Contact Your Recruit
Due to the structured nature of recruit training, your recruit will not be able to contact you regularly. Your recruit is given a short phone call upon arrival to let you know that he or she arrived safely. Recruits may get a phone call halfway through training. Recruits' primary means of communicating with family and friends is via the United States Postal Service. We highly encourage you to write your recruit as often as you like. Recruits will receive your letters throughout the week but can only respond to them during "holiday routine" on Sunday mornings and federal holidays.
Emergency? Contact your recruit through the American Red Cross.
In case of a family emergency, contact the American Red Cross (click on the graphic above) to assist in passing an emergency message to your recruit. The link above will provide directions for this.
If you are looking for graduation information, click here.
Download the MWR App
Frequently Asked Questions
Should you have any questions, please be sure to check the FAQ's here.
Directions
Naval Station (NAVSTA) Great Lakes and RTC are located approximately 35 miles north of Chicago, in the far northeastern corner of Illinois. The Wisconsin state line is approximately 16 miles north of NAVSTA/RTC.
Located on the shores of Lake Michigan, Naval Station Great Lakes is home to the U.S. Navy's only boot camp. NAVSTA Great Lakes is also home to 19 of the Navy's technical service schools. Since its founding in 1911, the Naval Station has prepared men and women for duty in Naval service.
If you are utilizing a Global Positioning System, please input the following address:
Welcome Center Address/GPS:
2650 Green Bay Road Great Lakes, IL 60088
(Do not use generic terms such as Recruit Training Command or Naval Station Great Lakes)
From the south (Chicago)
Take the Kennedy expressway I-90/I-94 West, towards Wisconsin. At the I-90/I-94 split, stay to the right and take the Edens Expressway I-94 North towards Wisconsin. Take Exit 29 (left) for US 41 North for approximately 12 miles. Turn right on Buckley Road (IL 137 East). Turn left on Green Bay (IL 131 North). The Recruit Family Welcome Center is located inside the NEX shopping complex.
From the north (Wisconsin)
Take I-94 South. Exit (left) for US 41 South just beyond the Wisconsin/Illinois border. Continue south on Route 41 for approximately 15 miles. Turn left on Buckley Road (IL 137 East). Turn left on Green Bay (IL 131 North). The Recruit Family Welcome Center is located inside the NEX shopping complex.
For questions, comments or concerns, please contact RTC via phone or email. Before making contact, please be sure to check the Frequently Asked Questions page as you are very likely to find the answer to your question here, saving you time.
Contacting RTC by phone
The public information number is 847-688-2405. From the main menu, you will have options for Legal, Events, Security, Religious Ministries, and Public Affairs. Please make the appropriate choice in order to get you to the right place to have your questions addressed.
Contacting RTC via email
- For legal matters (SEPS, FIT, RCU, medical hold) please call 847-688-4949 ext 247 and leave a voicemail. Someone will return your call as soon as possible.
- For security matters (base access, driving on base, lost and found), please email: rtcsecurity@navy.mil
- For general information or if you are a member of the media, please email: grlk_rtc_pao@us.navy.mil
- For technical issues, broken links or page errors, please contact the NSTC Webmaster: nstc_webmaster@navy.mil
Requesting a sponsor
If you are in receipt of order to RTC (staff, instructor, RDC, etc...) and need a sponsor, please send an email to: rtc.sponsor@navy.mil