by CCSD-1 Staff

Custer County graduate Celestina Barnes is in a select group. This past spring she was awarded a Air Force Academy nomination by the office of Colorado Senator Michael Bennett. Although Barnes did not receive an appointment to the Academy, she is still passionate about her dream of becoming a pilot in the Air Force.
“I remember seeing planes take off and land at the Silver Cliff Airport,” recalls Barnes. “And this has inspired me to chase the dream of becoming a pilot in the Air Force!” To fulfill this dream, Barnes began the process of applying to the Air Force Academy. Her journey began during her freshman year when school volunteer Walter van Woudenberg connected Barnes with mentor Monty Lee. It was a perfect match as Lee graduated from the Academy and served 26 years in the Air Force and in addition was an Academy Liaison Officer for four years with the Air Force. “My role as a Liaison Officer was to counsel students interested in the Air Force Academy,” noted Lee. “So it was a natural fit to work with Celestina and her desire to attend the Academy.”
With the guidance from Lee, Barnes went to work her freshman year to begin the process of building her resume to pass the rigor of an Air Force appointment. “Monty encouraged me a great deal during my high school career,” exclaimed Barnes. “He kept me focused on academics, leadership and fitness, which is what the Air Force would evaluate me on.” During her freshman and sophomore years, Barnes tried to build her extracurricular activities, although difficult as she lived many miles from school. In addition, she attended the nationally recognized Hugh O’Brien Leadership (HOBY) Camp the summer of her sophomore year. Continuing to work on academics as an upperclassman, Barnes attended the American Legion Girls State her junior summer.
The application process started early in her senior year. To gain a nomination, Barnes had to apply to a U.S. representative or senator from Colorado. Each politician is only allowed five nominations which includes current cadets at the Academy. Following her application, Barnes would have to then be selected for an interview with the office of the politician. Barnes was selected by the office of U.S. Representative Scott Tipton and U.S. Senator Michael Bennet for an interview. In February, Barnes was notified that she had received a nomination from the office of U.S. Senator Michael Bennet. Following the nomination, the waiting game began. “It’s been a huge emotional journey,” said Barnes. “Since my freshman year, I had been working towards this and it was down to waiting for the appointment.”
In late April, the letter finally arrived. It was not the news Barnes was hoping for.
“I remember getting the text from Celestina the day she got the news,” said CCHS counselor Troy Bomgardner. “My heart broke for her but immediately we began to talk about Plan B. And I was so proud of how Celestina responded. It was a few tough days but she got refocused on her goal and went to work.” Once Barnes had her feet on solid ground, she began to work on her goal of becoming a pilot. “My goal has always been to fly in the military, hopefully the Air Force or Navy, and I realized I can still achieve that goal,” said Barnes.
Plan B involves teaching at the Ground Aviation School in Pueblo this summer and attending the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs this fall to work on her undergraduate studies. Barnes is considering reapplying to the Academy next year, she received specific recommendations from the appointment process and will take those classes to strengthen her application to the Academy. If she doesn’t reapply, she plans to complete core courses at UCCS then apply for a transfer to Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona. “Once I got over the shock of rejection,” said Barnes, “I realized my dream was still alive and I’m excited about the future!”
“It was very impressive that Celestina received the nomination,” said Lee. “Out of over 75,000 applications and she received one of the nominations and only 1,500 of those are appointed each year. It was a great accomplishment and I’m confident Celestina will continue to work towards her dream of flying.” Barnes noted how thankful she is for Lee’s help in the process. “Monty was a great help with the process, there is no way I could have done it without his help!”, exclaimed Barnes. Although the nomination was a great accomplishment, Barnes continues to walk ahead with her eye on the sky and the dream of flying an Air Force jet.