Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Sean Stafford | 200831-N-WP400-004 JACKSONVILLE, Fl. (August 31, 2020) Fire Controlman 1st Class...... read more read more
Subscribe
Story by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Sean Stafford
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (NNS) When Mercedes Lair decided to get back into law school she looked at all her options. The Navy would provide her money for college, while also teaching her other skills. What she didn’t realize until after joining was that she would have just as much passion for those ‘other’ skills, as she had for the law.
Lair, a Washington, D. C., native, is currently a Fire Controlman 1st Class in the Navy and a recruiter. She now aims to share her path with the public in hopes someone else can find the ‘other’ they’ve been searching for.
While in high school and college at the University of Arizona, Lair considered herself an average student that didn’t have a ton of confidence and was overly self-critical at times. While attending the University of Arizona, the realization of student loans and the overwhelming cost of pursuing a law degree became a road block.
After talking over options with her parents who were both prior Navy Sailors, she formulated a plan to take advantage of the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill offered by the military.
“I have family that served in the Navy,” said Lair. “I looked at every single branch of service prior to choosing the Navy. I felt most comfortable with what the Navy had to offer, and speaking with my Navy recruiter, I decided it was the perfect fit for me.”
Once making the decision to go Navy, her plan was in motion. Liar signed her contract in February of 2012 and left for boot camp in April of the same year.
After her graduation she attended Fire Controlman “A” school in Great Lakes and moved on to a follow on “C” school in Virginia. Making it through these technical Navy schools helped her build a sense of confidence that she was not accustom too.
“I’m really glad it worked out,” Lair said. ”I believe every path or choice we make in life leads us to exactly where we are supposed to be whether or not we know it.”
Lair’s path wasn’t always forged by her, as sometimes the Navy has other plans. She didn’t anticipate being selected for a technical Navy job and ultimately being selected for orders to Yokosuka, Japan, but ultimately she said it was the right way ahead.
“I was really nervous about becoming a Fire Controlman, and had planned to get out after a couple of years and go back to school; plans change. I ended up loving the Fire Controlman rating and what I do,” Lair said. “The Navy gave me the confidence that I lacked in high school. It was empowering for someone who never thought of themselves as the smartest kid in the class room, now I love being the go to person, giving briefs to the upper chain of command and having leadership come to me for my opinion due to my technical expertise.”
Looking back now, had Lair not gone to Japan she doesn’t think she’d be where she is today in her career. In Japan she was stationed on USS Lassen (DDG 82), and the operational tempo at the command gave her a great opportunity to learn her job quickly and sharpen her skills. After a while, she said she felt stronger and more confident as a person, and in her abilities.
When Lair was chosen for recruiting duty with orders to Navy Talent Acquisition Group (NTAG) Jacksonville she initially did not have a good reaction to the news. She reached out for advice from a couple chief petty officers at the Navy Recruiting Orientation Unit (NORU) for some advice. That conversation helped reassure her that she would be able to handle whatever challenges the Navy would throw at her.
“I had a very understanding and caring leader that once told me ‘you have to bloom where you’ve been planted,’” said Lair. “I think subconsciously that mindset has been with me my entire Navy career.”
Within her first year, Lair had become a successful recruiter, having worked in two different stations, Navy Recruiting Station Mayport, Florida, and Navy Recruiting Station North Jacksonville, Florida. She feels the Navy instilled a drive in her to represent herself and the people she works for and failure would not be an option.
“The most rewarding part of this job is when I get to help change someone’s life,” Lair said. “Being able to watch a future Sailor leave for boot camp, make it to school and go out to the fleet is exciting, and I take pride in that fact that we were able to help them get there.”
She still plans on finishing her associates or possibly even her bachelor’s degree while on recruiting duty, but her plan is to stay Navy until retirement, blooming where she was planted.
Navy Recruiting Command’s goal is to attract the highest quality candidates to assure the ongoing success of America’s Navy and provide the Navy the Nation needs.
For more news from Commander, Navy Recruiting Command, go to http://www.cnrc.navy.mil. Follow Navy Recruiting on Facebook (www.facebook.com/NavyRecruiting), Twitter (@USNRecruiter) and Instagram (@USNRecruiter).
| Date Taken: | 09.04.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 09.04.2020 11:23 |
| Story ID: | 377491 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 296 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Jacksonville Recruiter Grows Where She’s Planted, by PO1 Sean Stafford, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
