Service academies offer much, demand more

Hallie Koeppen, 19, is following in her big sister’s footsteps.

Make that bootsteps. Rigorous bootsteps.

Koeppen is a freshman at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. Her days are regimented, almost down to the minute: highly structured meal times, tough classes, tutoring sessions, work-outs, military training and soccer practice.

Kimberly Koeppen is a junior studying biology. The Koeppens are two of about 95 young men and women from Idaho among the thousands in the five U.S. service academies; the U.S. Military Academy at West Point; the Air Force Academy; the Naval Academy; the Coast Guard Academy; and the Merchant Marine Academy.

For making excellent choices as teenagers, getting good grades, being physically fit, scoring well on tests and excelling as leaders, these young men and women are rewarded with a free education at some of the country’s finest institutions.

They sacrifice four years away from their families — getting little more than five weeks at home a year. They have limited social lives, with most of their spare time dedicated to homework, military training and required extracurricular activities and sports.

And, when the cadets and midshipmen graduate, they’ll have a five-year commitment to the military to serve.

Most are home in Idaho for Christmas break and will celebrate — and try to find a few worthy recruits — at the 14th Annual All Service Academy Ball Wednesday in Boise.

The formal ball is a chance for students and their families to have a little fun and to recognize all they’ve accomplished.

Here’s a look at some of the young Idahoans at academies:

AIR FORCE ACADEMY AT COLORADO SPRINGS

Hallie Koeppen graduated from Eagle High School in 2010, a standout who took advanced classes and played soccer. She initially took a scholarship at the University of Utah.

But on a break, she sat down with her parents, Dave and Kay Koeppen. She told them she wasn’t challenged and wanted a change. She wanted to follow her sister into the Air Force Academy.

“Growing up, they were constantly challenged,” Kay Koeppen said.

Hallie Koeppen plays soccer on the academy team, which grants her a bit more freedom than most freshmen get. First-year students have rules for everything: how to sit and eat, how fast to chew, requirements to run on stone strips between buildings, to carry backpacks in their left hand, to study with their room doors open, to make their beds to specific measurements.

Koeppen thrives on the busy schedule and the discipline.

“I love the academy,” she said. “So I could probably go all year-round.”

When Koeppen graduates in 2015, she’ll be a second lieutenant. She’s studying management and hopes also to minor in Russian.

MILITARY ACADEMY AT WEST POINT, N.Y.

Chase Cappo knew after Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that he wanted to serve his country. The 21-year-old from Eagle High School will soon graduate from the country’s oldest and most storied service academy.

“I’m a Christian man. I figured I could meet good friends that can keep me in line and I can have a positive effect on other people who will be future leaders,” Cappo said. “I also have a strong desire to honor my mom and dad.”

Cappo’s brother, 16-year-old Cyrus, is planning to follow him to West Point.

Cappo initially planned on playing football at West Point, but he lost so much weight in training for the military and football, he decided on boxing. Cappo is the president of the academy’s boxing team.

It’s been a long, hard four years Cappo said.

If he ever felt like “slacking,” Cappo said, he was reminded of legends like William Tecumseh Sherman, Douglas MacArthur and H. Norman Schwarzkopf who graduated before him.

“If they said ‘Hey, Chase, you have to start over tomorrow,’ call me crazy, I would still do it,” Cappo said. “I absolutely love it, but I frequently don’t like it.”

Cappo, an American politics major, plans to join an armored unit stationed in the West when he graduates. He hopes to become a leader of young soldiers.

“I was afraid walking into West Point that I would become the person that I am, a machine,” he said. “Now that I am on the other side of things, I can’t imagine the time I wasted and the opportunities I’ve missed because of the lack of self-discipline.”

NAVAL ACADEMY AT ANNAPOLIS, MD.

Cody Rome, 21, may soon find himself on a submarine. The 2008 Eagle High graduate is about to graduate with his degree in engineering from the Naval Academy.

Even on Christmas break, Rome couldn’t slack off. A member of the academy’s cross-country team, he had to stay in shape for his mid-distance events. But he did get to sleep in and eat home-cooked food, a luxury.

At the academy, his day typically starts at 6:30 a.m. and ends early the next morning after hours of classes, military functions, workouts and studying.

“I knew it was going to be hard,” Rome said.

Rome said he was inspired by his father’s service in the Army. Toni Rome, Cody’s mom, is proud of her son’s accomplishments.

“He’s doing so well,” she said. “He’s doing things his friends wouldn’t dream about doing.”

Such as a summer spent on a 13-day submarine trip to Japan, getting firsthand experience.

Another advantage is the top-notch instruction, paid for by the military.

“We wouldn’t have been able to afford the education he’s getting now,” Toni Rome said.

Naval Academy students usually associate the Gem State with potatoes and blue turf, Cody Rome said, and kids from Idaho are something of a novelty.

NAVAL ACADEMY

Amanda Ragan, 19, of Boise, is used to being the only woman in her class. The 2010 Mountain View graduate is a sophomore studying mechanical engineering. Men outnumber women four to one, she said.

She heard about the academy from her high school math teacher, who had a daughter there.

“It is very challenging,” said Ragan. “It’s finding a balance, and finding time to do everything — academics, military training and physical training.”

In her first year, Ragan wasn’t allowed to watch TV or listen to music. Her second year is bringing more freedom.

“Knowing I can listen to music is such a relief,” she said.

Her ultimate goal is to become a jet pilot in the Navy or Marine Corps. She’ll graduate in 2014.

She’s thrilled with the equivalent of a full-ride scholarship to one of the top engineering schools.

“It is definitely worth the work. It is definitely going to pay off in the long run,” Ragan said. “Mom and Dad are really proud of me.”

COAST GUARD ACADEMY,NEW LONDON, CONN.

Tony Buzzini, 20, spent the summer on a Coast Guard ship Eagle, getting to sail into New York Harbor in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty.

The freshman midshipman — one of at least three Idahoans at the academy — will enter the Coast Guard as an ensign when he graduates. He plans to work on the water intercepting drug runners and keeping America’s coastal borders safe. He was influenced by the career of his dad, Boise police Sgt. Randy Buzzini.

“It is perfect job security and I get a free education,” Tony Buzzini said. “Absolutely, it is worth it.”

Buzzini is of those young adults who must always be busy, always have something to do. Many of his former Borah High classmates don’t have such a schedule.

“I feel like they can sense I have changed a little bit,” he said. “People thank me for my service.”

Randy Buzzini said his son’s academic choices make him feel better about his future job prospects.

“I am very proud of him,” he said. “You don’t have to necessarily worry so much about his future. You got a lot of kids graduating college and the first thing they do is spend a year looking for a job.”

Kathleen Kreller: 377-6418

COAST GUARD ACADEMY Tony Buzzini, 20, of Boise, is a freshman midshipman. He spent the summer aboard the Coast Guard’s training vessel.

NAVAL ACADEMY Amanda Ragan, 19, of Boise, is a sophomore midshipman. She plans to become a pilot.