HARLINGEN — Aspirations don’t require substance.
In other words, you can have your dream, but until you achieve that dream, you don’t know for sure if that’s what you want.
Grant Drabek, left tackle for the Harlingen High School varsity football team, now has a better understanding of his plans to become a U.S. Naval Officer. That after spending a week at the Naval Academy Summer Seminar. He’s in the final stages of his application to the academy.
He and 800 other students spent a week at the leadership seminar last month. The students were “candidates” who, like Drabek, have applied to attend the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
The seminar taught him and his fellow candidates what to expect if they’re accepted to the prestigious military institution.
“When you get there you look at the place and you’re like ‘My God! This place is amazing!’” said Grant, 17, speaking as though he were reliving the moment.
He spoke with even more zest about the rigorous and exciting activities of the week. The candidates woke every day at 5 a.m. and spent about two hours engaged in all sorts of physical fitness — “pushups and situps, everything you can think of,” he said.
“By the end of it, probably about 7 o’clock in the morning, you’re pretty dead,” he said.
But not dead enough to dampen their anticipation for the rest of the day.
“After that, we would go and we would start working our academic workshops and you get a feel for what you’re actually going to be doing there if you attend,” he said.
He took numerous classes during the week and even tried his hands at operating a destroyer, a fast, long-distance warship which escorts larger ships. It was a simulator, of course, but real enough to give him a rush as he spoke of it.
“I was having the time of my life, captaining a destroyer,” he said.
That experience sort of tied in with his hope to be a surface warfare officer, or SWO, serving in the top levels of a destroyer. There, he might find himself engaged in a variety of duties such as steering, reading sonar and working the throttles.
He took a variety of classes that week, including guided missile defense and damage control. And then there was Sea Trial — 10 hours of grueling physical activities which built teamwork as well as stamina. They played tug of war, they raced inflatable zodiacs, and navigated muddy trenches.
And through it all were the many lessons in leadership.
“They always took time to talk to us and answer our questions,” he said.
“They really encourage leadership and taking the bull by the horns and being the difference maker when it comes to team events.
“When we’d hit a roadblock we’d just keep pushing. That was a huge part of it, too.”
What does it take for Naval Academy seminar consideration?
Before the grueling, life-changing experiences at the summer seminar comes a grueling application process.
Grant Drabek, 17, said the seminar received 10,000 applications but only 800 were selected.
How did he make it?
Certainly there were many reasons, but the first one he considered was his experience as a leader.
“I’m captain of the football team,” said Grant, who is also a member of National Honor Society and Parent Teacher Student Association.
The website for the Naval Academy Summer Program says it’s offered only to young men and women who have just completed their junior year of high school.
Candidates must meet the following criteria, states the website:
Unmarried, not pregnant and have no legal obligation to support a child, children or other individual(s);
Superior high school performance to include: GPA, class standing, and/or strong PSAT, SAT, or ACT results (test scores not required, but recommended);
Demonstrated achievement in athletics and extracurricular activities, especially demonstrating leadership potential in these areas;
Physically fit and in good health with normal vision (20/40 or correctable to 20/20);
Positive attitude, self-disciplined, and of good moral character.
Note: U.S. Citizenship is not a requirement, however candidates seeking an appointment to the Naval Academy need to be U.S. citizens by the time they are inducted in the Brigade of Midshipmen.
“We will automatically process all summer seminar applicants as applicants to the Naval Academy upon completion of the Summer Seminar selection process.
“The United States Naval Academy Summer Seminar is a fast-paced, six-day experience for high achievers who have completed their junior year in high school.
“Summer Seminar teaches you about life at the Naval Academy, where academics, athletics, and professional training play equally important roles in developing our nation’s leaders. If you think that you may be interested in pursuing an appointment to one of the nation’s service academies and serving your country as an officer, you should seriously consider attending the Naval Academy’s Summer Seminar.”
