Great Lakes RTC Graduation

[jecc3boys]

My son is in Navy bootcamp at Great Lakes RTC since May 28,2009. I have not received any graduation packet yet but I was expecting to receive one. My son will be going for Hospital Corpsman school after his bootcamp but I am not sure if its still going to be in Great Lakes. Anyone who can give me some ideas what to expect on his graduation? What will be most appropriate to wear? Are they going to spend sometime with us after graduation so I can be prepared for what to do next while he is with us? If they go to school there in Great Lakes will he be in a different address?
My son will have his Birthday in RTC and I wonder if we can send anything for his B-day. Does anyone know what is allowed to send on his B-day?

[Hoppi aka Angie]

Anyone who can give me some ideas what to expect on his graduation? tears, lots of emotions.

What will be most appropriate to wear? What every you would like, there will be people there in dresses to jeans.

Are they going to spend sometime with us after graduation so I can be prepared for what to do next while he is with us? If he is going to be an HM, yes he will spend time with you, either a few hours each day or all weekend, depending if he stays on the bootcamp base or goes to the "A" school base.

If they go to school there in Great Lakes will he be in a different address? Yes, it is a different base

My son will have his Birthday in RTC and I wonder if we can send anything for his B-day. Does anyone know what is allowed to send on his B-day? A musical card! That always makes the RDC's day :~} (really just a letter, birthdays are just another day in the USN.)

[Joy (Brandon's Mom) Div 252]

Hi jecc3boys - first things first. I was at graduation last November. The attire ranged from jeans to dresses (not sure why anyone would wear a dress in 10 degrees weather) but to each his own, I guess. You can arrive at 630am and the ceremony starts at 900a - if the Recruit gets Liberty they usually can leave by 10:30 or so. If your Recruit is a Grad & Go (usually if they're A-school is in GL, then they won't have much Liberty at all - they can tell you this for sure. Don't send anything for the B-days, the Recruits can only get letter's, no packages, no food. Did you get your Grad packet yet? All the info you need will be in that. They can leave the base for Liberty but have to be in their uniform in public, no civie clothes. They usually have to be back on base by 7-7:30 pm. Hope I was able to answer some of your questions. Good luck - Joy (div 252).

[jecc3boys]

Thanks so much. Will remember that. My son goes to HM school in Great Lakes

[Sharon]

My son left on May 28th also and is in Div 257; we just received his graduation packet today. Hopefully yours will arive soon! ;o)

[jecc3boys]

Hello, Sharon!

We are here in Riverside, CA and we received the grad pack today with the parking pass. I am so excited. My son called us last Monday June 22 and told us its July 24.

We are booked at Ramada Inn in Wakegean about 5 miles from the Naval Base. We will be there late afternoon.
Thanks. Hope to meet you there.

Jessica

[Sharon]

Hi Jessica,
What division is your son in? We have a forum going on the bootcamp forum under the Ship 3, Div 257. If you don't have a group to chat with, you are more than welcome to join us. We have a lot in common since they are all graduating on the 24th. A couple of us are talking about getting a meeting place set up on the 23rd; like a meet and great. ;o)

We are staying at the Springhill Suites because of the space it offers for the 4 of us sharing a room! lol We are coming from NM, but there are a couple of people in our group that are also from CA.

[Suzanne]

You will love the Springhill Suites. We stayed there in Sept 08 for my son's PIR. The staff was fabulous to us and there's lots of stuff close by (food, WAL MART!, etc.) I never for a moment regretted my decision to stay here. Have a wonderful time. It truly is a special time for everyone.

[Sharon]

Thank! We are looking forward to it and wanted to give my son a nice place that he can just relax and that looked like a good place. ;o)

[jecc3boys]

MY son is in Div 257 ship 3 also. he will have his PIR July 24, 2009 Friday at Great Lakes too. thanks for your response. I also replied to the Div 257 Moms chats.

See you there.

[BrettsMom]

Hi! My son, Brett graduated from Great Lakes in February, 2009. The ceremony is very nice, and he was VERY happy to see us there! Dressy casual is appropriate, there will be some in suits, and some in jeans!! After the ceremony, he had "Liberty" for the rest of the day (Friday), but had to be back on base by 8pm, and Saturday/Sunday he had Liberty from 8a-8p. He said some of the guys had to stand watch, so I guess it will be up to the CO, but he will be able to leave base for some of the time, at least! We picked him up and brought him to the hotel, then we all went into Chicago. We went to the Sears Tower (where he proposed to his girlfriend Krystal, who came with us!!) and did some sightseeing. There are alot of things to do, and he can get in free to alot of places (including Sears Tower!) by being in uniform. Check at the NEX (Navy exchange, larger store on base, not the one closest to the entrance) for discount tickets for the rest of your party. Everywhere you go, ask about Military discount!! Even most restaurants give a small discount!
My son was stationed in Pensacola after graduation, but some of the guys were staying there. They move to the other side of the Base, so YES, he will probably have a different address! As far as sending things, they really can't have much, there is no place to store it, and alot of things are prohibited, ESPECIALLY the musical cards!!! I almost sent one to him for Valentines day, and he said he would have gotten in alot of trouble if I did! Best to wait and have a birthday celebration at the graduation! They will be sending a packet with hotels in the area that are discounted ALOT for military graduations, we stayed at the Hotel Indigo, not far from Base, and it was very nice and around 78.00 night, but there are others as well.
Your son will be very happy and proud to see you there, alot of the guys (and gals) didn't have anyone attending :( Oh, they will also ask for the names of the people attending, and will say only 4 can attend, but we had 7 and they didn't say anything! MAKE SURE EVERYONE HAS PHOTO ID, driver license or school id for kids, or you can't get in!
I think that covers it, but feel free to ask if you have any other questions! My son is Aviation Rescue, and will be in Pensacola for a year, then Coranado, CA, then back to Pensacola! He was Married May 1, and I just got a call that they just found out they will be parents the end of February!!! It has been an exciting 6 months for us! Good Luck, and hang in there Mom!