“FAMILY TRADITION”

By Shannon Robinson

THE STORY OF JOE DAWSON - USN - DESERT STORM

Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the youngest of eight kids, Joe Dawson had the Navy in his blood. His father and older brother both served in the Navy.  It felt natural for Joe to follow in their footsteps. 

Joe’s journey started with the Navy ROTC in college. Everyone thought that he would make a better Marine because he was so physically strong and active, but Joe joined the Navy because of family ties to the branch.  Joe studied Political Science at the University of New Mexico and drilled with the ROTC for two and a half years. 

The summer before his Senior year of college, Joe went to Long Beach, California to drill on the USS Wabash. They went out to sea for six weeks to refuel ships outside the coast. He graduated in 1989, and soon went off to Newport, Rhode Island for Surface Warfare Officer School.

In four months, Joe learned everything from ship handling and warfare systems to understanding American and enemy ships and damage control. He learned how to navigate by the stars, using the first star at dusk, a sextant, and our solar map to direct a helmsman. 

Joe was also trained to use top-secret military GPS navigation, which could spot you within four feet of your location. This technology wasn’t available to the public at the time, but it enhanced the technological warfare on a ship. 

After four months, Joe continued on to Legal Officer School. One of his collateral duties on board was to present any unruly sailors at the Captain’s Mass or to the adjudicating officer. This collateral duty involved a lot of paperwork, but Joe presented A-WOL, court martialed, and unruly sailors to the Captain’s Mass. They were usually dishonorably discharged.

Joe Dawson

Dawson reported to the USS Guam in July 1990. Three weeks later, he shipped out to the Persian Gulf for an 8 ½ month deployment during Operation Desert Storm. “Every single day at sea is a work day” he says. Joe’s primary duty was standing bridge watches, navigating the ship. The shifts ran 6 on, 12 off, and his off-duties included supervising the deck department and acting as an Electronic Warfare Officer. He could locate missiles in the water and jam their radar or shoot them down before they hit the ship. 

In January of 1991, the USS Guam shipped off the coast of Somalia for Operation Eastern Exit. There were 2,000 Marines, 600 Navy, and a SEAL team ready to run an evacuation mission at the American Embassy in Mogadishu. Joe remembers standing on the bridge when two Jolly Green Giants launched from deck, one with Marines and one with a SEAL team. They flew into the city, secured the US Embassy, and flew Americans and refugees back to the ship. The refugees knew that the Americans would come to save their own, so they swarmed the Embassy knowing they had a better chance of rescue from the violence in the city. 

“I remember one person died, one woman had her baby, another person got shot,” Joe recalls of the refugees on board. “Everybody got sick too,” he says, with people of all nationalities and backgrounds spreading germs.

A couple weeks later, another 2 am night standing on the bridge, Joe heard about the Iraq invasion over the shortwave radio. “Sure, you’re scared and nervous and everything, but really, I felt relieved that something happened, and we didn’t have to anticipate anymore.” After floating and waiting for so long, they finally knew what was going to happen. Off to the Persian Gulf.

Sailing through the Straits of Hormuz at 0600, the sun peeked over the horizon as a 26-year-old Joe was standing on bridge. He looked starboard and saw the USS Wisconsin sailing alongside them. The WWII-era battleship looked especially majestic with the rising sun. “I will never forget that to the day I die.”

60 miles off the coast of Kuwait, their ship’s primary duty was to fly marines in and out of the coast. They had helicopters, Harrier Jump Jets, and bombers on deck. Joe remembers loading the bombs, and all the sailors would write nasty words and an “F you, Saddam” to send a more personal message. There were three or four other ships there as well, prepared to launch an on-shore amphibious assault if necessary.

“I could go on and on and on,” Joe said, “but we basically just floated a long time.” 

After two or three weeks passing through the infamous Gulf War oil spill, Joe and his fellow crewmates were on their way home.

Joe returned to New Mexico and was active duty for two more years before being discharged from the Navy. The primary goal of Naval officers was to command their own ship, and after his 8 ½ months at sea, Joe realized he didn’t want to make a career out of the Navy. He continued working for the government, though, and got a job with the Department of Defense for seven years before transferring to the Forest Service, where he has been working as a Financial Analyst for 17 years.

It was a tough transition back into civilian life for Joe. He remembers the stress from being out at sea and sailors getting away from the ship as quickly as they could each time they would port. Even though the PTSD followed him, Joe claims the Navy taught him discipline, fortitude, and an appreciation of American freedoms, country, and values. 

“As a young man, you don’t see it for what it is, but looking back, I appreciate the experience.”