Nestled in the scenic and historic Hudson Highlands of New York, the U.S. Military Academy, founded in 1802, has developed and educated some of the greatest Americans in the national experience. From two U.S. presidents, Ulysses S. Grant and Dwight D. Eisenhower, to more than a dozen astronauts, and combat commanders since the War of 1812, West Point has educated scores of distinguished civic leaders, scientists, statesmen, and business leaders. In 1875, Willard Young was the first member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to graduate. Like his father, Church president Brigham Young, Cadet Willard Young was a pioneer who broke the trail for others to undergo a strict but rewarding academic experience. For 150 years Latter-day Saints have been part of the West Point fabric. Though a small slice overall in the Corps of Cadets, LDS cadets, faculty, staff and families have made an enormous impact on the Academy. The unique and inspiring story of Latter-day Saints from all over the nation have forged a lasting reputation. In modern decades more than half the LDS cadets left West Point for two years to serve a mission and return to finish their education. Latter-day Saints at West Point is a story of service, sacrifice and devotion by a religious community that has exemplified the motto of Duty, Honor Country.

Lt. Col. Sherman L. Fleek, US Army (retired) served fourteen years as the US Military Academy Command Historian preserving and telling the story of West Point. Fleek is a 1982 graduate of Brigham Young University and the Army ROTC program. His recent publications are The Mormon Military Experience: 1838 to the Cold War and MacArthur and West Point: How the General and the Academy Shaped Each Other.