Gulf Breeze native spends Memorial Day honoring fallen military members while serving in the elite Ceremonial Guard
By Lt. Egdanis Torres Sierra, Navy Office of Community Outreach
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the nation pauses this Memorial Day to remember fallen service members, a native of Gulf Breeze, Florida, has special responsibilities honoring fallen comrades in the nation’s capital with the U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard.
“By working here, I am able to honor fallen veterans and support their families during the hardest time of their lives,†said Petty Officer 3rd Class Caleb Pritchard, who joined the Navy two years ago.
Established in 1931, the United States Navy Ceremonial Guard is the official Ceremonial Unit of the U.S. Navy and is based at Naval District Washington Anacostia Annex in Washington, D.C.
According to Navy officials, the Ceremonial Guard’s primary mission is to represent the Navy in Presidential, Joint Armed Forces, Navy and public ceremonies under the scrutiny of the highest-ranking officials of the United States and foreign nations, including royalty.
Sailors of the Ceremonial Guard are hand selected while they are attending boot camp at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Illinois. Strict military order and discipline, combined with teamwork, allow the Ceremonial Guard to fulfill their responsibilities with pride and determination. They are experts in the art of close order drill, coordination and timing.
Growing up in Gulf Breeze, Pritchard attended Gulf Breeze High School and graduated in 2019. Today, Pritchard uses skills and values similar to those learned in Gulf Breeze.
“Growing up, the life lesson I have carried over to my naval career is to stay self-motivated,†said Pritchard. “This way of thinking helps me rely on myself and to validate who I am on my own.”
These lessons continue to help Pritchard while serving in the military.
The Ceremonial Guard is comprised of the drill team, color guard, casket bearers and firing party.
Casket bearers carry the Navy’s past service members to their resting ground. Whether it is in Arlington National Cemetery, or another veteran’s cemetery. The firing party renders the 21 Gun Salute, the signature honor of military funerals, during every Navy Funeral at Arlington National Cemetery.
Serving in the Navy means Pritchard is part of a team that is taking on new importance in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances and reforming business practices in support of the National Defense Strategy.
“In the Navy, we protect the oceans securing trade and free passage,†said Pritchard. “What we do is imperative to our national security.”
With more than 90 percent of all trade traveling by sea, and 95 percent of the world’s international phone and internet traffic carried through fiber optic cables lying on the ocean floor, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity and security of the United States is directly linked to a strong and ready Navy.
Pritchard and the sailors they serve with have many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during their military service.
“In my career, my biggest accomplishment is working here at the Ceremonial Guard,†said Pritchard.
As Pritchard and other sailors continue to train and perform the missions they are tasked with, they take pride in serving their country in the United States Navy.
“Serving in the Navy means pride to be an American serving my country,†added Pritchard.
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