WASHINGTON, D.C. — Master Chief Petty Officer Steven W. Cantrell is scheduled to assume the duties of the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard during a change-of-watch ceremony at 10 a.m. Thursday May 22, 2014 at Coast Guard Training Center Cape May, N.J.
During the ceremony, overseen by Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Robert J. Papp Jr., Cantrell will relieve Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Michael P. Leavitt to become the 12th MCPOCG.
At the conclusion of the change-of-watch ceremony, Leavitt, who assumed duties as the 11th MCPOCG on May 21, 2010, will retire to his home state of Idaho after over 32 years of Coast Guard service.
Cantrell is reporting from his previous assignment as command master chief of Coast Guard Atlantic Area.
The Office of the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard was established by legislative action on Aug. 27, 1969 to provide the commandant of the Coast Guard with a personal advisor and assistant in matters affecting the enlisted members of the service, both active-duty and reserve, and their families. The MCPOCG is the most senior enlisted member of the Coast Guard. The normal tour of assignment is four years, which runs concurrently with the commandant. The MCPOCG must be a living example of the Coast Guard’s core values of honor, respect, and devotion to duty. Individuals who are selected to serve in this prestigious position must possess the highest standards of professionalism and personal integrity.
The responsibilities and activities of the MCPOCG include: assisting in the development of policy for managing the enlisted workforce of the Coast Guard; traveling to units to address service members on quality of life and personnel issues; formal testimonials before Congress; representing enlisted quality of life issues by speaking to various civilian and military committees and forums; and maintaining a strong relationship with service organizations and companies that support enlisted personnel issues.
The MCPOCG works closely with his senior enlisted counterparts in the Department of Defense — the sergeant major of the Army, the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy, the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, and the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force — as well as numerous other government and non-government organizations around the world.
This event is not open to the public.
