Master Chief Al Santana US Navy (ret)

Master Chief Al Santana passed away Labor Day, September 5,2022 at the age of 93 after a battle with Alzheimers. He is predeceased by his first wife, Margaret and survived by his wife Joyce, sons Steven, Michael and Peter Santana and daughters Joy Miller and Melanie Edwards, 7-grandchildren and 2-great grandchildren.

Master Chief Santana had an amazing fifty-year career serving the Navy as a SEABEE for 31-years and NAVFAC for 19-years as an acknowledged expert in Quality Assurance. Born and raised in Elk Grove, CA, he enlisted in the Navy just after World War II and retired a Master Chief Petty Officer, the Navy’s highest enlisted rank. He was sent to the Naval Construction Battalion Center Port Hueneme, CA upon completion of Boot Camp at Naval Training Center, San Diego, CA.

Master Chief Santana was detailed to many of the Navy’s most challenging assignments and deployed extensively overseas to Guam, Okinawa, Yap, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, Puerto Rico and Diego Garcia. Rear Admiral SEABEE Jack Buffington, the Navy’s former Chief of Civil Engineers, recalled serving in NMCB-9 when he was the CHARLIE Company Commander and Chief Santana was the ALFA Company Chief. He felt Chief Santana was the best Chief in the battalion. He went to see him and asked if he could come see him for advice when he wasn’t sure what to do in various situations in CHARLIE Company. They were tight friends for 60-years after that.

Master Chief Santana served as the Command Master Chief for the Civil Engineer Corps Officer School and Naval Mobile Construction Battalion FOUR; Assistant Officer in Charge of Construction Battalion Unit 405; Program Coordination Division Director at CESO; Assistant Public Works Director, Orange TX; Head, Equipment Inspection Division, 31st Naval Construction Regiment; Assistant Officer in Charge, CBPAC Detachment Okinawa; and served in Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE. In addition to his SEABEE battalion and regimental tours, he also excelled on recruiting duty, worked in public works at Adak, AK and was selected as the Outstanding graduate of the Advanced SEABEE Management Course at CECOS.

The Commanding Officer at CECOS, Captain Leroy Lawson called Master Chief Santana “perhaps the finest and most capable Master Chief in the Navy” at his retirement ceremony.

Al entered Federal Service after he retired from active duty as a Construction Representative for Western Division, Naval Facilities Engineering Command. He developed an expertise for Construction Quality Assurance (QA) while serving as the Supervisory Construction Rep for the Resident Officer in Charge of Construction San Francisco Bay Area. He was promoted as the Director of Quality Assurance Division for the Officer in Charge of Construction (OICC) Travis. He excelled at supervising the QC/QA efforts building the Daniel Grant Medical Center for the Air Force at Travis Air Force Base. Dave Specht, the senior Construction Engineer at Travis and Portsmouth, recalled that Al had the contractor weld a Navy anchor to the base of the hyperbaric chamber as a reminder for all time that the David Grant Medical Center was a Navy project. Al was so successful managing the QA program at OICC Travis that he was recruited to become the Director of the Quality Assurance Division for OICC Portsmouth Hospital. Al’s dedicated efforts helped construct a world class medical center at Portsmouth with quality second to none. The new David Grant Medical Center and Portsmouth Naval Hospital became the crown jewels of Air Force and Navy medicine thanks to Al’s constant drive for quality.

Rear Admiral Mike Shelton served with Master Chief Santana multiple times over his career. On the anniversary of Master Chief Santana’s fifty years of military and civilian service to our nation, he honored him as follows:

“From Korea to the Philippines to Vietnam, you executed countless formidable challenges and served with distinction and courage in the most demanding conditions. You exhibited a “Can Do” spirit in the truest sense. Your exploits in the SEABEES were extraordinary and served as an inspiration to the most senior leaders of today’s Civil Engineer Corps. Everywhere you went your reputation preceded you, and you instilled a deep sense of pride, commitment and professionalism in SEABEES all around the world.”

Master Chief Santana was a highly decorated SEABEE. He was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal (with Combat V), Navy Achievement Medal, Good Conduct Medal (8th Award), Navy Unit Commendation, Meritorious Unit Commendation, Combat Action Ribbon, Victory Medal, World War II Medal, Navy Occupation Medal, National Defense Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, and Rifle and Pistol marksmanship ribbons.

Seldom is a man respected by so many. Master Chief Santana was honest, forthright and just plain smart. He demanded much of himself and mentored and taught others by example. Generations of SEABEES, Navy Civil Engineer Corps officers and NAVFAC civilians are proud to say that they are “Master Chief Al Santana trained men and women.”

Master Chief Santana’s funeral is scheduled for September 16, 2022 at the Mills and Mills Funeral Home, 5725 Littlerock Road, Tumwater, WA 98512.

God Bless Master Chief Al Santana… He lived a life of service to his family, our nation and the Navy…a life well lived.