The Coast Guard is developing a week-long course to help new enlisted members transition to military life, including adapting to being away from home, working as a team, and other aspects of military life.
Around town in Cape May, you may now see additional uniformed Coast Guard personnel. On Saturday, the day after Friday’s graduation from Training Center Cape May (TRACEN), you might see recruits enjoying off-base liberty. In addition, the recently graduated class of non-rates will return to base on Saturday night to begin the Sentinel Transformation and Readiness Training course, or START, which will delay members’ arrival to their first unit but will better prepare them to hit the ground running.
TRACEN graduates a company of recruits each Friday, and typically, their families travel to Cape May to celebrate the graduation. This week, at the Sea Crest Inn where I serve as general manager, we hosted families from Texas, Florida, and Rhode Island. In my prior role as manager of the Victorian Motel, we had families travel from Guam and Puerto Rico.
Now, after Friday’s graduation at Training Center (TRACEN) Cape May, the service’s newest members will head to Yorktown by bus and enter START that Monday. They’ll learn expected field behavior—and how to deal with unexpected situations.
Coast Guard Families
Gary Quesinberry of Palm Harbor, Florida, served in the Coast Guard in the eighties. He brought his entire family to Cape May and proudly watched as his grandson was presented his certificate of boot camp completion. “I came through here (Cape May) in the late 1970s and enjoyed a career of close to thirty years,” he said.
Families go to great lengths and incur significant expenses to get here. In 2018, while Cape May was getting hammered by a blizzard named Grayson, families still pushed through to get here. The Sugg family and the Pattulo family were in for an adventure. Respectively from Panama City, Florida, and Lindale, Texas, faced flight delays and Cancellations. At the Victorian Motel, we politely reached out to families who were not yet in town. “Spirit Airlines cancelled us into Philly and we were headed to Washington D.C.,” Mr Pattulo texted back. “From there, we will rent a car and drive through the blizzard to get to Cape May.”
The Henrys from Austin, Texas, had better luck landing at Philadelphia airport. By the time both families arrived in Cape May, we were under travel restrictions and a State of Emergency.
I notified the Cape May police department that, despite the travel limitation, families of future Cape May Coasties parents, undeterred by the weather, would be arriving and to let them through. TRACEN was closed to all but essential personnel, and graduation still happened as scheduled.
For economically disadvantaged families of Coast Guard recruits, the Coast Guard Family Assistance Fund (CGFAF) is available to provide financial assistance. “That is exactly what we do,” said Sharon Griffin of a group that administers the assistance. “The new START program may require graduate families to stay an extra day in Cape May. It’s good for the hotels, but we see many families struggle to afford the extra night.”
Volunteers staff the CG Family Assistance Fund, each one with a family member currently serving in the Coast Guard. Some are Coast Guard spouses, while others are mothers or fathers of Coast Guardsmen. One hundred (100%) of CGFAF donations are used to provide eligible Coast Guard families with much-needed financial support.
“It takes less than an hour of your time,” Ginny Murray posted on Facebook. “To come out on Pittsburgh Avenue and wave goodbye to the new graduates of Bravo 207.” Under primarily blue skies with seasonal temperatures for May, I determined to be there with the crowd from the Cape May County Coast Guard Community Foundation. To say the Coast Guard graduates get a warm sendoff from the Cape May community is not a cliche. Ginny and her friends held signs and waved flags as the vehicles departed the Training Center off Pennsylvania.
The love for the recruits who attend their eight weeks of basic training here at TRACEN runs through the whole community. Coffee Tyme treats recruits to free coffee on the Saturday before graduation—generous patrons chip in to pay it forward at Coffee Tyme.
It’s unclear how the new START program will impact families’ travel plans. Historically, families arrive the night before graduation and often depart the same day.
If this past week is any indication, graduation stays for families may get extended. Our guests from Florida, Texas, and Rhode Island all became three-night visitors.
Theoretically, it sounds like two companies of Coast Guard recruits could be roaming Cape May streets on Saturdays.
