This is a special segment that we would like to do more often. Commander Sean Cross of the United States Coast Guard sits down with Cadet First Class Andrew Breen for a indepth interview. Breen, originally from Falls Church, VA, attended George Mason High School. Commander Cross asks the Mechanical Engineering major 20 questions. Read the full interview below.
1. Why did you choose to come to the Coast Guard Academy: I knew I wanted to serve my country and I decided that a Service Academy was the best place to start. I looked at all the service options closely, but it was obvious that the Coast Guard Academy was the best one. I could identify with Coast Guard missions like saving lives and keeping illegal drugs off the streets. I was also intrigued by the smaller size and the chance to participate in athletics.
2. Plans after graduation: That’s the best part – I have a job when I graduate…how great is that? My first choice is to go directly to Naval Flight Training in Pensacola, Florida and become a Coast Guard Aviator. Our pilots train with Navy and Marine Corps pilots at the same place. Again, flying helicopters and pulling people out of the water appealed to me as a career option. If that does not work out, I would love to go to a 270-foot medium endurance cutter.
3. Favorite summer experience so far: Every summer has been exactly what I need and want in regards to professional development and fun – summer training is always challenging and exciting. My most recent summer had me doing search and rescue cases aboard an 87-foot Coastal Patrol Boat out of Mobile, Alabama, at one point, and at another point working with robotics at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
4. What keeps you motivated each day: When your best friends live with you or just down the hall, it’s not too hard to get up in the morning.
5. What are your goals for the rest of the season: Win out. There is no doubt in my mind that we can accomplish that goal – we’re a great team with great camaraderie, on and off the field.
6. Personal high point in the Coast Guard Academy athletic program so far: Watching the lacrosse program develop over the last three years – and being a part of the growth. The Coast Guard Academy Men’s Lacrosse program is as close to “virtual varsity” as it gets. Like the other service academies, we receive a full scholarship, we get a world-class education (learn more about our #1 Ranking by U. S. News and World Report of Best Colleges 2011 at http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/united-states-coast-guard-academy-1415 ), we have access to first-class facilities and we have a great Alumni support network – the “Old Bears”.
7. What is your favorite activity apart from sports: To get outdoors – this winter it will be skiing.
8. Any Pregame Ritual: A prayer that I’ll do my best, some Red Hot Chili Peppers, and getting with the team.
9. Funniest Teammate: Cadet 2/c Tim Wyderko, Defensemen.
10. Favorite movie: Ghostbusters.
11. Favorite song: None.
12. Favorite TV Show: The Office.
13. Favorite Food: Chicken Pot Pie.
14. Favorite Snack: Cheese and Crackers or Oranges.
15. Favorite Sports Team: Nebraska Cornhuskers.
16. Favorite Athlete: None.
17. Place you want to travel someday: Russia or Nepal.
18. Personal Hero: My Family.
19. Any Pets: Yellow Lab.
20. Advice that you would give to prospective cadets: Whatever you choose to do – work hard at it and do it well.
For additional information – check out: www.coastguardlax.vicid.net
As the smallest of the five U.S. service academies, the Coast Guard Academy offers the elite higher education, rigorous professional development, and honor and tradition of a military academy but with a more personalized approach.
The CGA offers an integrated life experience which emphasizes academics, physical fitness, character and leadership, in order to graduate officers of the highest caliber. Graduates go directly to positions of leadership in “The Shield of Freedom,” one of the most admired organizations in the world. The Academy also features an impressive teacher-student ratio and picturesque waterfront campus that instills a traditional small college feel.
Cadets devote themselves to an honor concept and graduate to work at sea, on land, in the air, and even in space, in meaningful careers of selfless service to others.
