Advice for class of 26 parents

YES to both of your points! We had friends and family write encouraging notes on 3x5 cards at our DS's HS graduation party. I would send a few each week with our letters.

We had the death/illness discussion with our DS before he left. Since we did have a very close call with one of his grandfathers, we knew if he wanted to be told (he didn't - only if it was mom, dad or brother) so we weren't worried about telling him the news until after BCT.
Good idea with the 3x5 cards!

I think we'll have that discussion with my ds and extend it beyond BCT to pre-recognition WRT pets. My long-time beloved cat died during 1st semester of 4 degree year and my parents decided not to tell me until I came home from Christmas. They made the right call. I think I know where my ds stands on family/pet illnesses and death but it would be good for him to make those decisions beforehand.
 
wh

Which parent group is the official one? Should I have my mom join the USAFA Parent Resource Group of the Class of 2026 group?

I am a 2026 parent and have joined both. They serve slightly different purposes. Class of 2026 will have specific information for your class events and announcements.

Parents Resource group is all parents and there is a lot of support/help especially recently getting cadets to and from airports during Spring Break.
 
I am a 2026 parent and have joined both. They serve slightly different purposes. Class of 2026 will have specific information for your class events and announcements.

Parents Resource group is all parents and there is a lot of support/help especially recently getting cadets to and from airports during Spring Break.
There will also be a BCT group for each squadron, as well as their assigned squadron. The BCT group is helpful with the "Where's Waldo" search.
 
We organized letters to our DS from many, many people, spread out over BCT. They live for letters. They don't need to be deep, just contact. You're won't get many in return. They are alive, just busy and exhausted.

Also, determine now how you will handle illness/death with your cadet during BCT. Do they need to know that Fluffy died? Or grandparents, friends? It is important to figure out ahead of time.
Great call on the letters. The cadets are cut off from the world so they love to hear the most trivial things happening in the world. At my DDs graduation party we had everyone leave their best dad jokes so we could send one a day. We also gave the play by play of the Olympic Games. One thing to note is the mailroom gets backed up so number your letters. That way they know what order to open them.
 
My advice (Class of '23) is to not worry after that first couple of letters from basic, it can be hard and discouraging. But they get better as time goes on. I also didn't write back about all the things they were missing at home. I just send interesting tidbits, news, jokes, and encouragements.
 
I am a 2026 parent and have joined both. They serve slightly different purposes. Class of 2026 will have specific information for your class events and announcements.

Parents Resource group is all parents and there is a lot of support/help especially recently getting cadets to and from airports during Spring Break.
Just to add to this.....There will also be a FB group for the BCT Squadron and then the Academic Squadron your cadet will be in. I'd recommend joining all of these.

The BCT squadron was very active during BCT (obviously lol) and really helped with camaraderie and to share and point out what pages folks identified their cadet in on WebGuy.

After BCT I have found the class of 25 group to be the most active and helpful.
 
I found our state Parents' Club to be a tremendous resource with great advice during Basic and beyond. Please consider joining your state club - and remember that your state club can't contact you unless your cadet fills out the release form in the appointee packet.

Many appointees don't sign the release and then the Parents' Clubs never get the appointee names and can't contact you, so check with your appointee!

 
Are the groups on FB or ?
Once your child accepts their appointment, you should receive information directly about your local parents group. If you haven’t joined the USAFA parents resource page and the USAFA class of 2026 page I highly recommend it. Once you get the summer squad assignment there will be a Facebook page for that and then they’ll be another for the academic year. Lots of great info in each group. The summer squad page will be super helpful in locating your child in webguy.
 
While Facebook and other platforms are very helpful in building community and finding information, don’t believe everything you read. As a parent of a Preppie who was in the class of Nerfgate at the P (caused entire shutdown of the Base. And note I say my kid was IN the class, not part of the actual occurrence) I am ashamed of the amount of times I would call my Cadet and say- DID YOU KNOW……. only to have him say: there’s completely false information. Stop bugging me. Let me study.

12 more days until the end. (He’s a firstie)

(You can probably find the incident I am referring to online. September of 2018). It was something, and it exploded because of social media).
 
Once your child accepts their appointment, you should receive information directly about your local parents group. If you haven’t joined the USAFA parents resource page and the USAFA class of 2026 page I highly recommend it. Once you get the summer squad assignment there will be a Facebook page for that and then they’ll be another for the academic year. Lots of great info in each group. The summer squad page will be super helpful in locating your child in webguy.
You will receive information about your state parents' group if you appointee signs the waiver in the appointment packet. USAFA won't release cadet names to the state groups unless your cadet allows them to.

If you don't hear from your state group, this might be the reason - but parents can always reach out to the state groups themselves if no waiver is given to the school.
 
Back
Top