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NEW YORK — Coast Guard Station New York held a change of command ceremony in Staten Island, New York, Wednesday.
Lt. Cmdr. Bill Walsh, who took command of Station New York in July 2012, was relieved of his duties and responsibilities by Lt. Cmdr. Garrett Meyer. Meyer most recently served as the aide de camp for the Commander of the 13th District in Seattle, Washington.
Walsh is scheduled to execute orders to U.S. Southern Command in July 2015, where he will serve as the Regional Security Assistance officer for the Caribbean. In this role, Walsh will provide oversight and coordination of foreign military sales to 13 Caribbean nations.
With more than 140 active duty and reserve personnel, Station New York is the largest and busiest coastal multi-mission boat station in the Coast Guard.
Station boat assets log thousands of hours every year conducting homeland security, law enforcement and search and rescue missions in the waters of New York Harbor, around Staten Island, the Port of Newark, N.J., the East River, the lower Hudson River, Jamaica Bay and a portion of the lower New York Harbor below the Verrazano Narrows Bridge.
The change of command ceremony is a time-honored naval tradition, which formally acknowledges the transfer of responsibility, authority and accountability from one individual to another.