Feature Story

U.S. Coast Guard Cmdr. Diane Durham, the professional maritime studies department head at the Coast Guard Academy, poses for a portrait, Oct. 14, 2010. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Diana Honings.

By Petty Officer 2nd Class Timothy Tamargo

Being a U.S. Coast Guard officer, a person is presented with many challenges and opportunities.  Sometimes these two terms are synonymous.  Normal operations can quickly turn into life and death struggles which challenge training and experience.

Such was the case for Cmdr. Diane Durham, the commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Forward, as she and her crew were pressed into action in response to a 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck less than 15 miles from the Caribbean city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Jan. 12, 2010.

Durham’s command philosophy, training and leadership were immediately put to the test. 

The crew of the Cutter Forward was on deployment and had just pulled into Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, when the earthquake occurred. 

“We were in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, on liberty at the U.S. Navy base," said Cmdr. Diane W. Durham, commanding officer of the Cutter Forward. "The duty section and off-duty crew onboard were jolted by unusual movement of the ship and quickly gathered to respond to an onboard emergency. We learned that it was an earthquake, and soon after, we learned of the devastation in Port-au-Prince.  The crew was recalled from various points around the base, and we were underway by 10 p.m.  We made best speed through the night.” 

Within hours the crew was tasked and underway to respond to the disaster. They became the first U.S. surface asset in the Haiti earthquake response.

During the response, the crew completed numerous missions including search and rescue, air traffic control, critical port assessments, damage assessment over flights and medical evacuations.  Durham and her crew were recognized for their exceptional work during the response effort.

On July 4, 2010, Durham represented the Coast Guard at the White House and was commended by President Barack Obama for the Haiti relief efforts.

“We salute the United States Coast Guard, including a Coast Guardsman who commanded the first U.S. vessel to arrive in Haiti after the earthquake, helping to pave the way for the one of the most complex humanitarian efforts ever attempted, Cmdr.  Diane Durham,” said Obama.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – A Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter launches off the flight deck of the 270-foot Coast Guard Cutter Forward, Jan, 13, 2010. Coast Guard personnel have been mobilized to provide support to the country of Haiti after suffering a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Coast Guard Cutter Forward.

At the height of the response in mid-January, the Coast Guard had up to eight cutters in Haiti’s ports, in the Caribbean and in Florida waters. Air assets included a HC-144A Ocean Sentry aircraft, five HC-130 Hercules aircrafts, three MH-65 Dolphin helicopters and three MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters operating in Haiti with more than 800 Coast Guard personnel providing assistance on shore, afloat on the cutters and in the air.

The safety, mutual support, crew endurance, mission execution and morale on the Forward were built on a strong dedication to mission excellence and devotion to duty fostered by the command. Ultimately, the command created an open and honest command climate built on trust and open communication.  Durham emphasized that crew members would respect each other.

“Being on a cutter requires people to embody the term shipmate," she said. “You live together, work together, struggle together and succeed together for long periods of time. You become a family.”

This climate directly impacted Durham’s crew.

“Cmdr. Durham is very dedicated to the overall mission of the Coast Guard. I have sought after her council for stressful situations on several occasions.” said Senior Chief Petty Officer Nicole Rose, the command chief on Forward. “What makes a good leader is looking out after your people, dedication, motivation, compassion and the ability to expertly handle difficult situations. This is a talent too few have and many more need.”

Since leaving the Forward and reporting to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy as the head of the Professioanl Maritime Studies Department during the summer of 2010, Durham’s Coast Guard family has increased in size and scope. She now leads 17 military and civilian instructors and staff, and oversees the nautical science training of the more than 1,000 members of corps of cadets.

Having served more than nine years at sea during her 21-year career on Coast Guard Cutters Rush, Decisive, Resolute, Tampa and Forward, Durham brings her knowledge and experience from the fleet into the classroom to train and teach cadets, officer candidates, prospective commanding officers and executive officers.

“It’s important to have officers from the fleet as instructors because they know what is expected of junior officers in their first tours and what will help us achieve success when we enter the workforce,” said First Class Cadet Amanda Cousart, a marine and environmental science major at the academy. “Teaching cadets and other Coast Guard personnel is a way to make sure all of the information Cmdr. Durham has learned is passed on so future officers can make the Coast Guard thrive.”

U.S. Coast Guard Cmdr. Diane Durham, the head of the Professional Maritime Studies Department at the Coast Guard Academy, instructs second class cadets during an exercise on a training boat on the Thames River off the coast of New London, Conn.,  April 4, 2011.  As part of their curriculum, all cadets receive practical, hands-on training steering, powering and commanding one of the schools training boats with the guidance of a Nautical Science staffmember. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Timothy Tamargo

A similar sentiment was given by Cousart's classmate First Class Cadet Dana Prefer.

“I think that Cmdr. Durham is a wealth of knowledge because she has done almost everything you can do in the afloat community,” said Prefer. “When she told us about her past jobs, I was very impressed that she held that many command positions and highly-sought-after billets.  I believe that due to her diverse career path, she is able to get through to her students effectively, and I see her as a very good model of what a leader should be.”

The U.S. Coast Guard is one of the nation’s five armed forces and the only military organization within the Department of Homeland Security. The Coast Guard protects the maritime economy and the environment, defends our maritime borders, and saves those in peril. At the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, all of the service’s future officers and many of its current leaders are trained on campus in New London, Conn.

Cmdr. Diane W. Durham, a former commanding officer of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Forward, was commissioned in 1989 from Officer Candidate School.  Her next assignment was as Chief of Professional Maritime Studies at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.  She has served on Coast Guard Cutters Rush, Decisive, Resolute, and Tampa. Ashore, she was executive assistant to the Atlantic Area commander, assistant contracting officer for cutter modernization and construction projects and on both area operations staffs.  She has been awarded two Meritorious Service Medals, three Commendation Medals, an Achievement Medal, a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Eckerd College and a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin. She was also selected as the 2010 Captain John G. Witherspoon Inspirational Leadership Award winner.  She is married to retired Coast Guard Capt. Stephen Krupa.