard about the Coast Guard, I was immediately intrigued with the humanitarian and law enforcement aspect of the service. I signed up in February 1989, and the rest is history.
BRIEFLY, WHAT WAS YOUR CAREER PATH IN THE SERVICE?
I started out in recruit training at Cape May, New Jersey in Uniform 130, and switched over to the Ceremonial Detail as a member of the rifle drill team. After recruit training, I was assigned to CGC Harriet Lane (WMEC-903), and promoted to Seaman (E-3). Eight months later, I attended Quartermaster "A" School in Yorktown, Virginia. I advanced to Quartermaster 3rd Class (QM3), and transferred to a buoy tender in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1992, I was promoted to QM2 and transferred to Key West, Florida aboard the CGC Shearwater (WSES-3). She was decommissioned, so I transferred to a staff job in Boston. I was promoted to QM1 in July 1995, and in November I returned home to Maine for the first time since joining the Coast Guard. Later, I was assigned to a patrol boat, the CGC Jefferson Island (WPB-1340) as operations petty officer. In 1997, I transferred to another patrol boat back to Key West, the CGC Sitkinak (WPB-1329). After my tour there, I wanted to stay in Key West and was assigned as a search and rescue operations controller at Group Key West. In the spring of 2001, I transferred back afloat to my third patrol boat, CGC Grand Isle (WPB-1338), and was promoted to Chief Petty Officer in May 2002, and transferred to CG Group Boston as the Operations Center Supervisor. I short toured there after switching to the Boatswain Mate rating, taking my first command position as Executive Petty Officer, and my fourth patrol boat, onboard CGC Vashon (WPB-1308), a former 110, converted to a 123, as part of the Coast Guard's Deepwater Project. I left in October 2006 to return to Maine for a brief tour at Sector Northern New England, South Portland, Maine as boarding officer and a member of the Response Division. In June 2007, I was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer and was assigned to Boat Forces Center, in Yorktown, Virginia as the Assistant Chief of Afloat Training Operations. In August 2009, I short toured again, taking an afloat assignment as the First Lieutenant onboard CGC Gallatin (WHEC-271) in Charleston, South Carolina, where I am presently stationed.
DID YOU PARTICIPATE IN COMBAT OPERATIONS?
I have not yet participated in any combat operations directly, although I was onboard CGC Grand Isle when we responded to 9-11, and also was temporarily assigned to CGC Dallas in March 2004 in response to Haitian migration operations and in support of ‘Operation Uphold Democracy.’ Other operations that I was fortunate to be a part of were ‘Operation Frontier Shield’, which was a counter narcotics patrol operations in Puerto Rico, and ‘Operation Atlantic Venture,’ a fisheries operation in New England. There were also several other smaller scale events.
DID YOU RECEIVE ANY AWARDS FOR VALOR? IF SO, CAN YOU PLEASE DESCRIBE HOW THIS AWARD WAS EARNED?
I did not personally receive any awards for valor. The majority of awards I have received have been unit or Coast Guard awards in response to surge operations, such as ‘Operation Frontier Shield,’ ‘Operation Able Manner,’ ‘Operation Uphold Democracy,’ or in response to humanitarian events, such as the Haitian migration operations in the early to mid 1990’s, 9-11, and Hurricane Katrina. I have received several personal awards, including Commendation Medals, Achievement Medals, and Letter of Commendations, for personal performance in the course of duties.
FROM YOUR ENTIRE SERVICE CAREER WHAT PARTICULAR MEMORY STANDS OUT?
Definitely 9-11 and Hurricane Katrina stand out the most. I was aboard the CGC Grand Isle as we pulled into the harbor on September 12th. My cutter was not the actual first one on the scene, as we had actually left New York City the evening before and pulled into Gloucester, Massachusetts that morning. However, within a few hours of the attacks we turned right around and bee-lined it for New York City at full throttle, getting into the harbor that evening. I remember that first night patrolling the lower battery of Manhattan, all the smoke, fuel, burning acrid smells of fuel, metal, concrete, and anything else that burned or collapsed. All of the thick smoke just hung over the harbor like a blanket. From our initial vantage point we could see the huge rubble piles, vehicles and fire trucks that were completely destroyed. The massive destruction, loss of life, and seeing all of that first hand while being there knowing people were looking to us for comfort and strength was very overwhelming. I can remember at times, after standing many hours on watch, or finally getting a break from all of the security escorts for humanitarian supplies delivery, finally just taking a breath and wondering why and how this all could have happened. There were times that I almost felt guilty because there were so many people directly affected by what happened and it also felt like we couldn’t help people fast enough, because of the massive expanse of destruction and damage there was to clean up. After a few days, we ended up being assigned to sit off of the UN building as a security presence, and later as a security platform off of the Indian Point power plant.
A close second would have to be Cuban migrant operations. When I was first assigned to Key West in 1993, the FWFD [Feet Wet Feet Dry] Policy had not yet been implemented, so we could pick migrants up at sea and bring them to the United States. It was heart wrenching to see young children and babies in these leaky, dangerous rafts. They were very thankful that we were able to rescue them. But I often wondered for the dozens of kids and families we rescued at sea, how many  never made it? It drove home the seriousness of conditions in Cuba and was a stark reminder of how desperate people will go to have a better life, and reminded me even more that I am very fortunate to live in a country where neither my feelings nor speech will ever be repressed, regardless of whether I agree or disagree with someone. Furthermore, I am grateful to live in a country where I can choose to serve, instead of being forced to do something against my will.
Today the desperation that the Cubans are experiencing seems to have only gotten worse, and compounded with the FWFD policy. When I later served in Key West again, I would often find myself torn between wanting to help the families and children who wanted a better life, but angry at the profiteers who would try and smuggle lives into the country illegally, and have no concern for anyone except themselves. Either way, I support what we have to do to enforce the laws of our country, but also feel that there are better ways to get into this country legally instead of paying people to get them here by breaking our laws, and then profiting from it.
WHICH INDIVIDUAL PERSON FROM YOUR SERVICE STANDS OUT AS THE ONE WHO HAD THE BIGGEST IMPACT ON YOU...AND WHY?
CWO4 Leslie Blackburn, my former commanding officer onboard CGC White Heath by far impacted me the most. I was a young QM3 at the time, and serving on a coastal buoy tender. He was a very seasoned and experienced individual who always shared a wealth of knowledge about ship-handling, piloting, celestial navigation, and communications. The list could go on. He was always willing to teach, and always gave you room to make mistakes that you could learn from without putting yourself or the ship in peril. I felt really inspired by him to learn as much as I could and progress in my career. Most CG cutters at that time rarely had young petty officers as DWO's except the small patrol boats and coastal tugs. It was definitely a huge stepping stone in my career that taught me a lot about ultimate responsibility, and set me up for success on my future underway tours. Mr. Blackburn definitely had a big part in being one of my most successful mentors.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING NOW?
I am still active duty, and hoping to obtain command of my own afloat unit for my next tour. In the meantime, I am pursuing my associates and bachelors degree through Excelsior University. I have taken a little bit of a hiatus, but am resuming my courses to finish my associates this year, and move on into the bachelors program by next year.
ARE YOU A MEMBER OF ANY MILITARY ASSOCIATION? IF SO, WHICH ONE DO YOU BELONG TO AND WHICH ONE ARE YOU MOST ACTIVE WITH? WHY DO YOU PREFER THE ONE?
I am a member of the Chief Petty Officers Association, the Chief Warrant Officers Association, and most recently, a plank-owner of the Coast Guard's Cuttermans Association.
HOW HAS SERVING IN THE COAST GUARD INFLUENCED THE WAY YOU NOW APPROACH YOUR LIFE AND CAREER?
Before the service, I had no goals, no plans, and no future. I took things as they came, but had no vision for my future. Being in the service has given me the opportunity to take responsibility for not only my professional career, but my personal life as well. My career has had a lot of ups and downs, along with my personal life, but one thing has definitely remained constant, the Coast Guard and many of the wonderful people, aka shipmates, that I have served with have always been there to help me, occasionally give me the kick in the butt that I needed when I was headed down the wrong path, and always provided open doors for me when other opportunities were not there. I love what I do, I have always loved the adventure, excitement, and learning opportunities the Coast Guard provided and made available, and would never have second guessed this decision at all to join.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU HAVE FOR THOSE THAT ARE STILL CURRENTLY SERVING?
 Find the balance. The military is a wonderful career, but it is not all there is to life. Take advantage of the educational opportunities that are out there, get your degree! I sound a little hypocritical since I have waited so long to do this, but it is never too late. And, even though the military does provide a comfortable lifestyle, never close your mind to options, and always have a plan for your future. For the young kids who are just starting out and in their first tours, save your money! So many kids today are so wrapped up with having a good time, having the latest IPOD, sweetest looking car, fanciest cell phone, or going out and having a good time, then before you know it, you are in debt, you can't afford the house you want, and your wasting your money in rent and other credit card bills. Get with a financial planner immediately, and start saving, and setting yourself up with investments. Budget your money, learn to live with what you have, not what you want. And finally, always be cognizant of your decisions, whether professionally or personally. The things we do, get involved in, or sometimes ignore can have a profound effect on how things turn out in our future. Have fun today, but always have that foresight and vigilance to be able to do the right thing, even when it may not be the most popular. Lay the groundwork for your character early in your life and career.
HOW HAS TOGETHERWESERVED.COM HELPED YOU TO MAINTAIN A BOND WITH THE SERVICE AND THOSE YOU SERVED WITH?
I've been able to locate a lot of old and former shipmates and friends who have had a wonderful impact on my career. The bonds of service are one of the strongest bonds out there, and I couldn't be thankful enough for having the friends and shipmates I have in the Coast Guard today.
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