<p>The form letters are a good idea. I sent some of those too. That way my son had less writing to do, but usually would add something of his own at the bottom. We got a few letters he wrote but these were short (one or two paragraphs). I heard of some cadets writing letters almost every day. I have no idea how they had the time. My son was too busy and tired to write that often.</p>
<p>In the middle of Beast they have an Ice Cream Social. This is when the cadre change is made. The new cadets get a few hours to go to a sponsor family’s home and have ice cream or other treats. They are allowed to call home during this time and depending upon how many cadets are there and how many phones the family has you may get longer than 10 minutes. My son was fortunate that his family had a house phone and some cell phones so he was able to talk to us for over 30 minutes. The other two calls will be only 10 minutes and will be closely timed by the cadre - it is the fastest 10 minutes of your life as a parent. ;)</p>