Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Jasen MorenoGarcia | 221006-N-LN093-1018 PHOENIX (Oct. 6, 2022) U.S. Navy Construction Electrician 1st...... read more read more
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PHOENIX – (Oct. 10, 2022) Construction Electrician 1st Class Charlette Smith is proof that the right drive and dedication can help make you successful.
“I come from a small town,” said Smith. “Oxford is fairly small. Even though Ole Miss is there. I always wanted to travel and do things, this wasn’t ‘normal’ for my family. I had that drive and discipline at a very young age, but I just never put it into the forefront. Little ole me back then, was a super competitive sports player playing every sport, except for soccer. My go-to and first love is basketball. I played that since I was 5 years old, all the way to the semi-pro and college level. I always knew about the military because I was in Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps in high school, but, growing up, I always chased sports instead. It was me and three younger sisters, and that’s all we did. Struggle, struggle, struggle. I didn’t grow up with my mom and dad in the same household, but my grandmother was like my mom. She used to drive and push me all the time. Letting me know how hard they worked for the few things they had. I met some awesome mentors growing up that really shaped who I am today. I always wanted to do more and have more than what my family had. When sports could no longer pay the bills that’s when I started looking into the Navy.”
Smith was tired of working multiple jobs that only covered her bills. She wanted a job that offered more than just a paycheck.
“Before I joined [the Navy], I worked four jobs.” Smith said. “I wanted a steady job that paid for the lifestyle I wanted to build for myself and allowed me to finish school and travel.”
The Navy offered her more than she wanted. She learned a trade, got help to pay for school, opportunities to visit other countries, health care benefits for her and her spouse, and the ability to turn the job into a career and one day retire.
“I became a recruiter to help people get the knowledge that I did not have when I joined,” Smith said. “I don’t just want to help others, I want to guide them in a way that they’ll be successful. I joined the Navy blindly, with no direction, nobody in my family or friend circle joined the Navy. My dad was in the Air Force, so he didn’t know much about the Navy and how it worked.”
Smith is assigned to Navy Talent Acquisition Group Phoenix, Talent Acquisition Station Goodyear. Besides spending a lot of time with applicants making sure they have all the knowledge they need to be successful. She also provides one-on-one tutoring for all high school subjects. The extra studying helps applicants score higher on the test, increasing the number of jobs they qualify for. Along with graduating high school and getting accepted into college.
“The most rewarding part of recruiting is when future Sailors turn into Sailors, and actually come back and thank me for what I’ve done for them and their families,” Smith said.
She continues to say that seeing how their life transpired throughout boot camp and technical school, makes all her hard work worthwhile. Knowing that she helped somebody be more successful in life keeps her motivated.
“The biggest advice I give to my future Sailors and Sailors I mentor is to keep pushing and keep driving. No matter how many bad people you meet, how much bad leadership you see, no matter what your goals are, keep pushing toward them! No matter how many times you get knocked down, it’s going to turn around at some point for the better. This is my first time telling anyone this but, I’ve been trying to go officer since 2012, and I have just faced adversity, back to back. I kept striving. That pushed me to finish my Bachelor’s degree. It pushed me to finish my Master’s, degree and now it’s pushing me to guide my future Sailors. My path to becoming an officer is so close I can touch it! Whatever you have going on, regardless of what it is, or who it is just keep pushing!”
CNRC consists of a command headquarters, two Navy Recruiting Regions, NRRC, and 26 NTAGs that serve more than 1,000 recruiting stations around the world. Their mission 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 (www.facebook.com/MyNAVYHR), Twitter (@USNRecruiter) and Instagram (@USNRecruiter).
| Date Taken: | 10.14.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 10.14.2022 12:35 |
| Story ID: | 431342 |
| Location: | PHOENIX, ARIZONA, US |
| Web Views: | 600 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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