WEST POINT, N.Y. (October 15, 2015) - Roughly 800 family members and friends joined their U.S. Military Academy at West Point Cadets for the weekend of Oct. 9-11 for Parents Weekend, which is designed to give families and friends a chance to see what campus is like through a variety of activities and generally includes a football game.
Parents Weekend began last year because at most colleges and universities, it is an integral part of college life and gives parents an idea of what life is like at a particular college.
West Point often has events where parents visit, such as Plebe (freshman) Parent Weekend in March, and events that highlight milestones in a Cadet's career like the Ring Ceremony, but Parents Weekend is strictly for Cadets and their families.
Parents attended informative briefings from instructors, talked to tactical officers, toured West Point, visited the barracks and viewed a physical education demonstration at the Indoor Obstacle Course Test.
During this time, Cadets had abbreviated classes and were granted extended walking privileges, but needed to be back at West Point by Taps. Many parents dined with their Cadets at the Mess Hall for dinner Oct. 9.
Class of 2017 Cadet Levi Rosdhal, a mechanical engineering major, was visited by his parents, Rhonda and Keith, and his aunt and uncle, Cadu and Jennifer Medina, who traveled from Prescott, Arizona. "We just got in last night," Rhonda said. "We've never been here before. We spoke to some of his instructors. It's great being able to spend time with Levi and go to an Army Football game."
Class of 2019 Cadet Ethan Palelei also enjoyed spending time with his grandparent Peggy Hernandez, sister Cadina Palelei and mom Catherine. Palelei is an offensive lineman for Army, so the Duke-Army Football game was definitely on the agenda. A little sibling rivalry may have been the reason Ethan decided to attend West Point. "My brother graduated from the Naval Academy, so I decided I wanted to go to West Point," Ethan said. "He graduated, but he went into the Marines." His mom said she was a little surprised he decided to go to West Point, but his grandmother had a different idea. "He's very intelligent and we are a football family," Hernandez said. "I wanted the best education he could get and you can't get any better here. You get the best of everything and they can go anywhere."
Another plebe, Class of 2019 Cadet Isaiah Meuchelboeck from San Antonio, enjoyed spending time with his parents Peter and Lottie. His dad is a retired Air Force Senior Master Sgt., but Isaiah decided on West Point. "I just thought there were a lot of opportunities here and it's different," Meuchelboeck said. "There are a lot of good people here, so being a plebe isn't all that bad. A lot of my friends think being a plebe is a lot worse than it is, and yet I have gotten a couple of my friends interested about going to a military academy. I have two brothers and two sisters. One sibling went into the Air Force and the other is in the National Guard."
His mom Lottie said that he is used to the military family and was not surprised he decided to attend West Point. "We were excited and it was his choice," Lottie said. "He is service oriented so it was not a surprise. He went to private schools, but because his family has military backgrounds he was in that culture early."
Related Links:
U.S. Military Academy at West Point website
U.S. Army Garrison West Point website
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