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MESSAGE TO FAMILY AND FRIENDS

Dear Friends and Family Members of Graduating Recruits,

     In a few weeks, your recruit will complete basic training and graduate as a proud member of the U. S. Coast Guard, morally, mentally and physically fit to execute Coast Guard missions around the world.  Welcome to the Coast Guard family!  The graduation ceremony is an occasion that most will remember forever.  I hope that you will be able to attend this special event.

      First, we invite you to join us for an Italian style buffet dinner at the Oceanside Club (located on the Recruit Training Facility) from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on the Thursday evening before graduation for a minimal fee of $12 per adult (ages 12 and up) and $8 per child.  This is a great opportunity to meet, greet and socialize with the families of the graduating class.  Due to seating capacity limitations, there are only 106 spots available and you must RSVP for each individual family member attending. 

Your recruit will send you information on how to make reservations for their dinner in their fifth week of training.

 
   Hope to see you there!

      Graduation is a formal military ceremony that begins promptly at 11a.m. and lasts for about 45 minutes. The first opportunity you will get to see your graduate will be at the ceremony. Due to the renovation of our indoor graduation facility, the graduation will be held at the Performing Arts Center of Middle Township located at 212 Bayberry Drive, Cape May Courthouse, NJ 08210. The auditorium is handicap accessible. Parents and family will be granted access no earlier than 9:50 a.m. on graduation morning and are asked to take their seats by 10:05 a.m. at which time the parents and family presentation will begin. We will provide you with an overview of the morning’s activities and a short video presentation about recruit training. My Command Master Chief and I will personally greet you in the auditorium and thank you for providing us with an extraordinary Coast Guardsman.

      In addition, to help educate our family members about the services the Coast Guard offers, we will have several information booths at the Performing Arts Center staffed by the Guardian Spouses, Family Program personnel, and Tricare medical representatives to answer any questions you might have about your transition into the Coast Guard family.  Commercially produced videos of the graduation may be purchased from a vendor who will be in a clearly marked location at the ceremony.

      Immediately after the ceremony, ALL graduates must return to the Base to retrieve their gear, either in your car or on the bus transportation provided for them. You are invited to come back to the Base to see where they have trained over the past eight weeks. Then, your newly minted Coast Guardsman is free to depart on five days of well-deserved leave before reporting to their new duty station. In order to access the Training Center after graduation, all adults must provide a valid form of state or federal identification in order to gain access to the installation. The driver of the vehicle MUST possess a valid driver's license. Everyone in attendance under the age of 18 will not require a form of identification as long as they are accompanied by a guardian with the aforementioned identification. Please have applicable identification readily available when approaching the main gate.

     While on board, I invite you to take a short tour of the Training Center so that your graduate can point out areas of interest and share stories of recruit training.  The Coast Guard Exchange is our on-base store that will have a variety of Coast Guard logo items for sale.  Unless you are currently serving on active duty or are retired from the military, you must be with your graduate in order to make a purchase. The statue of Signalman First Class Douglas Munro, the Coast Guard’s only recipient of the Medal of Honor, is across the street from the Command and Mission Support Building.  Petty Officer Munro was killed in action while protecting U.S. Marines at Guadalcanal during World War II.  The memorial serves to remind us that the Coast Guard is one of our nation’s five armed services.

      While you are on base we ask that you only take pictures of the graduating company and/or your graduate.  You are also free to take pictures of the facilities while you are here. We understand that there are different social media sites (i.e. Facebook) where families interact, post pictures, and encourage other parents to do the same while they are in Cape May; however due to Privacy concerns we ask that you refrain from taking pictures of other recruits. We thank you for your understanding and cooperation.    

     As you make travel arrangements for your visit to Cape May, please know that our MWR program offers Guest Quarters to active duty, retired, and other eligible patrons based on a priority system. The guest quarters units have two bedrooms and a kitchen and are available for between $44 and $66 per night, depending on rank. 

      We hope you will consider staying with us on Thursday night prior to graduation. Occupancy is on a space available basis.  Additional information on the guest quarters, a listing of eligible patrons, and an application form may be found on the MWR web site:

  http://www.uscg.mil/hq/capemay/activeduty/MWR_Temporary_Quarters.asp.  

      I look forward to meeting you as we join together to welcome the newest members of our United States Coast Guard!                                                    

 

Sincerely,  

 William G. Kelly
 Captain, U.S. Coast Guard
 Commanding Officer

 
 
GRADUATION AGENDA

 Thursday 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.  "Graduation Dinner" Oceanside Club...Reservations required.      

Friday  10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.      Welcome   -     Performing Arts Center
Friday  11:00 a.m. - 11:45 p.m.      Graduation  -   Performing Arts Center 

Sea Leggs. a reference guide for new spouses/families.
For more information about Recruit Training, please click here.
If you're a parent and you have questions about the Coast Guard, please click here.

Everything you need to know about Coast Guard Recruit Training can be found in the HELMSMAN.

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Last Modified 1/26/2012