May 1 OCS graduation

[fran]

Thx for being there for me and other moms that are sooo proud and terrified. My son is in OCS in Newport. He is supposed to graduate May 1. I need info on what is going on there and when so I can plan my travel. Is there something going on the night before? What time? Where? Dress code? What time is graduation? Dress code? How long is ceremony? Is there a reception after? How long until all is done so I know what time we can get a flight home? Will my son be comin home with us or does he fly on his own? Thank you !!!!

[anniebananie55]

Hi Fran - your best source for the most current information on your son's class and activities is to join the Facebook page for his OCS class. If you go back to the OCS Graduate Moms Discussions on this Navy for Moms site, you will see a few people who can help you access that page.  

My son graduated at the end of October and I can tell you a bit about our planning, etc. You will want to come in to town by that Thursday am as they have Peer in Review at 1 pm that afternoon. This is a demonstration of their drill training, etc. and parents attend. Casual dress. They have some free time that afternoon.That evening they have a "Hi Moms" cocktail party at the Officers Club, planned, hosted and paid for by the candidates. The candidates are in their dress uniforms and you meet other families, their officers and there is a brief program. Cash bar, appetizers, coffee and cake is what my son's class did. Dress is more formal. On Friday am we were allowed to watch their last PT session at 5:30 am and then go to the Chow Hall with them and buy breakfast. Graduation was at 10 am, dress up. I believe it a beautiful shoreline. Your son will have his photo taken professionally in his dress uniform in the days before graduation and they take professional photos at the end of the ceremony of both companies and of their first salute. They also do a DVD. Then everyone is free to go. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Newport, it was an affordable, very nice hotel and not far from the base. In theory your son will have his orders by graduation and will know if he has time for a trip home or not. My son came home for about two months before he headed off to his assignment and worked at our local Recruiting Office. Those few days on the base were some of the proudest moments I have had as a mother of a son. It was so impressive and so exciting and the candidates are beyond elated at what they have accomplished. OCS is truly a life altering event for the candidates. I hope your son is faring well as the weeks go on - it is not easy - but he will be a better man for it and you will be a stronger mom!

I hope this was helpful!  All the best to you and your son! 

[fran]

Very helpful!  Thank you so mch!  I will go onto the facebook page as well but at least now I know more about what to expect.  My son is doing great.  I had the chance to speak with him at OCS just 4 days into the program and he sounded exhausted and said 'what the hell have i gotten myself into'.  a few days leter he sounded better but still soooo wioed out.  After the first 3 weeks though, he sounded much better and when I asked if felt he had made the right decision, he didn't hesitate at all when he said '100%!".  I know he's where he needs and wants to be and I am already so incredibly proud of him.  I imagine the tears will flow mightily from the moment I see him that Thursday until we leave after graduation Friday.  Thank you again for the info.  It's been frustrating not to be able to find answers but at least now I have a direction.

[laurajotx]

Fran, my son graduated a year ago, the previous mom said it all pretty much!  we were told not to buy our plane tickets till we were sure he wouldn't be rolled into H class for any reason.  once they get past 6 weeks it is a pretty safe bet they will  be graduating with their class.  a lot of parents fly in wed night before graduation because they are allowed to see you for a few minutes in most cases! we stayed on base at the Navy Lodge and my son just walked over and met us in the lobby and I really lost it when I saw the man he became!  Seems like just yesterday.  you will never forget it.  the Hi Moms is planned by the class and can be anything they want.  I have heard several different versions.  then we went out to eat in town!  Graduation is usually 9am sharp on Friday!  get there early to get a good seat!  then they have to be out of the barricks by 1pm I think, as OCS has to get ready for the next group.  they have a new class every 3 weeks out there!  I didn't realize all the stuff my son would have after graduation!!!!  tons and tons!  all those uniforms, shoes, and more!  he is a ship officer, so he didn't get to come home after graduation.  he had to report to his new base.  we had to pay for that ticket.  very hard to say good bye again.  we had to go buy him a hanging bag to put his unifoms in for the plane ride, and then most of the rest fit in their seabags.  Also most parents buy a graduation present for their officer.  you can poll other parents on that.  There is also a time when you can sent them a Candio box of goodies to OCS.  I am not sure if that has changed in  the past year.  you will want to do that if they are still  doing it.  it is when they go from being an Officer Candidate to a Candidate Officer and then that class takes over running OCS 3 weeks prior to graduation.  that is why it is  called a Candio Box.  they are decorated and filled with treats!  very fun to make.  hope this helps!! 

[fran]

So much to learn!  Thank you all for the support. I am waiting to get onto the Facebook page so see more and I imagine I will have more questions soonest...

[anniebananie55]

Hi again - Once you get on the Facebook group for your son's class (11-15 right?), you will also have access to the Facebook page that the Officer Training Command maintains. I am pasting in a link to that page hoping you can open it and maybe you will see some pictures of your son! 

https://www.facebook.com/OTCNewport

[Anna]

Fran,

One more suggestion for you - when you join your son's OCS friends and family group for his class join one or two group classes ahead of him.  Then you can see what is coming up because those classes will be three and six weeks ahead. Your son will have access to email around week 6.  He will send you a test email around week 4 so you may already have that.  

Have lots of tissues for the actual graduation.  Ours was inside and then we had the first salutes outside.  So awesome!!!

[M's mom]

Hi Fran!  At my son's OCS graduation in 2012, most families arrived on Wednesday of graduation week.  My son was able to get off duty to meet us at the Providence airport and have dinner with us before he had to go back to the base.  Thursday about 11:00 am was Pass in Review, where the candidates marched in formation and demonstrated their rifle drills.  This was casual.  Thursday evening was the "Hi Moms" reception.  The candidates plan and pay for this themselves, and it can be anything from a cocktail reception to a full dinner at the officer's club.  My son's class had cocktails and appetizers at a downtown Newport hotel.  This is usually a dressy affair.  The candidates will be in their dress uniforms.  Your son will need a head count of how many from your family attending since he will have to pay per head for whatever kind of party they decide to have.  Graduation Friday morning at 0500, or some unGodly hour, the candidates had a fitness demo and mile run that the families could run along with or just watch. Afterwards we were able to eat breakfast with our son in the chow hall.  Then we went back to the hotel to get cleaned up for graduation.  The ceremony is at 9 or 10 am, and then we all walked down by the Bay for their First Salutes from their drill instructor and petty officer. People were in dressy-casual for graduation.   Every thing is pretty much over by noon on Friday, but we spent the night and flew home on Saturday.  If your son already has his orders for his next school, they usually have some travel time built in before reporting, and they are free to leave after they check out of the barracks on Friday.  Some don't have their orders yet at graduation, and they must stay in Newport until they get them, which could take days or even weeks.  Our son's orders arrived on Wednesday --just as we were having dinner-- and he had to hustle back to the base to get them.  So, he was able to leave after graduation and was able to get a ticket on the same flight as us to go home, but he had to pay for it himself. We had brought a large garment bag and another duffel bag so he could pack all of his new uniforms.  The Navy will pay for transportation to the next school, but not to home.  He had 10 days to go home, gather his stuff, and then he drove himself to his next school. If you are looking for hotel reservations, search for   "Middletown, RI."  The base is actually closer to Middletown than downtown Newport, and the hotels are much cheaper than the resorts in Newport.  We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Middletown, and it was fine.  There is also a Best Western right outside one of the gates to the base.  Your son will have to submit everyone's name who will be attending and the gate guard will check this.  All adults in your vehicle going onto the base must have a photo ID so be prepared for this.   My final advice would be to arrive EARLY for all events to get good seats.  45 mins -one hour is not too early for graduation!   Oh yeah, and take tissues to graduation unless you're less emotional than most.  You'll be bursting with pride!!!

[M's mom]

Roadrunner:  The Hi Moms reception is not "formal" per se, even though the candidates are in their dress uniforms.  At my son's Hi Moms, most women were in dresses, and most civilian men were in dress shirts/slacks,--some had ties, some sport coats.  But some women were in dressy pantsuits and some men were in polo shirts and khaki pants.  I would say it's a "dressier than jeans" affair, but don't worry about hauling an evening gown or tux!!!!!  I recall that we got a formal invitation in the mail to the graduation ceremony, but the rest of it I think we learned about from our son by email, and Facebook posts by the class ahead of our son as to what they did three weeks before.    Search Facebook for "Navy OCS Class 10-15 Friends & Family"  or similar.  It's possible nobody from your class's families started a group if you're not finding anything.     The "Officer Training Command Newport"  Facebook page is a public page, though, and they post class news and training pictures.  You might see a pic of your loved one!   anniebananie55 posed a link to that page up above, or just search Facebook.     It's "Pass in Review," not Peer, and it's on the day before graduation at sometimes 11am, sometimes 1pm.  Take your camera!  They march in formation, show their rifle drills, and then stand at attention while the families are allowed to go out on the floor to take pictures, while they stand stone-faced!   Read my post just above to Fran about other activities.  As far as base info, just drive up to any gate, with photo ID's for adults, and the gate guard will give you directions to the ceremony locations. Arrive EARLY to everything.  The candidates march in before the ceremonies actually start.

[anniebananie55]

I just went on Facebook and found the 10-15 group, it's called:

Navy OCS Class 10-15 February 8th 2015

You can go on Facebook and search on that phrase. It says it is a closed group, as they all are. Select Join Group and hopefully you will hear back right away. Typically it is a parent and a Navy Public Affairs Officer managing these groups. The Public Affairs Officer is often a fairly recent graduate of OCS and is a fabulous source of information and support. You can have private conversations with this person if the need arises. I wrote to my son every other day and rarely heard back from him because of the demands of the program, but atleast he knew we were thinking about him and pulling for him. Once they get an email account (in  few weeks), you will hear from him more often, although they give them a very small amount of Inbox storage, so sometimes our messages were "bounced." Not long after they get an email account, they will get their phones back to use in their free time. I will give you a heads up that at some point, fairly soon, they will all start getting sick. Between the exhaustion, stress, close quarters, constant yelling at the top of their lungs, many get sick. My son ended up in the infirmary on sick call, on antibiotics and then was confined to quarters for a few days. They took good care of him and the others, bringing them their meals, checking on them, follow up visits, etc. But it was very upsetting to get my first phone call from him and he sounded so sick. Just another hurdle for him (and me!) to get over as part of this process. It is a journey he/you will never forget!

[M's mom]

Roadrunner:  You might also ask to join the Facebook groups for Classes 09-15 and 08-15 which are ahead of your son's.  Then you can see what those classes are going through in advance. 

[Beata]

Hi all,my son is graduating also on 5/1. I have a question, do you guys planning bringing gifts for your LO? Any suggestions what is a nice and appropriate gift. I want to get him something for his hard work but do not see anything I like

[M's mom]

Beata:  Some folks got their new Ensigns ceremonial swords from the Navy Exchange or various other sources.  I asked my son about that and he said don't bother, it would just hang on the wall collecting dust unless he used it for a military wedding, etc.  We got him something called an Ensign box.  It looks like a women's wooden jewelry box with lots of felt-lined compartments.  It is used to store their medals, and a place to put all their pins, nametags, insignias, ribbons, etc. when they strip these off a uniform to take it to the cleaners.  They only wear the ribbons on their uniforms usually, unless it's a high dress affair, so they need a place to store the large hanging medals.  I got his box online at thegoodwoodstore.com.   Search there for "military graduation boxes."  I got my son one in oak, and had the Navy Seal engraved on the lid with his name and date of commissioning (OCS graduation.)    I gave it to him after he came home from OCS so I didn't have to lug it on the plane.  He loved it and still uses it today to store all his pins and medals. (Otherwise he'd just throw them loose into a drawer!!!)   What we took to graduation for him was a large, nice, durable garment bag for all his uniforms, and another collapsible suitcase for more gear.  He traveled to OCS with just a carryon suitcase and then they get a seabag at OCS, but it is not nearly enough to pack all their stuff they acquire there.  Lots of families made trips to the local Walmart while there to get more suitcases, but we came prepared, and he appreciated it. (He is on a ship right now, and used the garment bag to pack all of his uniforms since he has to take every kind of uniform with him for different occasions.)   So, we got him practical things that he still uses.