Hospital Corpsman (HM) 2nd Class Haley Acevedo, assigned to Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command (NMRTC) Rota, is the work center supervisor for the operations management department (OMD) under the directorate for administrations. She supervises three Sailors, advises and provide administrative support to the department heads and leading petty officers across 13 programs of administrative functions and management support services.

Acevedo, originally from New York City, joined the Navy seven years ago. NMRTC Rota is her third command and she describes it as” the best one” so far.

“Leadership at this command has made a difference, not only in my career but also in my personal life,” she said. “It has been the only chain of command where my work ethic spoke for itself. Where I finally feel seen and where my voice matters. To be a witness to this kind of leadership feels like an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Recalling the phrase “it starts from the top,” Acevedo feels that her local leadership – Cmdr. Cindi Palacios, Lt. j.g. Joseph Roosevelt, Senior Chief Hospital Corpsman Ariel Ampier, HM1 Aileenpearl Coloma, HM1 Karl Zaptanta, and HM2 Diony Delacruz – embodies this sentiment and not only cares about the Sailor but the person behind the uniform.

“They are the epitome of what leadership should emulate all through the Navy,” she said. “Caring, thoughtful, intelligent, and, most importantly, resilient, they never gave up on any of their Sailors. I had never experienced leadership so invested in my overall growth as Sailor and my well-being.”

Acevedo feels that her current leadership brought back the “young Sailor who first joined the Navy.” She feels invigorated by her current leadership and their caring emphasizing that it extends past her direct chain of command but to the hospital’s triad as well.

“Now it is my job to pass that on to the Sailors who come after me,” she said.

Acevedo hopes to pass it on to future Sailors she works with, but recognizes that hospital leadership and coworkers taking an invested interest in their Sailors have made all the difference.

“It has been an honor to work at this command because my shipmates and leadership believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself,” said Acevedo. “Don’t let bad experiences and people change who you are as a Sailor and person. Instead, let those experiences shape the leader you needed growing up in this Navy.”