Addicted to Water

Jordon Ira Royal has been a U.S. Navy First Class Diver for the past seven years. He is the image of hard work and determination.

Jordon has never been a normal kid. When he was in middle school and high school, he had many different careers, ranging from lawn mowing and fence building to being a bagger and cashier at Safeway. He loved school, so he had early jazz band and a full class schedule. At age eighteen, a self-defining event occurred in Jordon’s life. The United States Naval Academy in Annapolis offered Jordon a scholarship to attend the school; however, Jordon rejected the offer. Jordon expressed his personal opinion on the matter,“First off, the navy diver program doesn’t offer an officer program, so I wouldn’t have been able to become a diver if I had gone. Secondly, I was told that you will get more respect from your crew if you gain experience in the navy as enlisted first, then proceed to put in a package to become an officer.”

When you’re in the navy, you will travel to many different places. Jordon has traveled to Great Lakes, Michigan; Panama City, Florida; San Diego, California, which is where he is stationed right now; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Bremerton, Washington; Alameda, California; Japan; Yap; Cambodia; Philippines; Palau; Thailand; Bahrain; Jordan; and Bangladesh. When asked what his inspiration is, Jordon responded, “There were a lot of people working at the NASA space academy that were prior Navy. I had talked to them about the Navy and was inspired by that to join the Navy. The swim team was initial inspiration to be a diver, since I loved being the water. I am inspired to continue in my career by my mentor, Chad Shortall. He is a retired Chief, First Class Navy Diver.” In the navy, there is a lot of risk taking, but they mitigate the risk by exercising safety and training as much as possible. Fear is inevitable, but they try to not think about it otherwise, they could be distracted.  
Overall, navy divers are fearless.

Jordon is an amazing example of a true American. He plans to continue his career in the navy for another twenty-plus years. And for anyone who want’s to have a future in the military, Jordon says, “Be a hard worker, good listener yet able to lead, good physical condition, ready to learn, and the desire to accomplish great tasks.”