Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program's 75th anniversary celebration launched

March 3, 2017

Maj. Gen. Joe Vazquez, Civil Air Patrol’s national commander, this morning launched CAP’s observation of the 75th anniversary of its Cadet Program in speaking to the Command Council in Arlington, Virginia.

The program traces its beginnings to a memo that CAP national leadership issued Oct. 1, 1942, declaring that any existing squadron could form a counterpart cadet unit for high school juniors and seniors, male and female, aged 15-18. CAP itself was founded Dec. 1, 1941, six days before Pearl Harbor.

“It was initially established to prepare teenagers for military service,” Vazquez said. Accordingly, cadet training included preflight skills, military law, drill and ceremonies, first aid, Morse code and signals.

After the war, the program expanded its focus to focus on leadership and a wide variety of programs that evolved to reflect advances in technology, societal developments and other aspects of a changing world – a process that continues today, Vazquez said. “CAP’s leadership, recognizing that the cadets are our future, has remained forward-thinking in regard to the needs and interests of our youngest members, and has responded by emphasizing flight training, leadership development, aerospace education, character education, physical fitness and more than 30 specialized training activities, which even include international air cadet exchanges,” he said.

Today’s cadets range in age from 12 and 21 and number nearly 24,000. “The success stories associated with the more than a million youth who have participated in CAP’s Cadet Program are endless and have touched literally every aspect of America society,” the national commander said. He cited such former cadets as:

• Olympic medalist Clifton Cushman.
• Former astronauts Eric Boe, Frank Borman and Dr. John Phillips.
• U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds Nichole Malachowski, Samantha Weeks and Kevin Walsh.
• F-16 pilot Maj. Shawna Kimbrell.
• Air Force Lt. Gen. Lee Levy, commander, Air Force Sustainment Center.
• Rear Adm. Deborah A. Loewer, one of the first women assigned to shipboard duty in the U.S. Navy.
• Tuskegee Airmen George Boyd and Wallace Higgins.
• Retired Army Gen. and former Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Julius Becton.
• U.S. Sens. Tom Carper of Delaware and Mike Rounds of South Dakota.
• Retired Air Force four-star Gen. Mike Ryan, former Air Force chief of staff.
• Neurologist Tara Mach Cook.
• Sean Fuller, director of the NASA Human Space Flight Programs in Russia.
• Noted aviation artist Rick Broome.
• Brig. Gen. Rich Anderson, a delegate in the Virginia General Assembly and the first former cadet to serve as CAP national commander.

Vazquez joined CAP as a Georgia Wing cadet in 1975, rising to the rank of cadet major before transitioning to the senior member program in 1978.

“I am proud of my cadet roots and to be associated with this prestigious group of outstanding Americans whose journey through life has been guided by their time in Civil Air Patrol,” he said. “To every cadet and former cadet here and to all of them across the nation, I congratulate you as we kick off the yearlong celebration of the Cadet Program’s 75th anniversary.

“I also congratulate all of the members of CAP who have worked over the past 7½ decades to ensure the Cadet Program’s success. Together, we have generated and continue to produce the nation’s finest American citizens and aerospace leaders,” he added.

“I encourage every region, wing and squadron to make celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the Cadet Program the theme for all conferences and other key events throughout the rest of this year,” Vazquez said.

The Fort McHenry Composite Squadron meets weekly Wednesday nights from 7-9 p.m. at the American Legion Post 109, 1610 Old Sulphur Spring Road, Arbutus, Maryland, 21227. Prospective cadets aged 12-18 with their parents are always welcome. Adults seeking volunteer opportunities are invited as well. Follow the squadron on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/fortmchenrycap/ For more information about CAP Maryland Wing, Group II squadrons, visit www.mdgroup2cap.org.

Nearly 1,600 CAP members serve in Maryland. Last year wing members flew 13 search and rescue missions. The wing was credited with four finds. Maryland Wing flew 32 missions for the State of Maryland. Members flew 2,245 hours in all mission categories. Volunteers contributed services estimated at $4.6 million. For more information, contact the Maryland Wing at www.mdcap.org, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MarylandWingCivilAirPatrol and follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MDWGCAP.

Civil Air Patrol, the longtime all-volunteer U.S. Air Force auxiliary, is the newest member of the Air Force’s Total Force, which consists of regular Air Force, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, along with Air Force retired military and civilian employees. CAP, in its Total Force role, operates a fleet of 550 aircraft and performs about 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and is credited by the AFRCC with saving an average of 78 lives annually. Civil Air Patrol’s 56,000 members nationwide also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. Its members additionally play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to more than 24,000 young people currently participating in the CAP cadet program. Performing missions for America for the past 75 years, CAP received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2014 in honor of the heroic efforts of its World War II veterans. CAP also participates in Wreaths Across America, an initiative to remember, honor and teach about the sacrifices of U.S. military veterans. Visit www.capvolunteernow.com for more information.

Article reprinted with permission from CAP Volunteer Now by Capt. Alice Raatjes, Public Affairs Officer, Ft. McHenry Composite Squadron, Maryland Wing.