An Open Letter To The RDCs of Recruit Training Command

[K]

I wanted to post this for a few reasons:

1. Even if it has been posted before, I am sure it cannot be done often enough.

2. I am sure there are other moms (and dads) from this last Friday's PIR and past/recent PIRs that would like to chime in and add to.

3. To help ease the minds of the new boot camp moms and bootcamp moms "to be".

I want to thank you. I wanted to voice my appreciation at what you have done for and with my son.

I sent an 18 year old child to you who wouldn't wear a coat in a snowstorm and got back a young man who not only wore his coat, he buttoned it up! WIthout being asked!!!! Or told!!!!

I sent you a teenager who had no real direction, drive, motivation or organization or even a future and recieved a young man who now has a direction, a goal in life, and a FUTURE.

I sent you a kid who probably couldn't get more in this tiny town then a part time job at McDonald's in this economy IF that and you returned to me a young man with a CAREER and a path to a real honest and noble life for himself.

I sent you a kid that thought iron was something in Flintstones vitamins and now have a great young man who knows you can ALSO use one to take wrinkles out of clothes!

I sent you an immature boy who had a fifth grade sense of humor and no sense of self and got back a very funny and poised young man with good posture and a strong but gentle bearing.

But, I think most of all....I sent you a young one who had been isolated in a sense and thought that our life, our values, and our morals were all some bizarre anomoly to our family that had nothing to do with "real life" and you took him in and showed him that life is not about what you see on television or hear in the tabloids or from ignorant kids at school with worthless absent parents. You took what we tried to teach him and showed him that it was indeed the gold standard. He is now proud to be himself and that was something I was afraid I would never see. I saw it this weekend.

Thank You ALL so much for putting the finishing touches on the child I sent you. Thank you for helping him take that last step over the threshold for becoming a man. He purchased his graduation photos and now his three RDCs as part of the graduation photo hold a place on our family wall for the role they played in his life. I am not sure I can thank you all enough but I hope this is a good start. I invite ALL the moms and dads to submit their thanks here to them. In a world of selfish and self absorbed people who are all too concerned with the material and the celebrity....we need to appreciate the true role models and mentors and heros.

Thank you, RDCs.

[Gena Greene]

I just got my dvd of my son's PIR and am currently watching it and couldn't have said it better myself. My son is currently waiting to class up in Pensacola and we can't wait for Christmas, although we did have him home for his sister's wedding. Couldn't be more proud of him!!!

[Jim Gramza]

Oh my goodness! I don't think any one could have said this any better! Thank you. Thank you RDCs! GO NAVY! HOOYAH!

[Cindy Proud Navy Mom of Rob]

I cannot write - too busy crying. Well done dear!

[Leann <3's Douglas]

I could never even come close to letting your know the Pride you put in my son....I have never seen this side of my Sailor and I love the RDC"s for what they have given him...I Thank You with all my heart. It is because of You, You gave him his wings and the courage to fly. A huge Hug and Thank You again.

[Gina]

I hope it's okay with you that I print this off and put it in the Navy Scrapbook that I am making for my son's father and myself! Reading this was like you wrote it about our son. Brought a tear to my eye! Thank you

[K]

Absolutely. Be my guest.

[Irishlas]

I just wanted to thank you all for supporting these RDC's, they have an incredibly difficult job that most parents don't understand. I live with one and I can tell you that he puts everything into molding these young people into the best they can be not only to make them into top notch sailors but more importantly to make them better individuals with a sense of honor and drive. I read some of the other forums that Navy Moms write about and it breaks my heart because they don't have the 1st clue what is going on behinds the those walls. The Navy is a great place to be and it needs to be respected and honored just like the rest of the military branches. So again thank you for your support of these hard working and determined RDC's, it is more appreciated then you know.

[K]

There are two types of people. Those who grew up in or around the military or later married into it (or had a child into it) and they understand. And then there are those who base their idea of the military on 30 second biased sound bites from the media or Hollywood interpretations of it.

It makes me very sad that such a large percentage of our country is ignorant to real life and real heros. They spend each waking day competing on video games, who has the most stylish hand bag, or how cool their car is. It makes me rather ill that there are children, young adults AND older adults that have their entire life revolve around gossip, whose BFF is whose, and who is sleeping with who. I suppose, in summery, I watched that Paris Hilton reality show while on the treadmill at the gym one night and realized that THIS was the gold standard for so many kids. The media and Madison avenue want them to be stupid shallow driven consumers. I can't tell you how many times I tried to explain to my son that his life...while not glamourous in comparision to that...was heaven to others. I want him to get on that ship and travel to places where children don't know what television is, have never heard of video games, and think shoes are something rich people wear. As his next step I want him to see how good he really had it (has it) and put some perspective on this one sided media blitz he has been exposed to all his life. I can't imagine another career where he can not only serve proudly, have a good life, a sense of accomplishment AND gain some global perspective that is sorely missing in today's American youth.

And, yes...my son who I couldn't get to clean a three foot by three foot powder room in less then twelve hours without doing it three times over for missing things ALSO voiced his desire to be an RDC. I am glad to hear they have seen this and I am glad to hear they appreciated it. I was a police officer for six years and know what it's like to work one's butt off for nothing more then a snear and an insult. Enough people took the time to thank me so I felt the urge to pass that along to those I also appreciate.

[Jennifer]

Lets not give all the credit to the RDCs' - give credit to the parents, friends and loved ones who wrote and wrote and wrote and wrote letters of support and credit must also be given to the exact young men and women who allowed themselves to be molded and credit must be given to those parents who instilled in those young men and women the desire to be molded. It takes a community to raise a child into an adult!

[Michelle (Ethan's Mom)]

I too, want to thank my son's RDC's for the work they did to help my son. He went to boot camp a child and came out a man! I cried in public when I went to pay for his supper the night after his PIR and he gently stopped me with a simple statement, "Mom, I lived off of you for 18 years. It's my turn to pay." His RDC's performed a miracle, in my book. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

[Jacquie, Nicolas' Proud Mom!]

Perfectly said!

Thank you!!

Jacquie

[Lynn Winfree]

Hi you should be so very proud of your son, you did a great job raising him tooo...remember that
give him all the encouragement you can muster up...they take it in.
my son mike started his l4 year june l4 Flag Day, and transferring from california to norfolk va on the uss carrier george bush, he came back in june from sudan, africa..on deployment for the Navy to volunteer for them being they were short handed..I know you will be more than proud of your son, and post pics on this so we can see him also. Lynn