Submarine tender USS Frank Cable (AS 40) earned the retention excellence award Aug. 11 by maintaining and exceeding the standard for Sailors staying in the Navy.
Earning the retention excellence award allows U.S. Navy ships to paint their anchors gold to show off their achievement to the rest of the fleet.
“All career counselors strive for this award,” said Chief Navy Counselor Coleen Seawell, leading chief petty officer for Frank Cable’s career counselor division.
Earning the right to paint the ship’s anchors gold is no easy task. There are many targets to hit and very little room for mistakes, but when push comes to shove, there is one essential task for Seawell and her team to complete.
“The most important thing we can do, as career counselors, is to just inform Sailors of the opportunities they have access to in the Navy that they might not have on the outside,” said Seawell.
Seawell recognized that Frank Cable could not have won the award without Sailors who act as departmental career counselors in addition to their normal job.
Frank Cable, forward deployed to the island of Guam, conducts maintenance and support of submarines and surface vessels deployed in the U.S 7th Fleet area of responsibility.