Photo By Brian Dietrick | 190315-N-VJ282-005 DAYTON, Ohio (March 15, 2019) - Aviation Boatswain’s Mate...... read more read more
COLUMBUS, Ohio (March 18, 2019) – Many reasons can drive a person to relocate across the country and take on recruiting, arguably one of the most challenging jobs in the military. For one hard-working Navy recruiter, it was his love for both family and the great state of Ohio.
Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 2nd Class Brandon Latimer was born and raised in Ashville, Ohio and spent five and a half of his six years in the Navy in San Diego where he helped commission USS America (LHA 6). After being away from home for quite some time, he and his wife wanted to return to the Midwest so their son could be close to family.
“I chose to come recruiting because my wife is from Grove City and after spending six years in San Diego, we wanted our two-year old child to be close to family and I really missed Ohio,” said Latimer.
Another main reason to choose recruiting was for the challenge that it presented to Latimer.
“Recruiting is said to be one of the most challenging jobs in the Navy, he said. “I love challenges.”
One of the biggest challenges that, not only recruiters, but a large majority of citizens have is the fear of public speaking. That was something that Latimer had to overcome if he were to be successful recruiting young men and women into the Navy.
“I wouldn’t say that I’m an introvert but I’m not really outgoing when confronted with crowds,” said Latimer. “Now that I’m recruiting, dealing with large crowds is a part of my day-to-day life. The only way to overcome any type of fear is to just go do it. Repetition. After a few months of doing this job, that fear of public speaking no longer existed within me.”
Age is also something that Latimer says also helps him in recruiting. In the 10 schools that he is assigned to cover, he’s not too much older than the juniors and seniors that attend those schools.
“I can connect with them a little better,” says Latimer. “I’m very laid back and easy to get along with and I feel like students understand me a little better because I’m not too much older than them.”
Some of the other challenges he faces everyday are the long work hours and not being close to a fleet-concentrated area like Norfolk or San Diego.
When he isn’t hard at work starting the best and brightest on their naval career path, Latimer can be found in a garage “wrenching” on cars, something he has done for a very long time.
“Ever since I was three years old, I was always out in the garage with my dad building cars and fixing things up,” says Latimer. “It’s what we’ve done my whole life. At one point, we had 12 different cars we were fixing up sitting in our barn.”
If he isn’t in the garage, you might be able to find him out shopping for antiques with his wife, playing with his son in the yard or relaxing with his seven cats…. Yes, seven!
“In San Diego, my wife and I would always go out to this restaurant and right across the street was a pet store. We’d always go in to look at the cats and sometimes we came out with one or two. When we moved to Ohio, we’d see some strays that had kittens and we ended up with a few more.”
Latimer sees himself advancing to first class petty officer, going back to seas and then putting on khakis as a Chief Petty Officer, something his dad and grandfather did that he wants to emulate. He also plans on getting his real estate license and a degree in either structural engineering or something healthcare-related.
“My own personal drive to succeed is what keeps me motivated and hard-charging,” says Latimer. “Everything is a competition with me and I don’t like to lose. I try to always be at the top every month and that’s not just in recruiting, that’s everything I do.”
Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, NRD Ohio’s mission is to man the Navy fleet with the highest quality Sailors and maintain the Navy’s unchallenged worldwide maritime superiority and ability to win wars, deter aggression and maintain freedom of the seas. NRD Ohio operates 56 Navy Recruiting Stations and four Navy Officer Recruiting stations throughout Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and West Virginia.
For more news from Navy Recruiting District Ohio, visit us on the web, http://www.cnrc.navy.mil/pages-nrd/ohio/default.html; and on our Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/NavyRecruitingDistrictOhio.
| Date Taken: | 03.18.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 03.18.2019 13:01 |
| Story ID: | 314691 |
| Location: | DAYTON, OH, US |
| Hometown: | ASHVILLE, OH, US |
| Web Views: | 229 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, NRD Ohio Recruiter Ready for the Challenge, by Brian Dietrick, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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