Admiral Richard Gurnon listens to the youth orchestra at this summer’s celebration of the Cape Cod Canal Centennial
BUZZARDS BAY – After nearly 10 years as president and more than 36 years with the academy, Admiral Richard Gurnon plans to retire from Mass Maritime.
Gurnon made the announcement official in a letter to students and staff.
He told the Board of Trustees about his retirement plans before the school year started and made the official announcement yesterday. He plans to retire next summer, he said, to spend more time with his family and three grandchildren.
He came to Buzzards Bay in 1978 as a Company Officer, a position similar to a Residence Director at other institutions, after leaving the U.S. Navy.
“My original intention was to be on the faculty, to teach. I love to teach,” Gurnon said, “when I got involved with student life and student services, I found that as a true passion and stayed in that field.”
When asked if he had an accomplishment he was most proud of during his time with the Academy, Gurnon did not list one. Instead, he said a daily event at the school is the memory that will stick with him the most.
“Every morning at morning formation when 1,415 young people march out smartly on the field, salute the flag, and I hear the national anthem, I could not be more proud,” Gurnon said.
