An Ocala high school graduate who is serving in the United States Navy is training to work on complex electronic systems for some of the most advanced aircraft in the country.
Airman Apprentice Jorge Montero, who graduated from Lake Weir High School in 2019, is currently assigned to the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit (CNATTU) located at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi.
Montero is training to become an aviation electronics technician, a role responsible for troubleshooting and repairing electronic systems on tactical jets, fixed-wing aircraft, and helicopters.
In a report provided by the Navy Office of Community Outreach, Montero credited his Ocala upbringing for the values he carries today.
“Growing up with my stepdad and mother, I learned that real respect doesn’t come from who you are, it comes from how you carry yourself,” Montero said.
Montero joined the Navy one year ago, following a long line of family members in military service, including a cousin in the Marine Corps and his father and stepbrother in the Army. While working at Walmart, Montero says he began looking for a sign to join the service.
“I kept seeing people with Navy ballcaps,” Montero said. “Later, a retired Navy guy started to talk to me about being in the Navy, and that helped me make up my mind because I thought that was a sign for me. I joined to mold myself into a better version, to be someone the younger me would be proud of.”
The Ocala native expressed that his greatest sense of achievement comes from the camaraderie of his fellow sailors.
“My biggest feeling of accomplishment comes from being a shoulder to lean on for my brothers and sisters when life gets confusing and stressful,” Montero said. “Serving in the Navy means being part of a family that feels closer than blood. It’s more than a job; it’s a lifestyle.”
Reflecting on his journey from Marion County to the fleet, Montero remains grateful for the support system back home.
“I’d like to thank the Monteros, my mom and stepdad, the Savoys, the Hernandez and Gonzalez families, my cousins’ households, for always sending mail and checking up on my health and faith,” he said.
Montero is the latest in a string of Ocala residents making waves in the Navy. Earlier this month, Petty Officer 1st Class Claudyn El Dirani, whose parents reside in Ocala, was named the Navy Personnel Command’s Junior Sailor of the Year.
Leave your words of encouragement and support for Ocala’s own Airman Apprentice Jorge Montero in a comment or a letter to the editor.
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