SEATTLE — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star will hold a change-of-command Thursday at Coast Guard Base Seattle followed by a retirement ceremony for the departing commanding officer.
Capt. Micheal J. Davanzo, will take over command of the Cutter Polar Star from Capt. Matthew R. Walker.
Following the change of command will be Walker’s retirement ceremony. Walker retires from the Coast Guardafter 34 years that included commanding officer positions for the Coast Guard Cutters Manitou,Steadfast and the Polar Star.Under Walker’s command, the Polar Star achieved the following accomplishments during Operation DeepFreeze 2015:
In February, 2015 the cutter freed the fishing vessel Antarctic Chieftain stranded in ice 900 milesnorthwest of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. Polar Star took the vessel in a stern tow surrounded by 12 to15 feet of thickened ice covered in two feet of snow.The Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft recognized three enlisted crewmembers for theiringenuity and stamina repairing the cutter’s generators with a surfboard kit and round-the- clock weldingbrackets in the engine room. Without these critical repairs to the aging engine, the cutter would havebeen unable to complete its Antarctic support mission.The change of command ceremony is a time-honored tradition which formally restates the continuity ofcommand will be maintained and is a formal ritual conducted before the assembled company of command. Itconveys to the officers, enlisted members, civilian employees and auxiliary members of the Coast Guard thatalthough the authority of command is relinquished by a leader and is assumed by another, it is still maintainedwithout interruption.
Media interested in attending the event please contact the Coast Guard 13th District Public Affairs office at 206-220-7327 and plan on showing up to the event no later than 9:45 a.m.