Depot employees earn their sheepskins

By Bill Bartkus
NAVAIR Depot North Island

CORONADO, Calif. – Presenting the NAVAIR Depot North Island Class of 04!

This year, nine employees earned their baccalaureate degrees, and three completed their studies to earn their master’s degrees. They challenged themselves to work during the day and attend evening and weekend classes to see their goal come to fruition. They have earned their college sheepskins.

They proudly wore their caps and gowns and walked down the aisle and graduated from fine schools of higher learning such as the University of San Diego, University of California San Diego, National University, San Diego State University, and the University of Phoenix.

Andrew Bechtel earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering from SDSU and was the program’s outstanding graduate. He plans to work on a Master’s Degree in Aerospace Engineering from SDSU. “Earning my degree is a achievement for a lifetime,” he said. “The nearly five years of hard work was the hardest obstacle in my life.” To him, his degree has unlimited uses. “I am using the knowledge that I learned in college in nearly everything that I work on at the Depot.”

Kathy Garcia is an aircraft supervisory industrialist specialist at the Test Line. She attributes her drive to success to her parents and her children. “My parents taught me to follow through a project to its completion, and through my actions, I have passed this example on to my children,” she said. Garcia earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Phoenix. “My degree has assisted me in augmenting my hands on experience with formal management training,” she said. Garcia plans to pursue a master’s in business administration.

For Dinah Goodspeed, the road to a four-year degree took her long eight years because she worked full-time and attended college part-time. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix, and she plans to begin her master’s program on project management in the fall. “Earning my degree has been a challenge that I have wanted to achieve for a number of years. With my degree, I believe that I have achieved another step toward ‘being ready’ when an opportunity comes my way,” she said. “Equally important, I will be better prepared in meeting challenges in my current assignment. Goodspeed is a training specialist.

Gabriel Patterson, an F/A-18 structures liaison engineer, received his four-year degree from SDSU. His road to his degree took him six years, and he owes his success to his parents “who always forced me to go in the right direction,” he said. Patterson is the first person in his family to earn a bachelor’s degree. “I plan to use my experience to reach out and help my family and community become more educated on how college may help them to become future leaders,” he stated. He plans to pursue a master’s degree with SDSU in either business or engineering.

“Earning my degree means an opportunity to continue challenging myself for demanding positions within the Depot,” said Shane Barfoot. Barfoot received a Bachelor’s Degree in Information Technology Management from National University in 2.5 years and plans to work on a master’s degree in about a year. “I attribute my drive to succeed to my own personal motivation and dedication that I gained from the encouragement of a variety of excellent mentors who I encountered during my naval career,” Barfoot said. He served in the Navy for 28 years first as an aviation electronics technician and then as an avionics officer.

“My drive to succeed comes from my parents and my training as a Marine as well as consistent encouragement from my husband and my need to set the example for my children,” said Juvonnie Kinchen-Schneider. The public affairs specialist earned her bachelor’s degree in three years with the University of Phoenix. “Earning my degree means that I have fulfilled one of my many life’s goals, that my children have one more thing to be proud of, and that I can take advantage of more lucrative opportunities with regard to my career,” she said. “I plan to use this degree and subsequent degrees as stepping stones to fulfill other personal goals.” She plans to start work on earning an MBA in the fall at the same university.

Adam Kimmerly, an aerospace engineer, earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from UCSD in three years after attending a community college for three years. He plans to continue working for NAVAIR and start a master’s program next year. “Encouragement from my family and friends inspired me to work towards my bachelor’s degree,” Kimmerly said.

Ron Cobb said that he took one class at a time and didn’t look ahead to see how many classes remained for him to earn a bachelor’s degree from the University of Phoenix. It took the deputy program manager for the H-53 and H-1 Intermediate Maintenance Concept product lines 3.5 years to earn his much coveted sheepskin. “Having a degree helps me become a better manager, giving formal training to supplement my hands on experience at the Depot,” Cobb said. He is undecided on his future educational plans. “I might take a year of two off before I consider going back to college,” he said.

The Depot Class of 04 also includes George Werner IV with the Industrial Logistics Support Office, who earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management with the University of Phoenix.

Three employees completed graduate school to earn their master’s degrees. They include Linda Garcia, from the University of San Diego; Jeffrey Calalay, from National University; and Bernadette Chudy, from the University of Phoenix.

NAVAIR provides cost-wise readiness and dominant maritime combat power to make a great Navy and Marine Corps team better.