RESERVE — It all started during Cameran Hymel’s freshman year of high school when going to a military academy crossed her mind.

Now in her senior year at Mt. Carmel Academy in New Orleans, the Reserve resident’s dream is going to come true. After years of preparation, the 17-year-old received her appointment for the United States Military Academy West Point in New York State.

Cameran’s grandmother, Janet Hymel, describes Cameran as well rounded and intelligent, adding she was proud when Cameran got her certificate of appointment.

“We were just overwhelmed,” Hymel said, holding back tears. “She has been working on this for years. She met with the senators and representatives, and we are just so proud. She did the essays and followed the path that she had to take and she did it on her own. She pursued it and she got her appointment.”

Cameran said the process to get into the military academy was long but worth it.

“You need to get a congressional nomination so I applied for those through U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-New Orleans), U.S. Sen. David Vitter (R-Metairie) and U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Baton Rouge). I received one from Richmond, and a principle from Cassidy. Then I had to apply separately to West Point.”

Cameran said the first wave of appointments was made Jan. 14, which is when she found out the good news.

“I was crying in the front office (at Mt. Carmel),” she said. “It was great. It’s really something that I have worked for for a while, all that time and effort is completely worth it. I think it was junior year that I reached out to the state coordinator and had coffee with him around November or December, and he was the one that sold me on West Point.”

Cameran attended a summer program at West Point after her junior year and fell in love with the military academy.

“Everyone asks me why I picked West Point,” she said. “I say ‘why not West Point?’ It offers so many challenges and opportunities that no other college will be able to provide me. I looked at other service academies, but West Point was it for me.”

Even though Cameran said she doesn’t have family in the military, besides great grandparents, she remains interested in the career path.

Over the Mardi Gras break, Cameran visited the school and had a wonderful time.

“When I got up there, there was a little bit of snow and I was very excited about that,” she said. “It was so great. I have a friend there from Lutcher who is a freshman this year. I was able to shadow him, go to all of his classes and see how cadet life was. It was so great. I met so many wonderful people from all over the country and the world.”

Cameran plans to double major in public relations and Russian language while at West Point.

“After that, hopefully if I’m high enough in my ranking to post abroad,” she said. “After you graduate from West Point, which is after four years, you have a minimum (commitment of) five years in the Army. I’ll graduate as a Second Lt. Commissioned Officer, and then I can return to grad school under the Army, which I plan on doing.”

Long term, Cameran said she would like to work for the government.

“Ever since I was a little girl I knew that I wanted to get out of here I guess you can say,” Hymel said. “The world is my oyster. I’ve always been really ambitious and very future orientated. I also have that drive to do something bigger than myself. I would really like to make a difference in some way.”

The enthusiastic young cadet reports to West Point in New York on June 27.

By Raquel Derganz Baker