PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii –
Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PHNSY & IMF) Command Master Chief (CMDCM) James Roger Schneider retired from the Navy after just under 29 years of dedicated service at a ceremony Friday, 21 September 2018, at The USS Bowfin Memorial on Pearl Harbor.
Family members, friends and shipmates attended the ceremony to honor and bid fair winds and following seas to Schneider, whose naval career began December 1989.
Schneider, a native of Georgia, began his military career at Great Lakes, Illinois, in February 1990 and went on to Basic Enlisted Submarine School in Groton, Connecticut.
In 1990 Schneider reported aboard his first submarine USS ASHEVILLE (SSN 758) in May 1990 where he completed a Western Pacific deployment. He attended Auxiliary “C” school in Charleston, South Carolina, in November 1990.
During his next sea tour aboard USS BREMERTON (SSN 698), while serving as the Diver Division and Auxiliary Division Leading Petty Officer, he was advanced to the rank of Chief Petty Officer. During this tour, he completed three Western Pacific deployments. His next sea duty assignment was aboard USS KEY WEST (SSN 722) where he completed two Western Pacific deployments and earned the Battle “E” for Submarine Squadron THREE.
“We can’t do it alone. We need our shipmates and teamwork to survive in the harshest environment of the ocean,” added Schneider.
Schneider, a former navy diver, submarine warfare certified and submarine specialist joined the crew serving as the Chief of the Boat of USS JACKSONVILLE (SSN 699) from August 2009 to June 2012. During his time onboard, the command completed its first ever Western Pacific deployment and earned the Battle “E” for Submarine Squadron THREE for 2010 and the Deck Seamanship “D” for 2009 and 2010.
Selected for the Command Master Chief program in 2012 he completed a successful CMC tour onboard the USS FRANK CABLE (AS 40). During his tenure the ship earned the 2014 Battle “E” for SUBPAC.
Capt. Greg D. Burton, the ceremony's presiding officer, presented Schneider with the Meritorious Service Medal for superior performance as PHNSY & IMF’s command master chief from July 2015 to September 2018.
Schneider also presented with a traditional shadow box filled with personal awards and military
keepsakes that will serve as a remembrance of his naval career, had a few words of encouragement and advice to pass onto the future leaders of the nation.
“Strive every day to do your best and be your best,” expressed Schneider.
Command Master Chief Armon Owens, raised in Atlanta, Georgia has now assumed the senior enlisted position from Schneider. Owens reported to PHNSY & IMF from serving onboard the USS HELENA (SSN-725) as the Chief of the Boat. During his tenure, the command completed its first ever North Atlantic deployment and earned HELENA’s first ever Battle “E” awards for Submarine Squadron SIX (2015 and 2017). HELENA was also awarded the 2017 Retention Excellence Award.
On May 13, 1908, Congress approved legislation that established what would become a national treasure “Navy Yard Pearl Harbor.” Since then, PHNSY & IMF has grown from a coaling and repair station to the best or “No Ka Oi” Naval Shipyard – strategically important to our nation and equally vital to the State of Hawaii.
Additional information on PHNSY & IMF can be found on Facebook:
Facebook at www.facebook.com/PearlHarborNavalShipyard