Mustang chapter forms at NBVC

Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) will soon be the home of the newest Mustang Association chapter in the United States.

The Mustang Association is for officers who have made the transition from the enlisted ranks and are interested in helping others do the same.

Lt. Javier Lopez-Martinez of the 30th Naval Construction Regiment has been laying the groundwork for a Mustang Association chapter at NBVC for more than a year. Meetings with local area Mustangs were held to develop the chapter’s foundation and bylaws and to frame the mission and vision. That led to the appointment of an interim board of directors.

Lt. Cmdr. Jeff Jordan, director of Seabee Readiness at the Civil Engineer Corps Officers School, has been appointed interim president. Other officers are Lt. Cmdr. Keith Morris, NBVC air operations officer, interim vice president; Lt. Yvette Washington, administrative officer at Commander Airborne Command Control and Logistics Wing, treasurer; and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Raymond Walker, administrative officer at Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 3, secretary.

The mission of the Mustang Association is to create a forum to communicate matters of mutual interest, inspire love of sea service and country, and develop camaraderie both socially and professionally.

In addition, members will provide commanding officers at NBVC with a professional network to actively mentor and develop top-performing enlisted personnel. To do this, they plan to support all enlisted-to-officer programs by coordinating and chairing officer commissioning boards for any enlisted commissioning program. They will also provide professional officer development and support community programs and involvement.

Membership in the Mustang Association will be open to all U.S. Navy officers on active duty, in the Reserves, retired, or honorably discharged who, after serving on active duty in the enlisted ranks for a minimum of three years, have risen from enlisted to the officer ranks through an in-service procurement program.

Though many associate the term “Mustang” with officers who are commissioned through the Limited Duty Officer (LDO) and Chief Warrant Officer (CWO) programs, commissioning source is not the primary factor for membership, in fact, all commissioning sources will have eligible “Mustangs.”

To spread the word and to generate interest in membership, there will be a “Mustang Roundup” at 9 a.m. Tuesday, March 5, at the Point Mugu Theater.

All eligible Mustangs are invited to attend and hear firsthand the mission and vision of the Navy Mustangs of Ventura County.

For more information contact Jordan at 805-982-2873 or via email at jeff.g.jordan@navy.mil, or Morris at 805-989-7390 or via email at keith.morris@navy.mil.