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Comment by Andy'sMom on August 26, 2026 at 2:55pm

Welcome MomOf3!

I do believe your son will be going to ODS: Officer Development School. It's a 5 week course for newly commissioned staff officers like medical personnel, lawyers, religious personnel. His recruiter should be able to help him with what to pack.  He will stay in on-based housing until his class begins.  From what I've been able to learn, they do leave immediately for their assigned billet.  Has he secured housing in Okinawa yet?  Again, his recruiter should have answers to most of his questions.

My son commissioned from OCS in 2018.  Since then, it seems that the Navy way is "Hurry up and wait!"

Good luck to your son, and to your family.  Welcome to the Navy family

Comment by Kim8 on August 25, 2026 at 12:51pm

Hi MomOf3!

Welcome & congratulations to your son! My son went to OCS in 2020 so unfortunately I'm unable to give you any answers to your questions but I wanted you to know that someone saw your post! :)

I'm unfamiliar with ODC & thought the medical professional officer training was ODS. I don't know if ODS is the same as OCS in respect to Facebook Groups but it might be worth searching to see if you can find anything. There was a group specifically for friends & family of my son's OCS class & I found that group to be more active than this site. Try searching something like "Navy ODS class" 

The Navy is a whole new world & it can be intimidating at first but our family has thoroughly enjoyed the ride so far! I hope the same for your family. Best Wishes!

Comment by MomOf3 on August 23, 2026 at 11:35am

Hello all! I am new to this group. My son just graduated college with a BSN in Nursing and will be in the Navy Nurse Corps. He leaves for ODC soon and will then be in Okinawa. I am so proud and excited for him and have a giant mix of emotions and sadness that I am packing him up for the last time to officially leave the nest. 

I am looking for tips to help pack him. He will temporarily start life at the BOQ. Does he take everything he owns...or keep it simple? Winter clothes (...never to be worn in the pacific tropics). Kitchen stuff for post BOQ? book shelf? 

Thank you in advance.

Comment by Glenni on March 2, 2026 at 10:43pm

Tonight I’m thinking about all our sons and daughters as they lead the sailors assigned to them during this time🙏🙏

Comment by Kim8 on December 20, 2025 at 5:22pm

Welcome Jennifer G & congratulations to your son! My son is a SWO, commissioned in 2021. I understand the mixed emotions. My son has been stationed about a 9 hour drive from us which has allowed us to visit at least once a year but next year he will be across the country for the next 3 years. At least it's not overseas, right? :) 

I would encourage you to find the ombudsman FB page for your son's ship along with the FRG page, if the ship has an FRG. The ombudsman is the official liaison between the command (the ship) and the sailors families. The FRG (Family Readiness Group) is more about family support & usually will organize events/social gatherings for families of sailors, esp during deployments.

Other than that, I can only say for myself that although the distance is hard my heart is comforted that my son is doing something he's always dreamed of & video calls are the absolute best! The distance is especially hard during the holidays, like now. My son is deployed right now too & will be out to sea on Christmas day so we'll have to chat via FB messenger which we've found to work well for deployment communication. My son has been wonderful with giving us calls every now & again. I hope that will be the same for you! I think my son has enjoyed that my husband & I are so interested in his military life (we ask lots of questions!) & so he's continued to explain what he can to us.  

The first couple months are the hardest, I think, since so much is unknown about military life until you get into it. I wish you, your son, & family the best! Happy holidays!

Comment by Jennifer G on December 19, 2025 at 11:52am

Good morning all, I am new to this group.  I am incredibly proud of my son's recent graduation as an officer and that he will be serving others as a nurse.  My brain is 110% behind him, my heart is struggling on him being so far away.  I am looking for any thoughts or guidance from other moms on ways they worked through these changes.  What they found helpful or any recommendations they might have.  Thank you in advance!

Comment by Katryn on December 4, 2023 at 9:54am

Thanks everyone for your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions.  I was just able to connect with someone stateside at ATT and he told me that we could add a "cruise package" to my sons phone for $100.00 per month and the would have unlimited talk, text, data while on the ship.  He said the minute he steps off the ship though that plan no longer applies and if he uses his phone we could be charged up to $50 a minute.  For shore time, he would need an "international day pass" which is $10 per day or $100 per month...I "think" the cruise package is the way to go as long as he has internet on the ship. I don't want to sign up for something and pay $100 extra per month to find out it doesn't work.  If anyone has experience with this plan, I'd love to hear how it's working.  Thank you all again for the support.  It's really great to know you are out there...:). 

Comment by Anna on December 3, 2023 at 10:01pm

Katryn,

I recently got to take a Tiger Cruise on a carrier with my son who is a Chief Warrant Officer. Officer Country gets wi-fi in the wardrooms and the hanger bay but regular phone calls are non-existent.  There are no cell towers in the middle of the ocean!! :)  My son and I both used our phones all the time to check emails, post pics on facebook, and such like that.  He was able to make a couple phone calls to get plane tickets as we were coming near port but I'm not sure how he did it unless they were wi-fi calls.  My phone was basically a camera and a computer with internet access.  

Hope this helps!!

Comment by M's mom on December 3, 2023 at 6:22pm

Katryn--  It has been 9 years since my son was deployed on a ship, so not sure how ship phone service works now, but when my son has been base-deployed in foreign countries, he has been able to suspend his stateside phone service with Verizon because he is deployed military, then reclaim his old number when he gets home.  He buys a new phone as soon as he gets to the new country, that he knows will work locally.  Then, he gets his phone service from Google on line.  When he calls us, our caller ID shows the number is from "Ontario, California."  When we call him, we are not charged for a foreign call, because the Google service is based in California.

Comment by Andy'sMom on December 3, 2023 at 1:15pm

Katryn - Your son will want to keep his phone!  My DS is currently carrier deployed and uses his phone quite a bit!  You can use WhatsApp to text him when he is in port.  Sometimes there is wifi on board.  And he will want it for its camera as well. I'm sure everyone in his squadron will have their phones!

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