Christopher Bell, a Festus High School graduate, has accepted an appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.
U.S. Rep. Jason Smith, R-Cape Girardeau, nominated Bell and four other students from the Missouri 8th Congressional District to various military academies.
Smith held a congratulatory dinner for the students he had nominated for the academies in April in Ste. Genevieve.
Bell, 17, lives in Festus with his parents, Steven and Kandice Bell.
“I’m a little nervous, but I’m mostly excited,” he said. “It’s about the best opportunity I could possibly get at my age. I definitely want to go there and take the most out of it.”
He said that while he wanted to go to a military academy and would have appreciated an appointment to any of several of them, his main interest is becoming an airplane pilot.
“I applied to West Point and the Naval Academy and the Air Force Academy,” Bell said. “I was really interested in serving and being a pilot, so my main two picks were Naval Academy and Air Force Academy, but if I’d gotten into West Point and only West Point, I definitely would have gone there.
“My interest is in being a pilot.”
He does not have a background in flying, intending to learn at the Air Force Academy.
“No, I’m kind of going in blind, honestly,” he said. “I’ve just always been around planes, like at Scott Air Force Base, we’d go and see all the planes. That was always really cool. My family has an interest in air shows and that sort of thing.”
He said he has not yet decided what his major course of study will be in college.
“I’m kind of split,” he said. “I’m thinking either chemistry or physics, one of those.”
Other 2026 Smith academy nominees this year are: Lily Coy of Jackson (West Point), Eli Edgy of Piedmont (Air Force Academy), Grayson Mauer of Cape Girardeau (West Point) and Bruce Miller of Cape Girardeau (Naval Academy).
“Congratulations to Christopher Bell, Lily Coy, Eli Edgy, Grayson Maurer and Bruce Miller on this well-deserved honor,” Smith said in a written statement. “Being nominated to a service academy is one of the highest distinctions a young person can receive, and each of these students has earned it through hard work, dedication and a commitment to something bigger than themselves.
“Our service academies are some of the top institutions in the world and will certainly challenge these students, but I have no doubt they will take the challenge head on and dutifully prepare for their careers in military service. I can’t wait to see what their future holds and all that they accomplish in this next season of their lives.”
Applicants are considered on the basis of leadership skills, academic success, physical ability and extracurricular activities.
A committee of community leaders reviewed each application and made nomination recommendations to the congressman, according to the statement.
Smith is currently accepting applications for 2027 nominations to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Air Force Academy and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.
To receive a nomination packet via email, contact Smith’s Farmington office at 573-756-9755 or email Donna.Hickman@mail.house.gov. The deadline for submissions is Oct. 19.
Bell, who was a member of the Festus varsity tennis team and cross country squad, reports for basic training June 24 at the Air Force Academy and will start classes there soon after his basic training concludes, he said.