Mattituck HS senior receives Coast Guard honor

When Ryan Harned returned to Mattituck High School for his senior year last month, he told his friends what he did during his summer break — laying the groundwork for a career as a United States Coast Guard officer.

The 17-year-old was chosen as the outstanding male participant in the “Academy Introduction Mission Program,” receiving a John and Carrol Johnson AIM Honor Graduate Award at the conclusion of week-long training at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn.

Ryan was the “Aimster” male candidate from among 195 students in the program. One male and one female Aimster are selected to receive the award for each of the three weeks it is offered. This award can lead to full admission into the Coast Guard Academy, if recipients choose to follow that route.

Maj. William Grigonis, who has led the Navy Reserve Officers Training Corps for Southold, Mattituck and Greenport students for the past 25 years, said Ryan is the first from the NJROTC unit to achieve the honor. “We’ve had some stellar students in the program,” the major said. “Ryan knows what he wants. It’s set in his heart.”

Maj. Grigonis credits Ryan’s parents, Southold Police Detective Sgt. Steven Harned and Diane Harned, with raising their son right.

Ryan said his parents instilled in him the qualities to be admitted to the program, saying they taught him by their examples, but never tried to dictate his path. He knew he had to put academics first, to focus on helping others and to always do his best in anything he tackled.

Ryan also credits Maj. Grigonis with preparing him for the experience he had at the academy in late July.

During the first couple of days at the AIM program, the Aimsters learned that the discipline is fierce and demands are difficult. But Maj. Grigonis told him to expect it to be tough. Ryan admitted he was tempted not to complete the program, but he is not a quitter, he said, and decided he would give it all he could.

Ryan never expected to be honored with the top award, saying that when he heard his name called, he still couldn’t believe it. Following the presentation, he said, he found himself thinking, “What the hell just happened? I wasn’t perfect.”

The AIM program gave the upperclassman an opportunity to evaluate the students, while the Aimsters could get a taste of whether the Coast Guard program was right for them.

 “It can basically make you or break you,” Ryan said. “I just did the best I could.”

Officers told his mother after the graduation ceremony that what convinced those who witnessed his demeanor and performances was his assistance to others in the program, his honesty and the seriousness he demonstrated in following the orders he received.

The next step is what is known as “Swab Summer,” an intense program with days starting at 5:30 a.m. The trainees are on their feet and running much of the time until 10 p.m. There are also major academic demands during those weeks. After students complete their training in Swab Summer, they begin their four-year education at the academy. 

Ryan envisions becoming an officer in his early 20s, ready to embrace the Coast Guard life.