Kids These Days:

The Smith family will drive about 60 miles Saturday to visit the Amoroso family in Murrieta.

Melo Amoroso has been my friend for 34 years and was the best man at my wedding. Over the years, Melo and I have maintained close contact, but the geography has made it difficult to get together as often as we’d like.

A couple of weeks ago, Melo and his wife, Susan, sent us an invitation to a type of gathering I’d never heard of, though I was quite pleased to see it organized. This weekend’s event is a send-off for their youngest son, Christopher, 17, who has joined the Air Force.

In an effort to help many folks understand that college is not the only acceptable choice after high school, I will tell you what Christopher is and is not.

Christopher is not hooked on drugs or recovering from a drug problem. He is not desperate for money or failing in school. Christopher is not in trouble with the law and is not bereft of friends.

Christopher is a good student, a wide receiver on his high school football team and an honest, hard-working young man. He respects his parents and would be a good addition to any college or university.

But Christopher has chosen to serve his country. His decision comes at a time when it is likely that he will be sent to a country where we are maintaining a presence to help reduce the likelihood that America will be attacked again. In other words, Christopher is purposely putting himself in harm’s way to pursue his dream. And it just so happens that his dream helps make your world safer.

There are millions of Christopher Amorosos all over the country each year — those in high school who have decided that going to college is not for them. For some, it is a matter of economics; that is, they need to work to support their family or they simply cannot afford college.

Other high schoolers just want to be done with school and are perfectly content to work in a retail job or learn a trade.

Still others are the Christopher Amorosos. This group, neither in financial straits nor in any type of trouble, has decided that serving their country is their best path in life.

The Newport-Mesa Unified School District has an exceptionally high percentage of graduating seniors, 93%. Some of those go on to college, some do not. The mistake we make is to project our disappointment on those who do not choose college.

When you go to sleep tonight feeling safe in your home, remember that part of that feeling is the result of brave men and women who choose to enter the armed forces and work 24/7 to help make you feel that way.

Remember, too, that when you hear about America’s improved reputation overseas, it is largely because the men and women in the military are working hard to make the world a better place.

College is not the only answer; not the only path to success.

Will Rogers once said, “Not everyone can be a hero. Someone has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by.”

This Saturday, I will be sitting on the curb clapping for Christopher Amoroso.

STEVE SMITH is a Costa Mesa resident and a freelance writer. Send story ideas to dailypilot@latimes.com .