D. Brian Peterman - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...

D. Brian Peterman retired in July 2008. Prior to retiring he was Commander, Atlantic Area / Commander, Defense Force East. He assumed command of United States Coast Guard

United States Coast Guard

The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...

Atlantic Area on May 9, 2006 and is the operational commander for all Coast Guard activities in an area of responsibility east of the Rocky Mountains

Rocky Mountains

The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...

from Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

to Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, across the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

to the Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

and throughout the Caribbean Sea

Caribbean Sea

The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....

. Over 33,000 military and civilian personnel, and 30,000 auxiliarists are under his leadership. He serves concurrently as Commander, U.S. Coast Guard Defense Force East. With this change of command, Peterman relieved Vice Admiral Vivien S. Crea

Vivien S. Crea

Vice Admiral Vivien S. Crea, United States Coast Guard, was the 25th Vice Commandant of the United States Coast Guard under Admiral Thad W. Allen. Crea held the second highest position in the Coast Guard, and she is the first woman to do so. She is the former Commander of the Coast Guard...

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He reported to the Coast Guard Atlantic Area from an assignment as Commander, Seventh Coast Guard District where he led Coast Guard tactical operations in the Southeastern United States and the Caribbean. Prior to that, he served for two-and-a-half years as the Special Assistant to the President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

for Border and Transportation Security on the Homeland Security Council

Homeland Security Council

The Homeland Security Council is an entity within the White House Office tasked with advising the President on matters relating to Homeland Security...

staff. This was his second assignment to the White House

White House

The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...

, having previously served as a Director in the Defense Policy and Arms Control Directorate of the National Security Council

United States National Security Council

The White House National Security Council in the United States is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials and is part of the Executive Office of the...

from 1988 to 2000.

Vice Admiral Peterman is a Coast Guard Cutterman and commanded two cutters: Coast Guard Cutter WOODRUSH

USCGC Woodrush (WLB-407)

USCGC Woodrush was a buoy tender that performed general aids-to-navigation , search and rescue , and icebreaking duties for the United States Coast Guard from 1944 to 2001 from home ports of Duluth, Minnesota and Sitka, Alaska...

out of Sitka, Alaska, and Coast Guard Cutter CAMPBELL

USCGC Campbell (WPG-32)

USCGC Campbell was a Secretary-Class Coast Guard ship built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1935-1936 and commissioned in 1936. Seven similar "combat cutters" were built and named for secretaries of the United States Treasury...

out of New Bedford, Massachusetts

New Bedford, Massachusetts

New Bedford is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States, located south of Boston, southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, and about east of Fall River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 95,072, making it the sixth-largest city in Massachusetts...

In addition, he served aboard Coast Guard Cutter ACHUSHNET out of Gulfport, Miss., and Coast Guard Cutter SWEETBRIER out of Cordova, Alaska

Cordova, Alaska

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,454 people, 958 households, and 597 families residing in the city. The population density was 40.0 per square mile . There are 1,099 housing units at an average density of 17.9 per square mile...

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In addition to his shipboard assignments, Vice Admiral Peterman served in a number of assignments ashore. As the first Coast Guard officer in the Military Liaison Office in Kingston, Jamaica

Kingston, Jamaica

Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...

, he trained Jamaica Defense Force personnel for peacekeeping operations in Grenada. From 1988 to 1990, he served at the Headquarters, U.S. European Command in Stuttgart, Germany, where he managed a program that required extensive travel in North and West Africa. Later, he commanded the Coast Guard’s key Alaska industrial and operational facility in Ketchikan, Alaska.

Raised in Malvern, Pennsylvania

Malvern, Pennsylvania

Malvern is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,998 at the 2010 census. The main road through the borough is King Street, although the borough is also bordered by Paoli Pike on the south, and is near US 30 on the north. The primary cross street is Warren...

, Vice Admiral Peterman is a 1968 graduate of Great Valley High School, earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from West Chester University in 1972 and entered the Coast Guard through the Officer Candidate program. In 1988 he earned a Master of Science Degree from the Naval War College

Naval War College

The Naval War College is an education and research institution of the United States Navy that specializes in developing ideas for naval warfare and passing them along to officers of the Navy. The college is located on the grounds of Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island...

. His military awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Joint Meritorious Service Medal, Cutterman’s insignia and the Presidential Service insignia.

See also