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Comment by PAW on August 2, 2015 at 6:10pm

It held his blues & whites, with room for more.  I got him one with wheels & a handle.  Hopefully it will last him the 8+ years he will need it.

Comment by PAW on August 2, 2015 at 5:49pm

GalleyMom, we gave our son a travel garment bag for his uniforms.  A good one, which will last, can be expensive, but it is a needed item for all their uniforms.  There were a lot of OCS families running to the local Walmart to pick up a cheap one for their graduates.  

Comment by M's mom on August 2, 2015 at 5:46pm

GalleyMom:  My son asked that we NOT get him a sword because he said unless he used it for a military wedding, that it would just hang on the wall gathering dust. We got him an "Ensign box" made of oak to store his ribbons, pins, and medals while his uniforms are at the cleaners.  It looks like a women's jewelry box with lots of felt-lined compartments.  We had it engraved with his name, the Navy emblem, and OCS graduation date.  He loved it and still uses it today.  Go to "The Good Wood Store" online and search for "military  graduation boxes"

We also got our son a large, durable, folding garment carrier, (luggage -style) and took that with us to graduation.  We also took several soft, collapsible pieces of luggage which my husband and I stuffed into our own suitcases for the flight to Providence.   My son arrived at OCS with just a small carry-on suitcase and then they issued him a sea bag.   There is NO WAY they can stuff five sets of uniforms and matching shoes/boots, and hats and all the gear they've had to buy at OCS into that sea bag and carry-on.   Many families hit the local Walmart in town after graduation to buy more luggage, so we went prepared.  My son was able to fly home with us, and he had the sea bag, garment carrier, and two soft duffle bags stuffed full of his gear.  So I always recommend a gift of luggage!    My son appreciated the garment carrier and still uses it for his uniforms whenever he travels with them, because it keeps things relatively unwrinkled vs. a suitcase.

Some parents who have the means to do so, pay off their new ensign's uniform bill at the NEX, which is usually three thousand dollars or more.  Coincidentally, (or not,) the candidates are paid just about that much for "duty" at OCS, so most of them just break even, after paying their NEX bill.

Note to TXNavyWife: If your husband was issued his first set of uniforms for free as an enlisted sailor, it may come as a surprise to you that the officers have to BUY them!  My son even had to pay for his meals when he was on an aircraft carrier for ten months!   (Don't get me started on a rant about how our military cannot afford to feed our officers for free while they are deployed on a ship.)    I will stop now before my humble opinions get me in trouble!     ;-)

Comment by Manette on August 2, 2015 at 2:18pm

Hi GalleyMom!  My son is a Civil Engineer.  Since they are part of the SeaBees, they are considered "The Warriors" of of Naval officers.  A retired CO recommended a sword and that's what's we did.  He was thrilled.  We had it mounted with engraving of his graduation information and a quote he closed all of his OCS correspondence.  All the best in your Navy family experience.

Comment by TxNavyWife on August 2, 2015 at 11:54am

>The person in charge of posting photos has been busy taking photos of your husband's class since day one. They should appear this next week

Even just hearing this is a huge relief, thanks!

Comment by TxNavyWife on August 1, 2015 at 10:16pm

GalleyMom, thank you SO much for that little tidbit! Almost made me cry! (First week with no contact I think is the hardest). I will probably go ahead and just send the phone card. I've been keeping a look out for any photos on the FB page but have yet to see anything. I'm a little jealous of the families from the class before his, as it looks like they even had pictures of the first day just a week in! I understand it's not guaranteed to happen, but it would be nice to see. 

Thanks again, would you let me know if your son feeds you anything else about that class?  

Comment by TxNavyWife on August 1, 2015 at 9:54pm

Thanks CL and M's mom! 

I will go ahead and try to find a pre paid phone card to tomorrow. I'll sleep on whether to just send the card or send a copy of it. Since there's no mail Sunday I've got some time. I figured they don't get their phones back til their last phase, but I definitely want a phone call if he's given the opportunity. I think it would feel pretty miserable on his end to not be able to call if he didn't have one (and was unable to get one via by the phone or from another candidate). Thanks for your experience and expertise! It's different being back on the learning side again. I considered myself pretty knowledgeable after boot camp, but I feel like I'm having to learn this all over again!

Comment by M's mom on August 1, 2015 at 9:04pm

TxNavyWife:  I don't think they actually NEED to have phone cards, but if you want him to call you when he is allowed to do so, after week three or so, he will have to do it from a pay phone, so he will need a pre-paid phone card.  I think you are allowed to send those in the mail because the candidates are allowed to have those in their possession.

  If they are allowed to go to the NEX, he could buy one there.  I think some folks on here said you could buy the cards at Walgreens stores.  I'm not sure I would be comfortable just buying an "image" of a card online like CL, ---just "old school" me!!!     Get a card with LOTS of minutes, because when my son was at OCS, the pay phones charged the cards 15 minutes just to connect the call before you even talked!!!!!!!   My son's class were not given their cell phones back until they became Candios at week ten, but it varies with what their DI allows.

Comment by CindyN on August 1, 2015 at 8:33pm

As of a few classes ago (14-15 or 15-15), they didn't call until the end of week 3.  So you have time.

I can't say with 100% certainly if it would be better to photocopy it. If you don't want to worry about getting on the wrong side of a rule, I would say to photocopy it. I can tell you that he should be fine, at least the first week or two of calling without one.  My son said that there were a lot of cards by the phones. Once the OCs get their phones back, I am guessing they leave their phone cards by the phones.  

I didn't know anything about the need for phone cards and had a similar panicked moment.  I didn't even know where to get a phone card. I found https://attprepaidcard.amssupport.net/ and got one online.  They don't actual mail you a card. They just show you the information on your screen.  I printed that out and mailed it to my son.  You will also see they have a discount for military.  I actually used that.  It just asked for my son's name.  His name is on the credit card I used (leftover from when he was in college). I don't know if it would work if the name you enter isn't on the credit card you use but worth a try, if you haven't already purchased one.

But whatever you decide, I am sure it will be just fine! 

Comment by TxNavyWife on August 1, 2015 at 8:15pm

Help! I was running some errands today and realized that we forgot to pick up a phone card for my husband who started OCS last Sunday.  Am I allowed to send him one in the mail? Would it be better to just photo copy the front and back so it's not detected as something other than paper? 

Will he even need one? Or will they send him to the nex if he didn't have one?  Things at OCS sound so much stricter than we had to deal with when he was at boot camp, I don't want to do anything wrong, or get him unfavorably noticed. 

I checked the OCS website packing list and didn't see phone cards on there, but I swear I saw it somewhere that they needed one (maybe this was left over info/thinking from our bootcamp days)

Any experience on this? Thanks

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