Sarita Lee
Object:
Challenge Coin – Keychain
What is:
Traditional coin of Navy Chief Petty Officers
Origin:
Bahrain/ 2015 – when she was initiated as a Chief Petty Officers
Meaning:
Among the different coins that she collects, this specific coin is the most important. It has the three core values of the Navy: honor, courage, and commitment. It means being always faithful to the navy.
Every chief has to carry a coin at all times. The origin of this tradition comes from the 2nd World War when a Navy pilot was shot and saved by the coin that was in his neck.
Fun fact:
If you are in somewhere that you don’t know anyone, you can recognize other chiefs by their coins.
But, be aware! If a group of chiefs goes to a bar, each one of them must tap their coins and if someone is missing her/his coin, she/he must pay a drink for all of the others.
Others coins:
Sarita just came back from the annual initiation, that included the Final Pinning Ceremony (promotion) and she has various coins in her backpack as well. One that is very interesting – and beautiful – is the one from Carl Brashear, the first black navy diver
Highlight:
The coins represent communities and its an representative/ integration artifact. The trading and collection of coins are now part of the navy tradition.
Traveler:
Sarita has so many different stories from personal and professional experiences. In 2015, her initiation year, she lived in the USS Ponce Deployment ship for a whole year and traveled a lot. Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jebel Ali and Djibouti were some of the destinations. She also had to face various challenges, for example, sharing a small sleeping compartment with 14 women in total.