Zakriski to command New York Naval Militia
SCHODACK, N.Y. » Glenville resident Timothy Zakriski, a rear admiral in the New York Naval Militia, took command of the 2,800-member force during ceremonies at Schodack Island State Park on Friday.
Zakriski took over from Rear Admiral Ten Eyck “Trip” Powell, a Coeymans resident who had been commander since December 2014.
The New York Naval Militia is composed of current Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard Reserve members who agree to serve on state active duty when called by the State of New York. They put the skills they’ve honed in federal military service to work for New York.
Naval Militia members responded to Superstorm Sandy in 2012, the Buffalo snowstorm in 2014, Lake Ontario flooding in 2017 and snow storms in the Hudson Valley earlier this year.
The Naval Militia also operates a fleet of nine patrol boats that respond to state emergencies, augment law enforcement agencies and support the U.S. Coast Guard.
The change of command ceremony took place on the back deck of one of those boats, Naval Militia Patrol Boat 400, which was tied up at the state park dock.
Zakriski, Powell, and Major General Anthony German, the adjutant general of New York, were piped aboard the boat in traditional naval fashion to start the ceremony.
The change of command was marked by Powell read- ing orders relieving himself of command, while Zakriski read orders which instructed him to take command of the Naval Militia.
In his remarks, German thanked Powell for his service.
“You have done all the things we have asked you to do and more,” German said.
The NewYork Naval Militia has “always ‘rogered up’ and gone to the sounds of the guns or the weather,” Powell said.
During Hurricane Sandy, Naval Militia members spent three days hand carrying fuel up several flights of stairs to keep a hospital generator going to keep two patients alive, Powell said. During the Erie County snowstorm of 2014 they helped clear roads so emergency crews could get through, and in the past year the Naval Militia provided 4,400 man hours of service to the state, he added.
Zakriski thanked the young men and women of the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard Reserve who volunteer for Naval Militia service for making the organization effective.
“We bring a great amount of talents, knowledge and skill to the table,” Zakriski said. “We have come a long way under prior leaders and I hope to have equal success as your commander.”
Zakriski is a native of Glenville, and a graduate of Niskayuna High School and Hudson Valley Community College. He holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Union College.
He served as an en- listed Marine in the Marine Corps Reserve before being commissioned as an ensign in the Navy Reserve in the Civil Engineer Corps in 1982. He first joined the New York Naval Militia in 1980.