Walking through my living room on April 2, 2020, I caught a television news story from Guam. Sailors onboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt, a nuclear aircraft carrier, were standing at attention on deck. Then I heard clangs of a bell ringing over a public address system followed by this announcement: “Captain, United States Navy … departing.” Next a whistle blew and an officer started walking down the line, saluting back to all the silent sailors standing at attention. As he left the ship, walking down a long gangplank (called the brow), the sailors broke rank and ran to the side of the ship where they could see their Captain turn, face them and salute one last time. They cheered, shouted and began singing his name as he got into a waiting car … CAPTAIN CROZIER…CAPTAIN CROZIER…CAPTAIN CROZIER.

A reporter then told the story of a Navy Captain who sent up a red flair for decisive action with a sense of urgency to what was becoming a rapidly deteriorating and potentially deadly situation for his crew. Being the first Navy vessel to suffer an outbreak of Covid, the Captain had sent an email through his chain of command pleading for help in executing an expedited evacuation plan to get as many sailors off the aircraft carrier as quickly as possible, as more and more sailors were reporting to sick bay. The email leaked to the press on March 31, 2020. Two days later he was relieved of command of the Roosevelt, prompting the crew to show their appreciation of their beloved Captain by cheering and singing his name as he departed the ship.

The sound of the singing sailors stayed with me for days. I just couldn’t stop thinking about this Captain. He was desperate to protect his crew and took actions to save them from Covid, apparently risking the loss of his own career. He chose his crew above his own self-interests. What a brave and honorable man.

I worked as a Development Officer for many years in the nonprofit world, where representing the underdog or underprivileged was ingrained into everything I did. I found the video, that had since gone viral, and watched it over and over. Then I decided … I needed to do something about this. On April 7, 2020, I joined the STANDING UP FOR CAPTAIN CROZIER Facebook group. Shortly thereafter, I was invited to become one of six Administrators. All of the Administrators were connected to the Navy but me. I was the only civilian Admin who could speak freely without retribution from Big Navy — and so I did. So much so that the CNO, Admiral Michael Gilday, once wrote me on my personal Facebook page to ask if I had a son on the Roosevelt. I promptly replied, “They are all my sons and daughters.” He never wrote me again.

I soon learned what the families were going through. They were constantly posting hopeful messages because they were so proud of their sailors. Even though they were frightened by the thought that one of their own would get the virus and not come home, they continued to offer encouragement to each other and their sailors. They were heartbroken that their beloved and trusted Captain Crozier had been relieved of command. Their sailors were in danger onboard a ship located halfway around the world in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Because this was the first outbreak of Covid on a military ship at sea since the pandemic began, I wondered how history would remember this event. More importantly, how in the world it would end for Captain Crozier and the families of the Roosevelt.

After days passed, five thousand sailors from the ship were moved to local hotels and the Navy base in Guam in an effort to implement an aggressive mitigation strategy to minimize the spread of the Covid virus and protect the health of the sailors, as Captain Crozier had recommended. A handful of healthy sailors stayed onboard to protect the ship. And on our Facebook page, families and friends were posting messages of hope and encouragement from home. Some of the sailors stayed in isolated quarantine for weeks, then months. All the while, parents, wives, husbands, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles were posting their continued support and love for their confined sailors.

A recurring theme took place on our Facebook page. Whether it was from families, friends or the sailors themselves, they all wanted the Captain back. We started a petition on Change.org in April. It grew and grew until there were over a half-million signatures that went to the President and Big Navy. From my time in nonprofit, I learned how to advocate for the rights of people with disabilities in Washington, D.C. I began posting instructions on how to contact and communicate with members of Congress. A mountain of letters, emails, phone calls and posts went out from our dedicated members, urging Congress to support the reinstatement of Captain Crozier. We contacted top officials at the Defense Department and the Department of the Navy to ensure they understood many people were still interested in the fate of Captain Crozier and the men and women of the Theodore Roosevelt. But our appeals fell on deaf ears.

Weeks passed. Increasingly, more new members joined, signed the petition and wrote their congressional representatives. I learned that Navy families and friends were strong and brave in ways that you can’t imagine. They were kind and patient with their beloved sailors, going through one of the most dangerous and historic events in Naval history. Not only were their loved ones facing the new situation of Covid that had spread across the world, but the ship would be moored for two months in Guam, extending their deployment.

And then there were the civilians who joined our Facebook group … from 47 states and 17 countries and territories. These were the outspoken members, who spoke freely as I did, when the military families could not. I remember getting several posts from sailors on the Roosevelt that just said, “Thanks for all you’re doing for us and our captain!” I had no connection to the Navy. And many of the civilians in our membership were just like me. Two other civilian members, Kristin Boudreaux (a retired nuclear engineer) and Sandra Greene (grandmother of a sailor onboard), helped me save data about this historic event. Later, after Captain Crozier got our research, which we had collected over two years, he named us the HOLY COW LADIES because, in his opinion, we had “kept track of world and Navy events better than most collegiate historians could ever hope to do.”

Sandra, Kristin and I joined our military brothers and sisters by sharing their passion for the man who chose to do the right thing for his crew, and by doing so, suffered the consequences of being relieved of his command. Shockingly, the sailors were told to never mention Captain Crozier’s name again. They even took his plaque off the podium on deck where all Commanders were listed. But the plaque absence didn’t last long after intense pressure was applied by us and members of the press when they found out the plaque was missing.

April 13, 2020 brought the saddest news of all … the death of a Roosevelt sailor. Chief Petty Officer Charles Robert Thacker, Jr., age 41, from Arkansas, was the only Theodore Roosevelt sailor to die from complications from Covid. Petty Officer Thacker was among over 1,200 confirmed cases among the crew. This severe Covid outbreak kept Navy families up at night, living on the edge, wondering if their sailor would be next.

After testing positive for the Covid virus March 30, 2020 aboard the aircraft carrier, Charles Thacker was found unresponsive on April 9 while in quarantine on Guam. Thacker was an aviation ordnanceman from Fort Smith, Arkansas, and had been assigned to the Roosevelt in December 2019. His wife, Samantha, was also a sailor stationed in San Diego. She arrived in Guam on Saturday and was by his side when he died Monday, April 13, 2020.

Three weeks after Captain Crozier was removed from his command, on our Facebook page there was a message from one of our families saying that NPR was reporting that the US Navy was recommending reinstating Captain Crozier. I couldn’t believe my eyes! After checking the media report, I found this statement:

“After carefully reviewing the preliminary inquiry into the events surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Mike Gilday, is recommending reinstatement of Captain Crozier to the Defense Secretary, Mark Esper.”

With a sigh of relief, I turned on the television to see all the news coverage that night. It was true. Our battle seemed to be over. Since the Captain had also tested positive for COVID-19, he was still in isolation in the distinguished visitors’ quarters on the Navy base in Guam. A short distance away, the ship was awaiting his command again! Our members were posting a mile a minute … their joy, their relief, their happiness!

But their joy would be short-lived. The Navy recommendations sat on the desk of the Secretary of Defense, Mark Esper, for weeks, waiting for his approval. Reassured that it was just a rubber stamp that needed to be posted, we were unclear why the Defense Secretary had delayed the process. The DOD spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, said Mr. Esper was “likely to back the Navy’s conclusion.” But he didn’t. Under political pressure to downplay the pandemic, and in an effort to stop the world-wide media attention, the Trump Administration gave orders to the Navy to relieve Captain Crozier from his command of the USS Theodore Roosevelt.

Now, the decision was made to extend the preliminary report into a full-blown investigation that lasted months and eventually resulted in a reversal of the Navy recommendation. My heart dropped. I posted this quote from IllusionFactory.com:

“I’VE LEARNED — THAT HEROES ARE THE PEOPLE WHO DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE WHEN IT NEEDS TO BE DONE, REGARDLESS OF THE CONSEQUENCES.”

Most members thought I was talking about the Captain, and rightly so, because I was. But it was also true about our patient, self-sacrificing sailors and their families. Despite all their fears and worries, those Navy families just kept posting words of encouragement and hope to their sailors and the Captain.

This had been extremely stressful for the Theodore Roosevelt families. And just to give a sample of what these families were going through, listen to the words of a TR sailor’s grandmother, Sandra Geane (GREEN):

*”My grandson deployed January 17, 2020 on the USS Roosevelt. Yes, what we now refer to as the ‘COVID SHIP.’ Upon hearing of the virus, I became concerned for my grandson and our country. It never occurred to me that the Theodore Roosevelt, a ‘Floating City’ of 5,000 people in the Pacific Ocean could, or would, become infected. Then came word of the infection onboard. The fear was gripping. Every morning, I watched the world news, hoping for word of some kind about the situation. Living with that pit in your stomach that never seems to leave … listening for anything to do with the ship. Sending up prayers for the safety of all the crew. Especially the ones who were tested positive. The worry and concern for all the crew was ever present. Communication was sporadic, at best.

After much debate and confusion, I was dumbfounded by the firing of Captain Brett Crozier. I will never forget the sight of him departing the ship and the crew chanting his name. It was gut-wrenching watching the final salute — Captain Crozier saved the lives of that crew! He himself tested positive. His termination was heartbreaking and astounding to me. Arrangements were made for the crew to be offloaded in Guam where they were first housed in gymnasiums on cots. My grandson went from the ship to the gymnasium where he was tested for COVID-19. Negative, thank God. He was there approximately two weeks, at which point he was transferred to a private hotel room where he was tested again and again, negative. During this time there was little to no communication with him. After six weeks of separation, he was allowed back on the ship.

Between my grandson being on this ship and exposed to this killer virus, and the man who cared so deeply about his crew, Captain Crozier wound up sacrificing his career.”*

The brave sailors of the USS Theodore Roosevelt finally arrived back in their home port of San Diego, California on July 9, 2020, after a seven-month deployment — one that will go down in history as the first, and worst, outbreak of Covid-19 on a U.S. Navy ship.

It was my honor to serve as one of six Administrators of the STANDING UP FOR CAPTAIN CROZIER Facebook Page. I am forever grateful to Navy Veteran Christopher Wright for inviting me to join him and the other four Administrators in this noble cause. So many remarkable people joined in our efforts. We did our best, and I was very proud of our united 6,000+ voices of military and civilian members who were willing to STAND UP FOR CAPTAIN BRETT CROZIER & the TR CREW.

On June 30, 2020, I received a letter from Captain Crozier and it read as follows:

“While I didn’t spend a lot of time on the (Standing Up For Captain Crozier) FB Page, many of my friends would send me your comments and well wishes throughout the entire saga. I was humbled by the amount of support that you gave me and the crew of the Roosevelt, and that your kind words kept my spirits up throughout this ordeal.” — Captain Brett Crozier

If we accomplished nothing else, our support for the Captain and the TR Crew was certainly worthwhile. I do believe that we also kept up the spirits of their families during one of the most difficult deployments there could ever be.

Cynthia Stokes Crow wrote:

“My son is one of the crew and having this (Facebook) page brought comfort more times than I can count.”

Americans and people all over the world were outraged. Retired Naval officers, famous people, reporters and our Facebook group voiced opposition to what had happened to the Captain. We shared our opinions with every Naval officer up the Captain’s chain of command and every member of Congress. Another outstanding FB member, Brooks Prouty, helped me compose a letter to President Joe Biden as soon as he took office. This letter was given out thousands of times to our members who shared the letter with their Congressional representatives and other influencers with the hope it would get into the hands of the president. No one, not even the President of the United States, could avoid hearing the outcry to reinstate Captain Crozier to his command on the USS Theodore Roosevelt. Unfortunately, our efforts were in vain.

Two years later, Captain Brett Crozier retired from the Navy, faithfully completing over 30 years of dedicated service to our country. I was honored, along with FB Member and HOLY COW LADY, Kristin Boudreau, to be invited by the Captain to his Retirement Ceremony, conducted on the flight deck of the USS Midway in San Diego, California on March 26, 2022.

In 2023, Captain Brett Crozier published his book entitled “Surf When You Can: Lessons in Life, Loyalty, and Leadership from a Maverick Navy Captain,” published by Simon & Schuster.

“Great leader, in contrast, are able to inspire people to act. Those who are able to inspire give people a sense of purpose or belonging that has little to do with any external incentive or benefit to be gained. Those who truly lead are able to create a following of people who act not because they were swayed, but because they were inspired.” – Simon Sinek
Authentic Leadership: Inside the Mind of

By the first week of October 2022, Captain Crozier found a new career in the nonprofit world, becoming the Chief Operating Officer of the Veterans Village of San Diego, California. After one year at the Veterans Village he decided he could do more for sailors and veterans by making speeches around the country and giving advice and support to Navy veterans and enlisted sailors. He often says he has no regrets about the decision he made to get his crew off the Roosevelt during the Covid scare. And, even if he knew then what he knows now, he would make the same decision despite the consequences.

His book “Surf When You Can: Lessons in Life, Loyalty, and Leadership from a Maverick Navy Captain” is now a textbook at the Navy War College and is available on Amazon.com. His leadership style of putting his people first — whether in a crisis or as a Naval officer on an ordinary day — continues to inspire us all. He is an American hero who will not be forgotten by his sailors, his friends and family, and by his many fans both here in the USA and around the world.