A Navy rear admiral who was born in Hawaii and is a member of the Women Divers Hall of Fame took command Thursday of Navy Region Southeast at Naval Air Station Jacksonville in Florida, the Navy said.

Rear Adm. Babette “Bette” Bolivar was raised in various locations in the Western Pacific by Filipino parents Ted Cereno Bolivar, who retired as a Navy chief petty officer, and Virginia Dolor Bolivar, the Navy said.

Bolivar graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1985, receiving a bachelor’s degree in oceanography. She also holds a master’s degree in management from Troy University.

In a May question-and-answer segment, Bolivar was asked why she joined the Navy.

“I come from a long line of military service,” she said in the Navy-produced release. “My grandfather served in the Army; my two brothers served in the Navy; and my dad, who is my inspiration and my hero, is a retired chief petty officer. I recall one evening, many years ago, my brother and father were discussing the U.S. Naval Academy. I had always wanted to enlist like my dad but I was so intrigued, I filled out an application, graduated from Annapolis, and haven’t looked back since.”

Bolivar served in leadership positions aboard five Navy ships and was a commanding officer of Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 1. She was an operations officer and military professor at the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies and was most recently commander of Joint Region Marianas.

The Women Divers Hall of Fame said Bolivar had been a Navy diving officer since 1988 and became the fourth woman to command a Navy diving and salvage ship when she took over on the USS Salvor in 1998.