The US Navy sure can draft flowery prose!  Please note that once again, Capt. W.L. Bennett used his rubber stamp to sign the Certificate of Appointment to Petty Officer Third Class.  He did that with my Shellback Certificate too.  Please note that when I was promoted to Second Class Petty Officer that Capt. Chaires actually signed it with his own hand.

I'll never forget the promotion ceremony on the flight deck of the Yorktown.  I was working on a project and was late in getting there and as I was the senior man being promoted that day, they waited for me to arrive!  Then Captain Chaires took my hand, gave me the above certificate and the brass 2nd Class Petty Office Eagle (crow) for my hat and then said, "Dan, are you going to ship over, any plans of staying the Navy.  I hope you can give it some thought."  I was stumped, having not expected that and having no plans of "shipping over" I uttered something incoherent to the Captain.

The rest of the day was painful.  It is a tradition in the US Navy to "tack on the crow."  The "crow" is the eagle above the chevrons and everyone you know has a right and duty to congratulate you on your promotion and then "tack on the crow" by grabbing your arm and smashing their fist into the "crow".  20 or so "tack on the crow" incidents is enough to make your arm black and blue.