Many parents remember that bittersweet moment when their first-born cheerfully waved goodbye and trotted off across campus to begin their freshman year in college.
Sweet, because all that hard work and sacrifice was finally paying off. Bitter, because their "baby" was leaving the nest.
Now imagine how you would feel if that campus was the U.S. Naval Academy in faraway Maryland. Your "baby" boy is not only a college man, he's actually in the Navy.
And ... he belongs to Uncle Sam.
That's what happened to James and Latese Rowell of Little Rock when they dropped off their son, Jacob, at Annapolis for his plebe year in 2013.
Flash-forward a few years and it's all sweet again. Midshipman 1st Class Rowell is approaching graduation and the Rowells are presidents of the U.S. Naval Academy Parents Club of Arkansas.
But the memories of "I-Day" (induction day) remain strong for the Rowells. That was when their Episcopal Collegiate School honors graduate mingled with his new classmates for the first time. At one point, James remembers, everyone was herded off somewhere.
"When they came back," James says, "they had their plebe uniforms on and huge duffle bags with all their gear."
"And they were being yelled at by detailers," Latese adds about the upperclassmen trainers.
"They form up in front of Bancroft Hall and take their oath," James says. "They get about a half hour with us and then it's, 'Bye-bye, parents.'"
Latese sighs and remembers, "Then they close those big giant doors and you hear ... boom!"
That iconic and symbolic signal is when the reality of what has just happened hits many parents.
"I consider myself to be a very strong woman," says Latese, a nurse at West Little Rock Women's Center, "and I'm not an overly emotional mom. But you would have thought I lost my arm. And I had every confidence in Jacob that he would do well. I didn't think I would be that way."
"And her sadness was immediate, too," adds James, a draftsman at Little Rock's Cameron Valves. "The drive home was quiet and sad all the way."
Fortunately, for newbie moms and dads who could use the advice of experienced hands, there are built-in support groups in the state service academies parents' clubs. Nothing beats the advice of those who've been through it before you.
The main social event for the parents and students each year is the All Service Academies Holiday Celebration, held when the students are home for winter break. There are currently 96 young Arkansas men and women in the five service academies.
It's the Navy's turn to host this year, and that means the Rowells are responsible for organizing the celebration, to be held Dec. 30 at The Little Rock Club. Latese expects around 150 attendees, perhaps more.
Even to the casual observer, the Rowells seem to be an easy-going, well-organized team -- the perfect couple to coordinate such an event. They should be, they've had practice since junior high.
James Rowell and Latese Guillory met in the band at Fuller Junior High School in 1987 and dated all through their years at Mills High School. After graduation in 1989, they tried a long-distance relationship between the University of Central Arkansas in Conway (Latese) and the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville (James).
That didn't work out, so the couple moved back to Little Rock and got married in 1992. The ensuing years brought Jacob, daughter Dara (now a sophomore in Fayetteville in chemical engineering), and Jackson, who is in the fourth grade at Baker Elementary School and appears to be a budding stand-up comedian.
"Jackson asked for a Yo' Mama Joke Book for his birthday," Latese says, arching an eyebrow.
How did the Rowells get roped into being presidents and in charge? Both laugh, and James admits, "That's a good word for it."
Latese says they never considered themselves leaders, but rather "helper bees."
"My thing is," Latese explained about the parents club, "if someone else is leading it, I definitely want to be there to assist. But this was the year that Jacob was graduating and nobody was stepping up. All I could think about was that we're going to have to do it."
Fortunately, other experienced "helper bees" joined in.
"We've had great people who have done it before who are helping us a lot," Latese says. "We couldn't do it without them."
This year's Holiday Celebration promises to be even more memorable because the Rowells have arranged for an A-list speaker in Vice Adm. Luke McCollum. The 1983 academy graduate was most recently vice president of Wal-Mart's logistics services in Bentonville. In July, President Barack Obama appointed him chief of the Navy Reserve and commander, Navy Reserve Force. He assumed his new duties in September.
In addition, the master of ceremonies will be Marine helicopter pilot Capt. Zachary Janosky, a 2003 graduate of Little Rock Catholic High School and the Naval Academy Class of 2007.
For the record, Latese reports that Jacob recently drew his service assignment and got what he was hoping for -- Marine aviation. His dad says Jacob has his eye on helicopters.
Besides dinner and a speaker, the Holiday Celebration will include toasts, salutes and a moving ceremony remembering America's prisoners of war and those missing in action.
Finally, as she does each year, Sharen Tibbs (a past president of Arkansas' U.S. Air Force Academy Parents Association) has put together a video honoring this year's 21 seniors.
"It's a big deal," Latese notes. "That'll be kind of emotional."
And there may be bittersweet tears again. This time, their senior "babies" aren't simply headed off to the academies, they're headed out to defend America.
Information and reservations for the All Service Academies Holiday Celebration is available through the Rowells at [email protected].
High Profile on 12/18/2016