USCGC WILLOW

Commander Erin Chlum currently serves as the Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Cutter WILLOW, a seagoing buoy tender homeported in Charleston, SC. USCGC WILLOW is responsible for aids to navigation maintenance throughout the Coast Guard’s Seventh District, ranging from South Carolina to the Caribbean, including all U.S. territories as well as Guantanamo Bay and Haiti.

A native of Tinley Park, IL, CDR Chlum enlisted in the Coast Guard Reserve in 2004. Upon graduation from recruit training, she was assigned to Marine Safety Office Memphis, TN where she became a Marine Science Technician Third Class following Class “A” School in 2005. In 2006, she responded to Hurricane Katrina as part of the Salvage, Recovery and Debris Unit in New Orleans, LA.

CDR Chlum received her commission following Officer Candidate School in February 2007. Her afloat tours include Deck Watch Officer aboard CGC MACKINAW in Cheboygan, MI, Operations Officer of CGC WILLOW then homeported in Newport, RI and Executive Officer of CGC SPAR in Kodiak, AK. Her shore assignments include Facilities and Waterways Management Branch Chief at Marine Safety Unit Lake Charles, LA, Operations Specialist Training Branch Chief at Training Center Petaluma, CA. Most recently, she served as the Training Officer at the Maritime Law Enforcement Academy in Charleston, SC where she was responsible for the Maritime Enforcement Specialist “A” School and 13 “C” Schools graduating more than 2,600 students annually.

CDR Chlum is a permanent Cutterman. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Rhodes College, where she is a member of the Hall of Fame, and a Master of Science in Instructional Systems from Florida State University.