Shelley continues Silver Valley tradition of military excellence

Navy Commander (CDR) Gary Shelley, 47, is another example of Silver Valley natives who are serving our country with honor and distinction.

Born in Silverton, on Feb. 24, 1970, Shelley spent his entire childhood living in the same house in Woodland Park up Burke Canyon near Wallace.

Growing up there entirely, he was also a 12- year senior when he graduated from Wallace High School in 1988 (meaning he was in the Wallace school system K-12).

While at WHS, he played football and was on the varsity of golf team for three years, qualifying as an individual for state his junior and senior years.

The summer after high school graduation, Shelley was working at the Lucky Friday Mine in Mullan, but decided that he wanted “to see what else was out there.”

To do this, he chose to join the Navy.

Shelley chose the Navy because he believed that it gave him the best chance to learn technical skills and travel.

In the 28 years he has been in the service, he has done plenty of both.

Fresh out of Aviation Structural Mechanic- Safety Equipment (AME “A”) school in 1989, Shelley reported to his first assignment with the “Screwbirds” of Sea Control Squadron 33 (VS-33).

For the next 12 years, Shelley would hold several different mechanic type assignments while serving in California and Virginia; all-the-while completing several cruises to different locations around the world.

Named sailor of the year and promoted to Chief in 1998 while stationed in Virginia, he accepted a commission through the Limited Duty Officer (LDO) program and began LDO school in October 2000.

Shelley would take on a multitude of assignments between 2000 and today as an officer, including several deployments to the middle-east.

In 2006, now Commander Shelley served as Assistant Maintenance Officer with the “Ragin’ Bulls” of Strike Fighter Squadron 37 where he completed one Med/Arabian Gulf cruise in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

After finishing his third tour as an Officer, he transferred to the “Gladiators” of Strike Fighter Squadron 106 in February of 2009.

He served as Assistant Maintenance Officer for the “Roman Empire” until April of 2010 when he was hand selected to fill a vital position on the Staff of Commander Strike Fighter Wing Atlantic (CSFWL).

Working with CSFWL as Assistant Maintenance Officer and then Readiness Officer until February 2012, he oversaw the maintenance and material management of 18 squadrons encompassing over 300 F/A-18 A-F aircraft.

Heading to the middle-east again in 2012, Shelley reported to USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN-69) where he served as Assistant Maintenance Officer and Maintenance Material Control Officer.

During this tour he made two Med/Persian Gulf deployments in direct support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Then after serving five years as a Assistant Carrier Strike Group Readiness Officer with Commander Naval Air Forces Atlantic Headquarters, Shelley assumed his current role at Eglin Air Force Base in Fort Walton Beach, Florida with the “Grim Reapers” of Strike Fighter Squadron 101 as the Maintenance Officer of the Navy’s only operational F-35C Joint Strike Fighter squadron. He is responsible for the management, training and logistical planning for 7 Officers, 23 CPOs, 174 active duty and 84 contractor technicians performing aircraft maintenance and establishing programs/procedures on 14 F-35Cs.

Most recently CDR Shelley was selected for Aviation Command.

He will transfer from his current assignment upon orders to Command one of the Navy’s six Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Units.

Shelley says that he enjoys his current assignment, even though it is an extremely challenging, stressful, and busy job.

“Probably the most responsibility that I’ve had in my 28 years of service,” Shelley explained regarding his current assignment. “It gives me a superb sense of satisfaction daily (not because of what I do or have accomplished) but because of the way my Department works as a team to accomplish our mission.”

What he believes one of the most rewarding part of his job is seeing younger sailors develop and give them opportunities that they normally never would have, something that he knows about personally.

“We take young men and women barely out of high school and teach them to work on an aircraft with a $150 million dollar price tag,” Shelley said.

“The uniformed services provides an incredible opportunity for younger folks. The Navy has paid for me to get a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree and taught me more about leadership than I would have learned in any other organization. The travel was a huge bonus. I’ve been all over the world numerous times and it has been an absolute blessing to end up in this line of work.”

Shelly stresses that youth from his home town should look into what the military can do for them.

“I’d like to see more kids from the Silver Valley to take advantage of what the military has to offer. There truly is no limit to how far one can go and what the military can provide in terms of money for college, leadership, training and travel.”

Shelley has family that still lives in the Silver Valley today, including his sister Rena Connors, his younger brother Darin Shelley (who works at the Galena but lives in Coeur d’Alene), and his other younger brother Chad Shelley who lives in Kellogg.