Courtesy Photo | Airman Alexys Joiner graduated as the top Sailor from Recruit Training Command (RTC)...... read more read more
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GREAT LAKES (NNS) – Airman Alexys Joiner graduated as the top Sailor from Recruit Training Command (RTC) Great Lakes, earning the Military Excellence Award (MEA) Sept. 17, 2026.
Joiner, 18, of Abbeville, Louisiana, said she still hasn't fully absorbed what she accomplished.
"I don't think it's fully hit me that I won," Joiner said. "I'm very grateful. Winning this award means all the work I put in wasn't overlooked, that my effort to get to this point wasn't wasted. To me, this is just the beginning of my journey and a stepping stone that shows I can achieve greatness and perform to and above the standard."
The Military Excellence Award is presented to the recruit who best demonstrates enthusiasm, devotion to duty, military bearing and teamwork throughout training. As part of the recognition, recipients receive a flag letter of commendation.
Joiner's reason for enlisting started somewhere most recruits' don't: at the movies.
"My motivation for joining the Navy was the Avengers," she said. "I wanted to be part of a team like that, a team that's together not because they have no choice, but because they want to fight for something greater than themselves. I didn't want an ordinary life. I wanted one full of adventure and challenges."
That desire to be part of something bigger led her, at 18 and fresh from a homeschool education in Louisiana, to one of the most demanding paths the Navy offers. She's headed for the Aviation Rescue Swimmer pipeline, the community responsible for saving others in the Navy's search-and-rescue mission.
The hardest part of getting there was one she'd never faced before. She had to leave home.
"The biggest challenge for me was being so separated from my family. I had never been away from home before, so becoming independent was a big step for me," Joiner said. "At first I thought I had no one to turn to when I needed reassurance. What got me through was putting faith in my own abilities and realizing that yes, the world is scary, but I have shipmates by my side. I'm away from my family and home, but I have a bigger family now, one that will always have my back, just like I'll have theirs."
The steadiest voice through all of it came from her loved ones. Joiner said her mother believed in her long before boot camp and never stopped cheering her on.
"My mom always believed in my ability to be great and supported everything I wanted to achieve," Joiner said. "Before boot camp, she'd be out at my workouts helping and cheering me on. Any time I had doubts, my thoughts would go back to all the time we spent training and talking about my future. Knowing she's always rooting for me, waiting for me to come home, gave me so much motivation."
At RTC, she found a similar belief in her second RDC, Petty Officer 1st Class Michael Lipscomb, who pushed her to reach her potential.
"He always saw what I was capable of as a Sailor," she said. "He pushed me to be better and perform at my best, and he never let me or my division down."
For anyone back home reading her story, Joiner wants them to understand what boot camp actually asks of a person.
"Boot camp is not easy, and it's not for everyone," she said. "It's not something you do for fun. You do it to change your life and better yourself. The people who go through it are no longer civilians. They don't think the same or fight only for themselves. You come to understand why people volunteer for our country, and you carry the pride of being part of something great."
Following graduation, Joiner will report to Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, to begin training in the Aviation Rescue Swimmer pipeline.
Training at RTC is approximately nine weeks long, and all enlistees in the U.S. Navy begin their careers at the command. More than 40,000 recruits train annually at the Navy's only boot camp.
| Date Taken: | 09.16.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 09.16.2026 12:29 |
| Story ID: | 574867 |
| Location: | GREAT LAKES, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 20 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Joiner Earns Military Excellence Award at Recruit Training Command, by Marc Lindsay, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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