The journey began with a young Ryan Dahlman growing up in Canton, Michigan. As a young boy, he knew he wanted to work with aircraft, but just didn't know which route to take. At the end of his senior year in high school, he decided he wanted to join the Navy and follow a long history of military service in his family.

"Ever since I was a little kid, I was fascinated with aircraft and always wanted to work with them," said Dahlman, who joined the Navy right out of high school at age 18.

Dahlman's military career began as an enlisted Sailor, joining as an Aviation Electrician's Mate. His first command was with the Nightdippers of Helicopter Anti- Submarine Squadron 5 (HS-5) where he was selected as Sailor of the Day during an underway with the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group (Ike CSG).

"September 30, 1999, was the day I was selected by my squadron to become Ike's Sailor of the Day," Dahlman recalled. "It was a real neat experience, being able to come up on to the bridge and meet the air wing commander and the captain of the ship. It was really great to be recognized for some of my achievements."

Dahlman said it was his drive to succeed that attracted the attention of his leadership.

"I was leading a night check line shack as a third class petty officer. I think my work ethic was what people really sought after," he said. "That's what helped me stand out in a group of truly outstanding Sailors. My family from an early age told me that whatever I'm going to do in life, I need to do it 100 percent and put my best foot forward. We're here to do a job and we need to give it our all. That's what I instilled in my guys and I was fortunate enough to get recognized for that."

The leadership qualities were evident within Dahlman. His chain of command noticed that and opened the door to new career possibilities.

"Initially, my intentions were to do my four years, serve them proudly and then get out," said Dahlman. "I wanted to use the money the government would give me for school and become a teacher. My division officer and department head saw something in me and felt I had leadership potential. They encouraged me to apply for an officer program called BOOST, Broadened Opportunity for Officer Selection and Training, which later turned into the Seaman to Admiral program, STA-21."

The transition from military life to the civilian sector was anything but a breeze. Something even more challenging was transitioning to the full-time student life.

"Some of the bigger trials were getting back into the swing of studying again and how to manage my time properly," said Dahlman. "I had to keep a certain gradepoint average in order to get my commission. I also got married while I was in college and had a baby. We had financial burdens because, unlike STA-21 and the G.I. Bill, with the BOOST program when you start school the government hands you a DD-214 and you lose all your benefits and pay, so my wife and I had to scrounge and save every nickel and dime to get by. I was working part-time for healthcare and for the baby, trying to stay on top of all my schoolwork. We had to stay focused on the overall goal of me getting that commission to become an officer and earn financial stability for the family."

Lt. Cmdr. Ryan Dalhman earned his commission and is now the air boss aboard USS San Jacinto (CG-56). Looking back, Dahlman said it's possible that becoming Sailor of the Day might have brought to light his potential and helped start him on his successful career path.

"I want to try and encourage junior Sailors to keep your nose to the grind stone and push through," said Dahlman. "Put 100 percent effort in everything you do and good things will come. I fought through the tough times, kept going and got recognized. Now I'm an officer in the United States Navy flying multimillion-dollar aircraft and loving every second of it. Who would have thought?"

Ike, currently deployed as part of the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, is conducting naval operations in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations in support of U.S. national security interests in Europe.


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