Seaman Recruit Sidney Bodin, Division 060, graduated as the top Sailor from Recruit Training Command, earning the Military Excellence Award on Jan. 31.

Bodin, from Battle Ground, Washington, said he joined the Navy to become part of an organization that embodies excellence and professionalism.

“I worked several entry-level jobs where I’d find myself the only one striving to be above the minimum standard,” Bodin said. “I wanted the opportunity to perform to my full potential and I have found the Navy to be the best way to do that. My father, David Bodin, was a Marine during the Vietnam War, and he was the one who inspired me to look toward military service. For me, he set the standard of excellence that I aim to achieve every day.”

Bodin, 22, is a 2016 graduate of Battle Ground High School. He held the rank of Cadet Senior Master Sgt. in the Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps and was drill team commander. Bodin attended Washington State University, where he was pursuing an electrical engineering degree and a Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarship.

Bodin is assigned the rate of Electronics Technician (Nuclear).

The Navy Club of the United States Military Excellence Award is the top award presented to the No. 1 recruit of their graduating training group. The MEA is awarded to the recruit that best exemplifies the qualities of enthusiasm, devotion to duty, military bearing and teamwork. The award placed him at the pinnacle of today’s newest Sailors. Bodin is awarded a flag letter of commendation.

Winning the Military Excellence Award reinforces Bodin’s commitment to the high standards he set for himself.

“When I first signed my contract to join the Navy, I started preparing myself to be the best version of myself, because I knew that I was joining an organization where excellence is not just expected, but required,” he said. “My Recruit Division Commanders asked my division if they thought I deserved to be number one in our training group. When I saw that every recruit had their hand raised, I knew that the hard work and effort that I had put into helping my fellow shipmates had truly made a difference.”

Bodin credited his Recruit Division Commanders, Chief Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Fuels) Ray Holland, Engineman 1st Class Zachary Garrett, and Hull Maintenance 1st Class Joshua Bomberger for their leadership and guidance.

He said his shipmates provided motivation and were integral to developing his leadership skills.

“I initially found motivation from my family and friends back home who supported my choice to serve and believed in me,” Bodin said. “However, once I started to get to know my fellow shipmates, I found a new source of motivation. This newly found motivation was not only reoccurring, but also different day to day. I decided that I had to push myself to be the best I could be, so that I could help my shipmates who were struggling. The challenges we faced changed every day, and everyone struggled with different aspects of boot camp. So, by the end, I had made an impact on every recruit in my division and that was all the motivation I needed.”

Bodin said the biggest challenge of boot camp was learning everything needed to meet the daily challenges.

“In our division, we had a unique position called ‘Chief of Staff’ or ‘Everything Petty Officer,’” Bodin explained. “Being ‘Everything Petty Officer’ meant that I had to know everything there was to know about being a recruit in boot camp. I learned the responsibilities of every recruit leadership position within the division as well as every checkpoint that they were required to meet. I challenged myself to try to know as much as our RDCs knew, so that whenever recruits in my division had questions, they could come to me first without having to worry about bringing it up to our RDCs.”

After graduation, Bodin will attend a six-month Electronics Technician rating course in Charleston, South Carolina, followed by another year of additional training. During his schooling, he will learn to perform duties in nuclear propulsion plants operating reactor control, propulsion and power generation systems.

Boot camp is approximately eight weeks and all enlistees into the U.S. Navy begin their careers at the command. Training includes physical fitness, seamanship, firearms, firefighting and shipboard damage control along with lessons in Navy heritage and core values, teamwork and discipline. More than 35,000 recruits are trained annually at RTC and begin their Navy careers.

For more news from Recruit Training Command, visit www.navy.mil/

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For more news from Recruit Training Command, visit www.navy.mil/.