The Washington Post article by Scott Beauchamp, printed in the Sun Journal on Sunday, Jan. 25, was decidedly one-sided in his evaluation of service academies and their graduates.

As a first generation American and a service academy graduate, I was grateful for the opportunity to afford such a first-rate education.

I was not well-heeled or politically connected; those were not attributes which connected me to a nomination by my then Sen. Bill Bradley of New Jersey. It was a good work ethic, good grades and the obligation I felt to this country for giving my family the opportunities they had achieved that caught the eyes of those who would nominate me to the Air Force Academy.

The opportunities were great and the schedule was no cake walk in comparison to the average college or university. Training continued year-round and class work typically consisted of 25-plus credits per semester.

The tuition may have been free, but we definitely felt the obligation of that gift given to us.

I have been grateful to be educated next to the senators and generals and astronauts, etc., of today’s society. I am grateful to my nation for having given me the opportunity for advancement through what I consider one of the most rewarding means of obtaining a degree and career.

Is there still a need for that type of education? Absolutely.

Kathleen Benson, Auburn