Patti McGarvey -Special to the Sun

Ronnie Tjaarda enlisted in the Navy soon after graduation from Kern Valley High School in Lake Isabella June 2005. Shortly thereafter he flew to Chicago, Ill. for his basic training at Camp Moffett.

Tjaarda recently came home for his first visit since leaving for basic training. He stayed with his grandparents, Ed and Sharon Tjaarda of Shafter, for a week. Tjaarda mentioned how happy he was that his grandparents, Ed and Sharon, were there for him at his basic training graduation; they drove to Illinois. Tjaarda also mentioned that he was glad basic training was over; he said the worst thing he had to do during basic training was called (I.T.) Individual Training. “The training was pretty much a tough sports hell week all at once. It's called this because it takes only one individual to mess up and then the entire division has to suffer for that person's mistake,” said Tjaarda.

When asked what he did on his first visit back home he said, “I visited all my aunts and uncles, my grandparents and my dad in Bakersfield and I went to the movies and watched some of my favorite television programs at home.” Tjaarda said he also had a lot of fun when he spent some time chilling with his friends.

There was one moment during his visit that really touched his heart and that is when he surprised his sister Ashley Tjaarda, a junior at Kern Valley High School, and he saw by her reaction just how happy she was to see him.

“I hadn't seen my sister for about five months so my grandparents and I made a special visit to Lake Isabella to see her. We arrived on the school campus just prior to school ending; our wait was only 15 minutes. Ashley was instructed by her sixth period teacher to report to the student store prior to getting on the bus, and she did as she was instructed.

Tjaarda and his grandparents were hiding near the snack bar where his sister catches the bus after school.

Ashley had no idea her brother was coming to see her, but she was very happy to see him. She cried when she saw her brother, as well as her grandparents, come out from their hiding place.

Ashley's first words when she saw her brother was, “Oh my goodness, Oh my.” The family enjoyed nearly two hours of laughter and story telling as they dined on a fine meal out on the town before Tjaarda had to return with his grandparents to Shafter.

After his visit with his family, Tjaarda flew to Washington for more training; he spent several weeks in Washington and then flew to Bahrain on March 4 to meet up with his platoon that is on deployment for seven or more months. Tjaarda is on an aircraft carrier, the John C. Stennis.

When asked if he was nervous about his deployment, he said, “I am not nervous about going overseas because it will be a good experience. I will be traveling to other countries and will get to see a lot of the culture around the world; and I will get to know my job better as I live on the ship.”