La Porte resident and 2nd Army Lieutenant Christina Cox has led an extraordinary life at a young age. While most young adults go through the trials and tribulations of finding their way in the world and learning their place, Cox was already going ahead with her dreams and goals. With her recent graduation from the prestigious military university West Point, Cox is always ready for her next challenge.
Despite her association with the most prestigious military academy in the US, Cox’s immediate family was not in the military. The drive and desire to serve her country was instilled in her through her father.
“My dad was driven to join the Marines. Though he was unable to join, he always spoke very highly of the military in general. My mother says that when I was younger, I always said I wanted to be a soldier, even before I remember saying such things."
Cox’s childhood was filled with active and fun activities with plenty of time spent playing with her parents.
“My parents were younger than some of my friend’s parents so they would come outside to play catch or throw a football with me when they weren’t working,” says Cox.
However, Cox’s parents spent a large portion of their time working to maintain financial stability. Through this, Cox developed a sense of responsibility and independence at a young age.
“My dad would be at work by the time I left for school and my mother left not long after I did. In elementary school, my next door neighbor was a teacher who adopted me, as she had no children of her own. I’d walk to school on my own and after school I’d come home and be alone for about an hour. I consider myself to have been very responsible at a young age due to the trust that my parents put in me.”
This sense of responsibility built at a young age would be a pillar of strength for her later on in life.
“The trust my parents put in me and the ability to explore the world on my own really helped me mature enough to feel comfortable making life-changing decisions earlier in life that I feel most people do,” says Cox.
Due to some school issues during middle school, Cox moved in with her grandparents to go to La Porte High School. Upon turning 16, Cox was able to obtain a job in Michigan City and upon turning 17 she had a military recruiter contact her, inquiring about her interest to serve her country. After carefully discussing the option with her parents, and then having the recruiter talk to her parents, Cox signed for 6 years of active reserve and 2 years of inactive reserve time. The summer between junior and senior year of high school was spent completing Basic Combat Training (BCT) before graduating from high school.
All of this training led to Cox eventually being accepted into West Point despite it not being her first choice of schools to attend, the most challenging and most rewarding part of her life so far.
“West Point wasn’t my first choice of school. The school is very selective and difficult to get into,” says Cox.
Cox credits her acceptance to her academic honors in high school along with her prior service during this time period.
“I was very shocked when I found out and honestly upset. I had a plan for my life about was about to completely change and I was going to be uprooted. I finally found a group of people I enjoy being with and I was enjoying the college life.”
Cox’s mother was responsible for filling out a portion of the application due to her lack of internet access at the time, with her mother helping her with the paperwork including writing an essay for her while she talked to her over the phone, telling her what to type down line for line, word for word.
“I wasn’t able to research what West Point was so I thought it was a special ROTC school similar to most ROTC programs, not a full-blown military academy. I was unlike most of my classmates I’ve talked to in that I did not spend years wishing I could go to West Point,” says Cox.
Her time at West Point was filled with a multitude of challenges, many of which were physical based, pushing her mental and physical self to her limit.
“I pushed through the cadet version of basic training. I was determined to prove I could do it and I didn’t want to disappoint my family back at home. When I arrived I was looked down upon because I arrived injured with knee pain that requires shots to the knee to relieve the pain. Those disapproving looks and that feeling of being unwelcomed drove me to prove that I could do it and that I deserved a chance.”
In addition to a heavy academic load with Military Engineering being her major, Cox struggled to balance military training and physical training, both of which left her physically injured and mentally exhausted.
“Most of my struggles came physically as I experienced a lot of setbacks and injuries, putting more stress and time constraints on me than what normally would have been,” says Cox. “It took a lot of internal battles between what I wanted and what I knew was probably best for not only me and my future but for my family to get me through.”
Cox overcame all challenges and eventually graduated from West Point with 6 other individuals and 49 months of experience under her belt, a small set back from the original projected 47 months due to injury.
“After working hard all summer to catch up physically, I couldn’t have been happier to have graduated,” says Cox. The feeling of all the hard work, all the crying over the phone because I was scared of what would happen to me next, all the disapproving looks from classmates who thought I wouldn’t be able to make it, it was all over.”
Cox currently plans on graduating Field Artillery train in February along with returning to La Porte and gaining work experience at Alcoa Howmet. She is also considering pursuing her dream job at the Skunkworks division of Lockheed Martin as well as finding a farm and settling down.
Whatever path she chooses, Cox’s journey of struggle growth and eventual victory will aid her in her future endeavors. She welcomes all challenges, and no matter the odds, intends to finish them. With her family always supporting her future endeavors, it’s their strength that comes as her biggest support.
“Everyone in my family inspires me,” says Cox. “No matter what I’ve tried to do, I’ve had pretty much my entire family backing my decision.”