Photo courtesy Mass Communications Specialist Seaman Victoria Kinney
Naval Petty Officer Dennis Lopez, of Corona, is part of a hand-picked Navy crew serving on the world’s oldest commissioned warship that is afloat, the USS Constitution.
Lopez, a graduate of Flushing High School, is one of 75 crew members serving on the 218-year-old Boston-based ship named by then U.S. President George Washington to honor the country’s Constitution.
Famously known as “Old Ironsides,” the USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled three-masted heavy frigate that originally launched in 1797 as one of the six original frigates authorized for construction by the Naval Armament Act of 1794.
“It is an honor to serve on the USS Constitution, the world’s oldest commissioned war fighting vessel, but I am even prouder to serve alongside its 75-member crew,” said Cmdr. Sean Kearns, the Constitution’s 73rd commanding officer. “Each sailor selected to serve on the USS Constitution has a unique story to tell, like that of ‘Old Ironsides.’ The mission of today’s Navy is not much different than in 1797: protecting and defending America on the world’s oceans.
