On Tuesday, July 25, 2006,Carl Maxie Brashear died of respiratory and heart failure at age 75 at the Navel Medical Center in Portsmouth, VA. Some of your may reconize his name. He was the first black master diver in the U.S. Navy. Carl Brashear was truely a "Man of Courage." In 1948 President Truman ordered the U.S. military to integrate, Carl Brashear was 17 and enlisted in the Navy. After basic training he entered the Navy diving school. Like most of the career fields in the Navy at the time there were very few blacks, and there were no black divers. Nevertheless, he was determine to become a diver.

His white shipmates made death threats towards him and white officers tried to sabotage his final exam at the diving school. He overcame the racism and  threats to became the Navy's first black deep-sea diver.

In 1966 Mr. Brashear was stationed aboard the USS Hoist, a Navy salvage ship when two U.S. Air Force planes collied off the coast of Spain. A nuclear weapon fell into the sea. Carl Brashear was given the assignment to retrieve the weapon. As he was preparing to make the dive, a large pipe being used to lift the weapon broke lose, rolled across the deck and smashed his leg below his left knee. Because his injuries were so severe the lower portion of his left leg was amputated. Although his injury guaranteed his retirement, Mr. Brashear was determined to continue diving. He refused an evaluation hearing where it was certain he would be found unfit to perform his duties. He was determined to prove he was able to continue diving, even with a prosthesis. Determimed to continue diving, Mr. Brashear applied the lessons learned from his father, hard work and determination to achieve his goal.  He endured grueling physical training in the face of racism, in addition, a disability  to achieve his goal. He proved that an amputee could dive and was eventually reinstated to full duty as a diver. He became the Navy's first amputee allowed to dive. Four years later he became the Navy's first black master diver.

Carl Brashear's story was made into a film in 2000 "Men of Honor," staring Cuba Gooding Jr. as Carl Brasher. The actor called him, "the strongest man I have ever met."

America needs more black heros like Carl Brashear for our young people to learn from. There are many black men and women today who are heros, but we never hear about them. Heros and role models should be in every home. Unfortunately they are not, and most of our young people look up to the Rap stars and athletes who make millions of dollars but few are role models for anyone to emulate.

Mr. Carl Maxie Brashear was truely "A Man of Honor," and "A Man of Courage."