This Is It

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Andy on August 19, 2014 at 10:13am

It's the hardest thing you'll ever do!! Tell her to hold her head high, smile and enjoy the ride!! My son has been gone 1 month and writing daily mskes it easier. Be proud dad!!!! She's going to be a sailor in the worlds finest navy

Permalink Reply by Marco Mattucci on August 19, 2014 at 11:00am

JW and Andy are right on the money...it is one of the hardest things you will ever do, but in a little while it will get easier and know that every parent from coast to coast who has done this knows exactly what you are feeling.  You will be OK, and come out when graduation day comes with a feeling of pride so big that this day will only be a memory that you will talk about with your sailor down the road.  God Bless you, and know that we are all pulling and prying for you.

Permalink Reply by Ricky Bruneau on August 19, 2014 at 11:49am

I wish her and you well! All i could say when I left mine was "I'll see you in 8 1/2 weeks" shook his hand and walked out. Didn't fingure he wanted to see he get teary eyed. So in my first letter I told him what I wanted to say. “You’re already a better man, than I ever have been. And I’ve always been so proud that you’re my son”.

Thank her for her dedication and service!

Permalink Reply by David Oelker on August 19, 2014 at 10:22pm

Thanks to everyone for the kind words. We made it through the day, though it wasn't easy. Rebecca called us tonight from MEPS. Tomorrow she gets up at 0430 and does more paperwork, waiting around, etc., and then her flight to Chicago is at 1130. My wife is having a hard time with it. I'm doing better than I expected. We are proud of our daughter and we know that this is exactly where she needs to be right now. She was born for this. We have done our best raising her, now it is her time to fly. I need a new Navy flag and some Proud Navy Dad stuff...then I think I will be ok! Thanks again.

Permalink Reply by David Oelker on August 21, 2014 at 6:38am

We got the call last night at 8:00. She must be in the mode because she didn't give us a chance to say anything (shut up and listen).

Good thing though; they ended up taking them by bus from Columbus, OH all the way to Great Lakes so we were able to text message her all day yesterday. Can't tell you how much this helped my wife and me.

Her recruiter said that he would know which ship she is in later this week so hopefully we will be able to start sending letters soon.

I am so glad that she was a Sea Cadet. She has already experienced much of what she is about to go through - though on a smaller scale. At any rate, she has prepared herself as well as could be expected.

Thanks again guys. This web site is such a wealth of information and support...a real gem.

Permalink Reply by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on August 21, 2014 at 8:54am

Your sailor's recruiter may give you an address a day or two after your recruit arrived at Great Lakes with a particular division that may not be final. This is why NavyDads always advises you to wait for your sailor's form letter with his or her correct address.  That letter typically arrives 5-10 days after they have shipped to RTC.

Permalink Reply by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on August 21, 2014 at 10:24am

wanted to post something here for you....this was posted by another NavyDad last year who thought his feeling of separation anxiety were unique....not so:

    "I know you have seen some encouraging comments from other members, but I wanted to weigh in here too. On 28 January, a month after completing college, my son was sworn in to the Navy DEP. It was a couple of days after that when it hit me....after 23 years of a daily relationship with him everything was about to change! I knew joining the Navy was going to be the absolute best thing for him. But in spite of that, I became very depressed. I had no idea what I was doing but googled Navy support groups. I found this site. I remember posting my first comments.....reluctantly because I thought others would think of me as less of a man.....how depressed I was already at the thought of my son leaving and he was not leaving for boot until 1 May. Well the responses were surprising! All the admins and a number of other members put me at ease when they responded that every dad on this site, if they are honest with themselves, experienced the same thing. I also followed the great advice from the admins to read as much as possible on this site. All of this really helped! But then came the week before he left. I became very upset and just wasn't sure how I was going to cope. It really took some work to get it under control. Then the day came to put him on that plane to Great Lakes. As the tears flowed, it was my son in a bit of a role reversal that said, "dad, it's going to be just fine." Well from that point everything happened just as it was described by the admins and other members on this site from receiving the "kid in a box" to the form letter to the first phone call. The best advice I received after his departure was to write often. I didn't really think my son would care that much because my son has always been very independent and not the "home sick" type. But I found out two things in writing the letters: he loved them and encouraged it and they were very therapeutic for me! In the 7 weeks after I received his address I wrote 16 letters. All typed, no spacing, and not one under 4 pages long! I would never have imagined being able to come up with that much to write about....but you will be surprised. It truly helped the time move along as well. Then believe it or not, PIR was upon us. My son graduated on 28 June. The only thing I can say about PIR is that as it relates to my son, it was the second greatest day of my life......second ONLY to witnessing his birth! When you see your sailor march into that hall and you realize he/she is now a part of something greater than themselves, it is an indescribable feeling of pride. A feeling that washes away all the tears and angst of the previous 8 1/2 weeks of separation. Now as I look back, I am amazed how time has passed so quickly! As of today my son has been out of boot camp almost as long as he was in it. He is in Pensacola attending IT A school. This is totally different from boot camp. It resembles being away to college as you can communicate freely (voice, text, e-mail) with the exception of when they are in class. So to wrap this up, as others have said, hang in there! You too before you know it will be in the same shoes as many of us....looking back wondering where the time went and posting comments to help parents going through that which you have endured. I cannot emphasize enough how wonderful this site is to help you through it.....from really good information to Navy FAMILY who are there for moral support. God Bless you and your son for his service to our great country!"

Permalink Reply by David Oelker on August 21, 2014 at 9:27pm

Great advice on waiting for the form letter. I want to write her more than anything, but that would be useless if I got the wrong address.

Thanks also for re-posting the letter below. It means more than you know.

Permalink Reply by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on August 21, 2014 at 9:34pm

write your letters.....mail them all when you get the correct address.....some people number them so their sailor can read them in the order they were written

Permalink Reply by Jeff Mohler on September 7, 2014 at 10:10am

David, is your daughter in 949? My son is, and based on her being a cadet previously, I imagine she would be picked too.

Permalink Reply by David Oelker on September 8, 2014 at 1:01pm

Jeff, yes our daughter is in 949 (Triple Threat!). We got her first telephone call yesterday. Man, was it ever great to hear her voice. We got to talk for a whole 1/2 hour.

 

She had actually hoped to be picked for the choir but when they came around and asked for volunteers she said that it was so loud in the room that she didn't hear them. They came around a second time but all of the choir and band spots had been filled. They put her in the color guard carrying a rifle instead when they found out that she had experience with it from Sea Cadets. Funny how things work out.

 

I asked if her time as a Sea Cadet had helped her and she said: "I can't tell you how much". She said that she felt like she was back in Sea Cadets again- same sights, same smells, same rules, etc. This made me feel good because I serve in a Sea Cadet Division and it is good to hear that what we do is making a difference in these young people's lives. Some times you wonder if is or not. She also said that the PT is easier than what she did at Sea Cadet RTC...and "they don't yell at us the way they did at Sea Cadet boot camp" - this was at CTC Midwest/Camp Perry in Sandusky, Ohio back in 2012. She said that pretty much everyone that has a job had either been in NJROTC or Sea Cadets.

 

I guess the first week was tough because they pulled her wisdom teeth. She was laid up in her rack for 2 days. Then she got a fever from something and was down with that. But now she is on the mends and back on full duty. She said that even though the first week really stunk she still can't believe she is actually getting paid for this. We are very thankful that she is doing well. I hope that your son is doing well also. I will ask Rebecca in my next letter if she knows him.

 

I reserved our room at the Navy Lodge today. $65.00/night - you can't beat that. I can't wait to see her on the 17th. I hope I get a chance to meet you.