"We've all seen those made-for-TV movies about heroes," one audience member said. "But to see a real movie about a real story about a real hero who's really here, that's so cool."
The hero last night in Love Auditorium was Carl Brashear, the Navy's first-ever black master diver and the first amputee to achieve that rank. The subject of George Tillman's 2000 film Men of Honor, Brashear spent most of his hour-long speech describing his path from a rural Kentucky farm through his 32 years in the Navy's diving program to the silver screen and eventually to a private viewing with former President Bill Clinton.
"I can say I've made it from the outhouse to the White House," he told an audience of more than 50. But Brashear's path was filled with obstacles-from the day he set off for Fort Knox to enlist, racial discrimination and segregation added tremendous burdens to the Navy's already rigorous programs.
Having graduated only the seventh grade, then-naval steward Brashear quickly learned that education and determination would be the keys to his success.
After earning his GED and eventually rising to the rank of E3 during the Korean War, Brashear witnessed first-hand the deep sea recovery of a downed airplane. Believing he had found his calling, Brashear enrolled in and graduated from the first level of the Navy's diving program.
But when he registered for the next course, Brashear quickly found out that his lack of technical education would prevent any further advancement.
So for the next three years, Brashear studied the chemistry of diving while serving in the military. This commitment signaled the kinds of things the Navy could expect from him.
After eventually graduating from first class diving school, Brashear was supervising the recovery of a bomb 2,500 feet beneath the water. When his men fell in harm's way, he went after them, and in the process of removing them from the line of danger, Brashear was struck and severely injured; eventually, his leg would have to be amputated.
"They said that I would no longer be able to perform my duties as chief petty officer and deep sea diver," Brashear said. "I could not accept those words because I was... determined to achieve my goals."
He sneaked out of the hospital each night to exercise, sometimes making his leg bleed, and eventually passed an unprecedented battery of tests to earn his reinstatement and eventually the rank of master diver.
"I am proud of my naval career and of my success while serving in the United States Navy," he said. "If possible, I would do it all over again. I hope you all will become inspired and set your goals and let nobody steal your dreams."
At the start of his speech, Brashear asked audience members to raise their right hands and say and then repeat, "I ain't gonna let nobody steal my dreams."
He said the saying may not have been grammatically correct, but explained that it brought him through all the hard times in the Navy and in the hospital: "If a boy from a rural section of Kentucky can join the Navy from very little education and make it work, you can, too."
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