General Jimmy Stewart Composite
Squadron Quarterly Newsletter
Vol 1
– 06
SEMPER
VIGILANS
With this being the
squadron’s first newsletter, we thought it would be a good
idea to re-cap the first 8 months of the year with all that has
happened with the squadron. As
we go forward, the newsletter will offer information on recaps of the
quarter, Cadet news, CAP
Officer news and upcoming events and activities.
Recap
of the year:
In
March, the squadron visited the
Battleship New Jersey museum for a full tour of the ship guided by a
docent who was very knowledgeable about the squadron’s
namesake. The
cadets were able to take flight in the museum’s flight
simulator and were able to enjoy lunch in the ship’s galley.
In April,
some the cadets were taken to the Lakehurst Naval Air Station for a
tour of the facilities and hangers.
They got to see where the Hindenburg disaster occurred and
toured the on-site museum. Afterwards,
they were treated to lunch at a local establishment.
In May,
the cadets and CAP officers were invited to participate in the Support
Our Troops Rally in Woodbridge,
NJ. The cadets played a very
important role in the rally. They
raised the flags on each of the flag poles on the memorial grounds and
escorted VIPs as they lay the wreaths at each of the war memorials. Many compliments came from
the other participants as to their military bearing and maturity. They really made a
difference in the rally.
Also in May,
the entire squadron participated in the Sayreville Memorial
Day parade. The
cadets marched proudly and militarily sound.
As for the CAP officers, I think they need a little work. But we have 9 months to
practice.
In June,
the squadron hosted a demonstration from the Customs and Border
Protection Agency. This
was a very fascinating event where we learned first hand how Homeland
Security Agencies are defending our borders and our domestic aviation. Now that CAP is playing
more of a role in Homeland Security, it was important for the cadets to
see what that entails.
Through
the first part of the year, 2nd LT Aube and 1st
LT Rutherford gathered up contributions for the Airman’s
Attic on McGuire AFB. These
material donations were delivered in a series of drops to the
Airman’s Attic the proceeds of which go to scholarships for
the families of Air Force personnel.
At least 6 trips were made between the lieutenants
dropping off at least 30 boxes and bags of donated goods.
Orientation
Flights have resumed in full force for the cadets.
Any cadet wishing to take an O-flight need only sign up
when the flights are offered. Maj.
Blonski and 1st
Lt Hand are organizing the O-flights nearly every month.
Cadet
News:
A
number of our senior cadets have moved on to college and we wish them
well. They are: c/Maj S. Avila,
c/Capt Donato, c/1st
Lt Foote and c/2nd Lt Hadley.
The new Cadet Commander c/Maj J. Avila took command of the
squadron in August and has reorganized the cadet squadron into elements
due to the relative shortage of cadet officers.
Many new cadets have joined the unit
and are progressing through the Learning Phase of the program where
through testing, physical fitness and squadron activities they will
become the next NCO corps of the squadron.
Three cadets have earned their
Community Service Award for completing 60 hours of community service
outside of the CAP unit. They
are Cadet Marder, Cadet
Lesko and Cadet Aube.
Congratulations to them all.
One goal of the squadron is to develop the community
volunteer aspect of what CAP stands for and to get more cadets to earn
their Community Service Awards. Community
Service can be any volunteer work through the church, the township,
not-for-profit organizations, animal shelters, soup kitchens,
etc…. I
look forward to presenting more Community Service Ribbons to the cadets.
CAP Officer News:
National
announced that the new name for the Adult members of the squadron will
now be CAP Officers replacing the old title of Senior Members.
A
change of command took place as well for the Squadron Commander. Capt Jose Avila accepted
command of the squadron from Lt Col John Eleazer
in August. Capt
Avila has also reorganized the squadron and appointed CAP officers to
new positions within the squadron.
1St
Lt Rutherford and 2nd Lt Aube
successfully completed a class on Training Leaders of Cadets. The class centered on the
cadets programs portion of CAP and much valuable information was taken
away from the class to help build and grow the cadets program at Jimmy
Stewart.
Upcoming
Events:
October
12, 2006 – The squadron will deliver a
presentation to the Sayreville Historical Society to educate them on
what Civil Air Patrol does and can do for the community.
November
14, 2006 – The squadron will meet on that
Tuesday night at the Middlesex
Fire Academy
in Sayreville off the Main St
extension. A
demonstration of what the Fire department does and how they train will
be presented to the cadets.
December 5, 2006 – Squadron Christmas/Holiday Party.
Spring
2007 – A visit to Newark Airport for a demonstration of the Homeland Security
and Customs and Border Protection agencies.
Spring
2007 – A visit to the Flight Safety facility in Teterboro where the cadets have
the opportunity to explore various Aerospace Careers and to sit in
cockpit simulators.
Spring 2007 – 2nd
Squadron Bivouac