This is where I slept.
It’s kinda hard to think about.
Left face. At a normal interval.
I’ve always loved learning and
I always thought that education would be a buffer
between what I was and what I wanted to be.
But when people are poor and there’s instability,
it’s very easy to lose the fire.
I grew up in a poor household for the most part.
Our financial situation just got worse as I grew older.
My dad was suffering from more and more mental health issues.
My mom was fired from her job.
We were eventually evicted from our house
and we became homeless.
And I was left with nothing.
Throughout this whole experience I was always angry,
but I very quickly realized there has to be a solution.
Learning was something I always had.
Something that can never be taken away.
It didn’t matter if I was homeless.
I was going to continue.
I was going to achieve my goal of finishing high school.
So I constantly read.
Anytime I could go to the library and get a book,
I would just read and read and read.
I would stay outside in some bushes,
or under some bridges,
or just nearby somewhere I couldn’t be seen.
I walked probably a mile and a half to maybe two miles on average to get to school.
There was quite a few moments that were really bad.
But I didn’t want to give up.
I knew that if I continued to do well in school,
I could continue to do well in life.
During this time while I was homeless I decided to enlist in the United States Navy.
One I believed it was the logical choice.
It was the choice that would get me a free education.
It would give me a foundation to build the rest of my life on.
Build the life I’ve always wanted.
I’ve always had a love and a fondness for science and physics.
I’ve always been fascinated by it.
I had recruiters (say) like there’s a really special program I can tell you about.
It's called the Nuclear Program.
Being part of a nuclear Navy in particular is a very high honor.
It's a very mentally and emotionally intensive program.
Not only was I interested in math, physics and the nuclear energy side of things,
I was attracted to the challenge.
It tests all of your mental abilities to memorize,
to have attention to detail and understand deep concepts.
I came to love what I was doing.
They provided a stability and a meritocracy that I’ve always sought.
A system where it doesn’t matter where you come from,
it only matters what effort you put in.
For initial height, our initial height is going to be zero,
thats our reference height.
And our initial velocity is also going to be zero.
I can look back and see all the things I’ve done.
There’s always going to be the voice that says, "you’re not actually good enough."
But it's not a matter of that voice existing,
it's a matter of hearing that voice and saying, "No, I am."
I appreciate the privilege to speak this morning,
as we recognize our graduating class from Nuclear Field A School.
I just recently graduated number one in my class from Nuclear Field A School.
And I feel that I am very fortunate to have had all these benefits.
Looking back on the challenges I’ve faced and overcome,
I’ve come to see the purpose of adversity is not to make you weaker or to make it harder,
it's to make you stronger.
My mom still struggles to become self-sufficient.
It's a battle that continues on.
However, she’s very proud of my achievements.
She is constantly espousing about how proud she is to have me as a son.
My father is incredibly proud of what I’ve done.
He’s overcome most of his mental health issues and he’s become a very stable and responsible parent.
You cannot have a good society if you don’t have education.
You can't have a society that functions and
is respectful of every other human being if you do not have education.
Education is the greatest equalizer in the world
and the Navy is just another form of education.
(Applause) Speaker: "Electronics Technician Third Class Thomas Schwab." (Applause)
My name is Thomas Schwab.
I am an ETN 3 in the United States Navy.