Opportunities abound at the Service Academies

I was enjoying the Navy win over Lehigh testerday, when they had a blurb on about thirty-eight (38) Medal of Honor recipients visiting USNA. I got to meet and talk to one once, and was thankful that I got the chance, so I texted my DS. Did you meet any of them? He responded with "Yes, I met all of them, personally."

I am at a loss for words. Thank you, USNA.

Yes indeed. Very cool! Nice for the Academy to invite these old and young warriors. They deserve to be honored for the rest of their lives. We will never know what triggered them to act in the moment. Neither did they. But what is for sure, it was the combination of their character, training, their instinct to help their comrades, survive, and the hand of God. Their inspiration is immortal. Likewise to those warriors who are not with us, who perished in the act of bravery and selflessness. We wish them well to live a long healthy prosperous lives and a generational remembrance. My DS got a Medal of Honor coin from one of these warriors. It will be one of his best challenger coins he received and earned.

Every MOH awardee or recipient (never “winners”) I have ever met, has always said something along the lines of:

- “It was my duty.”
- “I did what anyone else would have done.”
- “It was what I was trained to do.”
- “They would have done the same for me.”
- “I didn’t think about it at the time. I just knew something had to be done.”

Is it strange that my DS enjoys it so much at USNA, that I think he is only coming home for Thanksgiving to appease my wife and me?
On the one hand - I am so glad that he is having a great time there - but on the other hand he should miss us, right ?

I mean, we never beat him. Much.

THParent said:

Is it strange that my DS enjoys it so much at USNA, that I think he is only coming home for Thanksgiving to appease my wife and me?
On the one hand - I am so glad that he is having a great time there - but on the other hand he should miss us, right ?

I mean, we never beat him. Much.

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In the same boat (see what I did there??)! DS is loving it. Of course he misses his friends and family. But he has also made new friends (and family) I told him just yesterday, what a blessing it is to US that he is so content. He is not ALWAYS happy, but those things roll off his back. NBD. You just 'get through it'.

I reflected on his first full month of school, and it was MORE than I could ever have imagined:

Senator McCains funeral, actually being a part of it.
9/11 memorials and remembrances like no other.
Listening to and meeting MOH recipients (just wow!).
Participating in Honor Flight at BWI (just wow!)
Another speaker who lost limbs (name escapes me), but is SO motivational!
Marches through town and onto the field for football games, and all the patriotism that's involved.

Well said, THANK YOU USNA for all the amazing opportunities. These are all things that we personally didn't think about during his application process. USNA is above and beyond what we ever imagined. And DS feels the same. So BLESSED.