WESTMANLAND – When Gregory G. Johnson left his parents’ potato farm in this tiny northern Aroostook community in 1968 to join the U.S. Navy, the only stars he knew about were the ones in the sky above him at night.

Last week, the 32-year U.S. Navy veteran received his fourth star and became an admiral in the U.S. Navy as commander of both the Sixth Fleet and Naval Striking and Support Forces Southern Europe.

With his fourth star, the highest naval rank achievable outside a declared wartime situation, Johnson, 54, will become commander of both the United States Naval Forces of Europe and the Regional Command South.

He is currently stationed in Italy.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a native of Caribou and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, signed the official documents for Johnson’s promotion last week.

“This is a particularly proud moment for everyone in Aroostook County,” she said in a press release issued after she signed the documents. “As one who also grew up in Aroostook County and graduated from Caribou High School, I’m so pleased to have participated in this momentous event in his life.”

Johnson was raised on his parents’ farm in Westmanland, which has a population of 65 residents.

A graduate of Westmanland and New Sweden elementary schools and Caribou High School, Johnson earned a bachelor’s degree in political science in 1968 from the University of Maine at Orono. He had been accepted into law school, but military service changed all that.

Following Aviation Officer Candidate School, Johnson was commissioned in 1969 and designated a naval aviator in 1970. He graduated from the Naval War College with high distinction in 1975.

During the spring break of his last year at UMO, Johnson was back on the family farm loading potatoes when he was notified by the Selective Service Board that his draft number would be coming up.

Within eight weeks after graduation, Johnson realized, he could be sent to Vietnam. Sometime after that, a Navy recruiter showed up at the future admiral’s fraternity house in Orono, and Johnson signed up to become a naval aviator.

Earlier in his career, Johnson flew tactical jet aircraft, accumulating 4,800 hours of flight time and 1,100 carrier landings. He also has commanded several aircraft squadrons and battle groups.

His decorations and awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit with two gold stars, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with two gold stars, Air Medal, Navy Commendation Medal, Navy Achievement Medal, the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with one silver star, and various service and campaign awards.

When he was the commencement speaker at Northern Maine Technical College in May 2000, Johnson was the senior military assistant to then-Defense Secretary William S. Cohen.

He told the graduating students and their families they “have many layers of family that care about you. I’m very proud of my heritage, very proud of where I came from.”

His success in the Navy doesn’t surprise his friends in Aroostook County.

Former Maine Superior Court Justice Ted Pierson grew up with Johnson and is a friend. Pierson spent last weekend with the Johnsons in Harpswell, at the wedding of Johnson’s daughter.

“He and his wife, Joy, both have strong ties to Maine, and they bought a place in Maine on the water,” Pierson said Thursday. “We were real close friends throughout our school years.

“He’s a very curious individual with a thirst for knowledge,” the former judge said. “He was and is very disciplined, extremely hardworking and focused.

“Even with all that and his greatly successful career in the Navy, he has retained a full sense of Aroostook County humility,” Pierson said. “He was fair-minded and ambitious and had a tremendous work ethic.”

Pierson, a Caribou native who recently retired from the bench, said the country is fortunate to have someone like Johnson working in the Defense Department.

David Peterson, the chief operating officer of the Aroostook Medical Center in Presque Isle, has known Johnson for more than 40 years, and he said he was not surprised with Johnson’s success in the Navy.

“He was a hard worker, and a very balanced individual who kept things in perspective,” he said Thursday. “He had a very military mind, although he was probably the least likely guy I would have thought would become a naval aviator.

“The Navy and country are fortunate to have him,” Peterson said.

“However, the bad thing is that he is the kind of guy we would like to have back in Aroostook County doing positive things,” Peterson said.

Johnson’s mother, Carolyn Johnson of Brunswick, said last year that her son was always active. After school, Johnson worked for farmers, delivered furniture and performed other jobs to earn money for college.

Although the family farm has been sold and Johnson’s immediate family has moved outside The County, he continues to keep up with hometown happenings by receiving clips from Caribou’s weekly newspaper and taking the time to ask about old classmates and relatives still in northern Maine.