Subscribe
5TH FLEET AREA OF OPERATIONS - Growing up, many people have passions that fall to the wayside as time passes. But what happens when you’re encouraged from an early age to never lose sight of those passions?
That was precisely the case for Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Sydney Wilson, a native of Medford, Oregon, who has hopes of one day becoming an editor.
In April 2017, Wilson reported aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5), a month into its regularly scheduled deployment.
From early on, Wilson’s parents instilled positive values in her. She was taught to keep her eyes on her passions and to not get hung up on obstacles that might arise along the way.
“My whole family is amazing,” said Wilson. “My parents in particular, though, raised me to chase my dreams no matter what, and to not be afraid of what happens or what other people might think. They have always been really supportive.”
After 15 years of living in Oregon, Wilson’s family moved to Washington. Following her graduation from Mariner High School in Everett, Washington, college didn’t go the way she expected it to. After a couple changes in major, school wasn’t getting any cheaper, and Wilson set her sights elsewhere.
“I was going to college for a couple different reasons,” said Wilson “I ended up changing my mind about what I wanted to study a couple times. I started at music theory then switched to nutrition after a while and by then it was getting harder and harder to pay for school, so I decided to join the Navy.”
Wilson wanted to join as a Hospital Corpsman, but it wasn’t initially available to her. Luckily, she didn’t have to wait long before a position opened up and her recruiter put her name in for it. Just before her 21st birthday, Wilson enlisted in the Navy as a Corpsman.
Nearly five years and two commands later, Wilson is stationed aboard the Bataan working for the ship’s medical department, and said she is ready to experience something new. Wilson has always had an affinity for writing and when she found out she could do it for the Navy, she was immediately interested.
“While I was at my last command, I started thinking that maybe I wanted to do something other than medical,” said Wilson. “Though I enjoy it, I feel like I’d be better at something I really love, such as writing, which is why I started to take an interest in the Mass Communication Specialist (MC) job.”
In the Navy, if someone wants to get on-the-job training (OJT) in another job field, they must be at their current command for at least one year. Having only arrived aboard Bataan three months ago, she still has some time to wait before she can begin training with the MCs on the ship.
“I feel like the Navy makes you think about what you actually want to do with your life,” said Wilson. “It pushes you in so many different directions, eventually you get pushed into something you might really enjoy doing.”
With a passion for writing and a goal of one day becoming an editor, Wilson hopes that becoming an MC will help her down a path toward her personal success.
“I’ve always been good at writing, but until recently I didn’t know I could get paid by the Navy to do something I think of as a hobby,” said Wilson. “Now I have this big dream and I’m just trying to get there.”
Wilson hopes to soon be able to spend some of her off time honing the various skills necessary to being a successful Mass Communication Specialist.
The Bataan and Bataan Amphibious Ready Group and embarked 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of maritime security operations designed to reassure allies and partners, and preserve the freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce in the region.
| Date Taken: | 07.02.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 07.03.2017 05:11 |
| Story ID: | 239949 |
| Location: | U.S. 5TH FLEET AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY |
| Web Views: | 132 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Bataan Corpsman Pursues Childhood Dream, by CPO Evan Thompson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
