GUNNERS MATE (GM) TRAINING AT GREAT LAKES

[Vee, Michael's Proud Grandmother]

The purpose of this forum is designed to inform those parents of sailors who aspire to the rate of GM. It is intended to aide parents with what to expect once their sailor graduates boot camp (BC)..also known as PIR, and moves to the A-School side of the base. Questions will be answered by the family of sailors who are training to be GMs. If we don't have the answers, we will get them for you.

Please introduce yourself if your sailor is in the GM rate and provide background on your sailor so that we can get to know you. If you have specific questions about these ratings, and you ask them here, Will and Hoppi will be able to answer your questions. This will help all of us because the answers won't disappear pages down in the general forum.

I want to give Gary T. credit for this great idea; he just hired me as his secretary to put it together. So, jump in and we hope this will be helpful to all of you.

[keljacmom]

Hi! My name is Jill and my son, Jake, is in GM school in GL right now. Please add me to your forum list as there is so much informormationand support here!

My son is near the top of his class now and is trying really hard for Riverine orders. He went into the Navy this past January with an EOD rate and just before he was to leave for dive school, he changed his mind and decided EOD wasn't for him but Riverines was...YIKES.

He is engaged to be married in April 2011 unless the Navy orders prohibits that so we are excited for sure.

Can anyone tell me what the physical training is like in Gulfport and at Camp LeJune? My son told me "you Navy moms can get more information and faster than I can get it here!" He wants to know how to tailor his current workouts so he will be well prepared. He loves what he is going and is so eager to "get on the ball" with the real stuff.

Thank you!

[Bill S.]

Hi Jill and welcome aboard. There is a group on here specifically for Riverines. Use this link. Thank you and yours for serving and Godspeed to our Sailors. Bill
http://www.navyformoms.com/group/riverinemoms

[Vee, Michael's Proud Grandmother]

Hi Jill and a warm WELCOME to our GM group. And thanks to Jake for serving our country in the U.S. Navy. I have just added the two of you to our forum list. There is another mother I met on here whose son is a Riverine and I can suggest you check her posts and add her as a friend so you can view her page. She and I have become personal friends over the months and mention to her I asked you to make contact with her. I am not sure where her son, Corey, took his Riverine training, but she can fill you in. Her name is Karen Crawford from Illinois. And Bill S had some good information for you, too, re: the riverine moms group. Congrats to Jake for doing so well in his school. We are glad you joined us and we are here to support you and help answer your questions. Hugs, Vee

[Gary T]

Dillons Mom. Glad to see your son has completed basic training. May I suggest you read all of the threads in the GM group. You will find many of your questions will be answered. My son Nick had his P.I.R. on 13/Mar/2009. He did not leave Great Lakes until January of 2010. The constant you will find is a big word (HOLD). This is the time spent between transferring over the the A-School side, going to the temp barracks for INDOC which will teach him the do's and don't on the A-School side. This is where he should ask questions. He will then transfer to a permanent ship for ATT (apprentice technical training) basic electricity and electronics) and finally actual A-School (learning all the jobs a GM will do). Tell your son to study hard while in GM A-School. In the past final orders were chosen by class standings. The better your scores the better chance at receiving a choice of assignment. My son chose V.L.S. (Vertical Launch Systems), his C-School was on the west coast in San Diego with an assignment to a cruiser in Pearl Harbor. C-Schools are specialized schools with in the GM field. Not all sailors get C-School right after A-School. Remember study hard. Post me up and request me as a friend and I will do my best to help you with your questions. Gary T.

[Vee, Michael's Proud Grandmother]

Thank you Gary for helping me out on the forum. I really appreciate your help. I'll be adding the new moms to our list of GM families. HAGD (((HUGS))) Vee

[Vee, Michael's Proud Grandmother]

Hello Dillon's Mom and a warm WELCOME to our GM forum. I would like to add your name to our GM family group list if you would provide me with it. Congratulations to Dillon on completion of basic training. Gary T gave you excellent advice in his reply to you. His son and my grandson went through BC, basic, A school and C school together and were both assigned to the same ship in Pearl Harbor where they are now stationed. We started this forum about 1-1/2 years ago and have moved on since then. We are all here to help the new Moms/Dads/families of our GM sailors. So please request me as a friend and, like Gary, I will be glad to help you in any way I can. Big Navy Grandma HUGS, Vee

[sondra]

Hey Dillons Mom! My son is also a GM and is in A school now. He PIRed on -10-1. Here is how things went for him! He was in INDOC for about a week and a half and then moved to permenant housing (the ship he will be at throughout A school) and started his ATT class. This school is like 20 days long and then he thinks he will be on hold for about a week then start GM A school. They seem to have more free time on this side. They have ship duty every 4 days and will have watch on that day. If you have any more questions (trust me you will) just ask, if I don't know we will find out!!!! Congrats on the new Sailor and welcome to A School!!!!!!

[Vee, Michael's Proud Grandmother]

Hi Sondra and a warm WELCOME to our GM forum. I would like to add your son's name to our GM family group list if you would provide me with it. Congratulations to him on completion of basic training. Gary T's son and my grandson went through BC, basic, A school and C school together and were both assigned to the same ship in Pearl Harbor where they are now stationed. We started this forum about 1-1/2 years ago and have moved on since then. We are all here to help the new Moms/Dads/families of our GM sailors. So please request me as a friend and, like Gary, I will be glad to help you in any way I can. Big Navy Grandma HUGS, Vee

[Toni (T's Mom)]

Good Morning all,
Well my daughter PIR March 5, 2010. She transferred to over to the 'A" School side 2 days later. She was in indoc for 1 week then transferred to the 'A' school barracks. She did ATT fairly quickly and had NO HOLD time for 'A' school. She graduated ATT on Friday and started 'A' school on Monday. There are hardly any hold times for GM's at this time. I know Gary's son was up there for more than a year but that is not happening any more. My daughter has graduated A school and is on to her ship already. She was not on hold for more than 4 days between indoc and ATT. Feel free to friend me if you have any questions!

[Kay(Daughter is a gunners mate)]

My daughter PIR'd on April 2nd and she finished GM school on October 15th. She is now stationed on the USS John Stennis! She loves being a GM. There was definitely time waiting. One of the wait times they spent making a human flag for the 4th of July. I thought it was incredible, she thought it was a waste of the tax payers money:) In time she will love having been part of history!

[Vee, Michael's Proud Grandmother]

Hello Kay and welcome to our GM forum!! I am not too active on here now as Michael has finished up all his training at GL and San Diego and is stationed aboard a cruiser in Pearl Harbor. I know a lot of things have changed at GL as far as the wait times. Congratulations on your daughter's PIR a few months ago and her completion of GM school recently. Could you please give me her name so I can add the two of you to the GM family list here on the forum. Thanks. I so agree with you about her being part of history in helping make the human flag. The pictures of it were awesome. If I can answer any other questions for you, please let me know. Big Navy Grandma HUGS, Vee

[Vee, Michael's Proud Grandmother]

Hi Toni....thanks so much for jumping in and giving us an update on the happenings at GLTC. My grandson, as well as Gary's son, was in GL for more than a year before he got his C School assignment in San Diego. It's great to know the hold times are minimal now. I need to depend on some of the new moms here now to keep the forum updated while their sailors are active in training at GL. My grandson is assigned to the same ship in Pearl Harbor as is Gary T's son. Both are in the VLS system. Right now, my Michael is "cranking" which is a 90-day stint in the galley. I understand all "newbies" onboard a ship get this duty at least once. Once he completes this duty, he will go back to his regular work as a GM. He got married in August and his wife has just joined him recently in Honolulu where they are living in base housing. Let me know if I can be of any further help to you. HUGS and HAGD, Vee