20 July 2007 - Day 13
Graduation
Day arrived, and what a day it was! Right after breakfast, cadets ran
through the graduation ceremony again from start to finish, ironing out
any final kinks from the night before. Following rehearsal, cadets
worked with Col Jett on the retreat ceremony. After lunch, everyone
went back to the dorms to get their uniforms ready and do any final
ironing and shoe shining. Around three o'clock cadets began getting
dressed, and after dinner cadets were in full ceremonial uniform. The
retreat ceremony took place at 6pm, with Colonel Kay Walling of the
Middle East Region hosting the ceremony. Apollo Flight did an excellent
job performing the ceremony, and the cordon and honor flights looked
very sharp. Once retreat was completed and the flag secured, cadets
marched to the chapel to create a cordon for our graduation guests.
Those cadets not in the cordon acted as escorts for the various
dignitaries in attendance. In addition to many families and friends of
the cadets, we had members of the Air Force Honor Guard, the Maryland
Air National Guard, and several Civil Air Patrol commanders and staff
with us.
The ceremony began with the presentation of the Colors, the National
Anthem, the invocation, and the Colors Creed. Graduation was then
dedicated to a long-time Honor Guard Academy supporter who was killed
in a car accident in late June. Two ASI's laid a wreath in his honor.
After our special guests were introduced, three cadets presented the
Honor Guard Creed, with one reciting it in Spanish. The Funeral Element
and Bearers Creed came next, followed by the flight rifle performances.
The evening ended with awards presentations, honoring cadets and
seniors alike for their hard work over the two weeks.