It started during his childhood in rural Oregon, reading the military fiction of W.E.B. Griffin.
"I read the entire Corps series and saw how all the officers graduated from Annapolis," said Jacob Sanford, now a senior at Douglas High School.
Sanford, who moved to Gardnerville in 2004, decided from an early age that he wanted to attend the U.S. Naval Academy in Maryland, known simply as Annapolis. His older brother had served in the Army and his father, and his father's father, had also served.
"But I just didn't want to go and enlist," he said. "I wanted to become an officer."
Sanford first applied to Annapolis when he was 12, and kept applying until he was old enough to be seriously considered.
"There are 50,000 applicants each year, and only 1,500 are chosen," he said.
Sanford was determined to be one of the 1,500. At Douglas High School, he played football, ran track, and excelled academically, especially in English and history. Working part time at Eddy Street Book Exchange in downtown Gardnerville only fueled his appetite for language, and his dream to study at Annapolis.
"He's had a lot of cheerleaders here at the store," said Eddy Street owner Linda Finch.
Sanford said Finch was instrumental in pushing him to obtain the congressional nominations necessary to apply to Annapolis.
"She really devoted a lot of time and got me the contacts I needed," he said.
After extensive letter writing and a series of interviews, Sanford received endorsements from Sen. Harry Reid, Sen. John Ensign and Rep. Dean Heller.
"You only need one congressional nomination to apply, and I got three," he said.
On the first Friday of March, Sanford's childhood dreams were fulfilled: he was accepted.
"I'm leaving for Annapolis in June," he said. "I'm ecstatic."
Sanford wants to graduate as a Marine officer and become a linguist for the military. He wants to study Pharisee, Arabic, Chinese and Korean.
"If I learn Pharisee, I want to go to Afghanistan," he said. "Afghanistan seems to be more central to what we're fighting."
Sanford said Annapolis provides not only Ivy league-caliber academics, but rigorous physical training programs, too.
"I have to pass a physical readiness test before fall semester," he said. "I have to be able to run 1.5 miles in 10:30, and do 45 pushups and 65 sit-ups in two minutes."
Sanford said he'll perform the same physical tests the end of each semester. A third of all freshman "wash out," or are failed from the school through attrition, Sanford said.
"My girlfriend is real emotional right now, but she supports what I'm doing," he said.
Also emotional are Sanford's parents, Lisa and Mike Short.
"I'm going to be the first one in my family to go to college for a 4-year degree," he said. "I want to thank everyone who has helped me, Linda, my parents and my girlfriend."
