COMMANDING OFFICER
Commander Matthew Kolodica
Commander Matthew R. Kolodica assumed command of USCGC ALERT (WMEC 630) on June 4th 2021. A permanent cutterman, Commander Kolodica has previously served on six cutters. His initial assignment in the Coast Guard was aboard USCGC ALERT (WMEC 630), in Astoria, Oregon as Deck Watch Officer. He then forward deployed to the Middle East in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom (OIF/OEF). While overseas, he served as the 7th Patrol Boat relief crew Executive Officer on: USCGC’s BARANOF (WPB 1318), MAUI (WPB 1304), and MONOMOY (WPB 1326). He also served as Officer in Charge of the Coast Guard’s forward operating base in Kuwait and as Coast Guard’s Liaison Naval Officer to Commander Task Force 58 directly reporting to the British commander in charge of allied forces operating in the Northern Arabian Gulf. He then assumed command of USCGC MAUI (WPB 1304) also forward deployed in support of OIF/OEF. After back-to-back tours in the Middle East, he returned to Coos Bay, Oregon to command USCGC ORCAS (WPB 1327). His next afloat assignment was as Executive Officer of USCGC STEADFAST (WMEC 623) in Astoria, Oregon.
Previous shore assignments include, Chief, Maritime Force Protection Division, at U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C. where he led the Coast Guard’s largest reimbursable budgeted program, sponsored by the U.S. Navy and charged with the protection and escort of U.S. Navy ballistic nuclear submarines. Prior to his tour as Division Chief, he served as Maritime Advisor to the Combatant Commander of NORAD and USNORTHCOM located in Colorado Springs, Colorado where he specialized in watch stander certification/training, continuity of government exercises and nuclear command and control operations. Commander Kolodica earned his Master Training Specialist qualification serving as Senior Instructor and Assistant School Chief of Command and Operations School at the Leadership Development Center in New London, Connecticut. His responsibilities included training and readying the Coast Guard’s prospective afloat command cadre before re-assignment to the cutter fleet.
Commander Kolodica’s military awards include: the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, three Coast Guard Commendation medals, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and a Commendation Letter from the British Royal Navy.
A native of Chelsea, Michigan, Commander Kolodica is an honors graduate of Carthage College with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion. He is a 2016 graduate of the U.S. Naval War College with a Master of Arts in Strategy and Defense.
Commander Kolodica is married to the former Taryn Hodges of North Hampton, New Hampshire and they have two children, Emmett and Maddison.