Midshipmen sail into Freeport

Dressed in his summer whites, U.S. Naval Academy midshipman Kyle McCullough, 21, of Freeport, made his way through the crowd on the Esplanade off Woodcleft Avenue, also known as the Nautical Mile.

McCullough was excited, he said, to welcome the officers and trainees who sailed from Annapolis, Md., to Freeport as a part of the Academy’s Squadron Training Program. For the past 19 years, about 50 midshipmen have sailed in five boats from Maryland to the village as part of their sea training. They arrived in Freeport last Thursday at 11:15 a.m. and left on Sunday around the same time.

Midshipmen are future naval officers. Their arrival in Freeport has become a much-anticipated tradition. The Chamber of Commerce provides them with “chamber bucks,” redeemable at local eateries, and the sailors are free to use at the Freeport Recreation Center. They stay at the Freeport Inn and Marina.

McCullough, a 2013 Freeport High School graduate, said the midshipmen’s visit during his freshmen year of high school inspired him to apply to the Naval Academy. Every year during high school, he said, he looked forward to meeting and greeting the seamen-in-training.

“Freeport does such a fantastic job in taking care of them, the midshipmen while they’re here,” McCullough said. “So I thought I’d throw on the whites and officially greet them to my town. I never want to pass up the opportunity to show people around Freeport because it’s such a unique place on Long Island.”

Mayor Robert Kennedy, himself a naval veteran, was also on hand to welcome the midshipmen as they docked their sailboats. Like McCullough, he too eagerly anticipates their arrival each year, he said.

“We are very happy to have the Navy back here,” Kennedy said. “I have a special place in my heart for them since I am an ex-sailor. Seeing them brings back some of the best memories of my life, [while in the] United States Navy.”

On Friday and Saturday, the midshipmen led tours of their sailboats for visitors. Each boat can accommodate up to 10 sailors and is equipped with a small kitchen and bathroom. Midshipman first class Joshua Looney said that the boat can begin to feel a little cramped after a few days at sea, but sailing up and down the East Coast is the experience of a lifetime.

“Who would have thought that I would have learned how to sail?” Looney chuckled.

Midshipmen receive full tuition, room and board, and medical and dental care while at the Naval Academy. In return, they must serve a minimum of five years of active-duty service in the Navy upon graduation.

Most of the midshipmen were ages 20 to 26, from different parts of the United States. Midshipman first class Cory Buckwell, 26, was from Sierra Madre, Calif.; midshipman first class Jordan Jones, 21, from Colorado Springs, Colo.; and Looney, from Waldorf, Md. They strolled through Sea Breeze Park to Rachel’s Waterside Grill on the Nautical Mile for lunch on Friday. The three talked about their evening plans — miniature golf, a few drinks and a stroll on the Mile before lights out.

“I don’t know what we will do tonight,” Jones said. “But this is a break for us because when we get back to Maryland, we have to start getting ready for classes to start.”

After ordering at Rachel’s, they chatted about their senior year at the Academy. The three were eager, they said, to return to classes and training for the upcoming fall and spring semesters, in anticipation of graduation next year.

“I want to work with the submarines,” Buckwell said. “It’s going to be one of those jobs you have to love, and I know that I’m going to love doing that sort of work—under the sea for months at a time sounds fun.”

After lunch, the three returned to the sailboats, where Jones and Buckwell took over duty for the other midshipmen. The rest of the afternoon, they chatted with visitors about their experiences at sea and the training that they undergo at the Naval Academy.

“This is my way to serve, and I want to serve to give back,” Jones said. “This school gives us the best opportunity to set us up for anything we want to do.”

David Auld, of Franklin Square, hung out with his two sons, Quinn, 12 and Gunnar, 7, on the sailboats. He watched as his boys excitedly toured the boats and curiously asked the cadets an array of questions about their experiences.

“The guys are pretty cool, and the boats are cool, too,” Auld said.

On Saturday, the village hosted a barbecue and invited the midshipmen. By the afternoon, the sailors were back on their boats, preparing for the trip back to Annapolis.

The midshipmen are scheduled to return next August.