Boatwsain’s Mate First Class Brigham R. Seaver retired from the United States Naval Reserve on 1 April 2000. A Retirement Ceremony was held on March 5, 2000, at the Navy Cargo Handling Battalion Eight (NCHB-8) Training Compound, Fort Dix, NJ. Presiding over the ceremony were Cdr S.R. Lapp, Commanding Officer NCHB-8, and Command Chief BMC Charles Carn. Also present were Mr. Seaver’s wife, Louise Seaver, and the remainder of the Battalion. During the ceremony Commander Lapp presented the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal to BM1 Seaver, and a Certificate of Appreciation to Mrs. Seaver. 

Petty Officer Seaver began his naval career in November 1972. After completing Basic Training at Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Illinois, he was assigned to Mine Squadron 10 (COMINERON10) in Charleston South Carolina, where he served as a Seaman and Boatswain’s Mate aboard the 57 foot Minesweep Boats (MSB’s) until July 1975. He then spent six months aboard The USS Vesole (DD878), a "Gearing Class" destroyer, before being separated from active duty in October 1975 at the end of his enlistment.

Petty Officer Seaver spent the rest of his 22 year career in the Naval Reserve, during which period he served in many interesting assignments on a wide variety of platforms. Some highlights: USS Escape (ARS-6), a Salvage Ship, of Jacksonville Florida, 1977; Shore Intermediate Maintenance Activity (SIMA) at Philadelphia PA, 1979-1982; USS Clifton Sprague (FFG-16), out of Philadelphia PA , 1982-1984; Fleet Support Training Unit (FSTU) in Philadelphia PA, 1988-1991; COOPMINEUNIT-2205 (CT-5), Cape May NJ, 1991-1994; Inshore Boat Unit (IBU-24) Fort Dix NJ, 1994-1996. BM1 Seaver spent the last four years of his career with the Navy Cargo Handling Battalion Eight in Fort Dix. While attached to NCHB-8 he served as Leading Petty Officer for the Deck Division, participated in two Operational Readiness Evaluations (1996,1998), and traveled to Pearl Harbor HI (1997), and Sigonella, Italy (1999) for training operations. In his farewell remarks Mr. Seaver reflected on a rewarding career, paid tribute to his shipmates for their hard work and support, and thanked his wife Louise for her many years of dedication. Mr. Seaver will continue his civilian career as a Computer Scientist with the Federal Aviation Administration at the Technical Center near Atlantic City , New Jersey. His retirement from the Naval Reserve will allow him more time to pursue his part time job as an ocean beach lifeguard, and his hobbies, including running , weight-lifting , boating , and renovation work on his 150-year old house in Palermo, NJ.