While missions have strengthened the returning cadets, the academy has also strengthened the outgoing missionaries. West Point teaches a lot about honor and sacrifice. On my mission, I learned that sacrifice is very important. Cadet O'Loughlin learned that missionary work continued after returning to the academy where LDS cadets are well-known for their standards and their ability to study without the aid of stimulants like coffee. Cadets learn to be courteous, work hard and exercise self-discipline from their first day at West Point.
Missionaries learn to serve and care for others in a spiritual way.
That combination of experience makes cadets better officers. These brethren will make the Army, and the world, a better place. The West Point Branch, which the cadets attend, is comprised of 82 cadets, plus an additional 12 families of staff and faculty, with about 60 other members in the Highland Falls, N.Y., area. The branch meets in Thayer Hall, one of the famous academic buildings at the academy. Cadets serve in a variety of callings in the branch, including Primary teachers where the children seem particularly fond of the young men, Brother Barraclough said.