CAPT Mary Fong at her retirement ceremony

Friday was one of those days I will remember for a lifetime. We made a memory here at APhA, and we got to host a retirement ceremony for CAPT Mary Fong, US Public Health Service. Over the next couple of days, I will share portions of the event with you. As a prelude, let me say that we filled the Rotunda with about 100 uniformed and civilian guests, all big fans of Mary's, and there wasn't a dry eye in the place. I am too journalistically inadequate to describe the pride, patriotism and love in the room!

Mary is a 23 year veteran of the PHS who has paracticed in the Navajo Nation, an Immigration Detention Center in New York and in Grennwich Village, Coast Guard HQ in DC, Miami and finished her time as The Coast Guard Chief Pharmacist/Pharmacy Program Manager at the Coast Guard HQ. During her career, she also battled breast cancer, got married and graduated from the Naval War College after 4 1/2 years of night school.

We listened to testimonials from both her senior officers and her current and former staff who all expressed tremendous respect, admiration and certainly love. Actually, the feeling of love in the room was palpable.

More later. I am waiting on the text from the flag passing. I want to share it with you.