The image of Second Lt. Alix Schoelcher Idrache, with tears in his eyes as he stood with 953 other cadets at his graduation from the U.S. Military Academy last week, has touched many people. Idrache, a Haitian immigrant, worked hard to become an officer in the Army, and now he is heading to Alabama to keep chasing his dreams.

Idrache was inspired to join the military after seeing U.S. humanitarian missions in Haiti. He became the first member of the Maryland Army National Guard to graduate from West Point. When he came to the U.S. in 2009, he barely spoke English, but he later became a U.S. citizen. He also earned a special appointment to West Point, a goal he once thought was impossible.

Idrache says his father, Dieujuste, motivated him to succeed. Dieujuste dropped out of school at 14 but worked hard to move his family to the U.S. and always encouraged his son to stay in school.

Idrache graduated with top scores in physics at West Point. His emotional graduation photo, taken on May 21, shows how proud he was to achieve his dream. He said, "I will be leading these men and women who are willing to give their all to protect what we value."

Next, Idrache will go to Fort Rucker in Alabama to learn how to fly helicopters, including Chinooks, the same type he saw years ago in Haiti. Despite the challenges in his home country, he never gave up on his dream of becoming a pilot. He said, "I asked myself, what is one thing I could never be if I didn't come to West Point—and that's a pilot."

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