Heroes 2020: Hospitalman Tito Mann, Jr. is Fighting the Pandemic

Newburgh Native training
for the front lines of Navy’s
fight against Coronavirus

Hospitalman Tito Mann, Jr., a native of Newburgh, New York, is learning skills that will be vital in the ongoing fight against a worldwide pandemic.

“The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic brought an invisible enemy to our shores and changed the way we operate as a Navy,” said Adm. Mike Gilday, Chief of Naval Operations. “The fight against this virus is a tough one, but our sailors are tougher. We must harden our Navy by continuing to focus on the health and safety of our forces and our families. The health and safety of our sailors and their families is, and must continue to be, our number one priority.”

Mann is preparing to protect sailors and their families by learning the latest in health care and training at the Medical Education and Training Campus (METC), a state-of-the-art DoD healthcare education campus that trains military medics, corpsmen and technicians.

“We are learning the preventative measures to take while also how to better educate others on how to react in the current situation,” Mann said. “We also learn the care and treatment for those who are sick, wounded or injured.”

Mann is a 2015 Douglas Byrd High School graduate. According to Mann, the values required to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Newburgh.

“I learned to always be on the lookout and pay attention to small details,” Mann said.

The U.S. Navy Hospital Corps is the most decorated career field in the Navy. Corpsmen have earned 22 Medals of Honor, 179 Navy Crosses, 959 Silver Stars and more than 1,600 Bronze Stars. 20 ships have been named in honor of corpsmen.