West Point, to thee
Ryan Fairbrother, Men's Lacrosse
Thank you for letting a kid live out his dream.
It began in 2008, when I was in the fifth grade. I attended an Army vs. Navy lacrosse game in Michie Stadium with my father and close family friend Rick Bifulco, who was the team captain in 1976. The first thing I remember from the trip was the cadets passing time between classes. It seemed so synchronized, so harmonious. Seeing each student wearing the same uniform and walking at a similarly brisk pace was almost mesmerizing.
The location on the Hudson River was beautiful, and the stone buildings made me feel like I was standing in history. It was overwhelming. All that said, my lasting impression of West Point that weekend was the physical play and intensity of the Army lacrosse team. The men were warriors the way they played with such recklessness and such passion. I knew it was something special.
I tried my best to emulate them because they were exactly who I wanted to be.
In the succeeding seasons, I was fortunate to spend many of my Saturdays as a water boy for the team. This was the perfect excuse to spend time with the guys on the field and in the locker room. No matter the outcome, there was an indescribable way in which they held themselves and treated each other. I tried my best to emulate them because they were exactly who I wanted to be.
As a teenager, I was your average high school lacrosse and soccer player from Pittsford, N.Y. Though Upstate New York is an area known for producing tremendous lacrosse players, I was never the most gifted or skilled athlete on the field. Instead I earned my playing time through tough play and an unyielding effort. Such is the case, my path to becoming a West Point lacrosse player was different than most.
After trying to showcase myself at one or two prospect camps, I stopped attending because there was only one place I wanted to go. I was willing to do whatever it took for me to have “Army” written across the front of my jersey. I stayed determined with my calls, contacting the coaches as often as I could.
At times I thought I would not achieve my dream, but finally I received an offer uncommonly late in my senior year. I could not have been any more excited, yet nervous for the journey that lay ahead. Though I knew the team I was joining, I had no idea the family I’d become a member of.
Family is the first word that comes to mind when I reflect on the West Point community and the Army lacrosse brotherhood. It is so much more than merely resemblance or familiarity. Family is a bond that cannot be broken, forged through hardship, sacrifice, and commitment.
I take such enormous pride in being a part of the Army lacrosse family, especially in sharing that title with my teammates and alumni. All members putting in maximum effort to achieve our goals, both on and off the field. We have gone through highs and lows, have endured laughs and cries, felt joy and sadness, and experienced both victory and defeat. All of these have made us extremely close. We have done all of these together, together as a family.
Outside of athletics, the Law Department provided me the resources and support to stimulate a sincere interest in academics. The faculty and fellow “law dogs” took me in and treated me as one of their own.
My hometown friends and classmates Maddie and Gunnar have built a relationship that will last an eternity. My four-year roommates Alex and Ian have stood by my side every day, a support system that I will appreciate forever. I am forever thankful for the brothers and sisters I’ve gained through my West Point journey.
There is no dream without my family back home. My father, mother, sister, grandparents, aunts and uncles who have shown me unconditional love and supported me from the beginning. You enabled my success, and I will forever be in debt to you.
Although our time was cut short, no one can take away what we accomplished together.
The past four years have flown by. Although the days sometimes were excruciatingly long, the time has gone by too fast. I would be willing to do almost anything to play in one more game, or participate in one more practice, even on a frozen tundra, the unbearable wind tunnel that is Michie Stadium - just to compete with my teammates.
To my fellow seniors: Matt, Alex, Connor, Peter, Sean, Miles, Bennett, Tom, Ethan, Anthony and Luke – I could not have done this without you. You are my brothers forever, and a part of my family. I have learned so much from all of you both individually and collectively as a group. Although our time was cut short, no one can take away what we accomplished together.
To my teammates, past and present, thank you for being there. When times were hard you knew when to push me, and you knew when to support me. You made me a great follower, so I could later lead. You made me a great teammate, so I could be a better man. You set the tone which enabled the program’s success and demonstrated how to be a tight knit group, a family.
To my coaches, mentors, teammates, friends, and family, thank you for helping me live out my dream to be an Army lacrosse player, and a West Point graduate. For this, I am eternally grateful.
Ryan Fairbrother, 24 (R)
To read all of the letters in the West Point, to thee series, please click this link.