Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point recently announced the command’s Sailors of the Year for 2018. Petty Officer 1st Class Anthony Livings was named Sailor of the Year, Petty Officer 2nd Class Amber Arens was named Junior Sailor of the Year, and Seaman David McDonald was named Blue Jacket of the Year.

"When you have so many high caliber Sailors like we have here at NHCCP, choosing the top three is a really tough choice. But in the end, Petty Officers Livings and Arens and Seaman McDonald rose to the top,” Command Master Chief Jason Juarez said.

Livings joined the Navy in 1999 and currently serves as the leading petty officer (LPO) for the Directorate for Health Services. He joined the Navy after arguing with his mother about college.

“I wanted to go to Towson University with my friends and she wanted me to get away from that crowd,” Livings said. “I got mad, called my best friend who was joining the Navy and told him to come pick me up and bring me to the recruiters; Best decision I ever made now that I look back at it.”

“NHCCP is a great command. As the LPO of Health Services, I have the opportunities to teach, lead and groom the next generation of Sailors,” Livings said. “The Navy has given me the opportunity to meet amazing people who have become lifetime friends and family, including my wife. I have an amazing life that I am thankful for every day.”

Arens joined the Navy in 2011. The Missouri native always had her sights set on a military career growing up.  

“I grew up in a very small town in central Missouri and knew that I wanted something more,” Arens said. “I loved the idea of giving back while also getting an education and having the opportunity to experience things many individuals my age would not.

“The Navy has allowed me to see parts of the world I never would have had I not joined, given me the opportunity to get my education, and allowed me to explore future career options.”

Arens also met her husband who is now a sergeant in the Marines. She credits their mutual understanding of military life as a major contribution to their successful marriage and careers.

McDonald is a relative newcomer to NHCCP and the Navy. A Trinidad native, he emigrated to the U.S. in 2015 and attended recruit training in Great Lakes, IL. Upon graduating recruit training, he completed Hospital Corpsman School and Field Medical Battalion before being stationed at NHCCP.

McDonald serves as the work center supervisor for Medical Homeport White Team where he ensures his Sailors achieve established clinical competencies, maintain current Basic Life Saving skills, and ensures all mandated training is complete.

McDonald has also been an active volunteer in the local community, volunteering more than 100 hours during 2018 alone.

“All three are Sailors in the truest sense of the word,” Juarez said. “They take care of their shipmates and they go the extra miles to ensure mission and command success."

Named after Medal of Honor recipient, Pharmacist Mate Second Class William D. Halyburton, the Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point provides high-quality patient care to more than 20,000 active-duty members and DOD beneficiaries. In addition to out-patient surgical services, NHCCP offers Medical Home Port (including family care and pediatrics), Dermatology, Internal Medicine, Orthopedics, Physical Therapy, Mental Health, Pharmacy services, Preventive Medicine, Aviation Medicine and Radiology to include MRIs.

Navy Medicine is a global health care network of 63,000 personnel that provide health care support to the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, their families and veterans in high operational tempo environments, at expeditionary medical facilities, medical treatment facilities, hospitals, clinics, hospital ships and research units around the world.

Get more information about the Navy from US Navy Facebook or Twitter.

For more news from Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point, visit www.navy.mil/.