History of the Coast Guard Reserve

1980s

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The 1980s brought more changes and new challenges to the Coast Guard Reserve program. The year 1984 saw the formation of the Office of Readiness and Reserve at Headquarters. This combined the former Office of Reserve with readiness divisions, already existing within the Office of Operations. Under the direction of a dual-hatted Flag officer, the first being RADM Joseph McDonough, the new office emphasized the importance of the Coast Guard Reserve’s role in defense readiness, and the necessity of the link between the Reserve program and defense, contingency, and mobilization planning.

Other changes affecting the Coast Guard Reserve during the 1980s were the first Reserve Officer Candidate Indoctrination classes convening at RTC Yorktown (1984), a district realignment that reduced the number of districts from 12 to 10, the commencement of providing port security for space shuttle operations in 1981 while the deployable port security unit program was initiated in 1984.

In 1983, the ROA Outstanding Junior Officer Award was established with LCDR Richard W. Schneider the first recipient (Schneider eventually became a Reserve Flag officer). This award continues up to the present. In 1984, BM2 Lisa B. Milone was named the first national NERA Outstanding Enlisted Coast Guard Reservist. This award changed names in 1995 to the CG Enlisted Person of the Year (EPOY) and also continues. In 1989, the Coast Guard Reserve also provided valuable support following the Exxon Valdez oil spill, Hurricane Hugo and the San Francisco earthquake.

    | 1940s | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1990s | 2000s | Present |