Stepping off the plane from Florida and into Missouri, senior Zack Sampeur was preparing for his new temporary home: Fort Leonard Wood.

The bus ride stretched out to be three hours. The bus was filled with an eerie silence, everyone in their heads.

The first drill sergeant to walk in was “the most muscular woman I’ve ever seen,” Sampeur said.

They were greeted with degrading words and shouts from the sergeants. They slept for an hour that day.

Sampeur is a full-time student and member of the National Guard. This summer, he committed and attended boot camp.

Honoring family

Coming from very little, Sampeur’s mother was juggling a job, a business, two kids and getting her masters degree. His father during the time was out serving and protecting the country.

“Watching them and their hard work, really, it motivated me to work just as hard as they did,” Sampeur said.

Sampeur was compelled to do the same. He felt drawn to the National Guard specifically due to the flexibility it gave him and the ability to finish high school.

Daily life at bootcamp

While in bootcamp, the latest they woke up was 5:30 AM. The alarm clock came in the form of door kicking and degrading shouts from the sergeants. Starting the countdown from ten, if everyone was not awake, the recruits started the morning with push-ups.

“Then everybody gets down, and we’re just doing push-ups on push-ups for 30 minutes straight,” Sampeur said.

Recruits then had six minutes to shower, shave and get ready for the day, full of running track, physical therapy, shooting, obstacle courses and classes.

Sampeur got to sleep at 8:00 p.m., however from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., it was drill sergeant time.

“They just torture us before we go to bed,” Sampeur said. “Countless push-ups, sit-ups, leg kicks, and then lights out.”

During that time, the recruits also had nightly duties.

“You wake up in the middle of the night for your fire guard shift,” Sampeur said.

That’s when he would do cleaning tasks and watch the bunks for an hour.

Injury obstacles

Passing the first AFT (Army Fitness Test), Sampeur injured his back, which only made the second test that much more difficult. Having to not only do the two-mile run, he needed to run it under 10 minutes, so that he could max out the score and pass.

“I was just going deep in my mind, pushing myself, knowing that I could get through this,” Sampeur said.

Pushing past the limits his body set, Sampeur got his highest deadlift with a hurt back.

Mindset shift

“Before I went to boot camp, I was not a patient person,” Sampeur said.

Patience was a virtue in boot camp, having to stand in a line for six hours, he had to put that virtue into play.

“It made me more organized,” Sampeur said, “It gave me a routine.”

Every Sunday, he was allowed to get a 30-minute phone call.

“I remember one Sunday, that whole week had been torture and they’ve just been destroying us,” Sampeur said.

Sunday rolls around, but this time they didn’t get their phones. Someone in his platoon messed up. “One team, one fight” was what they were told, so no one got their phones that Sunday.

“I remember just praying,” Sampeur said. “I just wanted to talk to my parents. I was ready to end it. I just wanted to go home.”

Heavy lessons

To make the days go by faster, Sampeur would try and find ways to entertain himself. Waiting once for an obstacle course to begin, he found himself throwing around rocks. His drill sergeant pounced on the opportunity to make the training worse, handing Sampeur a boulder-sized rock.

“This is your new rock. You’re going to carry this with you the whole time,” his drill sergeant said.

During the rest of Sampeur’s training, he says he became best friends with that rock. He took his everywhere he went: when they went on runs, so did the rock. When they ventured into the woods, he brought the rock.

Following steps

Being invited to sniper school, Sampeur couldn’t believe it.

“It’s not like where you see them just sniping people down all the time,” Sampeur said.

They usually have to sit still for six to eight hours, waiting and gathering information.

“Rarely do they ever actually get to take a shot,” Sampeur said.

Developing more patience is high on Sampeur’s preparation list.

Ever since he was in fourth grade, he has strived to be an FBI agent. It’s been a big dream of his, always wanting to be a part of something special.

“The whole reason I joined the military is because I want to help people,” Sampeur said. “But I feel like I can help people even more if I were in the FBI.”

Learning lessons in the military about his body and mind, Sampeur learned the most valuable one yet.

“I learned that, you have to push through those tough times,” Sampeur says, “you have to work hard to get your goals and get what you want.”

Experiencing boot camp at 17, he’s open to sharing advice to anyone looking into similar career paths.

“The physical part is only one percent of the challenge, and it’s 99% mental,” Sampeur said. “You have to be willing to push your limits.”