Freedom Academy

BLUFFDALE — At 5 feet, 11 inches tall, Leah Swalberg had to mind her head inside the cramped quarters of an M-109A6 howitzer tank here at Camp Williams.

When she aimed a modified 9mm Beretta handgun at simulated human targets on a large video screen, Swalberg, 17, a senior and basketball player this fall at Green River High School, looked tentative and awkward.

But learning how to be a great marksman or the best soldier isn't why she and 70 other teens from all over Utah this week are at the National Guard's annual Freedom Academy, which began with four participants in 1961 and is still privately funded with donations.

Many of the so-called delegates, most entering their senior year, are earning A's and B's and are student-body officers, all looking to improve their leadership skills. Whether nominated to attend or invited to the academy, many show up looking for ideas on organizing school events that will focus on how "freedom isn't free."

By Tuesday, the weeklong camp's punch had already connected with Swalberg. The previous day, her group took a tour of the Utah State Prison, where they talked with some of the inmates.

"It really hit me hard," Swalberg said.

From seeing a "tiny" cell from the inside to talking with an inmate about how he can only visit his children within a prison, Swalberg witnessed freedom lost, up close and personal.

Another lesson of freedom found or fought for through use of force came via a large dark room, with teens holding heavy M-249s and M-16s hooked up to air compressors for a little kick with each pull of the trigger.

"All right, go ahead and lock and load," Sgt. Dallas Wilkerson yelled out.

And for a few minutes, it was loud inside the room, where the teens pointed their weapons at tiny computerized figures shooting back in a computerized urban, industrial environment.

A short while later, students including Shannon Carlson, 17, took a turn outside in the heat at operating a real backhoe for the first time. Carlson had a quick answer for how running heavy machinery helps with leadership.

"I have to kind of be a little brave," Carlson said. Brave enough to try new things in her student-body office role at school, she added.

For Vera Cox, 17, who noted she is one of Provo High School's first four black senior officers ever, the week is about developing a more healthy respect for freedom. As a singer, Cox said the camp is reinforcing her appreciation of being able to freely express herself in song.

At one point, a Guardsman jokingly told Olympus High student Ralph Gochnour that he wanted to cut the 17-year-old student's long, wavy locks. Gochnour, who is co-president of WAMO (Women and Men of Olympus) and carries a 3.65 GPA, admits his appearance can be a little deceiving.