bancroft  

President's Message


July 2010

     Welcome aboard!

     The 'United States Naval Academy Parents' Club of Northern Virginia' extends a warm welcome to our Midshipmen families & friends.  Whether your Mid accepted an appointment to the USNA from high school, the Naval Academy Preparatory School (NAPS), directly from the fleet, via the Naval Academy Foundation, or as a transfer from college ~ Congratulations!  We are happy you found us and we hope you'll be able to join us in supporting the Brigade during your Mid's special time on the Yard!!

     The USNA Parents' Club of Virginia was founded in 1993 to provide information and support to the families of Midshipmen from the Northern Virginia area.  The club name was later changed to the "USNA Parents' Club of Northern Virginia" matching our geographical area, approximately north of the Rapidan/Rappahannock Rivers and west out to the West Virginia border, and as other recognized parents clubs sprang up covering the country.  We "share" the District of Columbia with the USNA Parents' and Sponsor Club of Maryland so any DC parents can choose to join whichever club is more convenient or they decide makes for a better fit. Our club is run by volunteer parents; we are a non-profit organization with dues structured to merely cover our operating expenses.  We enjoy the Naval Academy experiences & hope you will join the club to contribute by sharing fun & knowledge with other parents at our activities!

     We provide support directly for the Mids with cookies purchased and delivered each semester during exams.  The club arranges for a commemorative Congressional flag and certificate flown over the Capitol for each of our graduates. We provide a directory of nearly 100 Northern Va families that can be extremely useful in car pooling or locating friends. The principal focus of the club is to support the parents of Mids throughout their undergraduate USNA experience. Each year we have a new set of challenges for parents to be aware of and adjust to during the rigorous academy regimen.  We've found it helpful to have a parent network sharing experiences and useful information. While plebe year generates the most questions; the summer training blocks, major selection, evolving traditions like the plebe's Herndon climb, the new memorial ball and the 2/C's ring dance, extra-curricular activities & special liberty, financial and vehicle decisions, service selection, excellent post graduate opportunities, plus the graduation/commissioning choices and even temporary additional duty (TAD) assignments before fleet assignments combine in unique questions and opportunities for lessons learned to be shared with previous classes.

      Our club hosts a number of social events annually, providing opportunities for our members to meet with other USNA families, and, hopefully, enrich our common experience.  Major activities include a:

  • Welcome Picnic in early June prior to I-Day (Induction Day) for the prospective class to welcome the incoming plebes and their families. We reserve the Shouse Community Center in Vienna, Virginia.
  • Dinner before the U.S. Marine Corps 8th & I Barracks 'Evening Parade' performance in mid July.
  • 'Captain's Barbecue' tailgate in the Navy Marine Corps stadium before a home football game.
  • Recruiting assistance by Mids at the Navy Memorial for the Greater Washington Alumni Chapter.
  • Annual Joint Service Academies Ball (JSAB), normally during the Winter Break, this year it will be the Friday after Thanksgiving.
  • Exciting 'Halloween' costumed concert & Glee Club performances like the Messiah concert on the Yard.
  • Navy basketball game or baseball get-together/brunch during the Spring.
  • Annual dinner at an Officer's Club (Ft. Meyers or Army/Navy in Fairfax) to confirm a new slate of club officers & honor our upcoming graduating class of Ensigns in the Navy and 2nd Lt's in the Marine Corps.  We invite an honored alumni as guest speaker. Recent speakers included: VADM Mark Ferguson, '78 Chief of Naval Personnel, RADM 'Willy' Hilarides, '81, Program Executive Officer (Submarines), and CAPT Don Gabrielson, '89, Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff- who all shared outstanding examples of their careers & wisdom during our Q&A session.

     Our primary means of passing information to our club members is via email.  Each class has a 'Class Rep' who serves on our Board of Directors, that meets about once every or every other month to plan activities and coordinate events at various board members' homes.

   If you ever have a question, and you will, an answer or help is just a phone call or email away.  Please feel free to contact the club officers listed below. The U.S. Naval Academy official website, www.usna.edu, is the authoritative source of official information on policies, events and schedules. There is also a USNA-sponsored web site with good informative and authoritative information which I highly recommend, especially for Plebe parents, at www.usna.com.  Another informal website with useful resources for parents can be found at: www.usna-net.org.

           Go Navy!            
           Steve Honan, '80,  President


2010 CLUB OFFICERS:
President: Steve Honan
Vice President: Mike Douglas
Treasurer: Kelli Rodriquez
Secretary: Mary Ann Hoel
Data Base Coordinator: Bill Laux
Membership: Tricia Cruz

CLASS REPS:
2011- Joan Hess;
2012- Catherine Potter & Carl Waltrip
2013- Joyce Ceconi
2014- Jackie Lluy