Navy 101 with Rdml Braun

I'm Rear Admiral Robin Braun from the United States Navy, and I'd like to welcome you to navyformoms.com. I joined the Navy 29 years ago to become a pilot. The past 9 years I've been flying a desk, as we say, and uh I've been helping young men and women like your sons and daughters to join the Navy through the Navy Recruiting Command. The Navy core values are honor, courage, and commitment. And those - those 3 sets of values are what is taught and engrained into us as Navy Sailors from our first day of bootcamp. I've enjoyed so much in my 29 years - this is like a big family and it's important that we take care of each other. As a mom myself, I know you must have many questions and concerns about your son or daughter joining the United States Navy. But I'm here to tell you that it's no where near as scary or apprehensive as you may think. If your son or daughter is interested in joining the Navy, I recommend that they go to the local recruiting station and meet with a recruiter. The recruiter will go over the basic requirements, and what documentation your son or daughter will need. I also encourage you, as a parent or family member, to go in and meet with the recruiter and ensure that your questions are answered. To be eligible for service in the United States Navy, your son or daughter must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, between the ages of 17 and 34, and have a high school diploma or GED. When they go back the second time they'll be asked to bring their birth certificate, their social security card and a driver's license, and they may also want to bring back any medical information that's unusual in their record. The ASVAB test is the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test and this is a test that basically, um, measures their aptitude for certain job fields and this helps the processors determine what areas they're best to go into for a job field. Once your son and daughter gets their package together, gets all the documentation together, they will be scheduled to go to the MEPS. The MEPS is the Military Entrance Processing Station and we have approximately 65 of those stations around the country. So depending where you are, where you're located, it may be an overnight visit for your son or daughter to go to the MEPS. While your son or daughter is at MEPS they will do an ASVAB test, if they haven't done that previously, they'll meet with our medical personnel and they'll take a physical, and then following that they'll sit down with someone, select their job area that they will be serving in and then eventually they'll take an oath of enlistment. Once your son or daughter takes the oath of enlistment and becomes a part of the DEP, they'll get a definite ship date so they'll know when - when their date is to go off to bootcamp. Now we encourage you as family members to come observe the oath of enlistment because it's really their first step in joining the Navy. That day they'll raise their hand and they'll become a member of the United States Navy. The DEP is the Delayed Entry Program, and this program is a great opportunity for young people to prepare before they go off to bootcamp. Now some people may ship within the first few days after taking their oath of enlistment, but others may want to take up to a year before they report to bootcamp. So the Delayed Entry Program allows them to meet with their recruiter, and other recruits, to learn more about the Navy, to learn the history, the traditions, some of the language that we use, and just some of the things that they'll be exposed to when they go to bootcamp. When your son or daughter leaves for bootcamp, it will probably be one of the most challenging 9 week periods of their life. It also is hard for moms too, because it - in many cases it's the first time that the young man or woman has been away from home and it's tough on moms to have their son or daughter out of telephone range for that long. They'll learn a lot about themselves, they'll learn how to work as a team, and they'll learn about the United States Navy and how to be a - a valuable team member there. Many moms talk about the box, and when our - our recruits get to bootcamp, we normally will take their clothes, their cell phones, any of their valuables and we'll put them in a box and ship them back home for safe keeping. And so many moms talk about the box, and about how emotional that is to see that box arrive in the mail at their home. But basically, we just do that so that their valuables are - are put in safe keeping and of course you can bring them back to them once they graduate from bootcamp. One of the most important things you can do to support your son or daughter is just to provide encouragement. A lot of encouragement before they ship off to bootcamp, and then they're given one phone call home when they first get there just to let their parents or girlfriend or boyfriend to let somebody at home know that they're - they arrived safely and they're ok. PIR is Pass In Review and that's the graduation ceremony that we hold at bootcamp every friday. And Pass In Review is - is ah - a wonderful ceremony. It will ah - be the first time that you have the opportunity to see your son or daughter in their Navy uniform, and I guarantee you will be so proud of them, and the things that they've accomplished, and the way that they've changed. It's important when you come to bootcamp graduation that you bring a camera, and lots of batteries, and lots of tissue because it's an emotional time and you will be so proud and you will be beaming as you look at your son or daughter in the uniform.