Chief Petty Officer (CPO) Adam Hearn, who is based at HMS Collingwood, was honoured to receive the Mayor of Fareham’s Award recently in recognition of his contribution to the local community.
The Collingwood Cup was presented to CPO Hearn by the Mayor of Fareham, Councillor Geoff Fazackarley at the Mayor’s Inauguration Ceremony held at the Ferneham Hall, Fareham, to acknowledge CPO Hearn’s contribution to the HMS Collingwood’s Volunteer Cadet Corps (VCC).
Adam became Commanding Officer of Collingwood’s Volunteer Cadet Corps (VCC) in December 2016 after the previous CO retired from the position.
Since then, through encouraging and empowering his staff to provide more enjoyable and relevant training, he has overseen an impressive increase in membership of the group.
The training the Cadets receive utilises the Royal Navy’s core values of commitment, courage, discipline, respect, integrity and loyalty and Adam has used his experience and contacts to forge links between the VCC and both ships and submarines in current service.
This offers a unique opportunity for Cadets to experience training in the most modern techniques and processes, promoting the Royal Navy as a forward-looking organisation.
Adam, 45, who works in HMS Collingwood’s Underwater Training Element (UWTE) as a course instructor, joined the Royal Navy in January 1991 beginning his career aboard HMS Argonaut and including two drafts on both HMS Manchester and HMS Nottingham, amongst other vessels.
He was awarded his Long Service and Good Conduct Medal in 2006 and has also received medals for his service in the Gulf and Afghanistan. Whilst deployed to the Caribbean, Adam also took part in anti-narcotics patrols and humanitarian relief missions.
Adam, originally from Berkhamstead in Hertfordshire, now lives in Gosport with his wife and their two sons.
Speaking of his pride at receiving the Collingwood Cup he said, “Taking over the VCC was a daunting task which required a lot of effort to start to fulfil its potential.
“HMS Collingwood VCC has started to benefit from the hard work put in this year and I feel the unit continues to gain strength. There are many good young Cadets within the unit here who will contribute to future society.”
In his free time, Adam enjoys watching football, running and cycling and, with colleagues from HMS Collingwood, has recently completed a cycle ride from London to Brighton raising more than £500 for the British Heart Foundation.
