As junior year ended and senior year was approaching, many students started applying for scholarships and different colleges. Seniors Andrew Friess and Christian Hedrick had their minds set on the military, and they went to basic training this summer. Friess and Hedrick both went to basic at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. They were gone for 11 weeks.

“The living conditions were very close together, but the food was pretty good,” Friess said.

There were many requirements needed to pass basic, including throwing a live grenade, marching 12 miles while carrying heavy bags on your back and passing a Physical Training test.

“The hardest part was not being able to see my family,” Hedrick said. “My favorite was getting to throw a live grenade.”

At the end of basic training, both Friess and Hedrick had a graduation ceremony that their family and friends were all able to attend.

“It was pretty lit; I got to wear my uniform,” Friess said.

When senior year ends, both Friess and Hedrick will go to Advanced Industrial Training. Hedrick will go to AIT for six weeks and then to Pitt State University, while Friess will go to Fort Sill, Okla., for his AIT for five weeks, then to Fort Hays State University.