"I Don't Know What It Is, but Congratulations!"
This past August I returned home from NACON and spent some time with a good friend and fellow Auxiliary member. He asked if I was promoted and I responded that I was elected to the next level of leadership. He asked what position and I answered Deputy National Commodore. My friend sort of looked at me funny and said that he didn’t know what that is, but congratulations. I had to laugh because not too long ago I didn’t know what it is either. In fact since then a number of folks have asked me exactly what is a DNACO. I think we all focus on the offices at and just above our level. We all know our Flotilla Commander, most their Division Commander, a fair number their DCAPT and DCO but past that, well it gets murky for a lot of us.
So why don’t we review. At some point in our Auxiliary careers we have all looked at the Organizational Chart for the Auxiliary National Organization. The chart is in the AUXMAN (Figure 1-2 on page 1-30) and you can see it there but for now I’ll just review the pertinent arears. Everybody knows the Flotilla Commander (FC) reports to the Division Commander (DCDR) who reports to the District Captain (DCAPT) who in turn reports to the District Commodore (DCO). FCs and DCDRs have a Vice and the DCO has a Chief of Staff who is responsible for the staff. So far so good.
The District Commodores (16 nationwide) report to a Deputy National Commodore (DNACO). There are three elected and one appointed DNACO, one for the east coast, Atlantic Area East known as Lant East, one for the center of the country, Atlantic Area West or Lant West and one for the west coast, Hawaii, Guam, and Alaska known as the Pac Area. The appointed DNACO is responsible for Info Tech & Planning. In addition to their responsibilities for the DCO’s in their area each of the three elected DNACOs is assigned a specific set of program responsibilities. They are Mission Support (MS), Recreational Boating Safety (RBS) and Operations (O). The four DNACOs report to the Vice National Commodore (VNACO) who reports to the top of the pyramid, the National Commodore (NACO).
Why does it have to be so complex? We have over 28,000 members; ask any FC what it is like to lead 40 or 50 members. Imagine the National Commodore dealing with over 28,000 members himself. We have all seen the concept of “Span of Control” in our ICS training and once you get past 6 or 7 it gets dicey. As in any organization the larger it gets the more complex its organizational structure must be. We are more than you Flotilla or my Division or our District. We are the largest volunteer organization in the world that supports a branch of the military with members from Main to Guam and as I write this on the way to Haiti and it is this leadership structure that enables us to be act as one and to be efficient, effective and to make a real difference.
I hope that this clears up any questions you might have but if it doesn’t there is always the AUXMAN. That pretty much sums up the elected side, staff officers are appointed, and we’ll leave that for another time.
So I was elected to be the Deputy National Commodore for Lant East and assigned Operations. Operations covers Operations (Surface & Air), Prevention, Incident Management, and Foreign Relations. In AuxSpeak I am now DNACO-O LANT-EAST and absolutely thrilled. About 16 years ago I was dragged to a flotilla meeting and as a pilot and sailor it sounded interesting so I joined. Since then I have learned more about flying, boating, leadership and myself then I ever would have imagined possible. I understand more about the rewards of service and giving back to my country. I have met hundreds of absolutely terrific people, made friends for life, and worked side by side with Coast Guard active duty from raw recruits just out of Cape May to two star Admirals. I am doing what I love and making a difference. All because I went to that flotilla meeting, joined up and took on leadership positions.
If you get a chance to take a leadership position in the Auxiliary, take it. Step up! If one doesn’t come by, pursue one, step up and I assure you it will be the best decision you ever make as an Auxiliarist.
Semper Paratus
Alex Malewski
Commodore Alex Malewski
District Commodore,
First District Southern Region
District Commodore's Message