Basic Q's from a parent - Page 4

lksteve · 03-23-2005, 23:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scrappy

When did yall guys find time to get married? and how do you keep it together on the long deployments? I just assumed that was one of things i would have to scrafice to live the SF life.

when did i have time to get married? i had a short break in service, between the 82nd and SF...my wife was married to me when i went through training group, OCS, Ranger School, etc, etc....how did we keep it together on long deployments...she was a partner, not a dependent...she had things she liked to do and she did them...
SF requires a lot of sacrifice...i don't recommend marriage, but it worked for me...

**The Reaper** · 03-24-2005, 08:34

The Army will issue you all of the wives you need.

You are welcome to test and DX all of the civilian ones you can find until you get it right, for a small handling fee.

TR

CPTAUSRET · 03-24-2005, 10:41

I lost an 18 year marriage (we waited til the kids were old enough to handle the divorce) because I was solid gone for 11 of those 18 years...It takes a hell of a woman to put up with that, and a smarter man than myself to realize that after being gone for a year or more at a time, a wise individual steps gingerly back into the nest.

While I was gone she assumed all responsibilities, she was father and mother, counselor, judge, and jury, etc, etc. I immediately, and foolishly attempted to usurp my position as head of the household upon my return, and the joyous homecomings would deteriorate into something else entirely.

Terry

3dfxMM · 06-04-2005, 23:20

I thought I would post an update on my son's progress. He just finished Phase 1A and is being recycled. He didn't pass the mini-STAR. The next class is in August so he will be in AT status for the summer. They have told him that they will be putting his group through the CLS course as well as some mountaineering training. They will also do lots of land nav and PT. He is still pumped and very motivated. He also informed us that he was promoted to E-3. The best part for us is he gets to come home for a week or so in July. He also got a first hand look at one of his instructor's sense of humor. On one of the land nav exercises his mapcase got ripped off while he was working his way through a draw. By the time he realized it he couldn't find it so he backtracked to take his lumps and get a new one. When he got there one of his instructors was kind enough to draw him a new one with crayons. Once they stopped laughing at him they gave him a real one and he went on to complete the course.

CoLawman · 06-06-2005, 14:56

I assume your son was in the SOPC phase I when he had trouble with the mini star. In SFAS the STAR course completely washes you out if you fail after third attempt. So it is great that he gets additional training. That will vastly improve his chances in SFAS. Good luck to your son and to you! Sounds like there is an exodus during the heat of the summer. Hoping my son gets to come home again. Just saw him for a quick two days over Memorial Day.

3dfxMM · 06-06-2005, 16:18

That's exactly what we were thinking. It is better that he recycle through SOPC I rather than go on to selection where he would likely not get selected. Now he will be even better prepared when he does get there. He said there is a two or three week window in July where they are allowed to take leave, so I assume this is downtime for everyone involved. He will have the rest of June and then about three weeks after his leave to prepare before SOPC I starts again.

lksteve · 06-06-2005, 18:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3dfxMM

It is better that he recycle through SOPC I rather than go on to selection where he would likely not get selected. Now he will be even better prepared when he does get there.

you said he just made PFC...unless i'm wrong, that means he's been in the Army almost all year...when i went through SFQC 29 years ago, i was a Sergeant, having been in a leadership position in the 82nd Airborne Division...i had over four years of experience...

this stuff isn't easy...he needs the recycle time to become more familiar with stuff he hasn't done a lot of in his life...counsel patience...

3dfxMM · 06-06-2005, 21:15

He has been in 8 months as of today. He said they had to file a waiver to give him his promotion since he hasn't been in a year. As his dad, I'd like to think that between that and them recycling him, they think he will eventually cut it. Of course, I already know how much the Army cares about what I think.

lksteve · 06-07-2005, 07:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3dfxMM

Of course, I already know how much the Army cares about what I think.

yeah...they gave a rat's back about most of my opinion's too...in hindsight, i'm sure i completely disagree...

Warrior-Mentor · 06-17-2005, 16:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swankskttn

Hi.

First post here, but my husband is graduating BCT next week at Benning. Mid-week he called me asked my opinion about him signing an SF contract. I said yes, of course.

In all my research on military I didnt know tht they took people straight out of BCT, I always thought you had to be at least a SGT to even get into SFAC.

So... my question... IS it normal/usual for recruiting during BCT?
Has there been a more recent insurgence of them recruiting during BCT or has it always been that way?

So I'll be off to his graduation this week, then maybe browsing here more often. Lots of interesting info. Doing some research about SF wives... but not too much info on the net that I can fine. Any help/links would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance....

Congrats and thanks for supporting your Husband's decision to go SF. It really is a family decision.

As for recruiting SF Candidates in Basic Training, it's a revived program that took about a 20 year break until it was revived a couple months after 9/11.

As for your question about SF Wives, the best point of contact for Spouses of SF Candidates is renee.price@us.army.mil She is the professional Family Readiness Group Coordinator for the United States Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (the SF School House). The other place you can find web help is www.soc.mil - the public web site for the United States Army Special Operations Command.

Warrior-Mentor · 06-17-2005, 16:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swankskttn

Thanks for the quick reply. Sooo I guess I can't complain later on that I said yes.

Well, I'm supposing they have FRG and that kinda thing. Where's my wifely training manual?

Well, again thanks for the quick reply and since I'm just a wife, I'll try not to post TOO much.... : )

There's a couple good books out there...

The Company They Keep, Life Inside US Army Special Forces by Anna Simmons will give you an idea of what to expect.

Married to the Military by Meredith Leyva isn't SF specific, but not a bad reference if you're new to the military.

Get Selected for Special Forces has a short chapter on SF Families as well (www.specialops.org/news.asp#book).

You can also call the USAJFKSWCS FRG Office at (910)396-4455/4453.

Best of Luck!

3dfxMM · 09-02-2005, 09:49

I thought I would go ahead and put up an update. My son called to let us know that he is going to selection on Tuesday. He did the mini star Monday night and handled it just fine. I didn't talk to him (his mom did so "real" information is minimal) but from what I could gather he did better than most, maybe all, of his peers. He also completed the final PT test with no problems. You may remember that he had a problem with the mini star the first time through. He said that this time through he was first on most of the land nav exercises, beating the second place person by 45-60 minutes each time. He is pumped about selection. I will try to talk to him later this weekend to get more details about numbers of people going through to selection from his class. He did tell me Monday afternoon that they started with 220 and were down to 120 by then. They even had a guy quit that day after successfully completing the final run at the obstacle course. Hopefully, I will be back on here in a few weeks telling you what MOS and language he has been assigned.

CoLawman · 09-02-2005, 11:09

Congratulations to you and your son 3D. Sounds like the re-cycle was just what he needed. Success breeds success!

3dfxMM · 09-28-2005, 16:32

My son called today to say that he has passed selection! He hasn't been given his MOS or language yet. He said they are shipping them back from Mackall tomorrow. He got the Star on his second attempt. There were 170 selectees out of the 433 in the group. He was told that his aptitude and DLAB scores were all excellent but he is not sure how that will map into a particular MOS and language. He said he lost about 20 lbs the first three weeks when they were eating nothing but three MREs a day but that the last few days of three hots a day has put some weight back on him. We are very proud of him and more than just a little bit relieved. This business of hoping that he doesn't call sucks.

I think he is planning to call us on Thursday or Friday to tell us more.

Now he can move on to the next target.

Aequitas · 09-28-2005, 16:42

Congrats to you and your son! Hopefully I'll be able to say the same thing in november when I return from selection (class 1-06). Tell your son to keep up the good work. We're all behind him on his journey.