Consul General Joselito Jimeno (R) exchanges handshakes with Rear Admiral Victorino Mercado (L) after the ceremony

Consul General Joselito A. Jimeno was a guest at the Retirement Ceremony in honor of United States Rear Admiral Victorino G. on Tuesday, 7 August 2018 beside the USS Halsey (DDG 97), Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam, Hawaii.

Rear Admiral Mercado is the Director of Maritime Operations of the US Pacific fleet. Among others, he commanded USS Decatur (DDG 73) during deployment with the John C. Stennis Battle Group in support of Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan and UN sanctions on Iraq. He subsequently commanded Destroyer Squadron 21, serving as the sea combat commander for the John Stennis Carrier Strike Group.

Among the speakers were, US Pacific Fleet Deputy Commander Rear Admiral Matthew Carter and US Navy (Ret) and Director of the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies Rear Admiral Pete Gumataotao. Also present during the ceremony were colleagues, family and friends of Rear Admiral Mercado and members of the Consular Corps of Hawaii.

During the retirement remarks of Rear Admiral Mercado, he acknowledged the hard work of Consul General Joselito Jimeno in fostering the good relationship between the United States and the Republic of the Philippines.

Admiral Mercado has been one of the highest ranked Filipino-American in the United States Navy. His family hails from Batangas. END