Photo By Todd Hack | SAN DIEGO (Nov. 17, 2021) - Chief Personnel Specialist Olusean Afara poses for a...... read more read more
SAN DIEGO — (Feb. 14, 2022) Growing up in Lagos, Nigeria, being a U.S. Navy Recruiter wasn’t on Chief Personnel Specialist Olusean Afara’s radar, yet it so happens he is pretty great at it.
Commander, Navy Recruiting Command (CNRC) recently named Afara, a recruiter assigned to Navy Talent Acquisition Group (NTAG) Southwest, the 2021 CNRC Chaplain (Officer) Recruiter of the Year. Afara is being recognized nationally for his continual drive and hard work to find promising chaplain candidates and guide them into the Navy.
“I hail from a background with limited opportunities,” said Afara. “My perspective is to cherish every opportunity that comes my way.”
Afara’s early struggles in life have afforded him the patience to assist prospective Navy Chaplains in their calling to guide young Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen.
In his recruiting role, Afara says the process of making someone a chaplain is, “Lengthy and time consuming making it one of the most difficult and unique missions in Navy Recruiting. This uniqueness, I feel has created an opportunity for me to thrive.”
Afara has another edge to help him recruit Navy Chaplains, his age.
“I enlisted a little older (28) than most Sailors,” said Afara. “It was actually a thing of pride to be one of the older recruits in boot camp. I remember talking to several recruits about my experience and life in general and they somehow always found most of the things I said and advice as ‘very deep.’”
“Most of these Chaplain applicants (Direct Appointment & Direct Commission) are much older and experienced as they are required to have a minimum of two years full-time ministry experience,” said Afara. “This tends to set them apart from the much younger pool of applicants in other officer groups. It is really rewarding to meet and work with professionals that are well experienced in pastoring and ministry and to take them through the entire recruiting process.”
Afara has only been recruiting the last two years and has not let COVID-19 deter his goals.
“I come from a background where I had to hustle every step of the way,” said Afara. “My positive mentality and ability to push through any situation is what I believe makes me unique. I am passionate, hardworking and focused. These strengths have grown significantly in the Navy and have helped me become successful in my career.”
Afara’s guide to success is hard work and it pays off.
“I start the process by ensuring each applicant meet all the requirements and experience required by the Chaplain Corps. Then I make sure they get their physical, security clearance, interview appraisal wrapped up as well as ensuring they obtain the needed references, ecclesiastical endorsement and all other administrative documents,” said Afara. “Once all these tasks are taken care of, the Chaplain Program Officer does his appraisal and preps them by holding a mock Chaplain board before they go up to the final Chaplain CARE (Chaplain Accession and Retention Evaluation) board.”
Even with the learned patience and age working for Afara, recruiting experienced clergy into the Navy can be difficult in part due to their profession.
“It is very challenging to have a prospective applicant change his mind to become a Navy Chaplain because an average pastor or clergy person believes that he or she needs to have a calling from God to serve in the military,” said Afara. “So, it doesn't matter how much I try to sell other Navy opportunities, they won't budge if they don't feel or have that calling. But just because they object once or do not respond to my messages does not mean they cannot change their minds.”
For Afara seeing the struggle paying off for the Chaplain applicants is extremely gratifying.
“The most rewarding part of the job is when I get to tell my (Chaplain) applicants they have been selected,” said Afara. “To see the joy on their faces or to hear them express how they feel makes all the time and effort well worth it by being able to shape the future of the Navy.”
The Navy has provided Afara with many opportunities which have allowed him to become a successful recruiter.
“I met my wife and started a family while in the Navy,” said Afara. “Once I joined the Navy, I was able to obtain my citizenship in less than a year. Without the Navy this would have taken about three years.”
Meeting his wife around 2004 and having their first daughter was a huge turning point for Afara’s career.
“Prior to the birth of my daughter in 2009, I was one of those Sailors that never planned on making the Navy a career and wasn’t too serious,” said Afara. “I was going to be separated in 2011, but something about my daughter made me give the advancement test a serious shot.”
The Navy provides many benefits and resources to its personnel like paid training, education, travel and networking opportunities. A Sailor of 17 years with a phenomenal career, Afara plans to further his education and retire in the Navy.
“When I immigrated to the United States in 2003, I did so to find more opportunities and education,” said Afara. “I plan on taking both my daughters to Nigeria in the future so they can experience what their peers in developing countries go through to survive. Hopefully, that will make them more appreciative of the life they have here in the U.S. I sometimes think native-born Sailors don't see this because it's what they are used to. I see things from a different perspective due to my upbringing.”
The Navy Chaplain Corps is made up of more than 800 Navy Chaplains. Chaplains confirm more than 100 different faith groups currently represented (Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist and many others). Each Chaplain is also a Navy Officer – meaning each holds an important leadership role.
NTAG Southwest encompasses 210,000 square miles covering Arizona, Nevada and Southern California. Headquartered at Naval Base Point Loma, NTAG Southwest has three Talent Acquisition Onboarding Centers (TAOC Fleet City, TAOC Surf City and TAOC Paradise City) managing 43 Navy Recruiting Stations and Navy Officer Recruiting Stations and employs more than 300 recruiters, support personnel and civilians.
For more news from Navy Talent Acquisition Group Southwest, visit www.dvidshub.net/unit/NRD-SanDiego or https://www.cnrc.navy.mil/pages-nrd/sandiego/default.html. Follow NTAG Southwest on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ntagsw), Twitter (@NRD_SanDiego) and Instagram (@ntagsw).
Navy Recruiting Command consists of a command headquarters, three Navy Recruiting Regions, and 26 Navy Talent Acquisition Groups that serve more than 1,000 recruiting stations across the world. Their combined goal is to attract the highest quality candidates to assure the ongoing success of America’s Navy.
For more news from Commander, Navy Recruiting Command, go to http://www.cnrc.navy.mil. Follow Navy Recruiting on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/MyNAVYHR), Twitter (@USNRecruiter) and Instagram (@USNRecruiter).
| Date Taken: | 02.14.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 02.16.2022 16:09 |
| Story ID: | 414778 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Hometown: | LAGOS, NG |
| Web Views: | 476 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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