Thank You Tom. This is a great website with some very valuable information. It is greatly appreciated.

I have got a question. My son went to MEPS yesterday. This was the second time since the first time he went last April he got temporarily disqualified for his acne. He got that all fixed up and all the necessary paper work was done. My question is he was told by one of the counselors up there that he had to sign up today or risked not getting into the Navy. The counselor said the Navy only allows recruits 2 times at the MEPS before they won't allow you to come back. Is this true or not? So he felt pressured and really wants to go in, so he signed up. Of course he didn't get the job he wanted and they told him there was only two jobs available that he qualified for. He could be a boatsman or airman. So he took airman. He really wants to be a MA and follow my footsteps but I told him he signed and he will have to honor the contract.

Ok thanks. The recruiter is coming over today and I'll talk to him.

I agree. The recruiter is coming to the house today and I am going to speak to him. Hopefully he has my son's best interest at heart and will do what is right and my son says is going to hold him accountable. 

going to hold him accountable.

Thank you for adding me to the Navy Dads group sir. I actually have 2 sons (twins) attending boot camp at Great Lakes right now. I am very proud of them and excited for them. Thank you for the information provided on navydads.com.

Thank you!

Thank you, yes we are very proud of Ezra.

He is very driven and excited about his future in the Navy.

Thanks-going to Boot camp graduation Friday AM-exciting!

Thanks Tom,

Just want everyone to know, Jeremy's Court of Honor for Boy Scouts is

April 2,2016. We are very proud of him.

Gary

Thanks, Tom!  This website is just awesome and will be a wonderful resource for us.  There's so much to learn.  The video that we watched about boot camp was really helpful!

Hi Tom.....yes, all is well......Michael remains assigned to the USS Lincoln at drydock/overhaul in Norfolk, VA...........  Return to service late 2016 or 2017.....  Hope Caity is well.   ~ Pat

Thanks Tom. He has already viewed some of the videos and found them informative. It takes away a bit of the fear of the unknown.

Thanks also for this website- it's a great resource for us Dads!

Thank you all for having me !!! I am so proud of my daughter she only has 2 more weeks at RTC looking forward to seeing her!

I want to say thank you  to all the brave sons and daughters that server this great country and keep us safe.....

I'm playing a little "catch up" here but thanks for allowing me into the group, I can already see how informative it is and how helpful it will be. My son't ship to boot camp date is January 9th, 2017 but he was told it will realistically be sooner, like maybe 3-4 months. He told me yesterday that he had to call his recruiter because he wanted to talk to him about moving up his date. My wife and I are both excited for him, she of course being the "mother" gets emotional when we talk about it, I have to admit I have too. 

Hi Tom,

Thanks for the welcome. I'm extremely proud of my son to commit to honoring his country thru joining the service. He did not quite get the rate he was going for (preferred MA or QM) to start but he is dead seton getting his life started as a Navy man, so combined with his strong ambition and life skills I have provided him as he became a young man, I feel certain that he will accomplish all of his goals. It's a pleasure to be aboard this group and as my son progresses on his path, I will share his exploits so that other Dads out there can draw from any tips I may be able to give. The fear for us as Dads is real, but the reward of having squared away kids who have chosen to face destiny head on in a world where so many youth now a days have no clue makes it all worth it. Hooyah!!

Thank you so much Tom! 

Tom, Thanks for the message. It's not so much me as my wife and our son's girlfriend. Of course I would love to hear how it's going but I know from my basic training days it was a while before we were able to send letters. It may be just how I look at it, but it makes sense having them wait for 3 weeks or so. By this time they established friends, getting use to the military process and the initial homesickness should be fading away. They would have also did some pretty cool stuff and certainly feel more accomplished. More up beat all the way around. At least this is what I was thinking. It's funny, he is the last of 6 (first military) and while you think it would get easier watching them leave, it's pretty much the same feelings. You know they will be OK, you just need to hear the words one time. Thank you for the time you give helping with this site. It's a wonderful thing you all do. Take care and thanks - Bill 

Thank you very much. We all look forward to her new life in the Navy Family. We are all proud of her and all those who serve our country for their sacrifice, commitment, and honor.

Hi Tom,

  Just checking in.  How are you and your sailor?

Andrew is on shore duty at Whidbey Island NAS. He is a work center supervisor.  Alyssa is with VFA 34 and is in a cycle of every other month Detachments.  She has a good chance of making E-5 this time.

Thank you for welcoming me to Navy Dads! I guess that I'm a little late in joining  the site as my son is due to graduate this coming Friday (4/29/16).     I would like to thank everyone at Navy Dads for creating this wonderful site, it's been a great source of information (and relief) during the  past several weeks!!!

Thanks Tom- much appreciated.

I appreciate all the kind words and enthusiasm.  If I can be of assistance, please ask.

Thanks for the info; much appreciated!

Fabulous, thanks Tom.  I will go check out the videos and the facebook page.

thank you, very proud  of her...

Thank you sir for the warm welcome. My grandson will graduate boot camp on the 27th. Then he is off to Florida. My wife has been doing most of the research on Navy life and keeping me updated. Glad she found your site and referred me to it. Thanks again and looking forward to staying up to date on our US Navy Sailors.

Craig

Thank you so much... Yeah... I am proud and excited...

Thanks Tom!

Thanks, Tom. Just watched a couple of videos which were very informative.

Not really sure what it all means to be honest.  All I know is he was medically disqualified by MEPS.  He was planning on going nuke sub route.  Pretty sure he isn't interested in just going enlisted even if that is an option

Thank you Tom (and Paul) for this site and for the great service that you provide here.  

Jason finally made it to RTC late last night after a flight delay of several hours due to a mechanical problem with their plane. Got the scripted call around 1:30 am RTC time, so I'm sure that the recruits were plenty tired at that point and probably still had several hours of processing in front of them before anything close to sleep might be allowed.  I went to basic in 1971 in San Diego and I remember that first night pretty well.  I know things have changed a lot since that time but what has not changed is the feeling that the Recruits have and what they experience in the first 24 hours.  It's a shock and wake up call for sure, along with the first experience of a major lifestyle change.  They don't know it yet, but it's incredibly positive and character building.  :)

Thanks for the welcome.  We are so proud of James.  He is thriving at OCS from what he has been writing and telling us, our first phone calls came in last weekend.  He is excelling (as we knew he would) but he seems to be a little surprised at how well he is completing each task.  His latest goal is to be first in the class with the fitness portion and seems to be on his way, maxing out on all the components and finishing first in the run during their second fitness test.  He really enjoyed the fire suppression and sinking ship simulations, can say I would have like water flooding me while trying to make a repair!

I have been looking at all the different parts of this website and have gained a great deal of knowledge that is helping me to understand and support James through this whole process. 

Tom, thank you for the Welcome.  I am more excited today than I Have been in weeks.  My son got his first call home today and we had a great conversation.  He said he has some catching up to do on some tests and a little on the PT but he is a leader right now and very excited  by the opportunity.  I am psyched for my so and looking forward to hopefully learning a lot about the Navy.   The air force I know fairly well.  Thank you again and regards.

Joe

THANK YOU for The Welcome! Kyle heads out to Boot-camp tomorrow sometime and is excited about his new adventure! Glad we found this site and look forward to learning all about the Navy.

Yes, the videos are wonderful! We have learned so much by simply watching them.  It is very helpful to see where our sailor will be and what he will be experiencing.  Yes, we are hopeful someone will be able to answer our question asap, however in the mean time we feel pleased to be among others that are in the same position and learning together as we go!  We hope to be sharing our own pictures and experiences as time goes on.  :) 

Thank you Tom.

Thank you for the add, my son arrived at the RTC 6/15/16