Jake Schlise '24 Recruiting Profile

Being born into a military family is not easy. People sometimes take for granted the sacrifices made by not only active-duty service members, but also their families. In my 16 years, I have moved nine times, including two moves overseas. It wasn’t until recently that I began to see the gifts this military life has given me, instead of the angst that tended to follow me.

We did a 20 month tour in Singapore when I was in first and second grade and a two-year tour in Bahrain when I was in sixth and seventh grade. During both tours my parents did not hesitate to take me and my younger sister with them traveling. I visited a chunk of the middle east, Australia, southern Asia, and western Europe. Even though most of these travels took place when I was either too young to remember or too angsty to care, the cultures still left an imprint on me that I will never forget. I will always remember how I fixed an elderly woman’s straw roof in impoverished Cambodia, or when I rode an elephant in Thailand before ever riding a horse or pony. I met people overseas from all different backgrounds, many of whom I will probably remember forever. My mom always told me I don’t see color or nationality and religious differences when I walk into a room. I’m attracted to people that treat me and others nicely, that like to work out, or row crew and swim like I like to do, regardless of how they look. I really didn’t understand what she was saying until returning to the U.S. from Bahrain in 2019 and watching the racial tension that has been unfolding here. I should say, the tension I am now able to see, but people have been living with all their lives.  This was something I was never exposed to.

Moving, it was hard, always having to say goodbye to my friends too soon, but for me I always tried to believe there was a bright light on the horizon, and tried my best to keep my chin up, knowing that a new school, state or even country brought with it endless possibilities. The military lifestyle also taught me how to maintain my friendships from miles away. I have a best friend in Madrid, one in Hawaii, and another in Vienna, VA. I’ve been able to maintain the relationships that meant the most to me and am proud of that.

I believe all of the moving also made me a hard-working student and athlete. Every time I went to a new school, I had to figure out where they were academically, and either catch up or repeat classes. I had to compete with kids who have been training together since they were young. I learned to work harder. I would work out in addition to practice. In the winter season, I would swim for the Varsity Swim team and still meet with my crew team for their workouts. My winter existence consists of many ‘two a days.’

Perhaps the most important thing that came from my time overseas was the gift of being able to read and write characters and speak mandarin. My mom enrolled me in Chinese class when I was in first and second grade at the Singapore American school. I don’t remember much from the initial classes, but apparently my mom thought I had potential. When we traveled back to the United States at the beginning of my third grade year, she did everything in her power to find a way for me to continue to learn. Eventually she found a retired Taiwanese couple, the Wangs, who were fluent in both English and Chinese. For the next three years they would come to our house once a week to spend an hour teaching me Chinese. They would always leave me with hours of homework to do, either writing each character 50 times, or filling out worksheets. After we moved to Bahrain I thought I would be free, but our meetings switched to twice a week over facetime. I stayed online with the Wangs, but outside the classroom until we moved to Norfolk for my eighth-grade year. Once I got back into the classroom, I started to see the gift the Wangs had given me. I have continued to be tutored by the Wangs twice a week, and in addition, have been able to take Chinese in school for three years now.  I am more accepting of learning Chinese. Maybe because I now get on a call with the Wangs and we just talk about different things in Mandarin. I’m able to hold a conversation and they still help me learn new topics. They have even told me I have a Taiwanese accent.

Now, being near the end of my journey of being a military child, following my parents every 18 months to two years, I can see the gifts this lifestyle has given me. I will never be able to say that I have a true hometown, or that I’ve had a friend since I was two, but I see now I have so much more and I really did try to make the best of each stage of my life, even when my hormones were trying to prevent it. I believe all I’ve been exposed to has set me up for success and I’m excited about what the future holds and how I can take my gifts and make the world better.