GREENSBURG, Pa. (June 30, 2026) - When an applicant sits in front of a recruiter, there are many possibilities for a Navy career. They could serve one enlistment contact or possibly retire after twenty or more years. A recruit might even be sitting in front of someone who will one day become their co-worker, mentee, or best friend.
For Navy Career Counselor 1st Class Dalton Wood, this is exactly what happened.
In 2017, Wood, a civilian at the time, walked into his local Navy recruiting station with interest in joining. He had completed a year of college and realized that he wanted to pursue a different career path, so he was eager to hear what the Navy had to offer. Navy Counselor 1st Class Ty Elmquist, at the time interior communications technician 2nd class petty officer, believed Wood was a good fit for the Navy and assisted him in enlisting as an engineman.
“You talk to some people and just know that they will go through boot camp exactly how you should,” Elmquist said. “I knew [Wood] could get through it and be fine. The Navy was an easy sell, because he knew exactly what he did and didn’t want to do.”
While Wood was a future Sailor, he received critical mentorship from Elmquist. This mentorship stuck with Wood through boot camp and other training courses critical for his career field. When he was assigned to his first duty station aboard the amphibious command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19), homeported in Yokosuka, Japan, he messaged Elmquist over Facebook to continue their mentor and mentee relationship throughout the fleet.
“For me, boot camp was a breeze,” Wood said. “His mentorship was awesome. He was very helpful to me and my family.”
After his tour on Blue Ridge, and Naval Special Warfare Group 4, he decided he wanted to be a recruiter like his mentor. During the screening process, the opportunity arose to recruit in his home town.
“The Navy has helped me tremendously,” Wood said. “I wanted to be able to help people make a good decision like I did.
Meanwhile, Elmquist accepted a position as a hometown recruiter that allowed him to stay at the same duty station where the two met. NTAG Pittsburgh offered for Wood to be assigned to a division closest to home, NRS Greensburg, which was also the division that Elmquist worked in at the time.
“We became very good friends, our families too,” Elmquist said. “We would hang out after work and [he] has definitely become a great friend in the area.”
After some success as a recruiter, Wood decided that he liked the job enough that he wanted to convert to navy counselor and be a career recruiter like his mentor.
As the career recruiters in the division, other non-career recruiters go to them with questions or issues that may arise. They say this has allowed them to collaborate directly in completing the mission, making each other’s jobs easier for them.
“We’re the backbones of the division,” Wood said. “Without him here, my job would be a lot harder.”
They both say that they spend a lot of time outside of work together. Their families often spend time with them too.
Seeing Wood be successful in his job reminds him of the impact recruiters can have in the fleet, Elmquist said. He never expected that he would be recruiting his best friend.
“Coming here and recruiting, definitely, you know, it's been great for me,” Elmquist said. “I gained somebody I would call a best friend now.”
NTAG Pittsburgh, part of Navy Recruiting Command, recruits the next generation of Navy Sailors throughout areas in Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia, and Maryland.