OCS 2-19 and BOTC 133 --- Welcome to OCS!
It’s been just over three weeks since OCS Class 2-19/BOTC 133 reported to the Leadership Development Center on the grounds of the Coast Guard Academy and what a three weeks it has been. For those of us not from the northeast or other cold weather areas, it has been three weeks of trying to acclimate to the cold and wondering why people would ever choose to live in a place that drops below fifty degrees. However, for all of us it has been a three week period that has challenged us physically and mentally, individually and also as a coherent unit. We have had several small (I stress the word small) victories and many failures. But the drive to continue on and achieve success has kept this group of individuals firing on all cylinders. Here’s a brief synopsis of what we’ve been up to.
The first few days was spent doing basic in-processing. That included going to medical, completing administrative paperwork, learning the layout of campus, certain guidelines and protocol and trying to organize everything correctly. Then the real fun began. We were politely told in very loud voices that looking at our food was no longer acceptable nor could we talk amongst ourselves. The several days started with confusion, unsure of what we were really supposed to be doing. Oh yeah, and a lot of pushups, sit-ups, squats and various other calisthenics. However, by the end of the first week we had almost made it out the door correctly! The keyword is almost. But by the start of our second week, we seem to have that part figured out.
Our days were suddenly filled with more 0500 wake-ups and many other classes. Classes included presentations on education and travel benefits, pay, drill and ceremonies, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, hazing and bullying, and several others. We also had a drill competition amongst the different platoons of our collective company and a visit from one of our class sponsors, Rear Admiral Smith. Rear Admiral Smith is currently the commander of the Coast Guard’s Fifth District and was gracious enough to take time out of his busy schedule to be a mentor to all of us.
Our third week started out with the company diving into navigation and vessel piloting. This was our first course getting into the meat and potatoes of what many of us will be doing upon commissioning. The course includes learning how to plot, how to correct compass courses, understanding tides and currents, labeling charts and much more. We were also able to get into vessel simulators to practice navigating a vessel.
The days are certainly long, but time is going quickly! It’s hard to believe that we have almost been here for a full month already. The team comradery continues to grow each day and the learning is plentiful. With each day that passes, we are one step closer to our final goal. But for now, most of us are just focused on making it to the next meal!
-Officer Candidate Sexton
