T H E
ISSUE XI BornBred_October.indd 1
O F F I C I A L
M A G A Z I N E
O F
T H E
R A M S
C L U B
M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I A T I O N
TAR HEELS SERVING THEIR COUNTRY 9/28/18 3:43 PM
YOU PROVIDE THE OPPORTUNITY RAMS CLUB MEMBERS LIKE YOU GIVE THE GIFT OF OPPORTUNITY – for the best student-athletes to attend the best university, to compete in the best facilities, and to play for the best coaches at the highest level of competition in all 28 of our varsity sports.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE RAMS CLUB, VISIT RAMSCLUB.COM P.O. BOX 2446 | CHAPEL HILL, NC 27515 | (919) 843-2000 |
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RAMSCLUB.COM |
THE THERAMSCLUB |
@THERAMSCLUB
10/1/18 11:03 AM
WELCOME
Letter from the Editor
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Matt Merletti has one of the most unique backgrounds of any Tar Heel football letterman of the past several decades. Merletti planned to walk on at Ohio State before he caught the eye of Butch Davis, who probably noticed something a little familiar about the tailback/defensive back—Merletti had served as a Cleveland Browns ballboy during Davis’ tenure with the Browns. But that wasn’t even young Matt’s coolest childhood perk; his father, Lew, was the Director of the Secret Service. That meant Matt Merletti met three different United States Presidents and always had a deep appreciation for the contributions of those who served the United States of America. That gratitude deepened when Matt’s brother, Mike, became an Army Ranger. The elder Merletti brother brought Matt back a flag from one of his missions in Iraq, and Matt made it a tradition during the 2008 season to carry the flag out of the tunnel in Kenan Stadium while leading the Tar Heels onto the field. The connection between the military and college student-
PRODUCED BY THE RAMS CLUB EDITOR IN CHIEF ADAM LUCAS CONTRIBUTING WRITERS LEE PACE & PAT JAMES PHOTOGRAPHY JEFFREY CAMARATI & J.D. LYON, JR. DESIGN JUJUBE SPORTS PUBLISHING
athletes might not be immediately obvious. But the Merletti story is a nice reminder that the two seemingly disparate groups often have a closer relationship than you might expect. The American flag remains a part of Carolina football’s pregame dash out of the tunnel. These days, it’s carried by the member of the scout team who is chosen for his hard work on the practice field and in the classroom that particular week. You’ll learn more about other military-Tar Heel connections in the following pages. Just as importantly, you’ll also find out that some of those same Rams Club members you’re sharing a row with in Kenan Stadium or pregaming with in the Peebles Practice Facility might have also spent some time serving their country. Thanks for reading this month’s issue. And to those who have selflessly served our country while cheering for the Tar Heels from points across the globe and at all hours of the day and night, thank you for your service.
ADAM LUCAS Editor in Chief ramsclub.com
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“Although we are almost 5,000 miles from North Carolina and 3,000 miles from Phoenix, know that you will hear us on Saturday as you have the backing of a $2.2 billion warship and its crew of 162 Tar Heels!”
the
—FROM A LETTER WRITTEN BY USS NORTH CAROLINA (SSN 777) COMMANDING OFFICER MATT LEWIS TO ROY WILLIAMS BEFORE THE 2017 FINAL FOUR
MILITARY
APPRECIATION
edition
ON THE COVER: Rams Club member Will Collette used to watch videos of the Blue Angels with his grandfather, a Navy veteran and UNC class of 1958. Will captured this shot of the Thunderbirds in his role as Flight Commander for 2nd Audiovisual Squadron at Hill Air Force Base in Utah. COVER (AND PICTURED OPPOSITE): WILL COLLETTE TABLE OF CONTENTS PHOTOS BY JEFFREY CAMARATI
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M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I AT I O N
16 Born to Fly
A former Tar Heel field hockey player turned pilot found the perfect career in the Navy BY ADAM LUCAS
M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I AT I O N
20 Life Lessons
Erik Highsmith’s military stint put him on the right path BY LEE PACE
M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I AT I O N
24 Thank You for Your Service
Military Appreciation Day designed to honor those who have served, including many with Tar Heel connections BY LEE PACE
BORN & BRED
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24 EDITOR’S LETTER p. 3
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36
TAR HEEL TICKER p. 6
CAROLINA EVERYWEAR p. 22
M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I AT I O N
32 Getting with The Program
Military-inspired training can have tangible on-field benefits BY PAT JAMES
M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I AT I O N
36 Navigating the Waters
Former Tar Heel student-athlete Claire Wardius discovered a knack for surface warfare in her Navy career BY PAT JAMES
FIRST PERSON
40 What it Means to be Born and Bred
How our columnist’s military service helped him appreciate being a Tar Heel even more BY CHRIS YOUNG
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TA R H E E LT I C K E R
M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I AT I O N
USS NORTH CAROLINA:
“THE TAR HEEL BOAT”
PHOTOS (OPPOSITE) BY J.D. LYON, JR.
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The Virginia-class nuclear submarine USS North Carolina, based in Honolulu, has developed a unique relationship with the University of North Carolina. The crew on the submarine refers to itself as “The Tar Heel Boat,” with interlocking NCs throughout the submarine and Carolina blue trim on certain areas of the sub. Several members of the basketball program visited the submarine in November 2016, and several crew members stopped by Chapel Hill in the fall of 2017. For more information on the USS North Carolina, visit: http://www.ssn777club.org
BORN & BRED
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USS CARL VINSON
NOVEMBER 2011
FORT BRAGG, N.C.
OCTOBER 2016
“It was one of the coolest experiences of my life. Having President Obama there and being able to tour the USS Carl Vinson behind the scenes was great. Being able to look back and say I played on an aircraft carrier is amazing.”
-TYLER ZELLER (CAROLINA 67, MICHIGAN STATE 55)
“Our world is fantastic, but it has a few problems. We are very lucky to have men and women like the ones we met who do some great things and make sacrifices to allow the rest of us to do what we do. As coaches, we're not responsible for just teaching kids how to box out and shoot. We're responsible for showing them experiences that help them have an even broader perspective. That's what today was about.” -ROY WILLIAMS
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TA R H E E LT I C K E R M I L I TA R Y A P P R E C I AT I O N
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE, TAR HEELS
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I am a military physician and Rams Club member. I did NROTC at UNC and graduated in 2000, then went to medical school in New York and upon graduation in 2004 I started my time as a Navy physician. I did my internship at National Naval in Bethesda (mostly treating OIF wounded), then flight school in 2005-2006 followed by my time as a flight surgeon with Marine Fighter Squadron VMFA-115. During that time NASA had manned space flight and I was trained as a NASA Air Doc (then we ended space flight). I went back to training and finished residency in Internal Medicine in 2011. I then was sent to Afghanistan for a year, returning in 2012. While there I was embedded with Afghan National Army and mentored the Medical Director for the regional hospital for western Afghanistan, based in Herat. I helped to establish the first continuing medical educational program for the region and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for my efforts. From that time I practiced internal medicine at Beaufort Naval Hospital in Beaufort, SC.
-BRADLEY H DAVIS, MD
I graduated from Carolina in 1969 through the Navy ROTC program. I went on to serve 24 years in the Navy, stationed aboard five ships and numerous shore duty locations. My last assignment, ironically, was as Executive Officer of the NROTC unit at Duke University. In my defense, it was as close as I could get to Chapel Hill at the time! I retired as a Commander in 1993. I then taught second grade in Carolina Beach for a number of years, retiring in Wilmington.
-CHUCK GORE
My wife served for 20 years and is a retired vet and I am currently in my 16th year of active duty. We live in Sanford and I work at Fort Bragg. We have a family of six, 24 years down to a four-year-old. I am currently a Master Sergeant within the US Army Special Operations Command. Been a Rams club member since 2014.
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BORN & BRED
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-JASON DEGENHARD RACHEL DEGENHARD
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I served in the Korean and Vietnam War, and from 1970-1980 taught in the history department at West Point. I graduated from UNC in 1951 with a BA, I also received a PhD from UNC after I retired from the Army, in 1985
-JOSEPH H BEASLEY
My name is Michael Ferguson ’89 and I served in the US Army, Airborne Ranger for 14 years. My daughter Michaella Ferguson is in the US Air Force stationed in Italy.
-MICHAEL FERGUSON
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TA R H E E LT I C K E R
My name is Tim Todd. I was raised in Western NC, a little town called Bryson City. In 1988, I graduated from Swain County High School. I started my military career with the US Air Force in 1989. I am a 22-year-retired US Air Force veteran and a recent 2015 graduate of UNC Chapel Hill. My wife, Laura, and I have two kids. My daughter, Logan who is 15 and my son, Owen who is eight. During my military career, I worked in the Aircraft Avionics field. I have been stationed in Biloxi MS (Keesler AFB), Grand Forks ND (Grand Forks AFB), and Spring Lake NC (Pope AFB). I was in the Gulf War (Desert Shield/ Storm) 90/91 as well as 13+ more trips to the Middle East. I worked on KC-135A/R/T tanker aircraft, C-130E/H air-lifter aircraft, C-21, C12, H-1H Huey Helicopters, and many other aircraft. My time at Chapel Hill was an experience I will always cherish. Go Heels!
I am currently serving in Busan, South Korea as the Commander of the 837th Transportation Company. I enlisted in the Army in 1990 and am proud to serve. I’ve deployed to Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq. My family and I miss being in Chapel Hill and attending several games. I miss Finley Golf Course. My daughter only knows one color of blue: Tar Heel Blue!
-TIM TODD
-LIEUTENANT COLONEL ANDRE TOUSSAINT
I’m a triple Tar Heel: BA (International Studies) ‘88, JD ‘93, and MBA ‘16. I’m a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army Reserve; I am currently assigned as the Command Judge Advocate for the 166th Regional Support Group at Fort Buchanan, PR.
-ED YEAGER
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My goal in life was to be a US Air Force pilot. At UNC I was in Air Force ROTC and in the Pre-Flight program. About the middle of my Senior year, Air Force doctors at Seymour Johnson AFB discovered I had a heart murmur. End of my military career. Twenty plus years later my sons picked up the baton. Son: CDR Daniel Wells Turbeville, US Naval Academy, 1997, 21 years Navy, Nuclear Surface Warfare Officer. Currently Executive Officer Navy ROTC, Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, VA Son: CDR Wesley Adam Turbeville, US Naval Academy, 2001, 12 years Naval Aviator and Test Pilot. Currently in Navy Reserve and is employed by McKinsey Consulting Daughter-In-Law: LT Paige Davis Turbeville, US Naval Academy, 2001, 10 years Naval Aviator. Currently employed by McKinsey Consulting Father-In-Law: Chief Warrant Officer William Thomas Supulski, US Army 30 years. Served in WWII, Korea and Viet Nam
-JAMES LESTER TURBEVILLE
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TA R H E E LT I C K E R
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I am a veteran of 22 years in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps with the rank of Captain (O-6). My duties and responsibilities initially involved me as staff pharmacist at several duty stations in agencies such as Merchant Marine hospitals, Indian Health Service hospitals, as well as the Chief Pharmacist, Federal Bureau of Prisons in Butner, N.C. Toward the end of my career, I became an administrator (Health Services Director) of a medical clinic at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Goldsboro, N.C. I have been married for 44 years to Charlotte Putnam, and we have three grown sons and four granddaughters. I live at Ocean Isle Beach, N.C. and enjoy playing golf and traveling.
-RALEIGH PUTNAM
Mr. Dewey T. Clayton served 24 years in the US Army from 1960-1984. He fought in the Vietnam War and was in the 173 Airborne Brigade Combat Ream. Mr. Clayton received the following commendations and medals: Jump Master Airborne, Distinguished Rifle/Pistol Shooter, Professional Development Ribbon, Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, Tet of Offensive Vietnam ...Medal, 2 Purple Hearts, Good Conduct with the Silver Cross, ARCOM “V”, Bronze Star “V”, Merit Ribbon and the Combat Infantry Badge.
-DWAYNE T. CLAYTON
I am a 1970 graduate. When I entered UNC in 1966 the Vietnam conflict was on the mind of every 18-year-old male. What were my options? To serve or not to serve? I made the choice to be part of the system. NROTC seemed like the most sensible route to meet my duty obligation. There were many other like-minded men at that time. I did learn in my brief service that there are a lot of fine people from many different backgrounds that excel in the military. I requested an early out as the Military was winding down in 1971-72 but I am left with fine friendships and appreciation of what today’s service members must sacrifice to protect us.
-ART TUCKER
I was a member of The Army National Guard for six years. I was trained as an infantry specialist, but thankfully did not have to serve on active duty.
-C. BROOKS GULLEDGE
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I’m currently stationed at Hill AFB, Utah as the Flight Commander for the 2nd Audiovisual Squadron. We’re responsible for creating high level productions ordered by the White House, Pentagon, or Secretary of Defense. In the next month, I’m taking three years of active duty military experience in video production (and my experience at UNC as a media production major) to Hollywood to help run two different studios as my next career. With my current job, I’ve been able to do some pretty cool things like shoot the Thunderbirds (in the shot pictured on the cover of this magazine), F-35 squadrons, F-16’s, and even a collaboration with Motor Trend (they let me drive a Ferrari as fast as I wanted to on Vandenberg AFB’s flight line. We also took a Porsche 911 Turbo S to 170 mph that day on a runway designed for space shuttle landings. Elon Musk’s SpaceX pad was in the background). I’m currently a first Lieutenant, and proud to be a Tar Heel.
-WILL COLLETTE
BORN & BRED
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“ ““ “ “ “ I graduated in ‘59 with both a BA in English and a second lieutenancy from the NROTC into the U.S. Marine Corps. I served for 10 years. My tours of duty included serving aboard a U.S. Navy vessel for two years during which time we sailed through the Panama Canal on our way to Cuba during the “Cuba Missile Crisis.” I was the Combat Cargo Officer aboard the U.S.S. Okanagan, PA220. We also sailed to Thailand for a crisis in 1962 with a full load of the 8th Marine Brigade. It was my job to plan how to load all of the troops, ammunition, vehicles, and fuel for those troops. In 1966, I went to Vietnam and served in the 13th & 2nd Engineer Battalion, during which we cleared mine fields as well as Viet Cong tunnels; we also constructed bridges and built ammunition dumps, as well as schools for the villagers in our areas. I also served on the Inspector-Instructor team of a Marine Corps reserve Engineer Battalion in Seattle, Washington, where we helped clear landing and jump sites for the “smoke jumpers” of the U.S. Forest Service. I thoroughly enjoyed my ten years of service in the Corps. Also, I enjoyed being in Carolina’s NROTC unit. While there, I was in the Navy Drill team which marched in various municipal parades in both North Carolina & South Carolina. We also performed at half time of the ‘Heels football games. When we now visit the campus, I still get a thrill out of driving by the Naval Armory....so many great memories.
-HARCOURT A. MORGAN
TA R H E E LT I C K E R
I served four honorable years in the U.S.Navy from 1985 to 1989. During my time, I spent three years and seven months on USS Sumter LST 1181 as the independent duty postal clerk, attaining the rank of E-4, third class petty officer. She was a great ship with the best crew!
-JIMMY COMER
I graduated from UNC in 1957. I was a member of UNC’s NROTC and served two years active duty stationed in San Diego, Calif. on LST 836 and made two trips to the far east with our station at Saesabo, Japan. After serving two years active duty, I remained in the Navy Reserves while attending UNC Law School and practicing law in Greenville, N.C.
-JAMES CHEATHAM
I am third generation military with both my grandfather, father and I serving. Truly proud of each, with my father being a 22-year veteran (70-92), grandfather four-year veteran (WWII) and myself eight years (91-98). We each served proudly and each would do it all over again. Looking back, it’s what made each of us who we became. Men, fathers and professionals. I fully appreciate UNC and the Tar Heel family for recognizing those that not just served, but those that paid the ultimate sacrifice. They are the true heroes, as well their families. Go Heels and Go Army.
-TERRY PHELPS
After I graduated from UNC class of 81, I decided to go into the Army National Guard. I spent 14 years primarily in the medical corp. as a Physician Assistant and retired as a captain. I traveled all over the country but was not deployed over seas. I am proud to have served and proud to be a Tar Heel grad.
I retired after 20 + years of military service. Which gave me the opportunity to do things that I would not have been able to do. I got to see and experience different parts of the world, over seven years in Europe and the Middle East. All while serving my country. Also spending time in Kentucky, Texas, Washington State and Louisiana. All before returning back to the Tar Heel State, where I was born-and-bred.
-GREGORY SHARPLESS
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-J.MAHIQUEZ
I served two and a half years in the U.S. Public Health Service during the Vietnam War to fulfill my military service (1966- 1968).
-CLIFFORD DECKER
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TA R H E E LT I C K E R
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After graduating from UNC in June 1967 I accepted a position with Sears in the management training program. Vietnam was raging, the draft was still in place prior to the days of the draft lottery, and ultimately I was drafted into military service. I took a Military Leave of absence from Sears and went into the US Army. After basic training at Ft. Bragg, N.C., I had tours of duty at Ft. Benjamin Harrison Indiana, Ft Riley, Kansas which included five months temporary duty in Germany, and Ft. Sill ,Oklahoma. While at Ft. SIll I came down on orders for Vietnam and served there from February 1970 till February 1971 with the 41st. Signal Battalion at Qui Nhon, South Vietnam. Upon return to the USA I was discharged from the military and resumed my Sears career.
“ “ “ “ “ “ -RICHARD DOUGLAS PERRY
I am a disabled combat veteran from the Navy. Served in Somalia, Pakistan, Asia, Europe, South America, and other global spots. Circumnavigated the globe in 180 days on the America’s first nuclear powered surface ship the USS Long Beach guided missile cruiser. Have been thru the Suez and Panama Canals and touched just about every sea and ocean on our planet. I was an Electronics Warfare petty officer that also did radio communications from the landing zone for CH-46 helicopters. Electronic warfare is intel gathering and the system was called the SLQ-32. 1984-1991.
-STEVE DURANT
I served for six years in the US Army stateside from 1970-1976. My father, Harry Bryant, Sr., served in World War II from 1943-45.
S Weldon Brown, III (Class of 1965), Captain in the U S Army, Dental Corps. Stationed Fort Dix, NJ (19691973).
I did 20 years in the Air Force and Air Force Reserve as a Space and Missile Officer after graduating from UNC and finishing AFROTC in 1994.
I served six months active duty at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S. C. and five and a half years in the Army Reserves at the Raleigh Reserve Center. Enlisted in March 1963 and was honorably discharged in 1969.
-HARRY BRYANT, JR., ‘70
My name is Eddie High, PN1 (SW), USN retired and Rams Club member since 2010. I retired from the U.S. Navy on October 1, 2000. During my 20 years of service, I served onboard five different ships and have been stationed on both coasts. My ships were USS Ranger CV-61, USS Saratoga CV-60, USS Tarawa LHA-1, USS Rushmore LSD-47, and USS Kisha AE-35. I’ve been a UNC fan since 1969.
-EDDIE HIGH
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-JEFF THORNTON
-S WELDON BROWN
-C. MARTIN NASSIF
BORN & BRED
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TA R H E E LT I C K E R
I was in the 805 Army Company-Military Police in the early 1970s. When I was at Fort Bragg I guarded Jeffrey McDonald (Google him-it was the OJ Simpson trial of the 70s) before his trial, by myself, for the longest hour of military career. They made a movie about him and a New York Times best selling book. I did undercover in Fayetteville once. Also in Military Police basic training at Fort Gordon, Georgia we rioted for a week. We were given civilian clothes by the Army and would face the advancing Military Police to do a staged show for VIPs in a faked town just like Hollywood.
I am the current Assistant Director of the Dean E. Smith Center, and my husband and I have been Rams Club members for two years now. We joined while I was a graduate student in the Sport Administration program here at UNC. My husband – Ryan McCollum – is a Captain in the Army. We have been together since high school and have been married for three years. He attended The United States Military Academy at West Point from 2010-2014. He played football and rugby during his time there. He graduated and commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Infantry in May 2014. After graduation he went to Fort Benning, GA to complete IBOLC, Airborne, and Ranger School. After successful completion of all three schools, he was stationed at Fort Bragg, NC where he served as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Unit for two years. During his time in the 82nd, he deployed overseas to Iraq. He was overseas when UNC won the MBB National Championship in 2017. He was able to watch from his bunker at 4am Iraq time! When he arrived home in May of 2017, we moved to Washington DC for him to serve in the Old Guard at Arlington National Cemetery, which is where he is currently stationed.
-EMILEE MCCOLLUM
I’m a WWII Veteran who served in the U.S., England, France and Germany with the 12th and 1st Armored Divisions plus 20 years in the Army Reserve, I was an enlisted man for three and a half years; came home as a 1st Lt and retired as a major.
-CLARENCE WHITEFIELD
I’m a 1961 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. I served in the Navy four years and left as a Lieutenant in the Supply Corps to attend business school at UNC-CH.
-BILL MOORE
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-JOHN COFFEY
Jay just retired from service in USN and USN Reserve Component after 30 years. Above is a photo of Jay and Carolyn at his retirement. After graduation from UNC where he was a NROTC Midshipman, Jay was commissioned as an officer of the U.S. Navy and flew EA-6B Prowlers in Operation Desert Shield and in post-Desert Storm operations. He later transitioned to the reserve component of the U.S. Navy and achieved the rank of Captain. As a reservist he was activated and mobilized for Operations Southern Watch, Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom, Inherent Resolve and other operations in the Middle East and South America as a planner and analyst. He returned in 2015 from his final activation in which he served the Commander of U.S. Fifth Fleet and U.S. Navy Central Forces as his Safety and Operational Risk Officer, managing Occupational Safety and Health programs for the fleet while serving as a battle director for operations. He just retired after thirty years of service.
-JESSE “JAY” TILLMAN CAROLYN KRAMER TILLMAN
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TA R H E E LT I C K E R
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I was in the UNC class of 1964, was in UNC NROTC one year and transferred to the US Marine Corps Platoon Leaders Class followed by commissioning and Basic School upon graduation from UNC. Served on active duty three years, ‘64-’67, attained rank of Captain, and was stationed at Quantico, Camp Lejeune, Camp Pendleton and Okinawa. Assignments included 2nd Division infantry battalion communications officer, OIC, 9th MEB Comm Center, and Executive Officer 9th MEB Comm Company.
-GEORGE WATTS CARR III
I have a BA degree from Carolina (1976) in zoology and a MAT (1978). I joined the Navy in 1983 and retired in 2006 as a Master Chief Journalist (Surface Warfare). I continued my service to country after retiring from active duty by serving in the Civil Service as a Public Affairs Specialist in the Navy, having retired in 2016.
-KEVIN COPELAND
My father, Kirby B. Capps, flew KC-135’s for the USAF during Vietnam. The picture includes my father in the middle, me and my son Thomas (right), my brother (left) Greg Capps (UNC) and his son William. The second picture is my father with my two children, Thomas and Lila, at their school’s (St. David’s School, Raleigh NC) annual military appreciation day. I also wanted to note my grandfather, Dr. Eugene Harding Guthrie, deceased. He attended UNC Chapel Hill, served in the United States Coast Guard and later went on to public-health where he would become the Associate Surgeon General of the United States.
-TIM CAPPS (MEN’S SWIMMING CLASS OF 1998)
I am a lifelong Tar Heel fan and Rams Club member since 2010. I am a veteran of the United States Marine Corps serving from 1991-1995. I was stationed in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba in 1994 and served on the USS Caron, a naval Destroyer, for Operation Haiti Freedom in ‘93. I attended Desert training in 29 Palms, Calif. and was stationed in Camp Lejeune, N.C.
-KEVIN HERCULES
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I served in the US Army 1968-1971. I was assigned to the US Special Security Group stationed at Fort Shafter, Hawaii.
-JOHNNY SURLES
BORN & BRED
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MILITARY APPRECIATION
Born to Fly BY ADAM LUCAS
P H O T O S C O U R T E S Y O F N I C O L E F R E Y A N D U N C AT H L E T I C C O M M U N I C AT I O N S
A FORMER TAR HEEL FIELD HOCKEY PLAYER TURNED PILOT FOUND THE PERFECT CAREER IN THE NAVY
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BORN & BRED
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When Karen Shelton was recruiting Nicole Frey to play field
hockey at the University of North Carolina, one specific credential stood out on Frey’s list of accomplishments: “SHE WAS THE KICKER ON HER HIGH SCHOOL’S FOOTBALL TEAM,” SHELTON SAYS. “THAT STOOD OUT TO ME AS SOMETHING THAT TOOK COURAGE. I LIKED THAT SHE WAS FEARLESS. IF YOU CAN PERFORM IN THAT ENVIRONMENT, YOU’LL BE ABLE TO PERFORM IN OTHER PRESSURE ENVIRONMENTS.”
In fact, Frey was the first female to play varsity football in her hometown of Virginia Beach, and her game-winning field goal won the Virginia Beach city championship. After inking with the Tar Heels, she was a goalkeeper for the UNC field hockey team from 1995-99, a period in which she helped the program win three national championships and three Atlantic Coast Conference titles. Frey loved her time as a college athlete and as a Tar Heel but wondered what her next step—what her next challenge—would be. Her father, United States Navy Capt. Charles Frey, consistently suggested she should try the military. His daughter consistently ignored him. Shelton is the daughter of a World War II veteran who grew up in a military family. Her father, Jim Shelton, flew helicopters in Vietnam and served in the Army for 26 years. Much of Shelton’s competitiveness was created by challenging her two older brothers on athletic fields on military bases around the country. She knew how to recognize someone who would fit into the military environment. But Frey showed little indication during her Carolina career that she wanted to pursue a military path. Instead, she took a job at Salomon Smith Barney straight out of college. Within months, she knew she’d made a mistake. “I knew right away that I couldn’t sit behind a desk,” she says. She continued to have conversations with her father, whose
decorated military career had begun when he was drafted during the Vietnam War. He used the GI Bill to complete his education, and then went to Navy’s Officer Candidate School, eventually completing a 29-year career in the military. “I always believed Nicole would be an excellent Naval officer,” Charles Frey says. “She was a young woman who was never afraid to step out of her comfort zone. She thrived under pressure and was always a team player focused on winning.” His daughter’s response was immediate when Charles Frey asked what she wanted to do next: “I want to fly,” she said. Capt. Frey made a contact with a recruiter in the Triangle area, who made contact with the prospective recruit. Within months, her office career was over and her military career had started. She began with Officer Candidate School—as Shelton puts it, “the hard way to do it.” She was in the first class to arrive in Pensacola after Sept. 11, 2001. Everyone who participated was well aware that this wasn’t just a lark. This was a very real entry into a world that would soon include combat in some very unhospitable locations. It was difficult, it was tiring, and it was a daily weed-out challenge to determine who was strong enough to stay. And Frey loved it. “I knew right away I had found what I wanted to do,” she says. “I was surrounded by motivated people who were all there for the same reasons. The discipline, the structure and everything I had
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MILITARY APPRECIATION
gotten from Carolina field hockey I started seeing in the military.” Her flight career began with Introductory Flight School training, which gave her 25 hours of civilian instruction in a tiny Piper Tomahawk. Then she moved to Corpus Christi, Tex., and flew the T-34 single engine turboprop. As she excelled, the planes and the assignments got bigger—Frey has now flown a T-12 King Air, a P-3 Orion, an EP-3 Aries, a Metroliner SA-227, and the signature C-130s and Naval C-40s, a military version of Boeing’s 737. In her new career, Frey found everything she’d been missing during her few months in the financial sector. She was constantly learning and training on new equipment. She and her husband, Scott, and their two children have traveled all over the world, and she’s currently stationed in Bahrain, a nation of 30 islands in the heart of the Persian Gulf.
“I LOVE IT,” SHE SAYS. “IT’S FUN AND SO CHALLENGING. THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT ELEMENTS TO AVIATION. THERE’S NOTHING BETTER THAN TAKING OFF FROM ONE LOCATION WHERE THE WEATHER IS CHALLENGING, AND THEN POPPING UP ABOVE THE CLOUDS AND IT’S BEAUTIFUL UP THERE.” In 2014, Frey transitioned from active duty to the Naval Reserve, which gave her the opportunity to fly 737s for Delta out of New York. Although the equipment is similar between her military and commercial flights, the preparation is very different. Military pilots do much of the planning, weather checks and flight clearances themselves, while commercial pilots primarily focus on actually flying the plane. Frey has been back to Chapel Hill since graduation to speak at a regular symposium Shelton holds to expose her players to a wide range of careers. Frey recognizes the irony of a former Tar Heel who had no interest in the military while she was in Chapel Hill now returning to campus to talk to Tar Heels
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about the finer points of a military career. But she also has over a decade of first-hand experience that taught her how closely the two programs correlate, and Shelton’s life experience means she wants her players to be aware of the possibilities. “Being in the military and being in team sports develops selflessness and the discipline of team unity in accomplishing a mission,” Shelton says. “They train for very similar things. Nicole is the only player I’ve had who has gone into the military. It’s important for someone like her who has gone into an amazing career to let our student-athletes know that they would fit in with the military, because they’re already well trained in so many things that make you successful in that career.” “Our core values with the military—honor, courage, integrity and commitment—are the same values Karen expected from her teams,” Frey says. “She wanted us to have the courage to get out there and keep trying even when we were down a goal. The same thing is true in the military, and everyone depends so heavily on everyone else just like we did on the field at Carolina. It’s amazing how different the two things are but also how many similarities they have.”
“OUR CORE VALUES WITH THE MILITARY—HONOR, COURAGE, INTEGRITY AND COMMITMENT—ARE THE SAME VALUES KAREN EXPECTED FROM HER TEAMS. SHE WANTED US TO HAVE THE COURAGE TO GET OUT THERE AND KEEP TRYING EVEN WHEN WE WERE DOWN A GOAL. THE SAME THING IS TRUE IN THE MILITARY, AND EVERYONE DEPENDS SO HEAVILY ON EVERYONE ELSE JUST LIKE WE DID ON THE FIELD AT CAROLINA. IT’S AMAZING HOW DIFFERENT THE TWO THINGS ARE BUT ALSO HOW MANY SIMILARITIES THEY HAVE.”
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L IF E
LESSONS ERIK HIGHSMITH’S MILITARY STINT PUT HIM ON THE RIGHT PATH BY LEE PACE
PHOTOS BY JEFFREY CAMARATI & ERIK HIGHSMITH
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“Mook,” signed on with the Army in May 2015 and spent 18 months in Growing up in Vanceboro just north of New Bern, Erik Highsmith the service—two months of basic training and then was stationed at saw and felt the military around him in that Eastern North Carolina Fort Bragg as an intelligence analyst. compass that included the Army at Fort Bragg, the Marines at Camp Despite having gone through summer conditioning under Jeff Lejeune and Cherry Point and the Air Force at Pope and Seymour Connors and Lou Hernandez at Chapel Hill and Johnson. the rigors of an NFL training camp, Highsmith Plus, he had three uncles with military found basic training a challenge unlike anything backgrounds—two from the Army and one from he’d ever faced. the Marines. “The phone stopped ringing and “It was two straight months, up at 5 a.m., going So when the former Tar Heel receiver’s football career ended, the military was a natural I started thinking about what the hard until 9 at night,” he says. “The second day option. next step beyond football should there, I thought about quitting. I thought about going home. Is this really for me? I was 24 years “The phone stopped ringing and I started be. The next best team sport is old and been in the NFL, and here I have a drill thinking about what the next step beyond football should be,” says Highsmith, who played the Army. I talked with my uncles sergeant in my face. They’re telling you what to do for every hour of the day. Mentally it was at Carolina from 2009-12. “The next best team when I thought about my next frustrating. I had to ask myself, ‘Are you going to sport is the Army. I talked with my uncles when step, and they all said it was quit, are you going to be a loser or are you going I thought about my next step, and they all said a great idea.” to get through this?’” it was a great idea.” He remembers having a bunkmate who had Highsmith used his athleticism and nimble a few extra pounds on his midsection and didn’t look like the typical hands to snare 166 passes for 2,047 yards and 14 touchdowns as a Army recruit; Highsmith admired his will to get up every morning, put Tar Heel. He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings as a free agent for on his boots and have at it. training camp of 2013 but was cut before the season started. He also “I thought, ‘If he can do it, so can I,’” Highsmith says. took a shot at the Arena Football League. When his commitment was up, Highsmith went into coaching Highsmith, known by his teammates and coaches as “Mookie” or
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as receivers coach at Overhills High in Spring Lake. After one year, former Carolina teammate Bobby Rome called and offered him a job as offensive coordinator and receivers coach at Virginia University of Lynchburg. There he joins fellow Tar Heel Kentwan Balmer, who’s the defensive coordinator. “Erik has always been wise beyond his years,” says Rome. “He doesn’t play any games, and our players respect that and love it. I think he definitely benefitted from his time in the Army. He’s a great leader, person and coach.” Highsmith draws parallels in his military experience with what he hopes to bring to the Dragons. “I learned a lot from the Army,” he says. “I had to grow up and be accountable. I didn’t have much structure in my life then. I do now. It opened my eyes to things beyond football. Discipline, respect and integrity are big in the military, just as they are in football.”
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C A R O L I N A E V E R YWE A R Rams Club members like to wear their Carolina Blue, and they’ll wear it all over the US and the world. If you have a photo of you in your Carolina gear in front of notable landmarks in the US and abroad, send them our way to be a part of Carolina EveryWear!
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To have your photo included: -Send your photo digitally to bornandbred@ramsclub.com. -Identify everyone in your photo and the location of the photo. Here are the “Rules”: -At least one person in the photo has to be a Rams Club member -You must be wearing Carolina gear -You must be in front of a notable landmark (sorry, as cool as Kenan Stadium and the Smith Center are, they don’t qualify). SHOW US YOUR COLORS!
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1) Jon & Tia Hill of Thomasville, NC, with daughter Laci & son Landon at the Magic Kingdom in Orlando; 2) Josh Potter & son Josh Jr. of Raleigh; Roy Lilley, Carroll Jones & Laurence Lilley of Williamston, NC, at the “Dog Pile” in Omaha, NE, at the College World Series; 3) Martha Cole Glenn of Arlington, VA, at the market in Otavollo, Ecuador; 4) Tony Jarrett & Debbie Allen of Greensboro at Kylemore Abbey on the west coast of Ireland; 5) Michael Beavers (right) of Apex, NC, with his brother & their wives at the Colosseum in Rome; 6) Josh & Tara Reed of Chesapeake, VA, “escaping” Alcatraz in San Francisco; 7) Matt & Laura Kirby of Raleigh with Miles and Jack Kirby Jungfraujoch, Switzerland; 8) David Marshburn of Jacksonville, NC, at the Colosseum in Rome; 9) Cliff & Linda Butler of Chapel Hill in front of Mont St. Michel, Normandy; 10) Denise & Tommy Green with Jessica, Tommy & Katherine Green of Summerfield, NC, at Half Dome in Yosemite National Park; 11) Ben Allison of Charlotte at Stewart Falls in Sundance, UT; 12) Barry Williams (left) of London with friends Wendy Clarke, Wally Wych & Marissa Wych at sunset in the Sahara Desert of Morocco; 13) Jennifer & Pierre Lent of Burlington, NC, in Alaska; 14) Taylor, Brett & Jennifer Niblack of Shelby, NC, at Haleakala National Park in Maui, HIi; 15) Brandon Hartzell of Stephens City, VA, at Pearl Harbor, HI; 16) Scott Gunn of Raleigh at the summit of Camelback Mountain in Scottsdale, AZ; 17) Harry Smith of Mt. Pleasant, SC, at the Pont du Gard in Southern France; 18) Sandy & Blake Rasnake of Chapel Hill at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore overlooking Lake Michigan
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THANK YOU FOR YOUR
SERVICE. MILITARY APPRECIATION DAY DESIGNED TO HONOR THOSE WHO HAVE SERVED, INCLUDING MANY WITH TAR HEEL CONNECTIONS
BY LEE PACE PHOTOS BY JEFFREY CAMARATI
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W
arren Green spent countless hours around the central part of the UNC campus during his days at Carolina from 2002-06, not only attending class but meeting his fellow ROTC cadets at
the Armory at the corner of Columbia and Raleigh Roads and then taking the field in Kenan
Stadium 66 times in 2005 to snap the ball and then sprint downfield in punt coverage.
So it’s certainly an understatement to say that piloting an Apache helicopter over Kenan Stadium just
minutes before kickoff at a Tar Heel football game a decade later was quite a thrill.
“I had done flyovers before and they were really exciting, but to come back and fly over your alma mater
and the stadium where you played, that has a special place in my heart,” says Green. “We had two choppers that day and four crewmen, and all were UNC grads. I have great memories of that day.”
The occasion was Military Appreciation Day held around the Citadel game in November 2016, the fifth
such event since Carolina began in 2012 devoting one home game a year to honoring its students and alumni with military connections as well as the entire universe of service men and women.
Green went from Carolina into the Army and has served two tours of duty in Iraq, the most recent
one ending in the summer of 2018, and is now a major in the Army National Guard. During his first Iraq
deployment in 2009-10, his mother sent him a Carolina blue flag with the interlocking NC logo; Green took it into the cockpit for every combat mission, and the flag logged more than 300 hours of duty.
“My dad was in the military, and I had an uncle who flew in Vietnam,” says Green, who came to Chapel Hill
from Triton. “We have a big family history of military service going back to World War II. I had a passion for it all along growing up and dreamed of being a pilot.
“If someone says, ‘Thank you for your service,’ it means a lot. I’m always happy to get out and tell the story.
I’m grateful for any amount of support we receive from local population.”
Flyovers like the one Green piloted are just one of the many elements to Military Appreciation Day
organized by the Carolina athletic department. Each year several former Tar Heel athletes are identified to be honored and recognized. Flags of ACC schools that usually hang above the stadium are replaced with flags of the various military branches, and the
Marching Tar Heels play military-themed programs pre-game and at halftime. The interlocking NC logo is
tweaked to encompass the American flag, and ROTC students are used to open the doors to the locker
room for the team entrance, and those students are later recognized during a timeout. Dean
Moege
of
the
football
strength
and
conditioning staff joined the Army out of high school in Kansas in 2005, did tours of Iraq and Afghanistan
and left the service in 2010 to pursue his education.
“IF SOMEONE SAYS, ‘THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE,’ IT MEANS A LOT. I’M ALWAYS HAPPY TO GET OUT AND TELL THE STORY. I’M GRATEFUL FOR ANY AMOUNT OF SUPPORT WE RECEIVE FROM THE LOCAL POPULATION.”
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He transferred to Carolina from junior college and graduated with a degree in exercise and sports science in 2014. He did an internship with the football program’s strength and conditioning staff
beginning in the fall of 2012 and then latched on to a permanent post and now is the top assistant to Lou Hernandez. He was asked the lead the team out of the tunnel with the flag before the 2015 and ’16 Military Appreciation games.
“That was quite an honor,” he says. “Some guys I had served with overseas had made their way
to Fort Bragg, so the university invited them to come and bring their families to those games. To
carry the flag out was great and it was even more special in front of these guys who had done so much for our country and continued to do so.”
Moege draws on his experience in the Army in helping players become the best they can be
physically and mentally.
“In the military you have to pay attention to the details,” Moege says. “There are dire
consequences if you don’t. Here with football, it’s a lot of the same principles. The small things
turn into big things. You take care of the small things and you handle your business everything
goes smooth. If they go bad, they get exponentially worse very quickly. The things I convey to guys are constant attention to details, to get better every day, to never take a day off.”
Two former football players who went into the military were recognized in 2015—Kevin Shwedo
from the Army and Mike Argo from the Navy Seals.
Shwedo found it remarkable that the roster of his late 1970s-era teams included five career
military guys, two law enforcement officers and one FBI agent who at the time was still involved in counter-terrorism work.
“That’s quite a statistical anomaly,” said Shwedo, a defensive back who lettered in 1978 and
earlier in 2015 retired at the rank of colonel after 32 years in the Army. “Your odds of getting to retirement in the military are so small to begin with, and to find five of us who made it to
retirement coming from the same university and football program is quite remarkable. Then you add the guys in law enforcement and FBI to it. We all shared the common bond of football and
the values we learned playing the game that translated perfectly into our careers.”
Order. Structure. Punctuality. Chain of command. Teamwork. Planning, execution and debriefing.
Persevering through pain, discomfort and difficult circumstances. The parallels are significant the military and a football team.
“We had a saying in the Seals, ‘Seal training is easy, all you do is never quit,’” said Mike Argo, a
letterman on the defensive line in 1978-79 who went on to a three-decade career as a U.S. Navy Seal. “We had another one that said, ‘The only easy day was yesterday.’
“It’s the same kind of environment in football, particularly training camp and spring practice.
There’s a level of mental torture and discipline that you get from football that sets you up well
“TO CARRY THE FLAG OUT WAS GREAT AND IT WAS EVEN MORE SPECIAL IN FRONT OF THESE GUYS WHO HAD DONE SO MUCH FOR OUR COUNTRY AND CONTINUED TO DO SO.”
for Seal training. It’s the same kind of environment.”
Shwedo says it begins with the idea of
teamwork and not letting your buddies
down.
“You identify a common goal and
mission and are focused on being successful,” he says. “You look at the individuals
you
are
going
through
practice with and going through the
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weight room with and not wanting to let them down. Those are the same attributes you
use in combat arms. You can draw an analogy that whether you’re in the military planning a combat operation or playing a football game, it’s a synchronized team effort that makes
you successful. Any weakness in the chain destroys you.”
Argo remembers the rigors of preseason training camp, of defensive line coach Tom
Harper routinely keeping his players for extra work after practice in what was called “The Nutcracker Drill”—essentially a 3-on-1 demolition derby. He also remembers five-mile
swims at night in open ocean off the San Diego coast during Seal training when both of his thighs cramped up and there was nowhere to go, nothing to do but keep swimming through the pain.
“In football we had 12 or 15-minute drills and then they would blow a horn and you go to the
next one,” he says. “You conditioned yourself mentally to just get to the next horn and do the
best you could—one horn to the next. In Seal training, we said ‘One day a time, one evolution at a time.’ Those were huge tools you learned in football to set up your mind for Seal training.” Argo
remembers
leading
missions—perhaps launching at
night in a mini-submarine from
a nuclear power sub, traveling under water, anchoring, placing an explosive on an enemy sub, then returning to the mother ship—and
the planning and execution being similar to a game. “We
had
mission-planning
sessions, ‘Mission Planning 101,’ where you plan it and rehearse it,”
he says. “There’s a huge correlation with sports. You devise a strategy,
practice it, then take it to the game. In my case as an officer, I was involved in the planning and the execution. Mission-planning and rehearsing are exactly like game-planning and practice. You
debrief a mission after it’s over— was it successful, could it have gone better, was it a failure? You regroup and learn from it and
you don’t point fingers and blame others.”
Military Appreciation Day this
year is the Western Carolina game on Nov. 17 at Kenan Stadium.
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“YOU IDENTIFY A COMMON GOAL AND MISSION AND ARE FOCUSED ON BEING SUCCESSFUL. YOU LOOK AT THE INDIVIDUALS YOU ARE GOING THROUGH PRACTICE WITH AND GOING THROUGH THE WEIGHT ROOM WITH AND NOT WANTING TO LET THEM DOWN. THOSE ARE THE SAME ATTRIBUTES YOU USE IN COMBAT ARMS. YOU CAN DRAW AN ANALOGY THAT WHETHER YOU’RE IN THE MILITARY PLANNING A COMBAT OPERATION OR PLAYING A FOOTBALL GAME, IT’S A SYNCHRONIZED TEAM EFFORT THAT MAKES YOU SUCCESSFUL. ANY WEAKNESS IN THE CHAIN DESTROYS YOU.”
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“I JUST WANT TO THANK ALL OF THE DONORS WHO HAVE HELPED MAKE MY CAROLINA EXPERIENCE SPECIAL AND SOMETHING I’LL NEVER FORGET. MY TEAMMATES AND I CAN’T THANK YOU ENOUGH. WE’VE GROWN TOGETHER AND GROWN SO MUCH OVER THESE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, AND I’VE MADE FRIENDS FOR LIFE.” -LUKE MAYE 9/28/18 3:45 PM
THANK YOU RAMS CLUB MEMBERS FOR PROVIDING OPPORTUNITIES!
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW TO MAKE A LIFE-CHANGING IMPACT ON CAROLINA STUDENT-ATHLETES, VISIT RAMSCLUB.COM/CAMPAIGN
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GETTING WITH THE PROGRAM
>
Military-inspired training can have tangible on-field benefits
W BY PAT JAMES
PHOTOS BY JEFFREY CAMARATI With 11:31 left in the third quarter of its 2013 ACC Tournament semifinal match against Duke, the North Carolina men’s lacrosse team led 15-6 and a third championship appearance in a five-year span seemed certain. Then the Blue Devils mounted their comeback. Duke scored 11 of the next 12 goals, seizing a 17-16 lead with less than seven minutes to play. The Tar Heels could have folded. But instead, they scored the last two goals of the game, securing the victory and two days later, their first ACC title in 17 years. The moment was perhaps the most adverse UNC faced that season. And in overcoming it, the team relied on the lessons it learned during the preseason from a bootcamp-like experience known as The Program. The Program, founded by former Marine Corps Special Forces commander Eric Kapitulik, offers a series of services designed to build better leaders and more cohesive teams. Former military personnel and elite athletes serve as instructors. They help participants develop these skills through the experience of “shared adversity.” Joe Breschi learned about The Program at a coaches convention. He decided then to try it out; the volleyball team participated in The Program the next year. “It’s another way of training and discipline
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MILITARY APPRECIATION
after another activity, Breschi said Kapitulik and another instructor met with him and the rest of the coaching staff to discuss the leadership they saw. The next day, everyone met at Koury Natatorium at 5 a.m. Kapitulik once again stressed performing exercises such as pushups and sit-ups in unison. The players then got in the pool. One of the drills required the players, wearing sweatshirts, to tread water for a certain amount of time. Upon Kapitulik’s signal, they removed their sweatshirts and exchanged them with their respective partners, as they still swam. They repeated this several times.
and teamwork and all the little things that go into building a culture of success and camaraderie and a don’t-leave-any-mantype of mentality,” Breschi said. “And it was impressive. It’s not something you can do every year. But it’s certainly something you can do to kind of set the tone.” The men’s lacrosse team’s experience lasted about 24 hours, Breschi said. But it was intense, from start to finish. Before the first day of training began, Kapitulik met with the team. He ensured each player’s shirt was tucked in and their socks were the same height. They then split into two lines and jogged in unison to Navy Field, where an attention to detail was further emphasized. Players evenly divided into stretching lines exactly five yards apart. The seniors stood at the front of each line, facing their teammates, and were tasked with having each player in their line perform each stretch correctly. If one player wasn’t following directions, Breschi said Kapitulik would “go after” the senior leading that line. “All those things mattered from a leadership standpoint in helping develop your leadership within the team,” Breschi said, “and he could identify who those strong leaders were in a time of need, in a time of desperation and in a game, who could carry your team and all those things.” Other activities the players participated in the first day included carrying sandbags, logs and each other. That night,
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“Different drills like that were really dependent on the group as a whole to support one another,” Breschi said. “Some guys were struggling with it, and guys coming together supporting one another during it. Who was there to pick up their brother? Who was worried about themselves?” “So all the little things that you think about from a military perspective but also a team concept, that’s what it was all about. It was really unique, but so true in down the stretch of building a team.” Five years later, no players remain from the 2013 team. But still, many of the practices adopted from The Program are still implemented. Players line up and stretch the same way. Everyone is also responsible for picking up balls after practices, a task that used to be assigned to the freshmen on the team. As mundane as these exercises might seem, Breschi said they are vital. “You can see them when you slip, not only for ourselves but for the team,” Breschi said. “You can see some of those things, and you quickly correct them because you know how important those little things are. And in our world, it’s one goal here or one goal there, and you can’t let those little things slip by or you’re going to end up 1-5 in one-goal games instead of 5-1.” Breschi said he and the rest of the coaching staff have considered bringing Kapitulik back to Chapel Hill for a second visit. Funding will dictate if they are able to. “We have to pick our spots with what we spend our funds on,” Breschi said. “It could be something like that. We’ve done paintball, we’ve done ropes courses and we’ve done zip lines, just team functions that are team-building activities. But that’s certainly something we’ll revisit again in the near future.”
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NAVIGATING THE WATERS FORMER TAR HEEL STUDENT-ATHLETE CLAIRE WARDIUS DISCOVERED A KNACK FOR SURFACE WARFARE IN HER NAVY CAREER BY PAT JAMES PHOTOS COURTESY OF CLAIRE WARDIUS
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Entering her senior year in the fall of 2012, Claire Wardius, a former North Carolina rower, still didn’t know what she wished to do after graduation. A double major in biology and English with a minor in Russian, she’d always wanted to get involved in higher education. But she didn’t feel quite ready. So instead of immediately pursuing that path, she applied to join the U.S. Navy, with the intention of laterally transferring into the medical corps community one day. Six years later, Wardius is in her fifth year as a surface warfare officer. And she doesn’t plan on changing roles soon. “I just signed on to continue for another six (years),” she said. “It’s kind of a change of plans. But I like what I do right now a lot. I really like it, so I want to keep doing it for the time being.”
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Joining the Navy wasn’t always the plan. But growing up in Pittsburgh, Wardius spent countless hours at a friend’s house. That friend, Wardius said, came from “a big Army family.” So Wardius naturally adopted a military mindset. She said those childhood experiences likely led her to apply for Officer Candidate School in the spring of 2013. She finished her application around her May graduation. Three months later, she learned she’d been accepted, and she commissioned into the Navy in April 2014. Wardius initially didn’t know much about what goes into being a surface warfare officer – the primary duties of the position focus on maintaining and operating Navy ships, their crews and their systems. But she chose to join the surface warfare community because of its rich history. “To me, this is what the Navy is all about, being
on a ship,” Wardius said. “So as little as I knew about it at the time, I said, ‘I want to really get into the core of what the Navy does.’ And it turns out, yeah, I really like it. It’s a lot of fun. “It’s not a Top Gun, but we have a tradition. This is what the Navy has been doing. The Navy hasn’t been flying planes since 1775, but we have been driving ships since then. So it’s really awesome to be a part of that legacy.” On Wardius’ first ship, she said she worked with the sonar technicians, who are responsible for underwater surveillance and help with navigation and search and rescue operations. She then
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MILITARY APPRECIATION
became a first lieutenant. In that role, she managed and coordinated 32 personnel and three warfare areas – including search and rescue, seamanship and aviation – onboard a Ticonderoga-class cruiser. Since October 2016, she’s served as a navigator. Her responsibilities include voyage planning and safe navigation onboard an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. “Our big role is getting the ship in and out of ports safely in basically a whole variety of ports across the world,” said Wardius, who is stationed in Norfolk, Va. “And then getting through a lot of the checkpoint transits that we do, that’s kind of the bread and butter what the surface Navy does these days.” Wardius has completed two deployments
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“We talked a lot at the [Richard A. Baddour] Leadership Academy about the importance of communication, which is always critical in any job. But especially as a leader, I lead my team, my division of sailors, making sure that I’m very clear on my expectations for them and what we can accomplish together.”
on the destroyer. On one, she said the ship spent a lot of time in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategic waterway located between Djibouti and Yemen that links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea. Wardius said her ship helped defend that area and escorted merchant vessels and some submarines. The highlight of the deployment was in April, when her ship fired Tomahawk missiles into Syria in retaliation to a chemical weapons attack by the Syrian government on its citizens. “That’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us to participate in something like that,” she said. “So that was really cool.” At UNC, Wardius participated in the Richard A. Baddour Leadership Academy and graduated from the Rising Stars program,
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which provides future leaders with insights, strategies and skills necessary to become effective leaders. She said she uses the lessons she learned from the Leadership Academy in her current position. “We talked a lot at the Leadership Academy about the importance of communication, which is always critical in any job,” Wardius said. “But especially as a leader, I lead my team, my division of sailors, making sure that I’m very clear on my expectations for them and what we can accomplish together. “That is kind of what we were trying to do at the Leadership Academy in trying to make sure we’re all on the same page and working toward the same goal and maximizing our efforts there.” Much of Wardius’ success as a rower was based on teamwork. And that continues to be the case. Surface warfare officers are assigned divisions, and Wardius said she leads hers. Because she can’t keep watch for 24 hours each day of a deployment, she has to trust the sailors in her division to tell her if they recognize something is wrong. When she is standing watch, typically from the bridge, she needs to communicate effectively with the other sailors. In those instances, she relies on her student-athlete experience the most. “You can kind of see some very serious examples of breakdowns in teamwork for the incidents that happened to Navy ships in the last couple of years with the collisions that we’ve very unfortunately experienced,” she said. “It’s our job, when you stand as officer of the deck, which is kind of where our main watch station is, you’re the captain’s representative. “You’re driving the ship, you’re in charge of the ship, making sure that in the middle of the night you’re keeping all 300 sailors on board based on what you’re doing and how you’re maneuvering the ship. And you can’t do that by yourself. So you need a strong team behind you, people who are willing to speak up. “I think that teamwork and really having that strong foundation, being able to apply for four years at Carolina and now here, I think that’s really helped me a lot.”
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FIRST PERSON
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‘What it means to be Born & Bred’
and would recharge my batteries for the days to come. The greatest honor of my life was the time I wore our That connection also allowed me to maintain my ties to nation’s uniform as an Airman for more than 16 years. Carolina. When my time in the military was coming to a Being in the military inherently meant that I would be away close due to medical retirement because of multiple back from home and that I would constantly seek connections surgeries, some of the biggest support that I received during with the comforts that tied me to my roots of growing up in my application process came from the athletic department North Carolina and being a die-hard Tar Heel fan. Some of and The Rams Club. Without the constant connections the best friendships that I made during my time in uniform to UNC through “Born & Bred,” I am not sure I would have were started simply by seeing someone with an interlocking felt as though I belonged at Carolina NC on their car or wearing the most as a 39-year-old Air Force retiree. I am beautiful shade of blue. Cultivating now in the midst of a dream being an those relationships would allow me to undergrad at the University of North feel like I had a part of home with me no “Through membership in Carolina, working as an intern in matter where I was in the world. The Rams Club, I was happy to athletics and living out what it means to One of those bonds is actually what be Born and Bred. led me to becoming a member of see that there are benefits that The Rams Club. I met Patrick Hafel, enabled me to feel those ties back a Goldsboro native, while we were to home. As a fan, I would look stationed at Cannon Air Force Base in Clovis, New Mexico. Cannon Air Force for stories that went beyond the Base is a small installation of only typical sports sites. Finding these 2,200 people. So connection with Pat articles and tidbits of material was a breath of fresh air amidst the tumbleweeds and wind of Eastern New would make me feel linked back Mexico. with Carolina. While under the He was the only person that I had stress of combat and missing met at that point that was as much of a UNC fan as me. When the conversation home, these connections would be got around to how we supported the a boost to my morale.” University, The Rams Club came up. He had been a longtime member and questioned my true fandom because I was not. I quickly had to remedy that failure on my part. Through membership in The Rams Club, I was happy to see that there are benefits that enabled me to feel those ties back to home. As a fan, I would look for stories that went beyond the typical sports sites. Finding these articles and tidbits of material would make me feel linked back with Carolina. While under the stress of combat and missing home, CHRIS YOUNG these connections would be a boost to my morale. Snail mail UNC Class of 2020 delivery was always one of the best days when downrange Illustration by Jason McCorkle and “Born & Bred” was one of the things that I would consistently wait to arrive in the mail each month. Reading articles would give me what I felt like was a peek behind the scenes in the athletic department. That time reading would also be a mental escape from the environment that I was in
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BORN & BRED
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CAROLINA INSIDER PODCAST HOSTED BY JONES ANGELL AND ADAM LUCAS
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BORN & BRED
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