Navy Federal Credit Union

Awards Received

  • Coast Guard Medal

    Service:

    United States Coast Guard

    Rank:

    Chief Warrant Officer

    Action Date:

    August 5, 1984

    U.S. Coast Guard Historian’s Office

    The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Coast Guard Medal to Chief Warrant Officer James F. Szerokman, United States Coast Guard, for heroism on the evening of 5 August 1984 when he saved the life of a drowning teenage boy in Lake Washington, Seattle, Washington. As the Seafair Hydroplane Races concluded, hundreds of boats which had been moored within viewing distance of the races began to exit through the narrow channel at the east end of the Mercer Island Bridge. Chief Warrant Officer Szerokman, who was on liberty at the time and among those exiting through the narrow channel, observed the dangerous conditions: several minor collisions, the free-for-all attitude of most boat operators, and people in numerous small canoes and rafts in the middle of the channel. Realizing some kind of emergency was inevitable, he decided to remain nearby to render assistance. A large yacht passed within inches of a canoe causing a teenage boy, who was wearing no personal flotation device, to fall overboard. Chief Warrant Officer Szerokman immediately maneuvered his boat against the flow of boat traffic to the vicinity of the canoe until he sighted the boy, floating face down, 18 inches under the water. After positioning his boat, and without regard to the imminent personal danger, he jumped into the water and pulled the unconscious boy to the surface. At one point, he had to release the boy and fend off a passing vessel that did not see them. After getting the boy into his boat he immediately began CPR. A Coast Guard 41-foot utility boat arrived with emergency medical technicians who subsequently revived the young man, and he was then evacuated to a nearby hospital by Coast Guard Helicopter. The heroic actions of Chief Warrant Officer Szerokman resulted in the saving and complete recovery of the teenager. Chief Warrant Officer Szerokman demonstrated remarkable initiative, fortitude, and daring in spite of imminent personal danger. His courage and devotion to duty are most heartily commended and are in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Coast Guard.