Belen native retires from U.S. Navy

After 34 years of dedicated service, U.S. Navy Comm. David Cordova is retiring.

Comm. Cordova, a native of Belen, enlisted in the U.S. Navy, completing basic training at Recruit Training Command San Diego, Calif., as an airman recruiting in 1990.

During his enlisted service, he served as both an aviation machinist mate naval aircrewman and hospital corpsman, holding an NEC as an aviation physiology instructor.

Selected for the Enlisted Commissioning Program in 1999, he earned a bachelor degree in human physiology and Kinesiology and commissioned through the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) at the University of Colorado in 2001. He is also a 2009 graduate of the University of South Carolina, where he earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree in international finance.

Comm. Cordova was designated a Naval flight officer after earning his Wings of Gold in 2003.

Cordova has always been dedicated to becoming a Navy officer, proudly serving 34 with unwavering love and devotion to our country. His extensive career has included numerous tours and deployments to various locations, such as Japan, Philippines, Bahrain, Thailand, Hawaii and Guam, where he met his wife of 30 years, Gladys, and raised three accomplished children, Jonathan, 27, Gabrielle, 25, and Isa, 23. He is also a proud pet owner of Apollo, 7 and Atlas, 2.

Comm. Cordova’s parents, Max and Rosemarie Cordova; his sister, Lisa Kaneshiro; and brother, Vincent; still reside in Belen and Los Lunas.

As he concludes his final tour at the NROTC of Jacksonville University as the executive officer in Florida, where he currently resides with his wife, Cordova expresses his heartfelt gratitude to his family and friends for their unwavering support throughout his illustrious career.

Congratulations to Commander Cordova on his 34 years of distinguished service to our nation and to his family for their support and sacrifices as well. Fair winds and following seas.