It was through the Navy that James and Alicia Hinkle met and was, at times, despite the Navy that they have built a life together.
Alicia shared that she joined the Navy in 1994, entering with an undesignated job duty with a look toward Storekeeper. After completing boot camp at Great Lakes, during the winter, she laughed, she was sent to Bangor, Washington where she found herself working in the environmental department on the base.
James, who enlisted in the Navy in 1992, completed his basic training in San Diego, also with an undesignated job duty, but as an airman. After completing apprenticeship training, James found himself on the USS Constellation, an aircraft carrier, where he was in charge of the flight deck. He was on the ship for two years, completing various exercises as the ship made its way to its next homeport in San Diego.
While Alicia had signed on for a three-year tour, James was in for only two active duty years. He then was on what was labeled as Inactive Reserves where the Navy could recall him. He also completed a year of active Reserve duty. While inactive, James returned to his home in Washington, where his father had been stationed with the Navy and James had graduated high school just prior to his own enlistment. While there, he went out to a club to meet people—most of whom were Navy.
“Alicia was going there with a group of her friends and I was with a group of my friends and the groups collided,” James shared. “We started pairing off and we became best friends,” he added.
Read More: Navy couple works through challenges of service in military life | Journal-news