#VeteranOfTheDay Navy Veteran Michael McCarten

Navy Veteran Michael McCarten was born in Rhode Island and grew up in Kittery Point, Maine. After being accepted into medical school, he applied for the Health Profession Scholarship. McCarten was commissioned at age 27, though he did not put on his first uniform until 31. After he completed his degree, he attended officer development school in Newport, Rhode Island.

After completing training, McCarten was sent to his first duty station, appointed as the junior medical officer aboard USS Denver. He met the amphibious ship in Singapore and continued with it to Africa and then on to the Philippines. Within his first six weeks aboard, McCarten had to diagnose and treat a young Marine who had contracted malaria.

McCarten later requested orders for the USS New Jersey. Preparation for the upcoming deployment began immediately once he was aboard. During workups, he participated in the first surgery to be performed on the ship since Vietnam, where the medical crew repaired a sailor’s hernia injury. Working and training side by side, the crew learned an important lesson: you “fight as you train,” McCarten recalled in an interview for Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project.

McCarten then completed his residency training in family medicine and was transferred to Holy Loch, Scotland, to care for submarine sailors and their families. Following that, he completed a brief tour in Newport, Rhode Island, before attending the War College where he earned his master’s degree in national security. He was then assigned to be the medical officer on staff of the Marine Corp General in Okinawa, Japan.

After he earned his master’s degree in public health from Harvard University, McCarten completed tours as:

• Senior medical officer of USS Theodore Roosevelt, which conducted combat flight operations supporting Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom;
• Commanding Officer of the Naval Hospital in Keflavik, Iceland;
• Fleet surgeon for the 7^th fleet aboard USS Blue Ridge;
• Commanding Officer of the NATO Role 3 Multinational Medical Unit in Kandahar, Afghanistan;
• Staff of the Navy Surgeon General at the Pentagon.

In 2013, after 30 years of service, Captain McCarten retired and returned to Kittery Port, Maine. Looking back on his extensive career, he stated in his interview, “it was an extraordinary career that I kind of did it all, and I am so honored to have had it.”

We honor his service.

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Veterans History Project

This #VeteranOfTheDay profile was created with interviews submitted to the Veterans History Project. The project collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war Veterans so that future generations may hear directly from Veterans and better understand the realities of war. Find out more at http://www.loc.gov/vets/.

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Writer: Jennifer Leibert

Editors: Pahal Ahuja, Marisa Bunton

Researcher: Gabriella Begley

Graphic Designer: Saul Leon