JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Lt. Darien Barrett, a native of Manning, South Carolina, serves the U.S. Navy assigned to Patrol Squadron (VP) 45.
Barrett graduated from Laurence Manning Academy in 2010. Additionally, Barrett earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of South Carolina in 2014.
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Manning.
“I’m from a small town, and the private school I went to was small and very sheltered,” Barrett said. “When I got to college, it expanded my mindset. The Navy helped solidify the view I had from that sheltered piece of my life in high school and my expansion from college. I became more well-rounded. I enlisted in the Navy after college. I was a little bit older, going through boot camp with younger recruits and people from other countries, like Nigeria. Being able to see where they came from shaped my view on life. I eventually commissioned after four years.”
Barrett joined the Navy 10 years ago and served as an intelligence specialist while enlisted. Today, Barrett serves as a naval flight officer.
“About 80% of my family was military in general, mostly a mix of Army, Navy, National Guard, and one who served in the Air Force,” Barrett said. “So with their backing and the benefits for myself and my future family, I knew I wanted to serve. The Navy stood out because I wanted to travel. The Navy offered the travel, pension and other benefits I wanted for myself and my future family.”
Members of VP 45 fly and maintain the U.S. Navy’s P-8A Poseidon multi-mission maritime aircraft. Designed to secure the U.S. Navy’s future in long-range maritime patrol capability, the P-8A has transformed how the Navy’s maritime patrol and reconnaissance force will train, operate and deploy, according to Navy officials. P-8A aircraft deploy around the globe to monitor the world’s oceans wherever they are needed.
The U.S. Navy is celebrating its 250th birthday this year.
According to Navy officials, “America is a maritime nation and for 250 years, America’s Warfighting Navy has sailed the globe in defense of freedom.”
With 90% of global commerce traveling by sea and access to the internet relying on the security of undersea fiber-optic cables, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity of the United States is directly linked to recruiting and retaining talented people from across the rich fabric of America.
Barrett has many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during military service.
“I’m most proud of commissioning as an officer,” Barrett said. “All of my family served as enlisted. I’m the only one to commission and the only college graduate. It was an achievement for being raised with that level of expectation on me, and not only achieving it, but surpassing it.”
Barrett serves a Navy that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation’s prosperity and security.
“What serving in the Navy means to me now is different from when I joined,” Barrett said. “I joined for benefits for my future family, and now they’re providing for my family. I planned ahead, and now I see that I’ve set myself up well.”
Barrett is grateful to others for helping make a Navy career possible.
“I want to thank my wife, Victoria, who’s been there from the beginning,” Barrett said. “I also want to thank my mom, Monica Phillips, for my upbringing. Without her, I wouldn’t have made it to where I am.”
