Submarines and Sons

Jim, Ellie, Jessica and James in front of the USS Providence

It's been a couple of weeks since my husband, daughter (Jessica) and I returned from our trip to Connecticut to visit my son aboard "his" submarine. The plane trips there and back were booked in Hades, I believe, but seeing him and touring/sailing on the sub were experiences of a lifetime!

On a steamy 103 degree day, just north of the Long Island Sound, about 18 family members gathered at the pier at the Groton Sub Base. A couple of hours later, a huge black beast was pushed/pulled to the pier and we climbed aboard, going straight down a 2 story ladder through a hole in the top of the sub no bigger than 3 feet in diameter. As soon as we entered the mess hall, I was greeted by James with a huge hug!

Being 1 of the 11 officers on board, he was given time off to show us all around the sub, from the control room to the sonar room, from the officers ward room to the enlisted racks, from the torpedo room to the air scrubbers. I spent a long time talking with the enlisted men about their areas of expertise--they are all so proud to be serving our country. We ate lunch with James and the Captain in the ward room (have I mentioned how proud I am of my son?!) and then continued with our tour. We were not allowed to see exactly where James works, which was near the reactor, which was quite fine with me.

I forgot to mention that as soon as we boarded, the sub got underway and we took a cruise down the Thames River and down the Sound, turning back around before we reached Martha's Vineyard. Despite the fact that we remained on the surface of the water, the ride was exceptionally smooth with very little rocking and rolling. James said that when they submerge, there is virtually no motion detectable unless they are diving or surfacing.

Our cruise lasted about 5 hours--pretty much the most exciting 5 hours of my life! This was the first time that the USS Providence (commissioned in 1984) has had a "dependent's cruise"--many of the nuclear subs never open their hatches for civilians. It was such a joy to see my son in his element. He loves his job, and we couldn't be more proud of him! He received his itinerary for his upcoming 6-9 month deployment--all I can say is please pray for him and all the crew. He will miss Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter this go-around, but we will make up for it when he returns next year.

Jessica and Jim on deck while underway in the Thames River, CT.

Navy rocks! Ellie