Before setting out to realize dreams years in the making on Wednesday morning, Air Force Academy cadets stopped for family photos and hugs. 

At the quiet overlook providing scenic views of the campus, the parents of preparatory school students said they hoped the last year of intense training would ensure success during the weeks ahead. Over the next six weeks, cadets will be pushed to their limits and allowed little contact with their families.

“She has never been more ready,” said Jason Lindsay, after dropping off his daughter, Emma Lindsay. 

As a Falcon Foundation Scholar, Lindsay spent the last year at Randolph-Macon Academy in Virginia, in a program that requires the scholars to get up at 4 a.m. to work out. 

While she had scholarships to other schools, such as Arizona State, she turned those down and spent a year in prep school to attend the Academy, her father explained. Those who apply to the Air Force Academy can be offered a Falcon Foundation Scholarship with the option to attend four different preparatory schools.

When Lindsay commissions, she will be following a family military tradition that goes back to her ancestor Gen. Nathanael Greene, who served as former President George Washington’s right-hand man during the Revolutionary War, he said, noting his family has served in every conflict since then. 

Likewise, Cadet Destiny Omeire is following in her family’s footsteps after a year at the Air Force Academy Prep School, located on the Air Force Academy’s campus.

Omeire’s mom, Capt. Jennifer Ohiri-Danielson, an Army contracting officer, expected her daughter to lead after going through the physical, mental and emotional rigors of basic training last summer. 

“Hopefully, she can transfer that experience to the newbies,” she said. Omeire will complete basic training again this summer as she works toward a career as a physician assistant. 

But not all cadets are following family members into the armed forces. 

Cadet Michael Foley said he got interested during the spring of his junior year at a college fair and expects to pursue a career as a pilot.  

“I went on a flight simulator once, that’s all I needed,” said Foley, who attended Portsmouth Abbey School, a boarding high school on the East Coast. 

As he prepared to say goodbye to his family, ahead of six weeks of basic training, he was under no illusions. 

“I think it’s going to suck, but it will be a good suck,” he said.  

The newly arrived commandant, Col. Brandon Tellez, offered some brief words of encouragement ahead of administering the oath of office to a group of the 1,100 basic cadets expected to arrive this week. The class will graduate in 2030. 

“You are here for an incredibly powerful purpose. This world has wars, and it needs guardians,” he said. “For this country, this is a proud, exciting day because you guys said, ‘send me.’”

This story has been updated to correct the date.