Thank you for the add

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Nor Cal on April 26, 2021 at 11:06am

Congratulations to your son.  Were you able to attend the graduation at GL or was it only available to stream w/ Covid?  Our son graduated a few years ago and it was a fun weekend back there.

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Permalink Reply by Stephanie on April 26, 2021 at 11:41am

Virtual 

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Permalink Reply by Matt on June 8, 2021 at 11:21am

Hi Kevin, I am a new Navy dad and saw your response in the discussion. Since you have a 2 yr old Navy son, I wanted to ask a few Q's and maybe you can answer or direct me to where I can get answers. Our son just left for boot camp 5-9-21. WE just got our first ltr from command w/our son's address and then things about what to expect, etc. I want to write him a ltr asap but my wife said she heard from another navy mom that maybe we should not as it could be an embarrassment to our son as they make recruits read the ltrs out loud to all the other members in his squad. Can you tell me if this is true? If so I could write a great ltr for him to read out loud. My normal ltr would be to make sure he is doing well, how much I already miss going hunting w/him and playing the guitar with him. Normal stuff. Also to ask if I can send him anything such as his phone or other items he might want and need.

ANy help would be appreciated.

Thx Matt L

Kevin Nor Cal said:

Congratulations to your son.  Were you able to attend the graduation at GL or was it only available to stream w/ Covid?  Our son graduated a few years ago and it was a fun weekend back there.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Nor Cal on June 8, 2021 at 1:39pm

Hi Matt, congrats and thanks to your son.

For letters during Boot, use the Sandboxx app...it gets the letter delivered much faster than USPS.  It is a great service.  It makes it easy to include photos with your letter, etc.  It is worth the price, which is reasonable.

As far as whether a letter will be read by others - no way.  That is not the case at all.  We sent letters to our son, and he wrote back a few times - we saved the letters.

As far as sending things to your son, I can't remember when I sent a package to my son who was in an 800 division, but we used a UPS store in Waukegan to send him a pull-up bar for his door.  My understanding was that sending packages to the base mail was unreliable and slow.

Feel free to ask any other questions...it has been two years for me, but I still remember most details.

Kevin

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Permalink Reply by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on June 8, 2021 at 3:26pm

DO NOT send anything to RTC that does not fit in a flat envelope....policy for many many years.......

as far as Sandboxx- this from 2019

I asked Naval Operations Security about the use of Sandboxx- they are noncommittal but did say this:

"We are not the approving authority for using social media or applications throughout the Navy. The Chief of Navy Information is most likely the authority. The Navy does have certain authorized social media sites, all listed on the Navy home page (Facebook, Twitter etc.) From an OPSEC perspective, many Sites and Applications pose a significant vulnerability to our operations by accessing geolocation and other specific information from devices....like a personal iPhone. If the App is being used for operational purposes, then permission would need to be approved. Just like you should never use your personal computer to conduct Navy business, you should not be conducting Navy business on commercial Applications unless specifically authorized. From a personal perspective, there isn't anything preventing a Sailor from downloading an App on their personal devices. They should not be used for operational purposes though. I would STRONGLY encourage reading the terms of services of any Application downloaded/used on your personal devices. You may be surprised what you sign up for......essentially providing the developers full access to everything on your device. Whether it's Facebook or the latest FaceApp, you give all permissions to the App developers."

RTC has posted this on their Facebook page:

U.S. Navy Recruit Training Command
October 18, 2017 ·
Friends & Family of RTC,
Over the course of the past several weeks, we have received a number of inquiries regarding the Sandboxx app, prompting us to provide clarification about our relationship to Sandboxx.
Sandboxx is a privately owned company that provides a service to military friends, family, and loved ones. If you wish to learn more about the services they provide, they have a website you can visit.
Although the services Sandboxx provide specifically target military friends, family, and loved ones, neither Recruit Training Command, nor the Navy, officially endorses their service.
The choice to use or not use Sandboxx services rests individually with every potential customer. Recruit Training Command will not provide a recommendation for or against the use of the Sandboxx app. Similarly, the command will neither provide preferential support to Sandboxx, nor prevent Sandboxx from providing their service to their customers.
If you still have questions about this topic, please don't hesitate to ask.
Thank you,
RTC Public Affairs

While the ease of an app may appeal to you, think long and hard about Operational Security (OPSEC) and Personal Security (PERSEC) before you give anyone a military address or access to private communicators.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Nor Cal on June 8, 2021 at 7:25pm

Paul, in our experience (mid-2019), Sandboxx was widely in use as a way to deliver messages TO sailors in boot.  As I am sure you know (but Matt above might not), the app is used by people sending letters TO (not from) the RTC.  The app converts the letters to plain old-fashioned paper, and delivers the letters (which can include pictures) to the sailors.

IIRC, no sailors in boot have computers or phones.  So replies to us from our son came as old-fashioned letters on RTC stationery, delivered via USPS.  Those were great to receive...like letters from camp.  I laughed that his biggest complaint was no coffee at boot!  No OPSEC with those kind of letters.

Again, a strong recommendation for Sandboxx for families with sailors at RTC.  You just need his or her ship number and division, and the app does the rest.

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Permalink Reply by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on June 8, 2021 at 9:18pm

you are welcome to contact Navy personnel directly as I did....I offered no personal opinion on using the app....and I've had sailors in the Navy since 2005 (daughter 2005-2010, son since 2007)....

Kevin Nor Cal said:

Paul, in our experience (mid-2019), Sandboxx was widely in use as a way to deliver messages TO sailors in boot.  As I am sure you know (but Matt above might not), the app is used by people sending letters TO (not from) the RTC.  The app converts the letters to plain old-fashioned paper, and delivers the letters (which can include pictures) to the sailors.

IIRC, no sailors in boot have computers or phones.  So replies to us from our son came as old-fashioned letters on RTC stationery, delivered via USPS.  Those were great to receive...like letters from camp.  I laughed that his biggest complaint was no coffee at boot!  No OPSEC with those kind of letters.

Again, a strong recommendation for Sandboxx for families with sailors at RTC.  You just need his or her ship number and division, and the app does the rest.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Nor Cal on June 8, 2021 at 11:02pm

That's great, Paul, thanks to your son and daughter for their service.

I only added my clarifying post because the first part of your post (message from Naval Operations Security) implied that the recipients of Sandboxx letters would need to download the app or a message, which could pose a security risk.  At RTC as you know, the SRs don't have computers or phones, and a Sandboxx letter is delivered to them as a plain old physical "letter", envelope and all.

I would never use Sandboxx after RTC (I can just text or call my son now that he is in AD), but for boot, it fills a need.

To Matt:  good luck to your son and hope that his graduation ceremony is open to families!

Kevin

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Permalink Reply by Buzz on September 27, 2022 at 7:08pm

Just curious as to how Sandboxx knows my cell number and recruit's name. How do they obtain this information?

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Nor Cal on September 27, 2022 at 8:58pm

What do you mean?  Sandboxx in my experience just converts an electronic message to a paper version for delivery to someone in boot.

Buzz said:

Just curious as to how Sandboxx knows my cell number and recruit's name. How do they obtain this information?

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Permalink Reply by Buzz on September 28, 2022 at 3:27am

Yes, I understand how it works but only a few days after my recruit got to boot camp I got a text from Sandboxx touting their service. I had not signed up for anything. Just wondering how they knew his name and my phone number. 

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Nor Cal on September 28, 2022 at 10:04am

Ah, yes, that is strange.  It has been almost four years for me since our son was in boot, so I can't really remember how we found out about Sandboxx....but maybe your son signed you up for it at some point.  That's all I can guess.

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