Station Chatham’s Considine Passes The Conn To Jonason

by Alan Pollock

            CHATHAM — In a crowded, emotionally charged ceremony Friday, two senior chief boatswain’s mates exchanged salutes and formally transferred command of Coast Guard Station Chatham.

            The meeting hall at the Chatham VFW post was filled with a standing-room-only crowd of community leaders, public safety officials, mariners and supporters as new commanding officer David Jonason took over for outgoing CO David Considine.

            The ceremony was particularly poignant because Considine is leaving the post for medical reasons, having distinguished himself as an innovator and a skillful leader during his three-year assignment here.

            “We will miss you on the Cape, Senior,” Sector Commander Capt. Raymond Perry told Considine.  “I know you will continue to amaze all those around you.”  Considine’s next assignment will be at district headquarters in Boston.

            Perry praised Considine’s “steadfast leadership and superior performance,” which led Station Chatham to receive an excellent review during its last inspection.  Considine also played a key role in helping develop and procure two new rescue boats for Station Chatham, while overseeing the maintenance of the only remaining 44-foot motor lifeboat in the Coast Guard, “a boat that is older than almost everyone at the station,” Perry noted.

            As one of the founding stations of the U.S. Lifesaving Service, Station Chatham has a “rich and vivid history of great rescues at sea, and involvement with the community,” Perry said.  Under the leadership of commanding officers like Considine, the station has established itself as a local entity, not just an arm of the federal government.

            “This is Station Chatham, but most of all, it is Chatham’s station,” he said.

            Perry presented Considine with a Coast Guard Commendation Medal for his service.

            Considine also received a letter signed by Chatham town officials thanking him for his service.

            “It was with sincere regret that we received the news of your reassignment for medical reasons to First District, Boston.  We knew that Station Chatham was your first command and a position that if carried out successfully would put you in line for higher responsibility.  You have carried out this assignment with quiet authority and instinctive understanding of the great importance of this facility to our fishing facility, recreational sailors and the residents of Chatham and surrounding towns,” the letter reads.  Considine was well on his way to joining the list of distinguished station commanders like Bernie Webber and Jack Downey, town officials wrote.

            In his remarks, Considine said he remembers shuttling a visiting Coast Guard dignitary over the bar from an offshore cutter, and watched the dignitary’s reaction when the fathometer read zero and the hull bounced on the bottom.  “I told him, ‘like they told me when I first got here, you’ll get used to it,’” Considine quipped.  But joking aside, he said Station Chatham demands the highest level of training and readiness because of its unique location.

            “There is absolutely no chance for error here,” he said. 

            Considine offered thanks to all those who have helped him during the assignment, from the local harbormasters and public safety officials who’ve given “unparalleled” support, to the experienced, safety-minded fishermen who lessen the need for search and rescue responses, and to the cadre of active Coast Guard auxiliarists who help run the station.  He also acknowledged the volunteers who maintain the historic CG36500 rescue boat, and the many community members who embraced him and his family “even though I’m a wash-ashore.”

            With emotion in his voice, Considine also thanked his crew for their hard work and dedication, and for their support during his illness.  Too choked up to offer the proper thanks to his wife, Nancy, Considine said “I think I’ll just wink at her and say thanks.”

            The two have one daughter, five-year-old Kylie, and a three-year-old son, Conor.

            Incoming CO Jonason thanked Considine for his service, and said he has been trying to get an assignment on Cape Cod since his first visit six years ago.  “I couldn’t be happier with this assignment,” he said.

            Originally from Tacoma, Wash., Jonason was most recently the executive petty officer at Station Yaquina Bay in Newport, Ore., an active station near the Siletz River known for its daunting surf.  Jonason has spent 22 years in the Coast Guard, previously serving as an instructor at the National Motor Lifeboat School at Cape Disappointment, Wash.  He and his wife have two sons, ages 14 and seven.

3/27/08