Matthew Lee, Class of 2014
2021 Outstanding Alumni Award On the 50th Anniversary of St. Andrew’s, the Outstanding Alumni Award was established to be given to a graduate of St. Andrew’s who has demonstrated through their field of work, or service, that they are dedicated to the wellbeing of their community and its future; and their contributions of time, talent, and energy have made a positive impact in their community. This year, we recognize a member of the Class of 2014, Air Force Academy graduate, and active duty service member, Matthew Lee ‘14. A true servant, Matthew entered the Air Force Academy, noting the saying “you apply for one reason, and you stay for another.” “I stayed for the people,” Matthew says, “the opportunity to make a difference in the world, and have a greater purpose than myself.” After graduating from the Academy in 2018, Matthew began pilot training in Del Rio, Texas, later continuing his flight instruction on C-17 planes in Oklahoma. He is currently stationed at Travis Air Force Base in California, flying missions to the Middle East and Europe. One of Matthew’s larger recent missions was evacuating refugees and service members during the US withdrawal from Kabul, Afghanistan in late August 2021. Matthew reflected on this experience by saying, “It was a tiring and exhausting couple of weeks for the crew, however it was also the most rewarding. Watching the Afghans leave our plane, knowing they all would have a better chance at life was incredibly humbling. After talking to some of the Afghanis it furthered our beliefs that the women would finally be able to have freedom, the men would not have to worry about protecting themselves or their family from being killed by the Taliban, and the children would finally be able to have a childhood. Our crew was humbled and grateful to be part of this operation and it made us proud to be Americans.”
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ALUMNI NEWS
It is with great pride that we recognize Matthew Lee, Class of 2014, with the 2021 Outstanding Alumni Award.
