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April's Eclipse Week

(The Cadet Experience, Class of 2012) Permanent link All Posts

Last month offered me one of the coolest and most stressful weeks I have had this semester. With a combination of assignments/projects due, multiple tests on the same day, etc. and the overlap of Eclipse Week made for an interesting time, too. Eclipse Week is a celebration of the diversity of the Academy, the Coast Guard and our country and it gives cadets an opportunity to interact with junior and senior officers in the Coast Guard in a more relaxed atmosphere. However, unlike last year, I was a part of the planning committee and I participated in the dance team for the talent show that occurred on Friday.

At the Academy there is never a lack of things to do, and this week there was definitely multiple things happening. With all the sports games, Eclipse events, etc. cadets had many nightly events they could attend. Although the week was academically stressful, Eclipse by far made things brighter.

The week started with a corps-wide lecture by Leigh Torrence, quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. I was fortunate enough to be able to eat lunch with him along with other officers from the Genesis Council and some of the other Diversity Councils at the Academy. He broke the mold of the stereotypical professional football player, and showed what hard work and perseverance can do. The next main event was the Junior Officers Panel which was run by 1/c Jeffares. This was not your normal panel, because there was a band playing, and its talk show nature definitely worked to relax the audience. The stories from the Officers were great, and combined with the atmosphere made for a unique panel. However, the highlight for the week was the talent show on Friday. All the acts worked hard to prepare for the show, and it definitely paid off, because the show came off as a success. The talent show allows cadets to display talents they don’t usually get to show on a daily basis here.

Saturday was a packed last day involved with a panel, a relaxed lunch accompanied with an officers vs. cadets basketball game, and for the 3/c (Sophomores), our Class Formal. One of the panels featured Kwame Jackson, who came in second in the first season of the TV show Apprentice, with Donald Trump. His speech was inspiring, and I took away a lot of motivational pieces from it. The basketball game was entertaining, because it gave the opportunity for cadets to see a very relaxed side of the officers as they yelled, cheered, and worked for their team. The night finally came to a close for my friends and me with the 3/c Formal. I did not attend my 4/c Formal last year, so I was interested to see what a formal with just my classmates would be like. It proved to be entertaining to say the least, with the food, dancing, and an impromptu dance solo by one of my classmates made for a great way to end the week!

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Posted by Leann Strickland at 2/8/2012 2:38 PM