[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 96 (Monday, June 8, 2026)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E539]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING CAPTAIN STEPHEN C. DUBA, JR. ON HIS RETIREMENT FROM THE UNITED 
                              STATES NAVY

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. AARON BEAN

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, June 8, 2026

  Mr. BEAN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Captain 
Stephen C. Duba, Jr. upon his retirement from the United States Navy 
after 25 years of honorable service to our Nation.
  A native of Jacksonville, Florida, Captain Duba has lived a life 
shaped by service, sacrifice, and devotion to country. Raised in a Navy 
family, he graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings 
Point in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science in Marine Engineering and 
Shipyard Management, as well as a U.S. Coast Guard Third Assistant 
Engineer's License for vessels of unlimited tonnage. He later earned a 
Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. 
Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.
  Throughout his distinguished career, Captain Duba served around the 
world in sea and shore assignments involving explosive ordnance 
disposal, diving, mine countermeasures, weapons technical exploitation, 
and strategic naval operations. His service included assignments aboard 
USS Sentry, with EOD Mobile Unit SIX, at Kings Bay Submarine Base, with 
Carrier Strike Group ELEVEN, at the Navy Experimental Diving Unit, with 
Expeditionary Exploitation Unit ONE, and in command of EOD Mobile Unit 
EIGHT in Rota, Spain. Across the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and the 
Pacific, Captain Duba led sailors in complex and dangerous missions 
that strengthened our national security and supported our allies and 
partners.
  From August 2023 to July 2026, Captain Duba completed his final tour 
as Commanding Officer of Naval Surface Warfare Center Indian Head 
Division and Director for Joint EOD Technology. In that role, he led 
one of the Navy's most critical commands, supporting research, 
development, testing, evaluation, engineering, manufacturing, explosive 
ordnance disposal, and weapons technical exploitation for U.S. and 
allied forces. Under his leadership, the command advanced the Navy's 
Energetics Comprehensive Modernization Plan, helping strengthen the 
Nation's munitions industrial base.
  Captain Duba is designated as an EOD Warfare Officer, Surface Warfare 
Officer, Diving Officer, and Naval Parachutist. These qualifications 
reflect not only his technical expertise, but also his courage, 
discipline, and commitment to leading from the front.
  Mr. Speaker, military service is never carried by the service member 
alone. Captain Duba's wife, Kristine, and children, Charlie, Tommy, and 
Lilly, served alongside him through every assignment, every deployment, 
and every sacrifice required of a Navy family. Their love and support 
helped make his extraordinary career possible.
  On behalf of Florida's 4th Congressional District and a grateful 
Nation, I congratulate Captain Stephen C. Duba, Jr. on his retirement 
from the United States Navy. We thank him for his faithful service, 
commend his outstanding career, and wish him and his family fair winds 
and following seas.

                          ____________________