GREENVILLE, Ky - While most teenagers are spending their summer vacation relaxing or playing sports, nearly 150 Kentucky kids met to put themselves through grueling physical and mental training.

The Wendell H. Ford National Guard Training Facility hosted an annual Civil Air Patrol encampment. Cadets ranging from 12-to-21 years old take part in classes, obstacle courses, team building, and flight lessons where they get to take hold of the controls in the air. Cadets we spoke with said CAP will help prepare them for their future, whether in the military or civilian life.

"[We are] helping to develop better leaders, better citizens, community service, and just overall character development," said Zachary Hewlett of Scott County. His school recently disbanded its JROTC program, so Hewlett and others formed the newest of 18 Civil Air Patrol squadrons in Kentucky.

At the encampment, Hewlett trained to be a member of CAP's honor guard. Just days after first learning formations and precedures, the honor guard was called upon to participate in a funeral ceremony for a female member of CAP who died at 102-years-old. The person in charge of honor guard training at the encampment was 15-year-old Chloe Birt.

"Some of the experiences you get through CAP are extremely unique and you only get them here," said Birt, who has surely taken advantage of the program. Since joining, she has quickly risen through the ranks to Cadet 1st. Lieutenant. Ranks don't directly translate to the military, but progression through CAP can mean immediate promotion in branches like the US Air Force upon enlistment.

Every kid we spoke with says they develop skills and attitudes that make them a success in any career, military or not. And some cadets even earn their pilots license before their driver's license. With an actual view from the top of the world, how can they believe their possibilities are anything but limitless?

To learn more about Civil Air Patrol in Kentucky, click HERE.