'To help protect the good people back home': Burkburnett grad serving in Navy overseas

U.S. NAVAL BASE GUAM — Petty Officer 2nd Class Memphis Shepherd, a Burkburnett native, is serving with the Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron Two in support of Commander, Task Force 75 in Guam.

Shepherd, a 2020 graduate of Burkburnett High School, said the skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those he developed at home.

“I learned to never judge a book by its cover,” he said. "It was a small town, where everyone kind of talks the same, looks the same, but you come to find out that under all that, everyone is actually pretty unique."

Shepherd joined the Navy three years ago. He serves as an engineman.

Inspiration to serve

“I joined because I wanted to help protect the good people back home, and I wanted to come meet some of the good people defending us out here,” Shepherd said. "I wanted to add to the family legacy, as well. My great-grandfather and my grandfather both served, and I wanted to continue that tradition."

Shepherd said he’s grateful to others for helping inspire him to make a Navy career.

“I'd like to thank my grandfather, Mason, who served in the Air Force for 22 years,” he said. "He joined the Air Force late and had a very successful career, bringing his family up out of poverty. I just wanted to emulate that."

Shepherd also expressed thanks for the support of his grandmother, Charlotte, his parents, Jason and Tabitha, and his fiancee, Natalie.

Many roles

CTF 75 executes command and control of assigned Navy Expeditionary Combat Forces in the 7th Fleet area of operations. They plan and execute naval construction, expeditionary logistics, explosive ordnance disposal, maritime expeditionary security, and they are involved in crisis response, humanitarian assistance and major combat operations.

With 90 percent 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.

Carrying on a tradition

Shepherd has many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during military service.

“I'm proudest just to serve alongside my friends and to have made the connections I have,” he said. "I'm just glad to be able to reach out to new people and share the experiences I've had in the Navy. I've had a chance to meet all kinds of new people that I wouldn't have been exposed to back home."

Shepherd can also take pride in serving America through military service.

“Serving means carrying on a tradition that's bigger than me doing something for my country that others can't,” he said.

This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Protecting the 'people back home': Burk grad serving in Navy overseas