Clinton resident promoted to Chief Petty Officer
U.S. Navy Equipment Operator 1st Class Dennis Hill, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133, and Equipment Operator 2nd Class Joseph Self, Well Water Instructor for Naval Construction Group 2, review the water well operation.
About a month ago, Equipment Operator 1st Class Dennis Hill, from Clinton, Tennessee, found out he would be referred to as “Chief Select.” He recently deployed in support of Southern Partnership Station’s (SPS) water-well drilling exploration project. He began wearing the rate of Chief Petty Officer on Sept. 15, 2018.
Chief Equipment Operator Hill demonstrates the hallmarks of what it means to be a chief.
“I am very honored. It’s a humbling experience making it to this point,” said Hill. “A sacrifice of a lot of people, not just me, but my family, my wife, all the things the troops have done to make things successful. There’s a lot of hard work and people believe in you.”
Hill joined the Navy following high school in August of 1999, and throughout his career, he has constructed nearly 40 water wells. The expertise Hill was able to bring to this project is remarkable, according to his team of Seabees.
“To me, experience is a better resource than fundamentals,” said Construction Mechanic 2nd Class Hunter Patterson. “You can go to school and learn as much as you can about drilling a well, but without experience, you won’t be successful.”
Aside from being the subject matter expert, a chief petty officer takes on a more significant role. The chief is the leader. The chief knows the answer. The chief is the mentor to those of the most junior rank to the most senior rank.
“I feel honored when the sailors come to me with a question they could have asked someone else,” said Hill. “They know that I will provide them the right answer or be able to find it.”
A lot of sailors may say they stayed in the Navy because of the people they’ve served with. Hill indicated that the people have kept him in the Navy so long.
“It’s the people,” Hill added. “Yeah, I love being a Seabee. I love the job, but the troops, they’re why I stayed.”
Throughout the water-well construction project, Hill has been an inspiration to his team and has truly lead the team to success. He has not only been an integral piece to Southern Partnership Station, but has made a lasting impact on his sailor’s lives.
“Chief Hill, to me, he’s kind of like a dad the way he holds us to a standard. The way he leads us, he instills in us sort of a ‘we have to win’ type of standard,” said Patterson. “He is molding us into becoming leaders and in being the best we can be. Chief Hill is the best leader I’ve ever worked with.”
No matter where Hill is, he provides leadership, guidance and expertise. Location or situation doesn’t dictate when a chief is a leader. It’s a 24 hours a day, seven days a week lifestyle. He’s a leader in their homeport of Gulfport, Mississippi. He’s a leader all the way down in Riohacha, Colombia conducting humanitarian relief efforts.
“Seabees are great at humanitarian relief. It’s kind of where we fit in, off the grid type of missions. It’s been an experience for the guys, embarkation on two different ships, convoy across the country, and the well-site set up,” said Hill. “We took the rig from Gulfport, came to Colombia, drilled a well, and now we are taking it home with us. It’s pretty much the whole package put into one. It’s been a great experience.”