Independence variant littoral combat ship USS Jackson (LCS 6) chief petty officer selectees marched onto the flight deck in the fading evening light carrying a casket to the center of the helicopter landing pad, Sept. 14.

The selectees were carrying out a longstanding tradition of a white hat burial, a tradition signifying the transition from first class petty officer to chief petty officer and is typically held at the CPO 365 Phase II capstone event.

CPO 365 Phase II is an approximately six-week training period that integrates the chief selectees into the network of the Chiefs Mess, beginning when the CPO selection results are released and culminating in the pinning ceremony where the selectees don the anchors and cover of a chief petty officer.

"It is important to honor their time and years of service in that hat, and is a way to condition their minds to stop thinking like an E-6 (first class petty officer) and be ready to don the chief's combination cover," explained Jackson's Command Master Chief Christopher Farrar. "This event is just one sliver of the overall process of final acceptance night; each event throughout the day and night builds on each other."

During the ceremony, each chief selectee stood before the Chiefs Mess to give a eulogy about what their white hat meant to them throughout their career and then solemnly placed their cover inside a casket. With a final farewell, they ceremoniously pushed the casket into the welcoming depths of the sea.

"It was very emotional for me," remarked Chief (select) Electrician's Mate Kenneth Boyd. "I felt pride, happiness, sadness. My cover meant everything to me. It was my source of pride, my constant reminder to walk the line and strive to do better."

Farrar said the burial at sea synergized emotional experiences of the past and provided a mechanism for the chief selectees to clear their minds to provide a start point for their future as chief petty officers.

"It's a method for each person to look inward and get to know themselves and their emotions just a little bit better, and that is what the CPO 365 Phase II season is all about -- getting to know yourself and your shipmates," said Farrar.

A pinning ceremony was held the following day, while the ship was in Manzanilla, Mexico. Jackson, which was commissioned December 5, 2015 in Gulfport, Mississippi, is currently en route to its homeport of San Diego.

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