Ship 5 Moms(Formerly Ship 17)

I have a question for all you moms who have gone through this already. When your SRs came home, were there any extra bills that they get after they get SEPd or are there any payments that are owed or charged?

Sometimes it is just hard to let go of an idea, but now is the time to start forgetting the past and start embracing the future pheww... wow maybe I just realized that my daughter would have graduated in 10 days but that won't happen so onward. She thinks she will be home maybe the end of next week so right near the pir date. Sometimes we just don't know how things will work out. I guess there was a reason for her to be home. It is just hard to think what a future she would have had ..a journey an experience I hope she isn't smashed to pieces when she realizes nothing at home changed and she has to pick up and make new plans. Tomorrow she turns 20, welcome to adulthood.. sorry all over the place just venting I guess.....

Thanks sixftblnd I just realized there are 5 stages of SEPS #1 disbelief, what???, how can this be?  #2 confusion/worry, I don't understand, I haven't heard from him/her I don't know what is going on, #3 anger,  If only this, If only that!, #4 depression!  Now what? their dreams are smashed this was Plan C, and finally #5 AHH Acceptance yes everything will work out,  they will be ok and I will be ok, life will move on and they will find a new path.. so whatever stage your in , if any this will not last forever and there is a rainbow at the end of the storm....

I do believe I am in stage 5 but sometimes I fall back into stage 4 but at least I'm on my way I think this whole process was harder on me. On onto plan D good thing she has the whole alphabet lol.... (sorry I have to have some humor in all this mess)

I'm at the stage where I'm ready for this to be over with and just want him home. It's been 2 weeks already, come on! I just got a 5 min phonecall with him saying people are causing trouble and there were fights so He doubts he'll be able to call home anytime soon.

HI All, My son was just sent to Ship 5 last Thursday...his PIR date was 2/8/13.  He was so close to graduation.  I am so upset and frustrated for him.  He had symptomatic asthma when he was 3 years old.  After he had his tonsils, adnoids and ear tubes done he never had another attack.  He listed his asthma on his paperwork to enter DEP. We had to take him to doctors and get certain tests done to prove no asthma.  He had a lung function test done and the doctor said he felt my son never had true asthma as his lungs are actually a bigger and better capacity level then most adults. 125%.  He was going to be a rescue swimmer, so we jumped through the hoops and everything was done and filled out and signed by MEPS for him to go to bootcamp on 12/13.  So he passes everything in bootcamp with flying colors.  No asthma attacks was chosen to run the relay in the Captains Cup for this next weekend.  Then he calles on a Thursday and says I have a medical appointment on Tuesday to do a medical waiver for asthma. I told him don't they have the medical waiver that was already done in DEP and approved by MEPS.  He said he would talk to the doctor.  The next call we got was Thursday. MOM DAD I am being transfered to ship 5 for medical discharge.  They said he has possible dormant asthma and are afraid that after paying for training it could come back and he would not be able to do his job.  They told him he would get just a regular medical discharge and he can come back in 3 years next time taking the "asthma test" at meps before being shipped to boot camp.  I am just so frustrated, more because he worked so dang hard for this.  He taught himself to swim in 3 weeks time and passed his pst (swim 500 meters/situps/pushups/pullups/1.5mile run" the very first time he took it and was "picked" up in the spec ops lottery his first time in it.  Never once has he had an asthma attack or even acted as though he were trying to hide it.  I wonder since he has not gotten "sick" while there if they will just send him home quicker.  He is not going to fight the decision.  He has asked us to stay out of it as he does not want to be held over there and still not allowed to join.  He is an adult (19years old turning 20 March) but I am afraid like all of you that they will take advantage of his young age and inexperience.  He seems in good spirits but has always been the type to just accept things and see the good..."Mom they can take this away from me but they can not take away what I have learned"...Sorry this is so long but as I said I am just so frustrated!

@Kat...

So deeply sorry to hear that happened. After all the tests showed he was clear and had better lung function tests and capacity then most adults... I would fight tooth and toenails. I know ship 5 is no picnic, our son was there for stupid paperwork issues. But after all you did, after all the hoops, after all the PT tests he passed the first time... wow... I know about how your son feels... our son will be able to re-enlist after 6 months and he is going to... but he did not want to fight the issue having to stay on ship 5 while fighting it. I'm sorry he was slapped like that. He's more physically fit than half or more of the people in his division!

Well, I'll tell you this, once he gets to legal, thats half the battle. Going to see the legal dept is something he has to go thru since he and the Navy have a contract. Your son has held up his end of the contract and now the Navy has to honor their end by giving him his options for re-enlistment and "dotting all the I's and crossing all the T's". If they did not, the Navy would be in breach of contract and that would not go over well at all. There is no set timeline as to when he will go to legal. It's when ever they call his name to go. Some SR's are in ship 5 for a month and have not been to legal, and  some (in our son's case) are there a couple of weeks and get called to legal. It's just a luck of the draw.

Anyway, you have come to the right place... there are lots of us who have our son's and daughter's home from S5 and still come here to share our experiences with new comers to S5.  There are many shoulders to cry on, many ears to listen and lady... when you need to vent... this is the place to do it.

One thing you will find out is (unfortunately) you will go thru more emotions in such a fast rapid pace that you will not think it's humanly possible. VENT!! We all have and have words of wisdom from our own experiences and are here to share, console, advise and pray for you and your son.

This place is where you will find a true and deeply caring Navy family.

@ TxNavyDad, Thank you for the shoulder to cry on!  It is tough but mostly because he was so close to PIR and us seeing him.  Now we have been extended there for an unknown amount of time.

@sixftblnd2002 thank you for the information.  I will make sure that when filing for FAFSA that we do this for him.  This is a ray of sunshine in this whole situation.  At least he is getting something more than a month and a half at bootcamp.

to Kat I am so sorry :(  I think the closer they are to PIR the worse it is... however this site is full of support and we do feel your pain. your angry, sad and worried all rolled together and that is alot to handle all at once. It sounds like your son is level headed and is a hard worker so... he will be great at whatever he does sometimes things don't work out for a reason and we don't know what the reason is. Hang in there my daughter is also on ship 5 PIR 2/8/13  she is doing ok also SEP for asthma we never knew she had it either so onward we go..

To MissElly 2 weeks down he is more than halfway there so soon he will be home yea!

O thank God. I got a call around 8 pm from my SR saying he's on the flight for tomorrow to come home. Does anyone know how they'll be dressed when they come home?

It's been a long 16 days. I will be praying for all you that still need their SRs home and if any one have questions I'll be sure to ask my SR.

Hi- new to the site, although I should have joined much sooner- at the start!  In my research, I always find this site and it has been extremely helpful.  My sister, who is 10 years younger and we are very close, left the Monday before Thanksgiving.  It has been extremely hard and we all miss her so much.  She was a week from Graduating (Her Graduation was the 18th of January, 2013), and she was diagnosed with a Stress Fracture.  Moved to Ship 4.  She was so bummed and depressed, she had a panic attack.  She met with a therapist there and told them that she has experience anxiety before.  She has never been diagnosed with anything.  The therapist told her she had to go home and work herself out.  Now, she's moved to ship 5 and has met with Legal.  They gave her and RE-8 Code (?)with Fraudulent enlistment.  I guess my questions is how will this effect her in her future and how soon will she be home?  She is so upset and feels like she failed, but at this point, just wants to be home and is done with the Navy.  She is excited to go to college and get back in school.  Thanks for any input:)

Sixftblnd2002-  Thank you for comment.  It really feels good to know others are going through the same thing.  She actually just called and said that Legal just called her back this morning- it was changed to errenous (sp?).  I'm assuming that's way better because she was thrilled:)  I can't wait to have her home.  I feel so bad for these kids because they are just sitting and waiting-  Already dealt a huge blow and then it just stares them in the face.  Glad your son is home and good luck with the asthma testing.

My SR is now safe and sound at home. Taking a very long hot shower BY HIMSELF. First thing he wanted to do then now we're off to the buffet so he can eat anything he wants. I thank so much for this wonderful website, I would of never been able to go through this alone and especially love the people who make this website the support web that it is. Ready to close the cover on this book.

@MissElly... That's so awesome to hear!! Our son wanted the same thing. A PRIVATE SHOWER then to hit his favorite steak house. So glad he's home. Thanks for letting us know he's home safe and sound. If you need anything else, just HOLLA!!! ;D

yea!!! missElly sooo glad for you there is nothing better ... you will sleep like a rock tonite so bless him and your family you have been thru hell and back and survived so keep us informed on his progress.. for me my daughter has also seen legal she got a 3?? not sure what that means but hopefully she will be home soon.. yes there is a rainbow after this storm :)

sorry RE-3 Code: and to Sister you are a good sister to be so supportive, your sister is lucky to have you,  this is a true family, here to support you, and you will find alot of good information to pass on to her.

@MC Mama... RE-3 code is the same as our son received. It means he has to wait 6 months then he can re-enlist if he so chooses. Our son was seped because he didn't have the "Official" college transcripts with the college seal and presidents signature. He was going for CTI (linguistics) which requires a top security clearance. Since his transcripts were unofficial, that's what got him seped because ALL his paperwork HAS to be correct from the start. You don't have to have a college degree for CTI, but if you submit one, it has to be correct. A college degree also helps with rank.We found out that 2 different areas dropped the ball on this one.. His recruiter and MEPS. His paperwork gets forwarded from MEPS to the appropriate security agency who gets everything checked and verified for his security clearance. Since his paperwork was not correct, back to square one. They would NOT accept a fax or mailed copy of his transcripts. Mad as hell!!?? You bet. But, we had him for Christmas and New Years, so there was silver lining to that cloud.

thanks texas Dad, right about now  I feel like the cloud on the Jimmy Dean Sandwick commercial lol sorry nothing left but humor at this point umm?  I think I figured out why my daughter is still at ship 5... she is really good at cleaning bathrooms so she is still there cleaning their bathrooms OMG i have lost itttttttt 

well last night at 11:30 pm was a SURPISE! my daughter walked into my living and said HI MOM! I almost fell over I had no idea my husband picked her up at the airport when I was at work she wanted to surprise me and she did. wow it was so good to see her she lost some weight and had her blue sweatsuit on with a trench coat and combat boots she sure looked Navy. She said people at airport thanked her for her service. She felt bad... but today she seems alittle lost she was just watching a boot camp video from utube I think she misses it but doesn't say anything. I think this will be a transition wish us luck. :)

My son just called...He had seen legal this last Thursday. They are giving him an RE-8 for the asthma.  He seems to think that seeing legal means he will be home soon... possibly released next Friday.  That only makes him in ship05 for two weeks.  Can any of you tell me if it really happens that fast?  Is seeing legal the finality of ship 5 and ship out happens soon after?

@Kat.. HALF the battle is getting to see legal. Once that is done, his paperwork goes to the CO's desk then to transportation. Once transportation has it, he will get his departure date and you will get the phone call he's coming home. Usually the call comes the day before he is to depart. Breath a little easier... like I said the longest wait is getting to see legal. Once our son went to legal, he had his departure orders the following week and was home that week on Friday. So... he's coming soon. YAY!!!

@MC... S U R P R I S E ! ! !  That's so awesome... Kinda makes your heart skip a beat.. but hey she's home. THAT's what is important. When we picked our son at the airport, I told him that a couple of other SR's had done the same thing surprising their parents. My son said "Ya.. I thought about that, but knew you would hit the roof, so i didn't". Well, I would have been a little irritated, but only cuz I didn't get to see him first at the airport. I wasn't gonna tell him that cuz then he wold think I was getting weak... HaHa.. but he's home and has decided he's going to re-enlist.

So happy for you and your family she's home.

Hi MOM!!! LOL... I can imagine your face and jaw dropped.... :O

Thanks so much from the both of you, TxNavyDad and sixftblnd2002.  I am finally at a point that this is not just totally stressing me out.  I am ready for his return and he is ready to come home and start the next leg of his journey.  When we spoke to him we asked a couple of questions that his recruiter had.  1. Did he want to list the recruiter on his medical papers to speak on his behalf.  (he said no already seen legal signed everything) 2.Recruiter wanted to know if he was offered a second job, as according the recruiter that is the rules.... (Jake said no I was not offered, legal told him that asthma was an automatic release from the Navy).... the thing that I find funny in this situation is that my son put on his recruiting paper that he had asthma.  He also supplied medical records along with a bunch of new testing that we had done to prove he no longer had it.  Completing a medical waiver with MEPS before busing to Great Lakes.  I am confused why they would take him to Basic knowing he had an automatic diqualifier medical issue pay him while he is there, feed, house and insure him... seems like a waste of taxpayer dollars to me.... but oh well.  He's coming home with a plan forward and that is what matters.  I had to laugh because he said "Mom remember when you used to tell me that I had plenty of time to get things done and I would always say no I don't... well one thing I have learned from the Navy is if you get up in the morning early there are a lot of hours in a day to get things done, so many more hours than I ever remember having before."

Glad your loved ones are home:)  I can't wait for my sister to be home, but the daily phone calls are def. helpful:)  Since her "Official" code was changed, she seems to think it'll be another week:(  She said the list will go out today if she'll be leaving Wednesday, tomorrow for Thursday, and Wed. for Friday- 2 business days in advance, but when she met with Transportation on Friday, they said they didn't even have her paperwork yet.  It's been 2 weeks since she met with legal- over 3 weeks since being at Ship 5.  I'm so done.  Ready to have her home. My 5 year old, ny sister and I used to have girl night at a local Mexican Rest.- my daughter- around 3 when we started, calls it "going to Mexico"  lol  We are so ready for a girl night at Mexico!

Hello, yes I am very glad my daughter is home. I hugged her so tight she said I was choking her lol, too bad!. She said 26 females went home on Friday so maybe Friday's are the magic day. It seemed to take about 2 weeks or so after seeing legal to get travel info to go home, so hang in there I bet she is home this Friday fingers crossed.

I, too, am new to this group.  Just received a 5 min call from my son.  He's been on ship 5 for a week, still hasn't been to see legal yet.  Was getting really concerned because he hadn't called since last Tuesday.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed (but have seen in previous messages that it can be slow).  I'm really ready for him to be home and so is he.  Is it true they send them home the cheapest way; bus, train, etc?  Do they take them there?  I would almost prefer to go pick him up but not sure if the 1-2 day notification is enough for work & the drive.

Sorry to hear the new Brenda I think it is generally around 2-3 weeks from start to finish so 1 week down I think they send them home via transportation depending how far away they live, we live in New England (RI) so my daughter was sent via plane try not to worry if they can survive boot camp they do fine with traveling home plus they are just ready to get home no matter how they get there so hang in there you will hear soon. plus you have us to lean on when you need support. I lost my mind twice and vented on here lol

sorry news

Good Moring- I got a call yesterday that my sis will be heading home on Wednesday.  Tomorrow!  She'll get the details today.  Waiting on that phone call.  We live in Florida, so I hope it's a flight.  She said there is a possiblilty of her taking a bus.  Which would be annoying.  I have two tickets from my flight to Chicago for the graduation that didn't happen, I'd rather just fly up there and get her if they try to bus her.  But hoping they will schedule a flight and it would be a hard turnaround to try and plan a flight on my end at this point!  Good luck to all your children/ loved ones with their new futures and they all should be proud.  It takes a special person to enlist and given that, I know they all will do wonderful things:) 

@Brenda... Once your son gets to transportation and gets his orders, there are 2 ways he can come home... by plane or bus. Never heard of train. Either way, the Navy is responsible for their transportation to the departing location, airport or bus station.

Everyone that we know from in here has flown home.

@Sister... That's awesome she has her orders. The flight they put them on has different connecting flights as our son's did. I guess its cheaper that way instead of Non-stop. He departed from O'Hare airport, flew to Charlotte, NC,

(with an hour and half layover in Charlotte) then to San Antonio. I was like you, I was ready to fly up and bring him home, but my wife brought up a good point

(I hate when she's right)

She said that he will he be on the plane with others from ship 5 and wouldn't want it to look like he was a mama's boy and had to have his Dad bring him home. He's a man, a Navy man (even if for only a few weeks) so let him experience this part of his departing Navy career by himself

(I hate when she's right)

Anyway, just my 2 cents.

At Dad- haha-  we women typically are right:)  And she does have a good point.  It is part of the experience.  My husband has to remind me that she's an adult now.  Even though she my sister, given the age difference, there's a more maternal aspect, and best friend.  I hate she's so disappointed, but I do feel guilty for 1. feeling disappointed too and 2. selfishly so happy that she will be home again.  I wonder though,she flew out of Jax, Florida airport (That's where Meps was), about 3 hours from where we live, I wonder if she will fly back there or into our city?

Well, ya'll sure know your stuff:)  She just called (finally!) and she will be flying into Jax.  Guess I'm taking a road trip tomorrow.  YAY!  I'm so excited!  lol  Thank you all so much:)

I got to hear from my son today.  He is still waiting to speak to legal.  Hopefully this week.  And to the moms who have their children home.... YEAH!  I know it sounds selffish but I do want him home. 

I heard from my son today also.  He said his appointment with legal was this afternoon.  Sure hope he gets to call tonight.

Happy to hear those of you whose loved ones will be heading home soon!

CAN I GET A HALLELUJAH FOR THOSE CONFIRMED COMING HOME!?!?!!?

H A L L E L U J A H ! ! !

Sweet Baby Jesus HALLELUJAH! lol I'm thrilled:)  Heading out at 2 today to bring her home!  Hope your children that aren't home, will be home soon.  Now it's time to start the next leg of this adventure.  Job, school, place of her own- all the joys of adulthood:)  She said she woke up sad today...and happy, sad that she's leaving as she did want this, but happy to be back home, said she's ready to see a palm tree:)  and Excited for the future.  What a rollercoaster of emotions.  I've read a little about the grants?  Are they still able to receive those?  Again- All of your loved ones are special, kind, selfless people and will go far in life.

@Sister... So happy for you. Be careful on your drive up and back. You described the emotional ride vary accurately. 

Ok... on the grants, she does qualify for the Pell Grant. Where it asks if she has prior military, you answer yes. According to military service requirements, if you have served at least one day, you are considered a veteran ONLY for certain grant applications. To qualify for military benefits, you have to serve 180 days or more active duty. But all our kids are considered veterans, by law.

But again, for military benefits, you have serve 180 days or more active duty. If I'm incorrect, someone please advise. But if I remember correctly what Angie posted, you have to serve 180 days active duty to qualify for military benefits.

Oh crap, door bells ringing,.. gotta run