Welcome Aboard to the Class of 2030 and Their Families
Jun 16, 2026
I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to provide a keynote address to the incoming plebes and their families at the Southern California Naval Academy Parents Club Welcome Aboard event last week.
In an attempt to increase it's reach, I will share my message via writing as well.
Here's what I said on 6/13/2026 in Orange County, CA:
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14,727 applicants. Just over 1300 heard yes. And of those, only 1175 SAID yes.
That’s 7.9% ... You are a part of the 7.9% that will raise their right hand and swear an oath to the Constitution on I-day. You are the elite of the elite.
You'll be rewarded for saying yes!
With hardship. Adversity. Frustration. Exhaustion. Homesickness.
Because of those emotions I almost didn’t weather the storm to stay a part of the 7.9%.
It’s July 9th, 2013, 14 days into Plebe Summer. I’m sitting in LT Burke’s pristine office filled with pictures of his family and his time on previous ships.
I’m tired. Uncomfortable. Defeated. My skin’s sticky from the Annapolis humidity. I’m staring at the wall silently barely holding on, just thinking about how I want to go home. I’m miserable here.
He walks in and I immediately stand up and come to attention. “At Ease,” he said calmly as he closed the door. “Grant, relax. What’s going on”
For those of you who don’t know my story, I was moments away from joining Tango Company and leaving the Naval Academy during Plebe Summer.
If it weren’t for the kindness and curiosity of LT Burke, I wouldn't be standing here today, proud of my accomplishments and excited for yours.
This is why I’m passionate about the Naval Academy.
Because I almost threw away all these life changing experiences:
Commanding 1200 plebes and 300 detailers as the Regimental Commander of Plebe Summer.
Being one of two Midshipmen in the class of 2017 chosen to speak at the Library of Congress on all matters relating to the Academy.
Playing four years of Division One basketball against men who are now in the NBA.
Deploying on four different submarines, conducting top-secret missions around the world.
Winning a silver medal while representing the United States of America at the 2019 Military World Games.
And starting a non-profit organization that supports all of us reading this blog, the Naval Academy community.
Over time, I fell in love with the Naval Academy. It has provided once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.
Let me share what makes it so special.
There are three main factors that separate the Naval Academy from other life choices you could have made.
The POWER of being a midshipman, the RESPONSIBILITY of being a junior office, and the INFLUENCE of the Naval Academy Network.
You will soon discover the benefits of the midshipman experience. It will teach you life lessons that will elevate you amongst your peers.
While your friends are at their freshman orientation… partying… having fun… you will be training, pushing the boundaries of your limits.
While your friends are thriving with their new classmates, you will be struggling with yours.
While your friends are rushing their sororities and fraternities, you will be fighting through trials and tribulations with yours.
The midshipman experience is hard. At times, grueling and overwhelming. You will run into storms that seem never ending. Shoot, you may even want to send home a letter like this.
In classic Academy sarcasm, when asked how I was, I’d always respond with “ya know, living the dream.”
Whenever I said it, my roommate Jeremiah would look at me and say “dude, nightmares are dreams too.” I think that really captures the plebe experience.
But you will never face these “dreams” alone.
The power of being a midshipman embodies itself in the form of incredible Navy and Marine Corps leaders, who are there to teach, coach, and mentor you.
No matter your personality type, there will always be someone who can speak to you – and connect with you – in your own unique language that you understand.
Whether it’s the analytic brain of the submariner, the chill attitude of the helicopter pilot, the no-nonsense directness of a Surface Warfare Officer, the stoic mindset of the Navy SEAL, or the polished and motivated persona of a Marine, there will be someone there ready to invest into your life and help you navigate the leadership challenges in your path.
The Naval Academy is special because of the DENSITY of wisdom and leadership experience on campus. The instructors have one primary mission - sharing their knowledge to guide you through your own personal and professional development.
Take advantage of these opportunities. Be proactive. Be observant. Find someone whose personality and leadership style is intriguing, and then reach out.
You need to create these relationships. Pour into the experience – don’t shy away from it.
You are never alone at the Naval Academy. There is always someone there to help you.
When you choose to invest in the people surrounding you, the pressure will not destroy you, it will mold you.
I almost made an emotional decision that would have cost me everything.
When it gets difficult, really difficult, and you want to quit, remember this:
Never make a permanent decision based on temporary emotion.
The storm, no matter how brutal, always passes. When you come out the other side, you will be stronger, wiser, and tougher.
Handling the hard aspects of life is a skill. It is a muscle that needs to be trained. And Plebe Summer will train that muscle.
You may WANT things to get easier. And many people wait their whole lives for things to get easier.
Think. In your life, have you waited for something to get easier?
“Oh I just gotta get through junior year and then classes will get easier…”
“Oh I just need to get to the spring of my senior year and then it’ll be easy…”
“Oh I just gotta get through Plebe Summer and then it’ll be easy…”
It’s what we do. We wait for stuff to get easier.
But the Naval Academy... and life … never gets easier.
What happens is you learn to handle hard better.
The power of being a midshipman is becoming someone who handles hard moments better.
LT Burke advised me to stay for just one more day. He knew that by staying for one more day, my storm would settle, and I’d get one more rep at overcoming adversity.
He didn’t allow me to make a permanent decision based on temporary emotion.
Choosing the Naval Academy was the best decision of my life.
Had I left I would have never experienced the next piece of what makes it so special, the responsibility of being a junior officer.
After graduation, you are going to enter into a career that gives you a sense of mission, purpose, and fulfillment.
From the adventures of international travel and exploring the world, to being trusted with the care and leadership of the young men and women from every corner of our country, to supporting national security objectives across the globe, your work will matter. Your work will have an impact. Your work will make the world a better and safer place.
Look - Being a junior officer is cool.
You will be in your most tactical roles during your first five years. Intense trainings, multiple deployments, your most flight hours, your most days out to sea, your most time outside the wire.
If you have a desire to see the world, you will get the opportunity.
For me, it was Norway, Scotland, and Guam. For my friend Troy, it was 16 countries throughout Asia, all while being stationed and living in Japan. He even had a Japanese swordsmith make him a custom samurai sword, which to this day is the most awesome thing I’ve ever seen.
But being a junior officer is so important. You have serious responsibilities to your Sailors and Marines. Your leadership will matter.
Here’s the reality of today. We are back at war. And that started, literally almost one year to the day.
I was speaking at this event to the incoming class of 2029 and I could barely focus because I was so excited to be heading straight to LAX right after to fly to Vietnam and visit my wife, Naval Academy ‘19, on her port visit.
That’s when I felt my phone buzz. I looked at my notification and saw a very short text. “Don’t get on the plane.”
Missiles had been flying back and forth between Israel and Iran, and the USS Nimitz had been retasked, turned around, and sent all ahead flank towards the Middle East.
In that moment, I knew she was nervous. I knew for darn sure I was nervous. And without a doubt my in-laws were nervous.
But you know who else was nervous? Her Sailors. And you know who else was afraid? The moms and dads of those Sailors.
And it'll be your responsibility as a junior officer to love them, take care of them, and lead them in combat.
It'll be your responsibility as a junior officer to process and manage your own emotions to be able to shoulder the burden of theirs.
That's what it means to be a man for others or a woman for others. That's what it means to be of service.
And that's why being a midshipman at the Naval Academy is so special. Because it sucks. Because it's super hard. Because it will prepare you for that exact moment.
The Naval Academy experience will prepare you to handle the hard moments of life better so you can carry someone else's fear in addition to your own. The experience is designed for you to be prepared to be of service to your Sailors and Marines.
There is nowhere else in the world where at 22 years old, right after graduation, you will have the ability to make such a direct positive impact in the lives of real human beings. So lean into the power of the midshipman experience and be ready to bear the responsibility of being a junior officer.
Being a junior officer is important. You will get teased for knowing nothing, but your leadership will matter. Never underestimate the impact you can make in your sailors or marines lies with simple actions. That impact will be meaningful.
And having meaningful pursuits in life is not easy.
Your life in the fleet will be even harder. The storms, stronger. But the Academy will prepare you to handle the hard and to weather the storms.
Your work will give you mission, purpose, and fulfillment. Your work will be meaningful.
I can assure you that your services are needed and your opportunities are unlimited. To achieve a life of purpose, adventure, and success, you’re in the right place.
Forged by these common bonds - by the storms you will sail through and by the mission and purpose in your life - you will be tied to fellow graduates for life.
As a result, the Naval Academy network is the greatest network in the world.
The day will come where you wear the uniform for the last time, yet the support will continue.
Your tenacity, resilience, and strength will keep you connected to those who share the same values.
In finance, law, medicine, real estate, entrepreneurship…
Naval Academy graduates win. They excel. And they take care of each other.
You may not realize it just yet, but the Naval Academy is not a 4 year decision, it is a 40 year decision.
40 years of camaraderie, mission, purpose, fulfillment, and success.
CAPITALIZE on the influence of the network.
Congratulations on accepting your appointment to the Naval Academy. You have chosen the hard path. You decided to prioritize long term fulfillment over short term comfort and fun. As a result, you are embarking on a journey that will be filled with personal and professional development, adventure, and success.
In Annapolis, you’ll sail into severe storms. You’ll face real adversity that will make you question your choice.
But those storms and that adversity will be the catalysts in your transformation into a Navy or Marine Corps officer.
The storms... they will be worth it.
Lean into the power of being a midshipman.
Embrace the adventures of being a junior officer.
And capitalize on the influence of the Naval Academy network.
Invest in the process and you will find mission, purpose, and fulfillment, because you are the elite of the elite.
To the parents - congratulations. I know after paying for my siblings Stanford and Yale tuition, my parents sure enjoyed the price tag associated with this choice.
But I think you will be happiest... proudest… of the life your son or daughter will lead. A life of service, of purpose, and of success.
If I was sitting in the audience right now, knowing what I know now, this is what I would have told myself:
When you are at your lowest and you feel like writing THAT letter home - you feel like quitting - never make a permanent decision based on temporary emotions.
Weather the storm and wait just… one… more… day.
I wish each and every one of you the best in your Naval Academy journey.
Fair winds and following seas - and as always,
Beat Army.
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If you'd like to watch the speech, you can do so here: https://youtu.be/q_1_12ADUNE
Or if you want to listen to the audio podcast, you can do so here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/325313/episodes/19355256
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Founder of Academy Insider and Podcast Host Grant Vermeer
Grant Vermeer is the founder of Academy Insider and the host of The Academy Insider podcast. He was a recruited athlete which brought him to Annapolis where he was a four-year member of the varsity basketball team.
He was a cyber operations major and commissioned into the Cryptologic Warfare Community. He was stationed at Fort Meade and supported the Subsurface Direct Support mission.
He separated from the Navy in 2023 and now owns The Vermeer Group, a residential real estate company that specializes in serving the United States Naval Academy community with nationwide consulting and connection. He actively sells real estate in San Diego, CA.
Connect with Grant Vermeer, The Academy Insider here:
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