ROCHELLE — Rick Mott of Rochelle served active duty in the United States Navy from 1971-1975, and remained in the inactive reserves until 1977 when he was honorably discharged.

After being born and raised in Rochelle, Mott graduated from Rochelle Township High School in 1969. He enrolled at DeVry Institute of Technology in Chicago, majoring in electronics, and returned to Rochelle upon his graduation. He was drafted by the U.S. Army within 30 days of returning home. Due to the Army not being interested in his electronics training, Mott spoke with a Navy recruiter and was offered an electronics rating with a four-year enlistment instead of the regular six years, and headed off to boot camp at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station.

Mott was then sent to specialized radar electronics training schools in Great Lakes and Glenco Georgia Naval Air Station.

“In the Navy I was a radar electronic technician,” Mott said “We were charged with repair and operations of all the air search and navigational search radars on board. We had several radars used for air search and other radars that were used for surface search and navigation purposes. We maintained and operated those.”

Mott received orders to serve on the USS Enterprise, which had a homeport in Alameda, California. The ship was headed to its sixth combat deployment with a destination of the war in Southeast Asia. The ship departed Sept. 12, 1972. 

“When we deployed out of San Francisco Bay, there was a huge armada of anti-war protestors in their boats trying to blockade us from leaving,” Mott said. “The Coast Guard and Naval patrol boats were able to clear the area enough that we sailed on through. That was a different time politically to be in the military.” 

The USS Enterprise, which had a crew of over 5,000, had to alter its course to avoid a direct confrontation with Typhoon Ida as it was headed for the Gulf of Tonkin. Once it neared the coast of Vietnam, the ship was in position to conduct combat operations. Several missions a day were flown in support of U.S. troops on the ground and to destroy infrastructure in North Vietnam.

The Paris Peace Accords were signed in January 1973. By April 1973, all 591 of America’s known prisoners of war were released. The USS Enterprise was ordered to return to the U.S., and while on its way in June it rescued 31 crewmen from the Liberian registry freighter, St. Constantine. The crew had taken refuge in lifeboats for five days. 

The USS Enterprise lost eight crew members during Mott’s deployment, six dying and two missing in action. Five former Navy prisoners of war were on board the ship on its return to the states. The ship arrived back in Alameda on June 12, 1973, ending Mott’s first nine-month long deployment. 

After two months in Alameda, the USS Enterprise sailed for Bremerton, Washington. Crew members were able to bring their cars along with them, including Mott’s 1970 Chevrolet Monte Carlo.

“I drove it up a ramp from the pier into the hangar bay and onto an aircraft elevator,” Mott said. “The elevator was raised to the flight deck level, and then I drove my car right down the flightdeck. I parked it where directed and it was chained down to the flight deck the same way jets were tied down. It was an unusual sight.”

The ship spent several months in dry dock before returning to Alameda. On Sept. 14, 1974, Mott left on the Enterprise for his second nine-month deployment to the western Pacific. It encountered Typhoon Carmen on Oct. 16, 1974, and that was the first time Mott experienced waves crashing above the flightdeck.

In October and November 1974, the crew conducted several training operations with various units of the Philippine Armed Forces. On Dec. 10, 1974, the USS Enterprise was ordered to proceed to the Gulf of Tonkin to conduct air operations off the coast of South Vietnam. On Jan. 7, 1975, the ship was ordered to the Indian Ocean due to increasing hostilities in the Middle East. 

On Feb. 5, 1975, the Enterprise anchored four miles from Mombasa, Kenya. Mott was able to go on a safari tour to Mount Kilimanjaro and visit the capital, Nairobi. 

“There were those old recruitment posters that said, 'Join the Navy and see the world,'” Mott said. “That was definitely true in my case. I went to Hawaii and the Philippines several times and Hong Kong and Singapore a couple of times and to Kenya. I got to go places and do things that would cost a fortune today. That was pretty unique.”

On Feb. 6, 1975, Cyclone Gervaise, the worst storm to hit the area since 1956, struck Mauritius, destroying and seriously damaging thousands of homes. The USS Enterprise responded with aid and teams spent more than 10,000 man-hours restoring water, power and telephone systems over four days before departing for continued operations in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf.

Mott’s ship saw two more responses to South Vietnam in early 1975, and on April 29, 1975 it was ordered to execute Operation Frequent Wind, created to extract the last Americans from Saigon. 978 Americans and 1,120 third-country nationals were removed from the embassy. The Enterprise provided air support for the evacuation.  On May 20, 1975, The USS Enterprise arrived back at Alameda, California.

On Oct. 24, 1975, Mott was released from active duty and returned to Rochelle. He remained in the inactive reserves until June 8, 1977, when he was honorably discharged. 

“The best thing the service taught me was how to take orders,” Mott said. “I think the Navy guided me in how to be a man, how to take orders and how to take responsibility. Those are things you don't always learn in high school or college.”

Mott called the experience of seeing operations on a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier with 75 jets and 5,000 people “pretty amazing.” The ship had its own TV and radio station, stores, barbershops, dental offices, medical facilities and more right on board. 

Mott’s experience in the Navy allowed him to land a job with the Federal Aviation Administration when he came home, and it became a career of 40 years. 

“I started as a radar electronic technician in Rockford,” Mott said. “The Rockford Airport had just gotten radar. Living in this area allowed me to work in Chicago, Rockford and Aurora and move up the ladder without having to relocate. That was definitely a big plus I got out of my Navy time that I might not have had if I didn't serve.”

Mott currently serves as the senior vice commander of Rochelle VFW Post 3878. He joined the post in the early 1980s. In retirement, he’s found more time to volunteer and get involved with helping other veterans. He hopes younger veterans join the VFW to keep the organization strong. 

Mott spoke with the News-Leader on Nov. 13, fresh off Veterans Day. He spent Nov. 11 and the weekend before it participating in local events in honor of the holiday. 

“To me, Veterans Day is a day of retrospect,” Mott said. “It's a day I always use to think back on those four years. Most of the memories were good ones and I enjoy going back and reliving them in my mind. It's also become a day of teaching. I went to the city's Veterans Day breakfast and to the high school's Veterans Day breakfast. The students could see information and veterans memorabilia and ask questions. It's a day filled with reflection of the past and a day of education, trying to teach the younger people what it's all about.”

Honoring Our American Hero is a series that will print twice a month in the News-Leader. If you know an American Hero you would like to have featured, contact Jeff Helfrich at jhelfrich@rochellenews-leader.com or call 815-561-2151.