Nancy Calvert retired from the Department of the Navy in 2019 following 31-1/2 years of federal service. She began her career at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in 1987 as a marine machinery mechanic apprentice working onboard nuclear submarines, carriers, and cruisers. A few years after graduating from the apprenticeship, she was impacted by the 1994 reduction in force and was fortunate enough to qualify as a secretary, due to prior experience. Fortune shone on her again in 1999 and she began a career as an Engineering Technician in the Engineering Department at the Shipyard. There, she performed ship checks, wrote test documents, updated drawings, and served as a lead technical liaison and program engineer for the planning, development and resolution of non-conformances identified by Commander Atlantic Fleet East for nuclear aircraft carriers and submarines in support of fleet deployments and missions.
In 2007, Nancy and her husband Bill moved to Northern VA after accepting jobs at Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington, DC. While at NAVSEA, Nancy served as a Deputy Project Manager for submarine availabilities conducted at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. In this capacity, she worked with shipyard and NAVSEA employees to ensure submarines regained their submarine safety certification following work performed during major work availabilities. She later served as the Unrestricted Operations Manager for the Submarine Safety Office of the Engineering Directorate within the In-Service Submarine Program Office. In 2014, she accepted a position in the Submarine Safety and Quality Assurance Office. There, she managed and executed NAVSEA functional audits of Naval and contractor activities that perform work critical to the safety of Naval personnel and assets and helped staff quality assurance audits conducted by fleet Type Commanders.
During her career, she received many awards, including 2 Meritorious Civilian Service Awards and honorary dolphins from the Captain of the USS ALASKA (SSBN 732).
Nancy’s life was not always fortuitous. At the age of 14 she entered foster care following mental and physical abuse at the hands of her father. She knew she deserved a better life and had the courage to take the first step to get out of that abusive situation, but it took years of counseling and an amazing foster mom to help her realize she should strive for a great life. These experiences and the help she received from the compassionate and caring people she met fuels her drive to give back and serve her community through opportunities like Samaritan Ministry.
Nancy lives in Northern VA with her husband, Bill. They are active in their Church, St Alban’s Episcopal in Annandale, VA. They have 2 adult children and 3 fur babies.
Watch Nancy tell her story at the 2023 Next Step Breakfast: