AFROTC

Last nights award ceremony for AFJROTC was great! Seeing the Colonel getting choked up when talking about how proud he is of this group of kids really was something Ü and seeing all of the awards they've earned and hearing about their community service projects and how they made such an impact made one feel very proud about their child and the group as a whole. This AFROTC program at this particular high school has made my son take pride in himself, the corps and most of all his studies. He's an A student, I knew that he always has had that potential, it's him wanting to be the best he can be- and the corps has helped to bring that out in him (I really believe it). He was beaming from ear to ear when his name was read off for the award of"Outstanding Flight", that right there is a major item. Everyone stood up and applauded the group of kids from that flight group. I didn't realize how hard they really had to work at earning that award until the Colonel read off what they did- WOW is all I have to say to that! Our son is also a member of the Kitty Hawk Air Society which is an aerospace honor society- talk about cool! This was a major accomplishment from the boy "who" hated middle school. Not only did he have to maintain a certain grade point average he also had to get his teachers to write letters of recommendation as to why he should be accepted as a member of the honors group, plus he had to write a paper on an assigned subject and go through and interview process all subject to being voted upon- WOW! What a tough process to go through in being accepted. OH and this all had to be accomplished in a set time frame too, sheesh talk about pressure!

When you get to high school things change, all off a sudden the kids are looking for acceptance from their peers. It's finding a group that you feel comfortable with and them accepting you for who you are as a person. High school is tough when you look at it from that angle. I truly do believe that our son has found his place and his people. Seeing all of the young people applauding one another and the pride they took in themselves put tears in the eyes of ALL of the parents. Hearing about their accomplishments made you think about what good people are running this program and how they are having a huge positive impact on our children. Is ROTC for all children? Certainly not, just like Drama, Band, Football and Cheer Leading isn't for everyone. But once your child finds his or her niche, support them and help them to be the best person that they can be!

I'm still smiling about last night and better yet so is our son. It's so refreshing to see teenagers proud of the good that they have done and the positive impact that they have on one another and their community.