When I found out I was to be reassigned as Division Supervisor of a new post, I initially fought it. I was not interested in re-learning a whole new system and being put in charge with only two weeks left. I wanted to stay with what I was accustomed to. Let's face it -- I didn't want a challenge. I was going to be in charge of a 1st Class Petty Officer and a Chief (both outranking me; I was a 2nd Class at the time), along with over 60 contractor personnel, assigned to oversee the cleanup and protection of Breton Island, the most environmentally sensitive area of our jurisdiction, with an impending encroachment of oil coming in from the south. This island was home to tens of thousands of birds of all types, especially pelicans. The Dept. of Fish and Wildlife were frequently on-scene, and in fact had full access to the island, while my team had limited shore access. Essentially, anything that happened around the island was my call, with on-island access being limited to Fish and Wildlife due to the sensitive nature of the island.
Needless to say, I took the assignment. On the one hand, after thinking about it, and talking with my wife back home, I finally warmed up to the idea and realized this was a chance for me to show some leadership. My supervisor told me that I had a strong track record with the Section Chief and that I was specifically chosen for this assignment because of my knowledge and expertise. I'm not saying this to brag, but to explain how this helped convince me to take on the task. Also, I had no choice.
Breton Island proved to be difficult and stressful, but it was also rewarding. Overnight, I went from assisting with supervising a crew of two to leading as the supervisor of 60. The best part of this time was that the storms had passed, and for my last ten days we had clear blue skies. This meant we were able to get a lot of work done without it being reversed by the weather. I think my biggest fear going into this assignment was supervising Coast Guard personnel who outranked me, and coming across as if I didn't know what I was doing. But my six weeks already being there seemed to pay off, and I fell into the routine fairly easily. A few of the boat crew people were a little obnoxious with their sense of humor, but once we got accustomed to each other I enjoyed working with them.
The best part of my time in Breton Island, and Louisiana in general, was learning how to make decisions in the field, and being confident in my expertise and experience that I could make the right call, without having to ask somebody else for guidance. The biggest experience I can point to regarding decision making was when the Incident Commander (this is the person in charge of the whole operation in Venice) made a spot check of our island, and with her standing right next to me, I made an order of vessels and contractor personnel to relocate based on the needs of the wildlife. I did this without consulting with the IC, because I knew this was the thing to do, and I explained this to her. I had a chance to meet with her a few times before I left Louisiana, and she always expressed appreciation for my leadership and service to Breton Island and the operation in general.
A few weeks ago, I saw Jeff Corwin on TV(who I met while I was in Venice when he came to our operation) visiting Breton Island. I was happy to see that the island was completely clean and all the boom had been removed two years later.
