Retired Navy Region Operations Director Reflects on 50 Years of Naval and Civic Service

A former Navy salvage diver, Morrissey retired last month from his role as director of operations for Commander, Navy Region Hawaii (CNRH) on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH), capping off a 17-year career as a Navy civilian, 30 years as an active-duty service member and four years as a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy. Morrissey is proud of his 51 years with the Navy and emphasized the ongoing importance of the service and its mission:
 
“The Navy does the nation’s business,” he said. “The armed services, we’re the people who protect the sovereignty of the nation and the values that the nation represents. That’s the thing I try and remember all the time: ships, submarines, airplanes, and the people that are taking them into combat. Those are the people that should be 100% of the focus in everything we do every day.”
 
As director of operations, Morrissey oversaw the operations of the Federal Fire Department, Port and Air Operations, Force Protection, Safety Operations, Emergency Management, and the CNRH explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) Detachment.

Originally from Silverdale, Washington, Morrissey graduated in 1977 from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and worked as a Surface Warfare Officer for about three years before transitioning to a special operations officer. He specialized in mixed gas deep sea diving and salvage, which could take him to depths of 190 feet underwater on air or about 300 feet using mixed gas to recover submerged aircraft or ships.
 
Morrissey said that the people dedicated to accomplishing the mission made his time as a leader and salvage diver worthwhile:
 
“The most rewarding part was the people I worked with over the years. I dealt with a lot of different people: good people doing the nation’s business. You knew you were doing something worthwhile all the time,” he recalled.
 
Salvage operational missions had Morrissey diving all over the world including off the coast of England and in the Atlantic at various points along the east coast, but Hawaii came to hold a special place in Morrissey’s heart. Morrissey completed three tours in Hawaii and he and his family were determined to make the Islands their permanent home.
 
During one of his Hawaii tours, Morrissey served as the commanding officer of Mobile Diving Salvage Unit 1. On another, he was the commanding officer of Naval Magazine Lualualei (which became Naval Magazine Pearl Harbor). His last Hawaii tour was as a staff officer at United States Pacific Command (now United States Indo-Pacific Command) for the J3, which involved planning, coordinating, and managing operations.
 
These rewarding experiences didn’t come without sacrifice; Morrissey sometimes missed valuable time with his family.
 
“One of my daughters was born while I was gone,” he explained. “You’re away. That’s the nature of the business particularly in the Navy when you get a number of deployments.”
 
During those times, Morrissey relied on his wife to take care of the family, and he thanked her for her raising their four children – a boy and three girls – who also share his dedication to service: His son is a Navy doctor in Portsmouth, Virginia; his eldest daughter is a Navy pilot who flies the P-8 Poseidon, a maritime patrol aircraft; his second daughter is a military dentist who works at the Naval Branch Health Clinic Makalapa and at Camp Smith; and his youngest daughter is a veterinarian who practices in Denver, Colorado.
 
Despite the sacrifices, Morrissey doesn’t regret joining the Navy. He had his heart set on becoming a Sailor from an early age.
 
“Being around the Navy, I saw what the Navy did to contribute to the security and safety of the nation and that became something I wanted to be, to do,” he recalled.
 
Morrissey said it was his father who inspired him to become a Sailor. The elder Morrissey was a hospital corpsman who joined the Navy when he was 17 at the end of World War II and retired as a chief petty officer after one tour in Vietnam.
 
When the younger Morrissey retired from active duty and joined the CNRH operations department as deputy director, he immediately noticed the “topsy-turvy” nature of job. His daily schedule could change in an instant depending on operational needs, and constant technological advancements meant that the enemy could strike quickly, and at any time, so he always had to be ready.
 
“You can’t afford to be unprepared,” he said. “An enemy can be off your shores in a heartbeat. You can’t rely on the fact that you’re going to have months or longer to get ready for something.”
 
Unpredictability aside, Morrissey found his job rewarding. Among the highlights during his tenure were managing operations for the Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC), the world’s largest maritime drill held every two years in the waters around the Hawaiian Islands, and managing the operational response to the Red Hill fuel spill and corresponding cleanup efforts.
 
Morrissey said he loved serving in the Navy – as both a Sailor and a civilian.
 
“Since the time I raised my right hand, it’s been over 50 years doing the Navy thing,” he said. “It’s been my privilege. It’s what I wanted to do. It’s what I love and so I’m one of those lucky people that got to do what they loved.”