Congressman Sestak Announces 31 Service Academy Nominees for 2010

Media, Pa. -Congressman Joe Sestak (PA-07) announced today the 31 high school seniors and college students from Delaware, Chester, and Montgomery Counties he is nominating to our four national service academies for the Class of 2015.

Last year fifteen of Congressman Sestak’s (United States Naval Academy, Class of 1974) nominees were offered Appointments to the four national service academies (United States Military Academy, United States Naval Academy, United States Air Force Academy, and United States Merchant Marine Academy). That was a remarkable accomplishment, as competition for appointments to service academies has never been greater. Notably, at present, there are nearly sixty Cadets and Midshipmen from the Seventh Congressional District at those four academies. Typically, an outstanding result for a Congressional office is to have twenty total Cadets or Midshipmen at the federal academies in any given year.

Congressman Sestak’s statement on this year’s nominees:

“These young men and women represent the best and the brightest that the Seventh Congressional District has to offer. That they seek to join our Military at this time of war is especially noble. I want to thank the parents, teachers, coaches, clergy, and other community leaders who have contributed to the development of these remarkable young people. The success our office has in seeing so many nominees appointed to the academies is the result of a fair, transparent, hardworking selection committees. Led by Nominating Committee Chair, Mr. Scott Jenkins (USNA Class of ’76), and the chairs of each Academy nominating Committee, Lieutenant Colonel Mike Parrish (USMA Class of ’85), Captain Skip Dittmann (USNA Class of ’67), Lieutenant General Robert Kelley (former USAFA Superintendent), and Lieutenant Commander Joe Benton (USMMA Class of ’00), we have a nomination process second to none. As a graduate of the Naval Academy and the son of an Academy (Class of ’43) graduate, I could not be prouder of the quality and number of young men and women of the 7th Congressional District we have helped place in our Service Academies over the past four years.”

Below is the list of this year’s nominees:

United States Military Academy– Beau DiFiore, Media, Penncrest High School Kunal Jha, Norristown, St. Joe’s Prep and Temple University Richard Lechette, Drexel Hill, Monsignor Bonner High School Nick Lewandowski, Parkside, Sun Valley High School Theodore Mansfield, Wayne, Radnor High School Scott Marriner, West Chester, West Chester Rustin High School Robert Mason, West Chester, West Chester Rustin High School Daniel Pscolyar, Newtown Square, Marple Newtown High School Diego Represas, Wayne, Valley Forge Military Academy Kelly Weniger, Havertown, Merion Mercy Academy

United States Naval Academy– Michael Chang, West Chester, West Chester Rustin High School Donald Dawes, Broomall, Delaware County Christian School Noah Frick, Swarthmore, Strath Haven High School Samantha Hernan, Royersford, The Hill School Bennet Hickok, Wallingford, Strath Haven High School Jean Loomis, Havertown, The Shipley School Nicholas Kender, Havertown, St. Joe’s Prep Brigit Knaus, Malvern, Episcopal Academy Rikki Moore, Collegeville, Methacton Joseph Toole, Paoli, Great Valley High School

United States Air Force Academy-James Brittain, Royersford, Spring-Ford High School Aaron Daylida, Malvern, Great Valley High School Beau DiFiore, Media, Penncrest High School Keith Dreyer, Malvern, Malvern Prep Josh Fouraker, Garnet Valley, Garnet Valley High School, Penn State University Richard Lechette, Drexel Hill, Monsignor Bonner High School Nick Lewandowski, Parkside, Sun Valley High School Jean Loomis, Havertown, The Shipley School Aaron Macy, Wallingford, Strath Haven High School Marcus Onfroy, Collingdale, West Catholic High School

United States Merchant Marine Academy– James Brittain, Royersford, Spring-Ford High School Dylan Flanagan, West Chester, West Chester East High School Nathaniel Frey, Berwyn, Conestoga High School Nicholas Lewandowski, Parkside, Sun Valley High School Timothy Llull, Havertown, Archbishop Carroll High School Jeff Michaelson, Radnor, Radnor High School Thomas Piraino, Aston, Salesianum School

Born and raised in Delaware County, former 3-star Admiral Joe Sestak served in the Navy for 31 years and now serves as the Representative from the 7th District of Pennsylvania. He led a series of operational commands at sea, including Commander of an aircraft carrier battle group of 30 U.S. and allied ships with over 15,000 sailors and 100 aircraft that conducted operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. After 9/11, Joe was the first Director of “Deep Blue,” the Navy’s anti-terrorism unit that established strategic and operations policies for the “Global War on Terrorism.”