Gary, Welcome Aboard! I found navyformoms in searching for answers to my son's future. I just knew their had to be a site for dads like n4m's but I was wrong. So I started this site so us dads would also have a place to call home. I'm new at this and I hope this site will benefit fathers that come behind us. So jump right in share concerns, join groups, share info, and show off your sailor. I'm so glad to find out their are so many proud Navy dads just like myself. I hope this site benefits you and your family throughout your sons journey in the Navy. Thank your son for his service for me and yours as well. Thanks again for joining us. Sincerely, EG

Welcome to NavyDads Gary ! I'm sure you'll find the site as fun and useful as I have. Explore and make some friends, add your comments to a discussion or two, read the postings in the various groups-- even start one or two. I have! If you have any questions or concerns about your sailor and what he is going through...ask! I'm sure someone here will have the answer or can point you in the right direction to find out. I'm lucky enough to have two sailors- my son Eric is on the second half of a seven-month cruise on the carrier Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and my daughter Kat recently returned from a seven-month cruise on the carrier Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72). And Gray this is a great place to brag about your sailor as well! So join in and let us know how Nicholas is doing!

As a parent of a sailor currently or soon to be at Great Lakes you'll have many questions about what your son is going through. Thanks to one of our members we have two excellent videos that you can access from the Video area on the NavyDads.com main page: New Bootcamp 1 of 2 and New Bootcamp 2 of 2. These videos will answer many of your questions and concerns and will give you a better understanding of how the United States Navy transforms our children into sailors!

Be sure to spend some time in the Bootcamp group- there are many questions and answers available to help you understand what your sailor is going through. And as PIR draws closer, be sure to spend some time going through the PIR-Tips, Hints and Helps group- we’ve tried to assemble some tips and suggestions to make your sailor's PIR more enjoyable. And Gary- thank you for your service to our great country! Best Regards- Paul

Post away Gary!! You'll learn by doing for sure! Be sure to read through all the stuff about PIR-- might as well start thinking about it now and making some tentative plans. We hope the site is useful for you so don't be shy about asking questions and concerns...

Gary--- there has been extensive discussion about hold times between PIR and A-schools posted in the bootcamp group. Some sailors are on hold for weeks and weeks while some will start school right away...it tends to be a function of how many sailors in that particular rate there are...the faster the class fills up the faster the class tends to start. Spend some time in the Bootcamp group reading past posts and you can get a feel for wait times. Restrictions are far looser in A-school as the living quarters tend to be dorm style....you sailor get to know the operator controls for a mop very well though waiting to class-up!

Also check the Pensacola group as there are lots of sailors there waiting to class up!!

Thank you for the nice comment, Gary. Billy's great-grandfather also served in the Navy during WWII, but I've got to try and get his picture so I can post it as well. Thank you for your service also!! I'm sure Nicholas will do well in his Navy career. For any young man or woman who enters into the service it reflects their dedication, good morals and character.

Gary--- I'm killing two birds so to speak with one stone! Check out my Care Package group I just started and my posting about NavyDads labels......an easy idea to spread the word to our sailors!

It would be my pleasure to offer any insight, advice or support to you and your sailor. PLEASE feel free to ask anything. We had a great experience with the PIR and things to do in the area. I learn something new almost everyday from my son so I will be happy to pass it on. Everything after PIR is hurry up and wait. They get very frustrated so a parents constant calm is needed. Once the ball starts rolling things can move quickly. Please contact me with ? about what they can have and the contact rules they have to follow. Take care, Bill

Thanks for your words about the Baxter Black video Gary. I watch that every once in a while just to remind myself about the extraordinary confluence of events through history that have allowed me to be exactly here at exactly this moment. When I listen to media broadcasts of doom and gloom, I must remind myself that we, as Americans, are the luckiest people that have every inhabited this globe and I think it would be healing for all of us to take Baxter’s resolution to heart and remember to take a moment each day to honor those that have given so much for so many. Blessings to you and your family. Paul

Hi Gary, Thanks for the welcome. I see we shared the same career in Law Enforcement. I am kind of new to this, so I'll do my best to respond and participate. John

hello,
were you also in the navy?
james

Gary, did you get your phone call yet? I'm really hoping you did!!! It's only 3 1/2 weeks until Nicholas has his PIR. You'll be counting the days soon if you're not already.

Best wishes to you and your family and your soon to be sailor!

well thank you for haveing me, we brought Kevin to the recruters today, and he will be sworn in at 10 am 2-25-09.
we are very excited for him and the future he is about to embark on. Good day to all sevice men family's out there. May they all be safe and
god have there back.

Well good day Sir, Kevin was sworn in at 10:30 am, and is on his way to the great lakes, after his graduation he will imediatly go to Fla. for another 9 weeks, I'm good with all this , it's the best hing for him, he will do very well. Thank you

Gary, thanks for the update on Nicholas. The "no phone call" thing baffles me also!! I hope he is not delayed either, but I think with the 5-1, he is still on track to PIR on Mar. 13th. He should be able to contact you if there are any changes to his graduation date. I will keep Nicholas in my prayers!!!

Have a good time in Vegas. It's not far from my neck of the woods - only about 4 hrs. away. Have a safe trip!

Thanks for the message Gary. I was planning to send you one today as well. I'm very excited about Billy going to San Diego and of course he is on cloud 9 also. His plane leaves at 5:00 p.m. this evening. There are 5 other sailors on the same flight as him and they will be attending a couple of the same C-Schools with him.
That's crazy about the phone calls. I don't know what to make of it!! I knew Nicholas only had a week until PIR and that is why I had plan to send you a message today. The recruits are suppose to get a phone call after they pass Battle Stations. For those recruits graduating next Friday, the BS could be starting any day now. Billy's BS started Tuesday night and lasted until sometime Wednesday the week of PIR. Billy said they were up 36 hours straight without sleep. He said that afterwards, he and a couple of other sailors fell asleep while sitting on the floor polishing their shoes for graduation, LOL. Anyway, I'm sure everything is fine. They say "no news is good news". Nicholas will have plenty of stories to share with you when you all get together.
I hope you had a good time in Vegas. You sure had nice weather for it!!

Gary after a lot of time and 1 HEADACHE! I'll finally figured it out and have it up and running. Thanks for the tip, It will be a big help to others.

Gary, that's great news!!! I'm proud of Nicholas and all his fellow shipmates. This time next week you'll be sharing time with your new sailor. When you talk to him again, be sure to tell him congratulations from all of us Navy moms and dads. And thank you again Gary for keeping me posted on how Nicholas has been doing.

No Problem! You got me heading to work, so tell the wife I was already up and running. I enjoyed the chat this morning. The videos came our great, I'm sure they will be a big help to the boot camp parents. Props! to you! for bringing them to my attention.

Gary,

Thanks for the welcome and the kind words. I am ejoying the site and I am learning a lot about the Navy. Just when I was well versed in the Army way of doing things I have a son in the Navy.

Todd is in Div 153, USS John F Kennedy. I got a treat last night, Todd's first call from Great Lakes. He sounds great and is doing very well. He, like several others I have been reading about, got his wisdom teeth taken out a few days ago.

I am looking forward to attending the PIR a month from today, April 10 is the date.

See you online.

- Hal

Gary,
Tomorrow's the big day!!! You have a safe trip and a wonderful time. Give Nicholas a pat on the back for me.

Gary- you're probably going to need some of those tissues too..........

enjoy it--- and we expect pictures............

Gary,
I'm glad you had a wonderful time. It's great that you got to take Nick home for the weekend. Once he classes up with his liberty priviledges, he will probably be able to take a trip home for a weekend every so often. It's nice you guys live close enough to be able to do that. I guess, enjoy it while you can because eventually he will transfer from GL to some place further away.
I love your new photos!!

Gary

Thank you for your comment . i have 2 sons on active duty, and on just discarded after completing his enlisment to the Army Reserve He served in the 1st middle East action

Gary
Thank you for welcoming me, my wife found the navyformoms site, so I did a search and found this here. I think it is great so far & I look forward to interacting with the other dads here. Ashley is going to MEPS this weekend, thats all we know for now, but she is excited. My dad was a sailor & airman, I never got the chance due to hearing difficulties when I was 18. I am proud of her & support her decision 120%.
Again - Thanks for being here....

Brian

Hi Gary,
Good to hear from you!! I'm encouraged by the fact that Nick is starting SCC today. Billy had a 6 week hold after BC before starting SCC. His was also evening classes and that is one reason for all the moving around from one ship to another. They attempt to keep the sailors grouped according to their training schedules. In other words, they don't put sailors who have day classes with sailors who have night classes. It makes for less disruptions during their off duty time. SCC is only about 2 weeks long, so there is a chance he will have to move again when he finishes that and is waiting to start ATT. Billy is doing real well and just loving San Diego!! He is just about to finish the first of his 4 C-Schools. His next class will be at night also. Then his 3rd class will be on Coronado Island which will mean a move for him. And then back to the main land for the last class. Well, I guess it's their Navy way of life for now anyway. Billy is coming home on Friday just for the weekend. He's going to attend a picnic with me for a group of DEP recruits in Phx. We will have NavyDads and Moms representation there to share info and support with the parents of the new recruits.
Thank you for keeping me up to date on how Nick is doing!!

Yes Gary, I did and it was to funny because my wife had the same idea. I just received my business cards the other day and Paul sent me some flyer's so my wife is planning on going to the JROTC at schools in our area to pass them out and tell them about Navy Dads. We are also going to give them to our local recruiter's office. Also the store is getting a little closer. If the paperwork will ever end! Thanks again, Talk to you soon.

Hey Gary--- did those Publisher files come through ok? Just wanted to show what I had done and to inspire others to do simple things like that to help spread the NavyDads word!! Paul

Hi Gary,
Thank you for the warm welcome and wishes for Nate.

I am thrilled to join such an upstanding group of men, and will definitely try to take advantage of the tools and information that the group offers. Once I'm a seasoned pro, I too vow to contribute!

All the best,
Wayne P.

Piece of cake Gary--- I took a screen shot of the Print Page setup and will e-mail it to you....just open the appropriate file into Publisher, select business card, US Standard for the paper type, and you should be good to go. Be sure to print a test page to make sure everything looks right before you started putting ink to card stock and if you are printing the backside too...MAKE SURE YOU PRINT ON THE CORRECT SIDE!!! I've ruined plenty of stock by just feeding the blank stuff in wrong..........

Thanks for the welcome Gary

I know what you are saying...not sure how to implement something like that right now. The ability to pull info like that together would be nice, but the member database is very limited in what it can do. Let me let this one stew for a while and see what I can come up with!!

Hey Twardo. Thanks for the msg. I'm not a great e-mailer. Can't sit still that long. My memory is getting shorter with every inch my gut gets bigger. Weren't you a motor carrier guy once apon a time?

After I sent you the message HAZ-MEN popped into my head. I actually go by Joe. I'm in D-07 and worked with steve Bein, Steve Riley, Phil McMillan, Bruce Hall, Mark Hines, and Danny (DONKEY) Wisdom. I even think we raided Curry Environmental in Milan together. Thanks for the notes of encouragement. It's has been pretty sad around the house with Rob gone. Got the form letter with a two line note on the bottom the other day. I dont check my e mail as oftern as I should but will be in touch. Joe

Hey Gary, how have you been? I am Sooooo jealous that you get to see your boy so often. I would eat boogers to spend that kind of time with mine. Enjoy it while you can. Hopefully he will be stateside and you will be able to see him when he gets to fleet. As for Brett, no , he hasn't started A school yet. He finished ATT on the 21st of April and they told him it would been 3-4 weeks before he classes up because, get this, they had to pull instructors from A school to handle the surge of students for ATT!!!!!! CAN you believe this shit???? So, now they have to extend the holds for A school. Brett's roommate finished A school 2 weeks before Brett finished ATT and classed up in 3 days. So, Brett is pissed to say the least. He is becoming very, very discouraged and angry with the whole mess. It has become a mission for my wife and I to try to keep his spirits up. It is a struggle but we will prevail God willing. Hopefully things will once again speed up in time for Nick and he won' t have to play the game. I will keep in touch. Godspeed to you and yours, Bill

Bill - Just reading your note. Danny too is waiting for A school to start, but when he finished ATT, around the same time as Brett he said they told him 4-7 days before A school would start - and that was probably ~2 weeks ago. He got mono right after that and was pretty sick - on lite duty but still has work he has to do. Bottom line is he has too much time on his hands....you're right - it's hard to keep them "up". I'm concerned that if A school hasn't started he'll never get done by end of June - we haven't seen him since Jan 5 so trying to plan vacations etc....ah well. At least he's not overseas someplace and in harms way.

Gary, thanks for the message yesterday. Glad to hear Nick is moving right along with ATT. I've heard that it can be a difficult class. Billy took one or two weeks longer than the norm to complete it. His superiors told him they would rather he take his time and do well and learn the material. So, thats what he did and he completed all the modules with good grades. Isn't it nice having your sailor so close to home that you can see him occasionally on the weekends? I've been spoiled since Billy arrived in San Diego. I had a vey special Mother's Day weekend with him. It's only about a 7 hr. drive from here, but I decided to fly this trip so we would have more time. On Mother's Day we were invited to go and take a tour of Billy's ship. His soon to be LPO arranged the tour for us. I've had the opportunity now to see a destroyer inside and out. It was a real cool experience for me. I think I was more excited about it than Billy was. And, what an honor it was for me to be by my son's side when he took those first steps onto his ship. Billy's doing well in school. This C-School he's in now will end around July 21st and then he gets a 2 week break before the next class starts. He's coming home next Friday to spend Memorial Day weekend. As I said earlier, I've been spoiled having him stationed close to home. Enjoy as many weekend visits as you can with Nick because who knows where his Navy journey will take him next.
Have a great weekend with Nick and the family!!

Hi Gary,
Nice to hear from you, as always. I've been real busy at work and haven't had as much time on here as I would like. No complaints though, I like being busy cause then I know I still have a job to go to the next day. Congrats to Nick for completing ATT. Too bad about the hold situation, but we both know from what we've heard, it could be alot worse. How long is GM A-School? Also, glad to hear that he and Brett will be on the Cole together. Billy liked his time at the Cole. He seemed to like it better than some of the other ships he was at. Billy is doing very well in his C-Schools. His ship just left for a 4-5 month deployment yesterday along with the carrier Reagan and all the other ships in that support group. Billy will be finishing school about the time his ship returns to S.D. He received some really good news last week. He found out that he passed his Petty Officer 3rd class exam and is being promoted. I'm real proud of him with all the progress he is making. He came home for Memorial Day weekend. His truck broke down on the way here, but luck being on our side, he was only about 8 miles from home when it happened. With the help of some friends, we got his truck fixed and returned to him the next morning. The fuel pump went out, so thank goodness it wasn't too serious or expensive to repair.
Have fun on your trip to Vegas. Be safe and enjoy your trip through AZ.

Gary, my friend I hope you have a terrific Father's Day!! Hopefully you will have Nick home for the weekend. How's his schooling going? Any talk of orders yet? Billy's moving right along with his C-Schools. His second school ends 7-21 and then he has a couple of weeks off before the next one starts, so he's planning a trip to AZ to spend a few days with mom and a few days with dad down in Globe, AZ.
Hope you are able to have your whole crew together to celebrate Father's Day. Enjoy your day!!!!

Gary - any word on your son classing up for A school?

Hey Gary,
Just stopping by for my monthly report on Nick, lol. How's he doing? Any ideas yet on where he will be sent? Hope you're still fitting in as many weekend visits with Nick as you can. Billy was home for the 4th of July weekend and he brought a sailor buddy he's known since bootcamp home with him. We all had a fun weekend!! Billy's on his way home again at this very moment. Should be here before nightfall. I do worry about him having to drive across the hot summer desert to make his way home. I'm just afraid he will breakdown. Think positive, right? He'll be pretty busy this trip. He'll be working at the Navy Recruiter's office for the rest of this week and then heads to his dad's place on Monday.
I hope everything is going good for Nick. Take care and drop me a line or two when you have time.

Gary, so glad to hear that Nick was finally able to get started with GM A-School. I bet he is real excited about that!! I'm anxious to find out where he will go for his duty station. I wonder if GM's have C-Schools.
Billy's doing good. Just started C-School #3 on Monday, so 2 down and 2 to go.
I'm hosting a Navy moms & dads get together on Aug. 22nd. Any chance you will be passing thru AZ around that time? I'm sure that's probably not feasible for you, but I wanted to mention it anyway. You would certainly win the prize for having traveled the furthest distance, LOL.
Have a good week, my friend!

Thank you very much. I noticed the GM group and will check that out. This site and people like you have been very helpful in getting through this initial separation. I left for the Navy in 1985 and had no idea what affect it had on my parents. I thought they were just being over dramatic. Now I know!

Gary, thanks for the update on Nick. I had been thinking lately that I needed to get a message sent off to you with an update on Billy. So, thanks for the nudge : )
Glad to hear that Nick is expecting his orders anytime now. I hope he gets the assignment he's looking for. I'll be anxious to find out where he's headed. Billy finishes his final C-School today and will only need to report on Monday to get his certificate. His ship (USS Howard) has not returned from deployment yet. So, rather than be on hold, he has elected to take some leave time and come to AZ and spend some time with dad and some time with me. I believe he has to be back in S.D. by the 13th. He's very excited about reporting to his ship. He has been in contact with his LPO's on the ship and has requested that they consider allowing him to volunteer for the VBSS team. It involves participating in an 8 week training/school and meeting other physical qualifications. Billy thinks since the ship will be in port for awhile once it returns, it will be a good opportunity for him to get this accomplished. I'll keep you updated on his plans with all that.
I have been doing fine... though life has been stressful lately. Because of this struggling economy, the company I work for is having difficult financial times. So, I have been busy recently trying to line up new employment options...sending out resumes and going for job interviews. I have a couple of strong prospects that I am pursuing now. In the meantime, my wonderful boss is keeping me working for now until I have something new lined up. Anyway, I'm uncertain about how often I will have opportunites to post on the site, so please be patient with me if I do not respond to your messages right away. I will do my best to keep up with everything.
I'll be waiting to hear about when & where Nick is going to be shipped out. Best of luck to him!!
Take Care My Friend!!

Hey Gary,
I haven't messaged you in awhile. It's been difficult these days finding the time to log-on. Is Nick still waiting for C-School? I hope he's able to spend the holidays with you. Billy was just home for a few days and had to leave yesterday, so we celebrated early this year. He had his first taste of being on the ship at sea. Just before he came home they went underway for about 3 days. He said he only got sick once the first day and then was fine for the rest of the trip.

Have a Merry Christmas!!

Hey Gary,
I'm sorry for taking so long to get a message back to you. My only excuse is that I've been working really long hours and my time on-line is very limited these days. I'm thrilled to hear that Nick is doing so well in C-School. 100% GPA... can't ask for anything better than that. Billy had alot of open book test in some of his classes also. His ship is a destroyer. They have gone underway several times since Billy reported for duty. He's getting a taste of sea life just alittle at a time. He's stays very busy on his ship and is responsible for maintaining and repairing several different kinds of equipment. He volunteered to be one of the Search and Rescue Swimmers (SARS) for his ship and will attend a 4-6 week training for it some time in April. He has put on weight since bootcamp. It has been intentually...he's been working out regularly and drinking all those special protein drinks.

I hope Nick continues to enjoy his time in San Diego! I hope all is well with you and the rest of your family. Thanks for keeping in touch.