Charles Luther Calhoun (April 20, 1925 – February 24, 2002) was an American military enlisted man who served briefly in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and then in the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

where he would rise to become the first

Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard The master chief petty officer of the Coast Guard (MCPOCG) is the senior enlisted member of the U.S. Coast Guard and the principal advisor to the commandant of the Coast Guard on all enlisted personnel matters. The holder of this position is ...

Biography

Charles Calhoun was born April 20, 1925, in

Ocean City, Maryland Ocean City, officially the Town of Ocean City, is an Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic resort city in Worcester County, Maryland, Worcester County, Maryland, along the East Coast of the United States. The population was 6,844 at the 2020 United States c ...

, and lived very close to the

coast A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...

throughout his childhood. His grandfather was a commercial fisherman who taught Calhoun how to fish as a boy. He joined the

in 1943 at the age of 17 and was trained as a torpedoman. He served on the in the

Pacific Ocean theater of World War II The Pacific Ocean theater of World War II was a major theater of the Pacific War, the war between the Allies and the Empire of Japan. It included the U.S. Pacific Ocean Areas (command). which included most of the Pacific Ocean and its isl ...

. He participated in many of the bloodiest battles of the theater, including the battles of

Leyte Gulf Leyte Gulf, also known simply as the Leyte, is a gulf in the Eastern Visayan region in the Philippines. The bay is part of the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, and is bounded by two islands; Samar in the north and Leyte in the west. On the ...

Luzon Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...

Iwo Jima is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands, which lie south of the Bonin Islands and together with them make up the Ogasawara Subprefecture, Ogasawara Archipelago. Together with the Izu Islands, they make up Japan's Nanpō Islands. Although sout ...

, and

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

. The ''Lunga Points crew received the

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy and United States Coast Guard unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy A navy, naval force, military m ...

for "extraordinary heroism and action against enemy Japanese forces in the air, ashore, and afloat" following a

kamikaze , officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...

attack on the ship. Calhoun was honorably discharged from the Navy on February 21, 1946.

Coast Guard

Calhoun returned to Ocean City and worked in the post office for a short period, but enlisted in the

with a friend on September 20, 1946. He enlisted at the rank of Boatswain's Mate Second Class due to his Navy experience. His first assignment was to a small station in Ocean City. There he saved a man who had fallen from a

jetty A jetty is a man-made structure that protrudes from land out into water. A jetty may serve as a breakwater (structure), breakwater, as a walkway, or both; or, in pairs, as a means of constricting a channel. The term derives from the French la ...

into the water and broken his hip. Calhoun was awarded the

Commandant's Letter of Commendation Ribbon The Commandant's Letter of Commendation Ribbon is a personal military award of the United States Coast Guard. The award was established in March 1979 by Admiral John B. Hayes. Criteria The Commandant's Letter of Commendation Ribbon is awarded to ...

for the rescue. He would later serve with

Coast Guard Squadron One Coast Guard Squadron One, also known in official message traffic as COGARDRON ONE or RONONE, was a combat unit formed by the United States Coast Guard in 1965 for service during the Vietnam War. Placed under the operational control of the Unit ...

aboard the during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. The cutter sighted and fought enemies on her first patrol, making the ''Point Orient'' the first Coast Guard cutter to fire shots in the Vietnam War. Charles Calhoun Nixon sm

Calhoun learned of the creation of the new office,

(MCPOCG), while working as a career counselor. Calhoun sent in an application for the job, and centered his application essay on his belief that the office should be used to promote communication between enlisted sailors and their command. He was accepted and was made the first MCPOCG by then-

Commandant of the Coast Guard Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

Willard J. Smith on August 27, 1969. He undertook numerous projects during his tenure in the office, including working on the board that led to the creation of the Cutterman Insignia, implementing a program of local advisors who reported to the MCPOCG office to hear enlisted personnel issues, and beginning the movement towards the Coast Guard wearing their own style of uniform rather than Navy uniforms with a few defining patches and pins. Calhoun retired from the MCPOCG position on August 1, 1973. He would eventually die in

Santa Rosa, California Santa Rosa (Spanish language, Spanish for "Rose of Lima, Saint Rose") is a city in and the county seat of Sonoma County, California, Sonoma County, in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay A ...

on February 24, 2002.

Awards and decorations

*7 gold service stripes.

Legacy

In October 2019, the current Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard

Jason M. Vanderhaden Jason M. Vanderhaden is a retired Master Chief Petty Officer of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 13th Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard from May 17, 2018 to May 19, 2022. As MCPOCG, Vanderhaden served as the principal ad ...

announced that

Admiral

Karl L. Schultz Karl Leo Schultz is a retired United States Coast Guard Admiral (United States), admiral who served as the 26th Commandant of the Coast Guard from 2018 to 2022. Early life and education Schultz is a native of East Hartford, Connecticut. He gradu ...

had selected Charles L. Calhoun as the namesake for the tenth

National Security Cutter The Legend-class cutter, also known as the National Security Cutter (NSC) and Maritime Security Cutter, Large, is the largest active patrol cutter (boat), cutter class of the United States Coast Guard, with the size of a frigate. Entering into s ...

References

;Citations ;References cited
Calhoun's official Coast Guard bio and eulogy
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Calhoun, Charles L. 1925 births 2002 deaths Master Chief Petty Officers of the Coast Guard People from Ocean City, Maryland Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Navy non-commissioned officers United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Coast Guard personnel of the Vietnam War Military personnel from Maryland