Thank you GalleyMom & M's mom! That is all so comforting to hear! My husband also just graduated in Mechnical Engineering so I don't worry much about the academics for him, but it is so good to know that they look out for each other. I'm sure it will be so nice for him to get past the RLP next week.
I just watched "An Officer and a Gentleman" a few nights ago! Great show, but yeah not entirely true haha. I've been writing and sending letters everyday. Even if he isn't getting them yet (I hear some DI's will hold them for a few weeks), it is still almost therapeutic on my end to just tell him about life at home. :) Thank you both for the advice!!
Jen27 is your husband in 16-15 group F? my son is also a mechanical engineer with a minor in material science. still no email and he is not married or attach to a girlfriend. i am not excepting any communication till after RLP to let me know to start booking our trip.
topdog1p: What does group F mean? I've just been told he is in class 16-15. I received just the one quick email sometime on Tuesday. It was a military address. They may have just had time to set it up but not really use it until after RLP. I never expected ANY email so I was surprised, but haven't heard anything since. He was able to call from church last Sunday to ask me a few things, but it was pretty short and sweet. I know he is busy and very focused on RLP, so I'm not too worried :) I also need to get flights purchased for graduation. He said they graduate Sept 4th.
Jen27 i understand there is 2 groups 16-15E and 16-15F not sure what the letter means he just said to address anything class 16-15F. it was nice that you got to hear from him on sunday. i know it would be tough not to talk to my hubby. yep graduation is the 4th if all goes well. you want to be there the for the day before too. i m using it to go to boston for a quick vacation :)
topdog1p: Oh really? I had no idea.. I'll have to ask him which one he is in next time I hear from him. I was traveling in Europe for the 3 weeks before he left and missed his last call after he checked in so yes it was so good to hear from him, even though he barely had any voice left haha. That's a great idea! I am planning on heading out there a few days early to maybe do a little sightseeing as well! If I am lucky, he will be able to join me for an evening or two :) Is your son heading to Nuclear Power School following OCS by chance?
Jen27 and topdog1p: When an incoming OCS class is large, they divide it into two companies (groups) using the phonetic alphabet names. My son told me that they do not reuse a name/letter until the last class with that name has graduated. My son is in 15-15 and they are Charlie and Delta so it appears that Class 16-15 is Echo and Foxtrot.
If you know the company/group you LO is in, you can use it when addressing letters to them (16-15E or 16-15F). But if you do not know it, or forget to include it, the letter will still get to them.
While it is certainly true that a DI could decide to withhold their mail for a period of time, they have not done so the past two classes. So hopefully they are not holding it for 16-15.
You will likely hear from your LO through email after their RPT test next Thursday. But don't get too worried if you don't hear right away. There are many reasons it would be delayed. The OCs all have different duties and they may not have time to get to a computer to send the email when their classmates did. Or it could be that the training.navy.mil email is down. The message in this is to not stress if you do not hear right away. No news next Thursday is not necessarily bad news. (Easy to say, I know. I have been there and held my breath all day as well.)
My son was told to watch "Officer & A Gentleman before he left by a former OCS tactical instuctor. He was a wealth of good advise to Nathan before he left. I am fortunate as i live in a military community and my church is full of military families.
I got a phone call today! topdog1p: My husband said he is in the foxtrot company (16-15 F) with your son. He said that their whole class is sub nukes all headed to SC afterwards. It was so great to hear from him! He said that RLP will be next Wednesday and that they will be getting laptops on Friday so they will be able to email then. They are also getting letters and can send letters as well. He said they are all coming along well in their RLP prep! Lots of great news over here today :) That is nice you are surrounded by other military families! Hopefully you hear from your son before too long! Thanks for the info CL!
hi Jen27 did you ever get added to the facebook group for 16-15? if not send my a fb freind reqest (bridget tustison) and i can add then get you added that is how i added my mom. i am so glad you got to talk to you hubby and thank for passing on the info of dates of RLP and that they our doing good. sounds like they will be developing friendship that can take them far in this chosen career.
topdog1p: No, I never got accepted. I will send you a request. Thanks! Yeah it sounds like they will be together for a while :) considering they are all Sub Nukes.
freckles 12-18, Hi and welcome! I was wondering if your LO checked into the Navy Lodge which is located on base or even the Mainstay which is basically 3 min from the base.
Also welcome Jen27, so glad your LO is doing great, and yes he is very busy..Best of Luck to everyone and their LO's during this tough week of RLP... My LO graduated 12-15 Class. He started with the 11-15 class but Rolled into the H-Class for failing RLP by one point. RLP was a blessing believe it or not. He was able to rest, practice and he became a great leader in H-Class helping others and working with others to prepare them for RLP. Some LO's rolled before the RLP due to injury or other reasons and did not make it to the RLP phase, so my LO worked with the OC's and showed them what to expect at RLP. Our LO's end up in H-Class for different reasons, so while there they help each other in the areas they know so when they leave H-Class they OWN OCS!! LOL
M's Mom and GalleyMom, I've missed y'all!! I've been gone for a week and I see the two of you are on top of it. Like M's mom I'm here for a long time... Once a Navy mom always a Navy Mom!! LOL I find myself reading post often to see if I can help in any way...M's Mom has been there for me, and now I want to pay it forward as well. GalleyMom, for some reason Class 15-15 did not accept my friend request, so let them know new Pictures are up on their page :)
Quilter: Good to hear from you again! I'm glad you're willing to help the OCS newbies. The whole OCS process can be very frustrating, anxious, and even heartbreaking for some families. --as you well know!
My family had no prior experience with the military before my son left for OCS, and I remember feeling that the families were just not being given any info at all by the Navy as to what was happening--as opposed to college, when the families were given all kinds of pamphlets and new student guides, (at least at my son's college.) I might have ignorantly sent my son cookies in his first weeks of OCS, and innocently gotten him a whole lot of pushups to do, had I not read on this forum that was a total no-no until the Candio phase! The Navy's OCS info website says nothing about mail regulations, only lists the address. My son's recruiter mentioned this site to me during a pre-OCS family meeting, so the Navy apparently somewhat approves of this site! I was able to take much of the info I learned here back to our class Facebook page, which was composed of all newbie parents also, so I was grateful for the help I received here. But, things change year to year at OCS and probably some from when my son was there 3 years ago, so it's always helpful to have fresh intel from recent grad Moms!
Did you say your son was doing OHARP (recruiting) for a while? That will be a nice break before he starts flight school.
Mrs Potts here!! LOL Thank you GalleyMom and M's Mom I've been so busy over the last few weeks :) and its great to be back. My LO is on OHARP, and is loving the down time before reporting very soon. He bought his first brand new car and is very happy.
It feels good to be back and checking Navy4Moms again! With every new class my mind just wonders and I place myself in their shoes!! I live through them, because I know exactly what they are feeling and what their LO's are up too! A new class will be starting very soon!!
Hello moms - Does anyone know what type of mental evals the Sub Nuke candidates go through during OCS in addition to the standard medical test performed at NICNI during the first week?
Anna: Wow! I had no idea the Navy was involved in this site's creation! I thought it was just started by Moms of sailors as a support group. Must be why the recruiters recommend it to moms of prospective sailors. Now I'm cringing because we were joking a while back about calling the Secretary of the Navy with our complaints. "Just kidding, SECNAV Mabus. The Navy has my full support!" ;-) (Hope I won't have any NSA agents knocking on my door!)
Rosemom: Sorry I don't have any knowledge of the Sub Nukes, so I can't help. Anyone reading this with a LO who is a sub nuke officer who can answer Rosemom? Maybe ask your LO about the mental eval they had at OCS? There are groups here on N4M's called "Sub Moms" and "Nuke Moms," but I believe they are mostly moms of enlisted sailors in those areas, and may not be able to address the OCS experience.
Good morning everyone, quick question, I was making a dentist appt for my LO before he leaves and it donned on me, does my LO have his own insurance!! LOL So I asked my LO do you have your own insurance card, and he said no, I don't think so...So my question is, are they issued their own insurance and card??? Thank you in advance!!!
Thank you everyone!!! I will get my LO on it!! When I asked him this morning, he said all he could remember about OCS, was how to put his face in the mud, get yelled at 24/7 and do 100 push-ups on command LOL LOL LOL
Rosemom, my son is Sub Nuke. He had a battery of psych evals during the application process for NUPOC to determine whether character/personality traits are compatible with Subs. Then the selection weekend puts them under stress to evaluate performance under those conditions. But OCS really ratchets up the stress factor and they are evaluated throughout the program. From a physical testing perspective, they look very closely at any respiratory issues. There were 2 disqualified in my son's class for physical. They both reclassed as surface Nuke.
Quiter: I believe they fill out the paperwork for Tricare on the day they report to OCS, and I think they are covered from that point on. My son took a flight physical three weeks into OCS and they determined that he had a heart valve anomaly that about one percent of the population have. They sent him to the civilian hospital in Newport to have an MRI and all these cardiac tests to be sure it wasn't serious.
You can imagine how concerned we were when our son called and said, "They think there is something wrong with my heart." Yikes! --And here he was doing all that running and physical training; I was afraid he might have a heart attack! Turns out it was minor and likely never to cause him any trouble, even though it DQ'd him for flight. Whew!
My point of this story is that we started to receive some massive bills in his name at our home address from the civilian hospital and cardiologist consults etc. but Tricare paid for everything, thank goodness. Your son should have dental coverage too, but not all civilian dentists accept Tricare.
I imagine it does take a special kind of person to serve on a submarine. Of course, they can't be claustrophobic, and they must be able to get along with others in close quarters in a stressful environment. When those nuclear subs submerge, they can be submerged for a LONG time! I seriously doubt that I could do it myself. I like to be ALONE now and then, and I doubt that there's any privacy on a sub! Bless all the submariners for their service!
Quilter: Sorry, I see that I just called you "Quiter" in my comment below on Tricare!!!!!!!! I don't see where this site allows one to "edit" a post, only delete it all and type it all again. It's quicker just to apologize for the typo! :-)
Sorry you didn't know about who ran this site but I don't think you have to worry about men showing up at your front door!!! I'm sure the Sec of the Navy has a sense of humor. There are actually brochures the Navy put out about N4Ms. If you have a recruiting office nearby see if they have any. They are pretty sweet!!!!
Oh, if it the worst happens and they come for you, I'll be a character witness for you!!!!!! ha ha ha
Thanks for the offer, but I hope I won't have to post a plea for bail money! ha ha I will just have to be more careful in knowing that Big Brother Navy is probably reading this also!
Since our sons are both in Intel, and don't tell us much about what they do, wouldn't it be ironic if one of them had the job to monitor this website for subversive postings? I hope my son doesn't email me sometime and write, "Mom, you've got to stop sharing so much on N4M's." Me: "WHAT???" hahaha
GalleyMom: ha ha! When my son was in OCS, we were told to be CAREFUL about what we posted on our class's Facebook page because OCS was monitoring these pages! Apparently there were instances where somebody posted about how mean and unfair a certain DI was, and it resulted in punishment for the candidates! Make sure your class's Facebook page knows this. You could post, "MY son says his DI "Smith" is the most respectful, encouraging, and motivating leader ever!" LOL
GalleyMom: Yes, it is hard on the sailors' "significant others" when their LO's are away on a ship. My son just celebrated his second wedding anniversary and he was gone for 10 months of it, at sea on the carrier USS Carl Vinson. But, his wife knew what she was getting into when they got married. My husband and I kept in touch with D-I-L and sent her little care packages so she felt our support. She will be able to go with him to his next duty station at a base in Japan, so they are both happy about that.
What kind of a ship will your son be assigned to, and where is its home port? (You don't have to tell the ship's name if you think that might be too sensitive info.) Hopefully, he and the GF can make things work out.
GalleyMom: Norfolk is a nice area. My son was in Intelligence School for 8 mos. at Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach, which just out on the coast from Norfolk.
When DS was a teenager, we visited Norfolk and VB on a vacation. Never dreamed at the time that he would one day be stationed there in the Navy! If you visit your son in Norfolk, make sure you check out the Nauticus museum in downtown Norfolk. It's all about ships, and the battleship USS Wisconsin is there to tour.
In a weird coincidence, when we were at Nauticus about ten yrs ago with our then-teenaged son, he bought a big poster at the gift shop with drawings of one of each kind of all the US Navy warships. There was a missile cruiser, a destroyer, an aircraft carrier, several kinds of subs, etc. It is still hanging in "his" room today. (I've gotta clean that out one of these days!) A few months ago while he was deployed, I went in his room and just happened to look up at that poster, and the aircraft carrier depicted is CVN-70, the USS CARL VINSON, the very ship he was then aboard !!!!!!!! (goosebumps) I had never really looked at that poster in ten years, but there was his ship! Felt one of those strange mother/child psychic connection moments!!!!
That is a crazy, yet special story!!! Who would have guessed. My son went to Dam Neck for IS school. I guess they use Oceana for the officers. Although he was stationed at Oceana for his first 4 years when he was an AO. He deployed on the Geo Washington and the Enterprise. I love that whole area of WA - Norfolk, Oceana, VB, the ocean . . .
Anna: The officer's intel school is also at Dam Neck , which is an annex of Oceana, but no one outside of the intel community has heard of it, so I just say he was at Oceana. It's only a few miles away. My son said he shopped at the NEX at Oceana because it was close to his off-base apartment. When we went to Virginia Beach for DS's graduation from intel school, we got a hotel right on the beach and had hoped to enjoy some fun in the sun since it was June, but a tropical storm hit the day after we arrived, and it rained for three days!!!! My son said that wasn't as bad as when hurricane Sandy roared through VB the previous October. Glad we missed that!
Gotta love those plans we make when heading to a beach and then have Mother Nature have other plans. My son is in Norfolk now (although presently he is deployed) and I was able to visit a year ago in early May. It was beautiful weather and we got to spend some time on the beach!!! I really hope we get a chance to visit with him and his family between the time he comes back from this deployment and before they leave for Hawaii!!!
GalleyMom: Congrats to your son! Graduation is in sight! Hope you're packing some special goodies to send in DS's Candi-O box. He deserves it. The candidate officers have not been allowed between-meal snacks or desserts for the first nine weeks, so they have been pretty much "detoxed" from sugar. When they get their Candio boxes, they all gorge and make themselves sick!!! I sent my son his favorite homemade cookies, and he said he could only eat a few before he had to pass them around to everybody else. That would have been unheard of for him to share them in college!
But, he said OCS taught him that he doesn't need all that sugar and he actually feels better without it, so he still doesn't eat as many sweets as he used to. But since he's back from his 10-month deployment on the aircraft carrier, he says his dear wife is trying to feed him to death!!!! She's quite the little cook, and said she's been saving up recipes that would have been way too much to make just for herself, so now DS is the recipient of her pent-up cooking/baking urges. He loves it!!! Haha
Congratulations to your son!!! He's almost there now!!!
I just got a phone call this morning - my Sailor Son is back on US soil after a stressful deployment. So happy to have him back home with his family!!!!
GalleyMom: My son's Hi Moms was a cocktail reception with appetizers at a swanky downtown Newport hotel. Most of the women were in dresses, but some wore dressy slacks. The men were dressed in everything from sport coat & tie to khakis and polo shirts. The candidates will be in their summer whites. Graduation seemed to be more casual. I think I wore dress slacks and nice top to that. Many wore jeans. The new Ensigns will be in their "choker" (high-collar) dress white coats, so if you will be taking pics with your son afterward, you may want to consider what you want to be photographed in standing next to such a handsome Naval officer!
Re: the Candio box. One box is enough because they all get so much and share it with each other. They can't possibly eat all they are sent, so lots of it gets thrown out when they leave, so I tell moms not to go overboard.
Re: My D-I-L fattening up my son: Thank goodness DS still has to pass physical fitness assessments every six months so he is forced to work out and stay in shape!! D-I-L is one of those maddeningly skinny little things who weighs probably 105 pounds soaking wet, yet she eats like a horse! She's always eating candy and always orders dessert when we take them out to dinner. I am green with envy of her because I am, ahem, NOT like that!! I've told DS that his metabolism will likely slow down when he hits thirty, so he'll have to start watching what he eats. Hopefully D-I-L will not pout then if he starts refusing seconds of her delicious meals! haha
Anna: Wonderful news that your son is safely back home!! I know the feeling of relief. I think you mentioned him going to Hawaii soon? Hopefully his family will be able to go with him there. Not a bad duty station, just so FAR from the mainland to visit.
Anna: Yes, getting to Hawaii is a long haul. Hubby and I went to Hawaii on vacation several years ago, and by the time we changed planes twice and had weather delays, it took us about 20 hours to arrive in Honolulu from the time we left home. (We're Midwesterners.) Hubby vows if we ever go back, we will fly to the west coast and spend the night, then fly on to Hawaii the next day. Our son and wife will be stationed in Japan in January, and hubby isn't too thrilled at making that even longer journey! Maybe we can fly to CA one day, then HI the next, then to Tokyo the next day, thereby breaking up the in-flight time.
I couldn't conceive of flying to Japan. Years ago I had a flight to London when my oldest son's high school band was invited to march in the London parade. I thought I was going to go crazy on that flight!!! I just can't handle long flights any more!!! Hope you do get to go visit with him and his wife. That would be awesome!!!!
I'm not sure whether this should go on the wall or if I should make a discussion. I dropped my husband off at OCS this Sunday and would like to start sending mail. I'm a little confused about what his class number should be though.
I have the rest of the address for mail but I have two different "class numbers" The number my husband gave me says "class 51401" but I've seen that the July 26 class is "0116" I'm not sure which set of numbers to substitute in the "XX-XX" portion of the address.... any advice? Thanks
(I've also been looking for a facebook group for this class but I can't seem to find one, anyone know about this?)
I would go with the 01-16 number if he is in the July 26 class. If he is in the next class then it would be 02-16. Either way he will get your mail. It will take a little bit for them to get their facebook page up and running. You can also follow the Officers Training Command Newport facebook because they update pictures almost every week of each class once they start.
I will send it addressed to the 01-16 number. I have looked for a fb page and don't see one yet, so I guess I'll just keep checking back. I've "liked" the OTCN page and have peeked through a couple pictures from past classes. I'm not sure whether seeing those is helpful or just more nerve wracking! lol, thanks again!
Jen27
Thank you GalleyMom & M's mom! That is all so comforting to hear! My husband also just graduated in Mechnical Engineering so I don't worry much about the academics for him, but it is so good to know that they look out for each other. I'm sure it will be so nice for him to get past the RLP next week.
I just watched "An Officer and a Gentleman" a few nights ago! Great show, but yeah not entirely true haha. I've been writing and sending letters everyday. Even if he isn't getting them yet (I hear some DI's will hold them for a few weeks), it is still almost therapeutic on my end to just tell him about life at home. :) Thank you both for the advice!!
Jun 28, 2015
topdog1p
Jen27 is your husband in 16-15 group F? my son is also a mechanical engineer with a minor in material science. still no email and he is not married or attach to a girlfriend. i am not excepting any communication till after RLP to let me know to start booking our trip.
Jun 28, 2015
Jen27
topdog1p: What does group F mean? I've just been told he is in class 16-15. I received just the one quick email sometime on Tuesday. It was a military address. They may have just had time to set it up but not really use it until after RLP. I never expected ANY email so I was surprised, but haven't heard anything since. He was able to call from church last Sunday to ask me a few things, but it was pretty short and sweet. I know he is busy and very focused on RLP, so I'm not too worried :) I also need to get flights purchased for graduation. He said they graduate Sept 4th.
Jun 28, 2015
topdog1p
Jen27 i understand there is 2 groups 16-15E and 16-15F not sure what the letter means he just said to address anything class 16-15F. it was nice that you got to hear from him on sunday. i know it would be tough not to talk to my hubby. yep graduation is the 4th if all goes well. you want to be there the for the day before too. i m using it to go to boston for a quick vacation :)
Jun 28, 2015
Jen27
topdog1p: Oh really? I had no idea.. I'll have to ask him which one he is in next time I hear from him. I was traveling in Europe for the 3 weeks before he left and missed his last call after he checked in so yes it was so good to hear from him, even though he barely had any voice left haha. That's a great idea! I am planning on heading out there a few days early to maybe do a little sightseeing as well! If I am lucky, he will be able to join me for an evening or two :) Is your son heading to Nuclear Power School following OCS by chance?
Jun 28, 2015
CindyN
Jen27 and topdog1p: When an incoming OCS class is large, they divide it into two companies (groups) using the phonetic alphabet names. My son told me that they do not reuse a name/letter until the last class with that name has graduated. My son is in 15-15 and they are Charlie and Delta so it appears that Class 16-15 is Echo and Foxtrot.
If you know the company/group you LO is in, you can use it when addressing letters to them (16-15E or 16-15F). But if you do not know it, or forget to include it, the letter will still get to them.
While it is certainly true that a DI could decide to withhold their mail for a period of time, they have not done so the past two classes. So hopefully they are not holding it for 16-15.
You will likely hear from your LO through email after their RPT test next Thursday. But don't get too worried if you don't hear right away. There are many reasons it would be delayed. The OCs all have different duties and they may not have time to get to a computer to send the email when their classmates did. Or it could be that the training.navy.mil email is down. The message in this is to not stress if you do not hear right away. No news next Thursday is not necessarily bad news. (Easy to say, I know. I have been there and held my breath all day as well.)
Jun 28, 2015
topdog1p
Thanks foe the information CL. Jen27 yes my son will be heading to NUPOC in south Carolina for A school. CL when is your LO set for graduation? .
Jun 28, 2015
topdog1p
My son was told to watch "Officer & A Gentleman before he left by a former OCS tactical instuctor. He was a wealth of good advise to Nathan before he left. I am fortunate as i live in a military community and my church is full of military families.
Jun 28, 2015
Jen27
I got a phone call today! topdog1p: My husband said he is in the foxtrot company (16-15 F) with your son. He said that their whole class is sub nukes all headed to SC afterwards. It was so great to hear from him! He said that RLP will be next Wednesday and that they will be getting laptops on Friday so they will be able to email then. They are also getting letters and can send letters as well. He said they are all coming along well in their RLP prep! Lots of great news over here today :) That is nice you are surrounded by other military families! Hopefully you hear from your son before too long! Thanks for the info CL!
Jun 28, 2015
topdog1p
hi Jen27 did you ever get added to the facebook group for 16-15? if not send my a fb freind reqest (bridget tustison) and i can add then get you added that is how i added my mom. i am so glad you got to talk to you hubby and thank for passing on the info of dates of RLP and that they our doing good. sounds like they will be developing friendship that can take them far in this chosen career.
Jun 28, 2015
Jen27
topdog1p: No, I never got accepted. I will send you a request. Thanks! Yeah it sounds like they will be together for a while :) considering they are all Sub Nukes.
Jun 28, 2015
topdog1p
i have not seem it come thur yet jen27 but i will keep checking. i use the same profile picture as here.
Jun 28, 2015
Quilter
freckles 12-18, Hi and welcome! I was wondering if your LO checked into the Navy Lodge which is located on base or even the Mainstay which is basically 3 min from the base.
Also welcome Jen27, so glad your LO is doing great, and yes he is very busy..Best of Luck to everyone and their LO's during this tough week of RLP... My LO graduated 12-15 Class. He started with the 11-15 class but Rolled into the H-Class for failing RLP by one point. RLP was a blessing believe it or not. He was able to rest, practice and he became a great leader in H-Class helping others and working with others to prepare them for RLP. Some LO's rolled before the RLP due to injury or other reasons and did not make it to the RLP phase, so my LO worked with the OC's and showed them what to expect at RLP. Our LO's end up in H-Class for different reasons, so while there they help each other in the areas they know so when they leave H-Class they OWN OCS!! LOL
M's Mom and GalleyMom, I've missed y'all!! I've been gone for a week and I see the two of you are on top of it. Like M's mom I'm here for a long time... Once a Navy mom always a Navy Mom!! LOL I find myself reading post often to see if I can help in any way...M's Mom has been there for me, and now I want to pay it forward as well. GalleyMom, for some reason Class 15-15 did not accept my friend request, so let them know new Pictures are up on their page :)
Jun 29, 2015
M's mom
Quilter: Good to hear from you again! I'm glad you're willing to help the OCS newbies. The whole OCS process can be very frustrating, anxious, and even heartbreaking for some families. --as you well know!
My family had no prior experience with the military before my son left for OCS, and I remember feeling that the families were just not being given any info at all by the Navy as to what was happening--as opposed to college, when the families were given all kinds of pamphlets and new student guides, (at least at my son's college.) I might have ignorantly sent my son cookies in his first weeks of OCS, and innocently gotten him a whole lot of pushups to do, had I not read on this forum that was a total no-no until the Candio phase! The Navy's OCS info website says nothing about mail regulations, only lists the address. My son's recruiter mentioned this site to me during a pre-OCS family meeting, so the Navy apparently somewhat approves of this site! I was able to take much of the info I learned here back to our class Facebook page, which was composed of all newbie parents also, so I was grateful for the help I received here. But, things change year to year at OCS and probably some from when my son was there 3 years ago, so it's always helpful to have fresh intel from recent grad Moms!
Did you say your son was doing OHARP (recruiting) for a while? That will be a nice break before he starts flight school.
Jun 29, 2015
Quilter
Mrs Potts here!! LOL Thank you GalleyMom and M's Mom I've been so busy over the last few weeks :) and its great to be back. My LO is on OHARP, and is loving the down time before reporting very soon. He bought his first brand new car and is very happy.
It feels good to be back and checking Navy4Moms again! With every new class my mind just wonders and I place myself in their shoes!! I live through them, because I know exactly what they are feeling and what their LO's are up too! A new class will be starting very soon!!
Ladies lets be ready LOL LOL
Jun 30, 2015
Rosemom
Hello moms - Does anyone know what type of mental evals the Sub Nuke candidates go through during OCS in addition to the standard medical test performed at NICNI during the first week?
Jun 30, 2015
Anna
M'sMom,
This website is managed and was created by the Navy out of the Navy Recruiting Command at Millington.
Jul 1, 2015
M's mom
Anna: Wow! I had no idea the Navy was involved in this site's creation! I thought it was just started by Moms of sailors as a support group. Must be why the recruiters recommend it to moms of prospective sailors. Now I'm cringing because we were joking a while back about calling the Secretary of the Navy with our complaints. "Just kidding, SECNAV Mabus. The Navy has my full support!" ;-) (Hope I won't have any NSA agents knocking on my door!)
Jul 1, 2015
M's mom
Rosemom: Sorry I don't have any knowledge of the Sub Nukes, so I can't help. Anyone reading this with a LO who is a sub nuke officer who can answer Rosemom? Maybe ask your LO about the mental eval they had at OCS? There are groups here on N4M's called "Sub Moms" and "Nuke Moms," but I believe they are mostly moms of enlisted sailors in those areas, and may not be able to address the OCS experience.
Jul 1, 2015
Rosemom
M's mom: Thanks I'll take a look at the groups you mentioned and if anyone has any more info please let me know.
Jul 2, 2015
Quilter
Good morning everyone, quick question, I was making a dentist appt for my LO before he leaves and it donned on me, does my LO have his own insurance!! LOL So I asked my LO do you have your own insurance card, and he said no, I don't think so...So my question is, are they issued their own insurance and card??? Thank you in advance!!!
Jul 2, 2015
Tiggermanic
I believe your LO wont have insurance until they get to OCS and get all the paperwork done. Once there they will get all that info.
Jul 2, 2015
Quilter
I might be in trouble LOL!! My LO graduated from OCS 1st part of June!! So I'm guessing he has it, and doesn't know he has it!! That's my LO!!!
Jul 2, 2015
Tiggermanic
I know their insurance is thru Tri-care but not sure about dental. Your LO could probably ask someone he is working with if he is home on OHARP.
Jul 2, 2015
CindyN
Not sure if this is the best website for their benefits but you can find some info here: http://www.military.com/benefits/tricare/dental/tricare-active-duty...
As Tiggermanic suggested, checking with someone he is working with on OHARP may be the best source of information.
Jul 2, 2015
Quilter
Thank you everyone!!! I will get my LO on it!! When I asked him this morning, he said all he could remember about OCS, was how to put his face in the mud, get yelled at 24/7 and do 100 push-ups on command LOL LOL LOL
Jul 2, 2015
ITgal
Rosemom, my son is Sub Nuke. He had a battery of psych evals during the application process for NUPOC to determine whether character/personality traits are compatible with Subs. Then the selection weekend puts them under stress to evaluate performance under those conditions. But OCS really ratchets up the stress factor and they are evaluated throughout the program. From a physical testing perspective, they look very closely at any respiratory issues. There were 2 disqualified in my son's class for physical. They both reclassed as surface Nuke.
Jul 2, 2015
M's mom
Quiter: I believe they fill out the paperwork for Tricare on the day they report to OCS, and I think they are covered from that point on. My son took a flight physical three weeks into OCS and they determined that he had a heart valve anomaly that about one percent of the population have. They sent him to the civilian hospital in Newport to have an MRI and all these cardiac tests to be sure it wasn't serious.
You can imagine how concerned we were when our son called and said, "They think there is something wrong with my heart." Yikes! --And here he was doing all that running and physical training; I was afraid he might have a heart attack! Turns out it was minor and likely never to cause him any trouble, even though it DQ'd him for flight. Whew!
My point of this story is that we started to receive some massive bills in his name at our home address from the civilian hospital and cardiologist consults etc. but Tricare paid for everything, thank goodness. Your son should have dental coverage too, but not all civilian dentists accept Tricare.
Jul 2, 2015
M's mom
Rosemom & ITgal:
I imagine it does take a special kind of person to serve on a submarine. Of course, they can't be claustrophobic, and they must be able to get along with others in close quarters in a stressful environment. When those nuclear subs submerge, they can be submerged for a LONG time! I seriously doubt that I could do it myself. I like to be ALONE now and then, and I doubt that there's any privacy on a sub! Bless all the submariners for their service!
Jul 2, 2015
M's mom
Quilter: Sorry, I see that I just called you "Quiter" in my comment below on Tricare!!!!!!!! I don't see where this site allows one to "edit" a post, only delete it all and type it all again. It's quicker just to apologize for the typo! :-)
Jul 2, 2015
Anna
M'sMom,
Sorry you didn't know about who ran this site but I don't think you have to worry about men showing up at your front door!!! I'm sure the Sec of the Navy has a sense of humor. There are actually brochures the Navy put out about N4Ms. If you have a recruiting office nearby see if they have any. They are pretty sweet!!!!
Oh, if it the worst happens and they come for you, I'll be a character witness for you!!!!!! ha ha ha
Jul 2, 2015
M's mom
Anna,
Thanks for the offer, but I hope I won't have to post a plea for bail money! ha ha I will just have to be more careful in knowing that Big Brother Navy is probably reading this also!
Since our sons are both in Intel, and don't tell us much about what they do, wouldn't it be ironic if one of them had the job to monitor this website for subversive postings? I hope my son doesn't email me sometime and write, "Mom, you've got to stop sharing so much on N4M's." Me: "WHAT???" hahaha
Jul 2, 2015
M's mom
GalleyMom: ha ha! When my son was in OCS, we were told to be CAREFUL about what we posted on our class's Facebook page because OCS was monitoring these pages! Apparently there were instances where somebody posted about how mean and unfair a certain DI was, and it resulted in punishment for the candidates! Make sure your class's Facebook page knows this. You could post, "MY son says his DI "Smith" is the most respectful, encouraging, and motivating leader ever!" LOL
BTW, when is your son's graduation date?
Jul 3, 2015
M's mom
GalleyMom: Yes, it is hard on the sailors' "significant others" when their LO's are away on a ship. My son just celebrated his second wedding anniversary and he was gone for 10 months of it, at sea on the carrier USS Carl Vinson. But, his wife knew what she was getting into when they got married. My husband and I kept in touch with D-I-L and sent her little care packages so she felt our support. She will be able to go with him to his next duty station at a base in Japan, so they are both happy about that.
What kind of a ship will your son be assigned to, and where is its home port? (You don't have to tell the ship's name if you think that might be too sensitive info.) Hopefully, he and the GF can make things work out.
Jul 3, 2015
M's mom
GalleyMom: Norfolk is a nice area. My son was in Intelligence School for 8 mos. at Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach, which just out on the coast from Norfolk.
When DS was a teenager, we visited Norfolk and VB on a vacation. Never dreamed at the time that he would one day be stationed there in the Navy! If you visit your son in Norfolk, make sure you check out the Nauticus museum in downtown Norfolk. It's all about ships, and the battleship USS Wisconsin is there to tour.
In a weird coincidence, when we were at Nauticus about ten yrs ago with our then-teenaged son, he bought a big poster at the gift shop with drawings of one of each kind of all the US Navy warships. There was a missile cruiser, a destroyer, an aircraft carrier, several kinds of subs, etc. It is still hanging in "his" room today. (I've gotta clean that out one of these days!) A few months ago while he was deployed, I went in his room and just happened to look up at that poster, and the aircraft carrier depicted is CVN-70, the USS CARL VINSON, the very ship he was then aboard !!!!!!!! (goosebumps) I had never really looked at that poster in ten years, but there was his ship! Felt one of those strange mother/child psychic connection moments!!!!
Jul 6, 2015
Anna
M's mom,
That is a crazy, yet special story!!! Who would have guessed. My son went to Dam Neck for IS school. I guess they use Oceana for the officers. Although he was stationed at Oceana for his first 4 years when he was an AO. He deployed on the Geo Washington and the Enterprise. I love that whole area of WA - Norfolk, Oceana, VB, the ocean . . .
Jul 6, 2015
Anna
VA not WA!!!!
Jul 6, 2015
M's mom
Anna: The officer's intel school is also at Dam Neck , which is an annex of Oceana, but no one outside of the intel community has heard of it, so I just say he was at Oceana. It's only a few miles away. My son said he shopped at the NEX at Oceana because it was close to his off-base apartment. When we went to Virginia Beach for DS's graduation from intel school, we got a hotel right on the beach and had hoped to enjoy some fun in the sun since it was June, but a tropical storm hit the day after we arrived, and it rained for three days!!!! My son said that wasn't as bad as when hurricane Sandy roared through VB the previous October. Glad we missed that!
Jul 7, 2015
Anna
M's mom,
Gotta love those plans we make when heading to a beach and then have Mother Nature have other plans. My son is in Norfolk now (although presently he is deployed) and I was able to visit a year ago in early May. It was beautiful weather and we got to spend some time on the beach!!! I really hope we get a chance to visit with him and his family between the time he comes back from this deployment and before they leave for Hawaii!!!
Jul 7, 2015
Cheyann
Here is the Facebook page for friends and family of the the class of 17-15. That is those who report to OCS on July 5th, 2015.
Hope to meet you soon!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/689817314485632/members/
Jul 8, 2015
M's mom
GalleyMom: Congrats to your son! Graduation is in sight! Hope you're packing some special goodies to send in DS's Candi-O box. He deserves it. The candidate officers have not been allowed between-meal snacks or desserts for the first nine weeks, so they have been pretty much "detoxed" from sugar. When they get their Candio boxes, they all gorge and make themselves sick!!! I sent my son his favorite homemade cookies, and he said he could only eat a few before he had to pass them around to everybody else. That would have been unheard of for him to share them in college!
But, he said OCS taught him that he doesn't need all that sugar and he actually feels better without it, so he still doesn't eat as many sweets as he used to. But since he's back from his 10-month deployment on the aircraft carrier, he says his dear wife is trying to feed him to death!!!! She's quite the little cook, and said she's been saving up recipes that would have been way too much to make just for herself, so now DS is the recipient of her pent-up cooking/baking urges. He loves it!!! Haha
Jul 17, 2015
Anna
GalleyMom,
Congratulations to your son!!! He's almost there now!!!
I just got a phone call this morning - my Sailor Son is back on US soil after a stressful deployment. So happy to have him back home with his family!!!!
Jul 18, 2015
M's mom
GalleyMom: My son's Hi Moms was a cocktail reception with appetizers at a swanky downtown Newport hotel. Most of the women were in dresses, but some wore dressy slacks. The men were dressed in everything from sport coat & tie to khakis and polo shirts. The candidates will be in their summer whites. Graduation seemed to be more casual. I think I wore dress slacks and nice top to that. Many wore jeans. The new Ensigns will be in their "choker" (high-collar) dress white coats, so if you will be taking pics with your son afterward, you may want to consider what you want to be photographed in standing next to such a handsome Naval officer!
Re: the Candio box. One box is enough because they all get so much and share it with each other. They can't possibly eat all they are sent, so lots of it gets thrown out when they leave, so I tell moms not to go overboard.
Re: My D-I-L fattening up my son: Thank goodness DS still has to pass physical fitness assessments every six months so he is forced to work out and stay in shape!! D-I-L is one of those maddeningly skinny little things who weighs probably 105 pounds soaking wet, yet she eats like a horse! She's always eating candy and always orders dessert when we take them out to dinner. I am green with envy of her because I am, ahem, NOT like that!! I've told DS that his metabolism will likely slow down when he hits thirty, so he'll have to start watching what he eats. Hopefully D-I-L will not pout then if he starts refusing seconds of her delicious meals! haha
Jul 18, 2015
M's mom
Anna: Wonderful news that your son is safely back home!! I know the feeling of relief. I think you mentioned him going to Hawaii soon? Hopefully his family will be able to go with him there. Not a bad duty station, just so FAR from the mainland to visit.
Jul 18, 2015
Anna
M's mom,
Yes his family will be going with him to Hawaii. And the hardest part will be us trying to get over there to visit them!!!!
Jul 18, 2015
M's mom
Anna: Yes, getting to Hawaii is a long haul. Hubby and I went to Hawaii on vacation several years ago, and by the time we changed planes twice and had weather delays, it took us about 20 hours to arrive in Honolulu from the time we left home. (We're Midwesterners.) Hubby vows if we ever go back, we will fly to the west coast and spend the night, then fly on to Hawaii the next day. Our son and wife will be stationed in Japan in January, and hubby isn't too thrilled at making that even longer journey! Maybe we can fly to CA one day, then HI the next, then to Tokyo the next day, thereby breaking up the in-flight time.
Jul 19, 2015
Anna
M's mom,
I couldn't conceive of flying to Japan. Years ago I had a flight to London when my oldest son's high school band was invited to march in the London parade. I thought I was going to go crazy on that flight!!! I just can't handle long flights any more!!! Hope you do get to go visit with him and his wife. That would be awesome!!!!
Jul 19, 2015
TxNavyWife
I'm not sure whether this should go on the wall or if I should make a discussion. I dropped my husband off at OCS this Sunday and would like to start sending mail. I'm a little confused about what his class number should be though.
I have the rest of the address for mail but I have two different "class numbers" The number my husband gave me says "class 51401" but I've seen that the July 26 class is "0116" I'm not sure which set of numbers to substitute in the "XX-XX" portion of the address.... any advice? Thanks
(I've also been looking for a facebook group for this class but I can't seem to find one, anyone know about this?)
Jul 27, 2015
Tiggermanic
I would go with the 01-16 number if he is in the July 26 class. If he is in the next class then it would be 02-16. Either way he will get your mail. It will take a little bit for them to get their facebook page up and running. You can also follow the Officers Training Command Newport facebook because they update pictures almost every week of each class once they start.
Jul 27, 2015
TxNavyWife
Thanks for the quick response, Tigger!
I will send it addressed to the 01-16 number. I have looked for a fb page and don't see one yet, so I guess I'll just keep checking back. I've "liked" the OTCN page and have peeked through a couple pictures from past classes. I'm not sure whether seeing those is helpful or just more nerve wracking! lol, thanks again!
Jul 27, 2015