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H-BC grad experiences 'opportunity of my lifetime'

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Schoneman retires from U.S. Navy after 20 years of service
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By
Lori Sorenson

Chief Fire Control Technician Carl Schoneman will retire from the Navy on Aug. 31 after 20 years and six deployments at sea.
His message to young adults back home?
“Rock County may seem like the center of the universe, but it’s a big world out there,” he said.
“Keep an open mind. You never know where life is going to take you. … Sometimes you have to put your toe in the water; you might get swept away, but enjoy the adventure.”
Schoneman, son of Stan Schoneman, Rock Rapids, and Carol Daniels, Sioux Falls, grew up in Steen and graduated from Hills-Beaver Creek High School in 1996.
At 19 years old, he was taking general courses at Worthington Community College and working at IBP. He had a wife and baby and was looking for a better way to secure their future.
“One day I got a Navy postcard in the mail, and I immediately called the recruiter and enlisted the next day,” Schoneman said.
“I’d always wanted to see the world — I wanted more. This seemed like a good opportunity to accomplish those goals and dreams.”
He admits he may have responded to any branch of the military at the time, but looking back, he said the Navy was the right decision for him.
“Each branch of the military has its opportunities,” he said. “But knowing what I know now, I would do the Navy all over again … in a heartbeat.”
For one thing, he said submarine missions were a bit farther removed from front lines. Fire control technicians are in charge of a submarine’s weapons employment systems.
“I’ve been lucky enough to travel the world for free,” Schoneman said. “I’ve been in every time zone; I’ve been to the North Pole where it was minus 35 degrees, and I’ve been to Bahrain where it was 120 degrees.”
Schoneman has spent time in Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Dubai, Bahrain, Israel, Puerto Rico, Japan, and Singapore.
“Experiencing other cultures and lifestyles has opened the eyes of this country boy,” he said.
He said he’ll miss the junior sailors and the camaraderie with others on the ship, but he won’t necessarily miss the long deployments at sea.
“Being away from your family never gets easier,” Schoneman said.
His first deployment was on the USS Pittsburgh from January 1999 through July 1999.
“Our only communication for the first 3 months was a few sparse emails. … It was a difficult transition,” he said.
“It was my first time away from home, and it was hard not being able to communicate with my family. We went months without a phone call.”
On one deployment, he spent over 100 days in a football field-sized submarine he called a “big black tube” without seeing the sun.
But he adapted, learned and grew while picking up skills in electronics and maintenance along the way.
Today, he said he’d encourage others to choose a similar path and follow their dreams.
“It’s been the opportunity of my lifetime,” Schoneman said.
“Growing up in a small town, it’s tough to imagine how big the world is. … There are so many things to see and do — plus there’s the paycheck and medical and dental insurance for your family.
He and his wife, Jennifer, live in Port Orchard, Washington. They have four children.
At 39 Schoneman said he’s at a crossroads. “I gotta grow up and get a real job like everybody else,” he said.
Schoneman’s final day with the U.S. Navy was June 30 when he celebrated his retirement with a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

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