Master Chief Petty Officer Rafael Barney was born in Queens, NY. He joined the Navy on August 3, 2000, upon graduating from Miami Southridge Senior High School in Miami, FL. After completion of basic training and Fireman Apprentice “A” School at Great Lakes, IL, he reported to the USS JOHN C. STENNIS (CVN 74) where he was assigned to the Electronics Division of the Engineering Department.
Master Chief Barney went on to attend Religious Program Specialist (RP) “A” school from September to October 2001, graduating at the top of his class and selected as the Honor Graduate. He returned to the USS STENNIS to work for the Command Religious Ministries Department where he was promoted to Petty Officer Third Class and deployed shortly after September 11, 2001, in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM.
Master Chief Barney advanced to Petty Officer Second Class in June 2002. He successfully completed Marine Corps Expeditionary Skills Training at Camp Lejeune, NC, and was sent to the 1st Marine Logistics Group in Camp Pendleton, CA, where he became the “Battalion RP” for the 7th Engineer Support Battalion. After completion of desert training in the winter of 2003, Master Chief Barney deployed to Iraq in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM augmented under the First Regimental Combat Team, First Marine Expeditionary Force assigned to Camp Fallujah, Iraq.
Upon completion of his tour of duty in Iraq, Master Chief Barney transferred to Naval Air Station Sigonella (Sicily, Italy), where he was stationed from April 2005 to March 2008. While there, he served as the Leading Petty Officer of the Religious Ministries Department and was selected as Sigonella’s 2007 Senior Sailor of the Year. Master Chief Barney then reported to the Office of the Chief of Navy Chaplains in the Pentagon in Washington, DC, in March of 2008 where he advanced to Chief Petty Officer in September 2008. Master Chief Barney then went on to become the Religious Program Manager for Commander, Navy Region Europe, Africa, Southwest Asia based out of Naples, Italy, where he was promoted to Senior Chief Petty Officer in July of 2013. He followed that overseas tour with one in Jacksonville, FL, where he served as the manager of the religious programs for all naval installations across Navy Region Southeast from December 2014 to February 2018.
Master Chief Barney was promoted to the last paygrade of the enlisted ranks in the summer of 2017. He reported to Navy Personnel Command (PERS-40) in March 2018 as the lead detailer for the Religious Program Specialist rating. While serving as the PERS-405 LCPO he was selected to the Command Master Chief program in February of 2020. Master Chief Barney then served as the 12th Command Master Chief of the USS ARLEIGH BURKE (DDG-51).
Master Chief Barney’s awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal (four awards), the Navy Achievement Medal (seven awards), the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, various unit awards, and campaign and service medals. He is qualified as a specialist in Surface Warfare, Aviation Warfare, and Fleet Marine Force Warfare. He has earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Maryland University College and a Master of Divinity degree from Liberty University in Chaplaincy. He is an honor graduate of the Navy’s Senior Enlisted Academy Class 189 as well as a graduate of the Command Master Chief Course Class 20080.
Last Updated: 23 August 2023