Maratime Acadamy and Credentials

To be able to work on any ships on the Great Lakes you have to have the right paperwork. You wouldn’t believe the hoops you have to jump thru. First I need to thank the Director of the Great Lakes Maritime Academy RADM Jerry Achenbach USMS a. Also for Jerry for helping me to get my resume to the ship owners. You must have a TWIC card, that is the government background check, and the MMC card. Plus you must have a physical and drug test. There is a good deal of work and cost to get all set up. I now have all that groundwork done and am waiting for my MMC card to arrive. After that we will be ready to sail.

First post

Lets start with an introduction, my name is Mark Potter.
I am currently a student at the Great Lakes Culinary Institute.
I'm in my final semester and if all goes as planned, when I finish I will be serving on one of the Great Lakes freighters.

But first I need to thank a few people. First the Lord God for life itself.
Next my wife Brenda, without who, I am nothing. She has stood by me thru thick thin and thinner, besides Jesus she is the most important thing in the world to me.
She is my life, my love, my joy. Thank you dear for standing alongside me all the years.

Then there are the Chefs at school, Chef Fred, Chef Mike, Chef Lucy, Chef Bob, Chef Jim, Chef Joel, Chef Shawn and all the others Chefs and instructors. They have all been a insperation to me. All the instruction and care they presented to the students in all the aspects of each class.

As I finish up my time at the Great Lakes Culinary Institute, I look back on all that I have learned and look forward to the challenges that await me.