Filler

So, while Sarge is off on vacation and he asked Juvat, Beans and me to step in where we can, providing some filler here at the Chant, I'm doing my part.  I will avoid the standard political ranting that I'm known for, not because I am no longer political, nor that there's nothing to rant about, but I do have some other more joyous things to mention here today.

The title of filler could be because the content of this post is just filler, or I'm filling in for Sarge with some stuff that just takes up space, but I will try to make it a little more interesting for you.  However that term can also work in that I am feeling a little fulfilled with how my nephew below has chosen a path that makes me proud.

If you've followed my posts here on the Chant from the beginning, you may know that I come from a long line of military men and women. Well, woman that is, as my mother served in the Air Force as a nurse until she became pregnant with my older sister.  My grandfather was a SeaBee during WWII, I have an uncle who retired from the Marine corps (later commissioning me in the Navy), another Marine Corps uncle who flew in the back of F-4s, my mother's oldest brother was a Coast Guard Limited Duty Officer and gave me his officers sword, my adopted father was an Airedale, Aviation Ordinance Chief to be precise, which definitely led me towards Naval aviation, and my brother, who made his own path, serving in the Army and retiring out of the Oregon National Guard. 

A little over a year ago, his son- my nephew Kaleb, pictured above, reached out to me and asked about applying to the US Naval Academy.  While academics and leadership were not necessarily my brother's forte, it definitely has been for my nephew, a team captain for both his wrestling and football teams his senior year, and member of the Honor Society, while carrying a 3.9 GPA.  However, we found out a couple months back that despite having a nomination from his Congressman for the academy, he was not able to secure an appointment.  Before that, knowing how challenging it is to get that appointment, my wife and I had planned to come up for his graduation and speak to him in-depth about the Naval service.  I had already briefly discussed other paths towards a commission, to include an NROTC scholarship, the NROTC college program*, the Naval Academy Prep School, or the enlisted commission programs.  

That wasn't the only reason we wanted to see him graduate, as he is the youngest of the youngest of my family, and therefore the last grandkid of a very large Catholic family to graduate.  My mother is one of eight children, and all of them had anywhere from 3 to 6 kids, with my mother's kids being the youngest, and Kaleb is the youngest of her grandchildren.  So us being here for that is sort of the end of an era.

He attended one of the largest schools in the state, with nearly 2000 students enrolled, and there are many scholarships available, but his parents, neither of which attended college, must not have encouraged that avenue, so he did not apply for any.  He's a smart kid though, and doesn't see the benefit of taking on huge debt to attend college, so he will be enlisting in the Navy at the end of the summer.  I'm happy he has made that choice, but I'm sorry that there aren't other ways for him to attend college immediately.  I encouraged him to apply for an NROTC scholarship, as his grades and application, good enough for a Boat School nomination, would surely match up well with what the Navy is looking for in an NROTC student.  But he was so busy with academics, athletics, and work, that he missed the deadline. 

He has a good head on his shoulders though, and plans to relook at the NROTC option once he is finished with whatever schools the Navy gives him, which might be nuclear power.  I've seen many officers come through the nuke power path, because if they are smart enough to become a Nuke, they can probably handle the rigors of collegiate academics.  He may also consider becoming an Aviation Electronics Technician- somewhat akin to what Sarge did in the Air Force.

Nuke Electrician's Mate, Nuke Electronics Technician, Nuke Machinist Mate

Aviation Electronics Technician

Anyway, you can probably tell that I am rather pleased with his choice of career paths, and not taking on unnecessary debt that seems to saddle most of our youth these days.  For the summer he is working somewhat as a ranch hand at the local racetrack, taking care of the horses, being paid quite nicely which should put a few dollars in his pocket before he heads off to boot camp.  My wife and I are hoping he might get stationed in San Diego where we can see him and provide some respite from the fleet when needed. 

I'm not sure if his real goal is becoming a Naval Officer, or just getting some money for college later.  Maybe he doesn't know either, so guiding him towards Aviation or Nuclear Power is a conundrum for me.  On one hand, the nuke pipeline, while lucrative, is very challenging and if he didn't make it, he might get stuck with something he doesn't like.  Naval Aviation is tough work but very rewarding, and he will have a better than even chance of finding himself in San Diego.  It might also give him more time to get some college courses under his belt.  No matter what he chooses, it's good that he will be leaving Southern Oregon because it will open his eyes to different opportunities.  And as much as I love the area, there just aren't a lot of jobs up there.  

Any other advice I should give him?  Assuming he does well on the ASVAB later this month, he should be able to write his own ticket.  If there aren't jobs available in the field he wants, I'd expect he can just wait a month.  Fortunately, his dad and I cautioned him about some of the promises the recruiter might make- best case vs what's realistic, so he won't be pushed into something that's not right for him.

Well, that's enough filler for today. 

*NROTC College Program is for students who don't have a scholarship, but join the NROTC unit anyway.  If they keep their grades up, they can receive a 2 or 3 year scholarship for the remaining years.  If not, they can take a commission anyway, and just not have the same service commitment.