Speeches

Keynote Speech at the Retirement Ceremony for Lieutenant Commander Edmund Rossiter Sawtelle by Franklin L. Lavin - U.S. Ambassador to Singapore

April 18, 2002

Professor Lui Pao Chuen , Chief Defense Scientist, Dr. Tham Meng Kiat, President, Rotary Club of Singapore, distinguished visitors and especially the family of Ross Sawtelle, we are gathered today to honor Lieutenant Commander Edmund Rossiter Sawtelle. Today is his day. It is a day that started almost 24 years ago, when Midshipman Fourth Class Sawtelle reported to the U.S. Naval Academy for Plebe Summer on July 6th 1978. Four years later on May 28th 1982, his family accompanied by his grandfather Mayor Hilding Hjelmberg from Katrinehoim Sweden and his grandmother Mary Sawtelle, from Dayton Ohio, celebrated his commissioning by Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger. There are some of us here who weren't even born yet, when you received your commission.

Ross, you have had an impressive career. You have not shirked any duty, and in fact have intentionally taken jobs that flourished under your unique talents. I echo Quek Tong Boon, Chief Executive of Defense Science Organization National Labs, when he said in recent correspondence, Ross, "you have certainly made a difference to the strengthening of relationships between the various US Navy agencies and DSO in recent years."

It's a long way from doing push-ups in the rain of Annapolis to your duty station here in Singapore. Along the way you were a Commissioning Communications Officer aboard USS WHIDBEY ISLAND, Operations Officer on USS MAHLON S. TISDALE, Combat Systems Officer on USS TARAWA, a Flag Lieutenant twice to Rear Admiral Paul Reason, as well as a Navigator, a Public Affairs Officer and Security Officer. But here in Singapore we remember you as Mr. CARAT, which I will explain to the uninitiated here is not a vegetable but a Navy acronym for Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training. CARAT is the premier U.S. Naval exercise in Southeast Asia. It involves over 5,000 sailors and Marines in a series of exercises including with the U.S. and seven nations in the region. In fact, there are three of the four Mr. CARAT's in the audience today, and soon there will be a fifth. But Ross, you were the one who started this series of complex exercises some eight years ago and over the years it has emerged into the most important dimension of our military presence in the region, building professionalism, interoperability, and friendships. For your good work on CARAT alone, many people will be eternally grateful. I think that the Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal and the two Navy Achievement medals that you received during those four years from four different commands acknowledge the commitment and devotion that you gave in birthing CARAT. At one point, you told me that you had 54 stamps in your passport from those four years. Even leaving aside the three 2 month CARAT cruise embarkations, this would have averaged about a trip every three weeks for four years straight. Many of us travel, but I doubt that there is anyone in the audience that has kept up that type of travel schedule. And Ross, despite those many absences, you still had the time to start a family during this time, for which many of us we are also grateful.

You took the time out of your busy schedule to court Pamela Collins, propose to her in Hong Kong, and marry her in San Diego in 1993. And as I look out into the audience this afternoon, I see your wonderful children Danielle and David, I see you mother, Anna Kristina Sawtelle who traveled from Maine, your uncle Lars Hjelmberg who traveled from Sweden, and about another hundred of your friends from the US Embassy, US Navy, the Singapore military, EDO Corporation, Singapore Rotary, and International Baptist Church who have kindly offered to dignify this occasion with their presence.

Allow me to end with something RADM Jon Davis, Program Executive Officer Submarines wrote to me in a letter earlier this year. "I take this opportunity to recognize LCDR Sawtelle's outstanding contribution to our submarine community in Singapore. I am impressed by the extensive network that he has built of mutually beneficial and respectful relationships throughout the region, and specifically within Singapore. His in-depth understanding of our Singaporean allies, and his genuine interest in representing the interest of the United States Navy and the United States Embassy to the best of his abilities, has significantly furthered the interest of the US Navy and increased our opportunities in Singapore." Lieutenant Commander Sawtelle, we -- the United States Embassy, the United States Navy and the Republic of Singapore Armed Forces -- will miss your hard work, your insight and your candor. You leave to start a second career with the EDO Corporation, one of America's leading technology firms, where you will be able to build on your distinguished career and continue to work with friends and colleagues from around the region. Fair Winds and Following Seas to you and your family as you begin another segment of your life. Bravo Zulu, Ross.