USAFA Summer Seminar - Family Style

mommahedg

USAFA Class of '21 Parent
5-Year Member
Joined
Mar 10, 2017
Messages
137
For those of you fortunate enough to receive an invitation to attend the USAFA Summer Seminar, may I suggest that (if at all possible) you make this a family vacation trip. Even though the SS attendees haven't been notified yet, it's never too early to start planning a trip to beautiful Colorado Springs.

Our family drove out 3 days before DS was to report for the SS week. This gave him time to get used to the altitude and also gave us some time to tour the campus. A good friend of ours who graduated from USAFA recommended that we view the campus as "just tourists". If DS continued on and received an appointment, he said we would view the academy in a different light. (He was right!) DH took DS white water rafting the day before SS began (watch Groupon for a good deal). The SS drop off day was an exciting and anxious day for all of us (DS's younger brother is only 14 months younger, so it was tough on him too). The USAFA staff was amazing (and gave away lots of freebies)!! As parents and families started to say goodbye, we were informed to stick around and enjoy a more in depth tour given by rising seniors. I'm so glad we did!! We got to go "behind the wall" and tour areas that the general public doesn't see (we also caught a glimpse or two of DS getting his gear, etc.).

The next several days were spent touring the fantastic surrounding area. DH and younger DS did a mountain bike drive down Pikes Peak (another Groupon deal). The little towns around COS are like diamonds, just waiting to be discovered.

Please plan on being back to the campus for the Thursday night family meal. Your SS cadet will get info on getting tickets for your family. We arrived 2 hours before the meal and witnessed Retreat (a goosebump giving, tear inducing ceremony). Then, it was a great moment of reconnection with our DS and off to Mitch's we went. DS was allowed to leave with us after dinner.

We stayed two more days in COS to see some of the sights that DS wanted to see as well. The Olympic Training Center is a must see! Now that DS is a Doolie, it is nice to be able to go for a visit and be familiar with the area. So...good luck to those that are waiting on an invitation to SS and get those comfortable shoes ready to go. :)
 
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