By Chief Mass Communication Specialist Erica R. Gardner, Navy Office of Community Outreach
Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jackson Brown

SANTA RITA, Guam – A Bowie High School alumnus and 2005 Wicomico High School graduate and Upper Marlboro, Maryland, native has been selected to advance to the rank of chief petty officer in the U.S. Navy aboard Naval Base Guam.

Chief Petty Officer (Select) Troy Hall is a machinist’s mate. A Navy machinist’s mate is responsible for being a mechanic by fixing pumps and air condition equipment.

“The best part of my job is going to new places,” Hall said.

Hall credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned in Upper Marlboro. 

“I have succeeded so far because I try to always stay motivated,” said Hall. “It is not always as bad as it seems.” 

Located approximately 3,300 miles west of Hawaii and 1,500 miles east of the Philippines, Guam is a U.S. territory where its residents are U.S. citizens. The island is about 36 miles long, 6 to 12 miles wide and in many ways is an all-American community. 

Naval Base Guam is the home of Commander, Naval Forces Marianas, Commander Submarine Squadron 15, Coast Guard Sector Guam and Naval Special Warfare Unit ONE and supports 28 other tenant commands. It is also the home base of three Los Angeles-class submarines and both of the Navy’s submarine tenders, USS Emory S. Land and USS Frank Cable, as well as dozens of units operating in support of U.S. Pacific Command, US Pacific Fleet, 7th Fleet and 5th Fleet.

According to officials at the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet headquarters in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the ships, submarines, aircraft and Navy personnel forward-deployed to Guam are part of the world’s largest fleet command and serve in a region critical to U.S. national security. The U.S. Pacific Fleet encompasses 100 million square miles, nearly half the Earth’s surface, from Antarctica to the Arctic Circle and from the West Coast of the United States into the Indian Ocean. All told, there are more than 200 ships and submarines, nearly 1,200 aircraft, and more than 130,000 uniformed and civilian personnel serving in the Pacific.

A sailor can only be advanced to chief petty officer after review by a selection board of serving senior and master chief petty officers, in effect “choosing their own.” Advancement to the chief petty officer grades marks the most significant milestone within the enlisted naval ranks.

Hall is most proud of being selected for chief and being Sailor of the Year in 2016.

“Achieving this took a lot of molding for me,” Hall said. “I was guided and molded by my mentors.”

As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied upon assets, Hall and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes, one that will provide a critical component of the Navy the nation needs.

“Serving in the Navy means that no matter what challenge you face, you have to press through as a team,” Hall said.