SEATTLE — Two Pacific Northwest-based Coast Guard petty officers were chosen as the 2015 active-duty enlisted person of the year and reserve enlisted person of the year for the 13th Coast Guard District during a recognition banquet Friday, at Coast Guard Base Seattle.
Petty Officer 1st Class Jaimee Baker, a yeoman assigned to Coast Guard Base Seattle and Petty Officer 1st Class David Haye, a reserve maritime enforcement specialist assigned to Coast Guard Port Security Unit 313, in Everett, were selected as the EPOY and REPOY, respectively.
Haye has gone above and beyond the requirements of his billet as lead coxswain of the PSU Waterside Division. He was responsible for developing and implementing an aggressive training agenda ensuring 45 members were fully mission ready for a 9-month deployment to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. As the senior maritime enforcement specialist in the waterside division, Haye led 47 personnel in obtaining vital warfare skill sets including: tactical gunners, tactical crewmembers and tactical coxswains.
Haye is one of a small contingent of personnel assigned to PSU 313 that has deployed to Kuwait and Iraq in 2011 in support of Operation New Dawn, South Korea in 2013 for Operation Foal Eagle training exercise, and to Guantanamo Bay in 2015 for Operation Freedom Sentinel
Baker has been heavily involved in local community events, and she established a monthly department wide volunteer schedule with Northwest Harvest food bank, assisting more than 400 people each shift. She alleviated stress for those in difficult substance abuse situations by offering her undivided support and encouragement and spent over 50 hours volunteering at a crisis line center for suicide awareness and support.
Baker is also enrolled in City University of Seattle pursuing a doctorate in psychology.
The EPOY program recognizes exceptional men and women in the Coast Guard’s enlisted workforce who are top performers. These individuals are selected by a panel of senior enlisted members who evaluate each nominee against a set of established criteria that includes performance, work ethics, military bearing, standards of conduct and a strong community service commitment.
These regional winners are eligible for national honors along with their peers from other Coast Guard regions across the nation.
