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USTRANSCOM protocol 'Coastie' dots the i's, crosses the t's

  • Published
  • By Bob Fehringer
  • U.S. Transportation Command Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  Coasties is not a new breakfast cereal. For those unfamiliar with the term, it refers to the men and women of the United States Coast Guard. 
The Coast Guard is the smallest armed service of the United States with approximately 40,000 men and women on active duty. Its mission is to protect the public, the environment and the United States economic and security interests in any maritime region in which those interests may be at risk, including international waters and America's coasts, ports and inland waterways. 

There are 20 Coast Guard personnel assigned to the U.S. Transportation Command. Nineteen are reservists and one is on active duty. Chief Petty Officer Sarah Dorsey, 32, a reservist, was recalled to active duty after 9-11. 

"I entered the Coast Guard on active duty in April 1996," Chief Dorsey said. "Federal service appealed to me because I wanted to be part of something that gave back to the nation. I decided on the Coast Guard because of its unique position between the military and local law enforcement." 

The Coast Guard has a broad and important role in homeland security, law enforcement, search and rescue, marine environmental pollution response, and the maintenance of river, intracoastal and offshore aids to navigation also known as ATON. It also lays claim to being the United States' oldest continuous seagoing service. 

After serving three years on active duty, Chief Dorsey says she became a reservist and was transferred to Group St. Petersburg, Fla. Once recalled to active duty in 2001, she was transferred to the Marine Safety Office in Tampa, Fla. 

Chief Dorsey currently works in the USTRANCOM Protocol office where she helps arrange meetings for the commander, deputy commander and chief of staff and manages conference arrangements, lodging and transportation for distinguished visitors, award ceremonies, retirements and promotions involving the command staff. 

Chief Dorsey came to Scott in May 2007 when her husband, Chief Petty Officer Brian Dorsey, an active duty coast guardsman, was assigned to an active duty billet in St. Louis. "Once I found out about the unusual Air Force base in the middle of southern Illinois cornfields, I thought I'd check it out," Chief Dorsey said. "The more I uncovered, the more appealing the command became." 

Originally from Lake of the Hills, Ill., Dorsey, her husband and their daughters, Autumn, 11, Hannah, 9, Nicole, 7 and Faith, 4, live in Shiloh. 

"I have enjoyed serving at Scott Air Force Base," Chief Dorsey said, "and will definitely pass the word to other Coasties that a tour here is worth its weight in gold."