Polk County Squadron - Sep 2010

8/2/2019 Polk County Squadron - Sep 2010

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POLK COUNTY COMPOSI TE SQUADRON

The New slet t er Volume 1, Issue 4 September 2010

Albert Whit t ed AirportSt. Petersburg

Mission Base for this months Emergency Services evaluations.

I nside This I ssue:Commanders Call

Member Spotlight

ESP

September Birthdays

Character Matters

PromotionsCadet Happenings

EOC Tour Pix

Blinks (Web Links)

Squadron Calendar

Cool History

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1 September 2010 is an important date to re-member as far as the proper wear of somecorporate uniforms. As of this date, the whiteaviator shirt with AF style blue rank epaulets

and blue three-line name tag go away. Thewhite aviator shirt and blue AF trouser combocan still be worn but with the grey CAP stylerank epaulets and grey name tag. Also, themetal CAP cutouts previously authorized onthe epaulets of the black windbreaker and

overcoat will be removed to allow for properplacement of the grey epaulet sleeve.

Cadets over the age of 18 are now authorized

to wear the white aviator shirt and grey slackscombo with the currently authorized blue cadetn a m e t a g a n d g r a d e i n s i g n i a .

As always, the bible for the proper wear of alluniforms is CAPM 39-1 as amended.

By: Lt. Col. Roy L. Hall, Deputy Commander for Seniors


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By: 1st Lt. James K. Peto, Commander

What s on Jims min d?

Ahh, September. School has started, Labor Day, andthe end of another fiscal year. I will save the year inreview for a later date, but I would like to mentionthat we have a fundraiser currently going on. If youstill have first aid kits in your possession, please sellthem and bring the proceeds to the next squadronmeeting.

This past month has seen its share of activity. We hadseveral cadets attend a group-wide event at the Mu-seum of Science and Industry in Tampa. They had achance to view the new Legends of Flight movie,which CAP helped produce, and also got to tour themuseum and check out the Mission to Mars exhibit. A couple of our pilots had check rides taken care of andare now current again.

I would like to take some time to recognize a couple of dedicated men. First is Lt. Col. Bill Rogerson. He hastaken a position with Florida Wing as the Assistant Di-rector of Administration. It is a tough loss for oursquadron, but the Wing is gaining a tremendous indi-vidual, dedicated to the missions of the organization.We will still have the privilege of seeing him from timeto time, as he will be attending some of our squadronmeetings and hopefully flying with us. Second is Lt.

Col. Roy Hall. Col. Hall has been appointed the newDeputy Commander for Seniors, filling a role that hasbeen vacant since the departure of Lt. Col. Zedonek earlier this year. Col. Hall has been the ProfessionalDevelopment Officer in this squadron for some timeand he has some ideas on how to further our seniorprogram. Id like to say congratulations to both of you.I know that you will make us proud in your new posi-tions.

Our squadron will be represented on the Group 3 CadetAdvisory Council again this year by a couple of very

capable cadets. The primary representative is CadetMaster Sergeant Alex Peto. He is starting his secondterm as the CAC rep for the squadron. The alternaterepresentative is Cadet Technical Sergeant JeremyKing. This is his first year being involved with the CAC.If you have an idea that could benefit all cadets in thegroup, please let either of our reps know so they cantake it to the next meeting.

On August 31st, our squadron was granted the chance

to tour the new Polk County Emergency OperationsCenter in Winter Haven. Paul Womble, Program Man-ager & Polk County Emergency Manager, was morethan gracious in his presentation and extremely forth-

coming in allowing us to check out the new facility,which just opened up in the spring of this year. Manythanks go out to him and to everyone that was able tomake it.

Let me also officially welcome our newest members tothe squadron. Cadet Grant Masters, Cadet Pryce New-berg, Senior Member John Marr, Senior Member HeidiMasters, and Captain Robert Gregor, who transferredin from Michigan.

As far as upcoming activities, there are quite a few.

First is an Emergency Services evaluation day on Sep-tember 11th. Group 3 will be working it from two loca-tions. The flight and mission base will be at AlbertWhitted airport in St. Petersburg. The UDF and groundteams will be operating out of Starkey Park in PascoCounty. This is a great opportunity to get some much-needed qualification sign-offs. Please see myself orTFO Ford to sign up. Next is the annual Safety StandDown Day. This will be on September 21st. It will beduring the regular meeting time at our headquarters.It is a requirement that we dedicate one meeting en-tirely to safety. We will have a couple of guest speak-ers that will be presenting safety-related material.

We need to get back to the Bartow location and cleanit up. Lets choose a Saturday in September to get itdone. There isnt much to do, but it should be left in acondition better than when we received it.

Major Petersen may have an opportunity for our colorguard to perform at a football game for a Christianschool in Winter Haven. Stay tuned for details on that,as it would be a tremendous way to show our stuff andto possible introduce ourselves to more of the commu-

nity.

Lastly Id like to mention a fantastic chance to raisesome serious money for the squadron and honor ourfallen heroes at the same time. Wreaths Across Amer-ica is a national and worldwide project where Christ-mas wreaths are laid upon the graves of fallen soldiers,sailors, airmen and marines. Civil Air Patrol began itsassociation with Wreaths Across America in 2006.

(Continued on page 3


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The wreath laying takes place on the second Saturday in December each year. This year,it will be December 11th. With roughly 50% of CAP membership made up of cadets, par-ticipation in the Wreaths Across America program is seen as an opportunity for cadetsto learn and integrate more about our Nation's past history, current events, and future.

Many officers of Civil Air Patrol are veterans themselves, and are honored to participate inthis remembrance project. We should be as well. There will be more information regard-ing WAA in the very near future.

Also coming up is the CPR/First Aid class on the 25 th . It will be held at squadron head-quarters and will cost $40 per person. This will be a two-year certification throuth the

American Heart Association. This is a great opportunity to get the Basic First Aid sign off needed on so many qualifications.

Until next month, remember

May your future be limited only by your dreams. (Christa McAuliffe)

(Continued from page 2)

This month, we shine the spotlight on one of our newest members, Captain RobertGregor. Captain Gregor comes to us as a transfer from the Livonia Thunderbolt Com-posite Squadron (MI-183) between Detroit and Ann Arbor.

Captain Gregor has completed Level 2 in the Senior Member program as well as the Aerospace Education Program for Senior Members. He joined CAP in 2000 and has re-cently moved to Florida. He is one of five siblings and currently lives with his girlfriend.Outside CAP, he is in the sewing machine and vacuum sales and service industry.

Captain Gregor is a cadet orientation pilot. He is most proud of that achievement be-cause he says he loves bringing the joy of flight to young people. The best part of CAP,according to Captain Gregor, is its people; CAP members dedicated to teaching our chil-dren and saving lives with no expectation of reward. All the members are dedicated toserving the community and making our world a better place to live. CAP cadets are themost confident and well-educated people he has ever met.

We couldnt agree more, sir. Welcome to the Polk County Composite Squadron!

Yeager Aw ard

Awarded to senior members whocomplete the Aerospace Educa-tion Program for Senior Members.

Random Ribbon


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From the office of 274ths Emergency Services department, Id like to thank all those whoput in the time and effort to make our ES department top notch. I would also like tothank Mr. Paul Womble for allowing us to tour the awesome new Emergency OperationsCenter (EOC) building. Thank You Paul!

Announcements

If you have not signed up for the 9-11 Bivouac, please see me as soon as possible so thatI can put you down for what you are trying to achieve and send it Lt. Peto for Group.

Remember as soon as you have finished your GES (General Emergency Services) makesure to let me know and give me your completion certificate for your files. Without GESdone outside CAP activities are out of the question.

Any cadets that need help with Forms and/or Pubs, please do not hesitate to ask myself or Lt. Colbert for help.

Finally, make sure that you have all ground team gear ready to go for the 9-11 Bivouac,any questions or concerns please see, email, or call me. Email: [email protected] Cell:863-207-0968

NO KNI VES WI TH BLADES PAST 3 I NCHES ALLOWED AT BI VOUAC. PLEASEBRI NG ONLY POCKET KNI VES, I F YOU HAPPEN TO BRI NG ANYTHI NG OTHERTHEN A POCKET KNI FE I WI LL BE TAKI NG I T AND WI LL HOLD ON TO I T UN-TI LL THE TRI P HOME. REMEMBER WE ARE NOT ACTI VE DUTY MI LI TARY SO GI -ANT RAMBO KNI VES ARE UNECCASARY!

By: TFO John E. Ford, Emergency Services Officer

2 September TFO John Ford

4 September Cadet Airman Basic Grant Masters

7 September Captain Sam Bowman

14 September Lt. Col. Bill Lafazia

18 September Captain Robert Gregor

29 September Senior Member Trisha King


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The Core Values: Volun t eer Servi ce

Volunteering is about giving giving yourtime, your talent, and your treasure. CAPis made up of thousands of volunteers;people who selflessly give of themselves ona daily basis in an effort to be a positiveinfluence.

Whether its making a difference in the lifeof a cadet or helping in a search and rescueoperation, the men and women who makeup CAP embody the spirit that is volunteer-ism. Since its inception just prior to WorldWar II, CAP members have shown their pa-triotism and love for their country and fel-low man by putting themselves, sometimesin harms way, in situations that requirecommitment that goes beyond that of pro-fession.

With the exception of a few organizationalpositions, there are no paychecks, nomonetary rewards and no cash incentivespaid to members of CAP. Their dedicationand commitment comes from a truly givingheart.

Erma Bombeck writes, Volunteers are theonly human beings on the face of the earthwho reflect this nation's compassion, unsel-fish caring, patience, and just plain love for

one another. This describes to a T CAPmembers.

So, why then was Volunteer Service in-cluded as one of the core values? Quitesimply, because it is a trait that encom-passes all CAP members. Core Values arethings that define an organization in how itinteracts within and without. They aretraits that individuals within the organiza-tion can strive to live up to or improveupon.

The idea of volunteerism denotes service;service then denotes duty; duty then re-spect and dignity. Voluntarily giving of oneself, over personal desires, to provide for the welfare of others is the embodiment of volunteer service (CAP Level One Foun-dations Course, Module Five, CAP Core Val-ues, p 2).

So, as we strive to live up to this Core Value, let us remember the words of Dr. G.Thomas Gale, a physician who volunteeredduring the Spanish-American War. A pes-simist, they say, sees a glass of water asbeing half empty; an optimist sees thesame glass as half full. But a giving personsees a glass of water and starts looking forsomeone who might be thirsty.

By: 1st Lt. Jay H. Wingo, Character Development Officer

September 2010 Cadet Prom ot ions:Congratulations to the following cadets:

Adam D. Evans promoted to Cadet Airman, awarded the Curry ribbon


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This month, Ive elected to go back to basics and

look at the cadet oath that we recite each week.The following is taken out of the new Learn ToLead text that was just released this summer.

THE CADET OATH I N CONTEXTA close reading of t he cadet oat h, line by line

I pledge that I will serve faithfully in the Civil AirPatrol Cadet Program

Being faithful means being true and doing whatyou say you will do. In this first line of the oath,you are saying that you understand what you aregetting yourself into by joining CAP, and that youare freely choosing to become a cadet.

and that I will attend meetings regularly,

While you may need to miss a few meetings oncein a while due to other commitments, you pledgeto attend squadron meetings on a regular basis.

participate actively in unit activities,

You promise to be enthusiastic about what cadetsdo. Youre joining CAP because you are lookingforward to great activities, and naturally you intendto take part in them.

obey my officers,

Here you acknowledge you dont have all the an-swers. You realize there are people who havemore experience than you, and youll follow theirguidance. You promise to listen to your leaders.

But if an officer were to tell you to do something

morally wrong, you would not have to obey them.

wear my uniform properly

There is a right way and a wrong way to wear theuniform. Recognizing this, you promise to repre-sent CAP and the US Air force well by always look-ing sharp in uniform. Because the cadet uniform issimilar to the Air Force uniform, you know youhave a special obligation to live up to the ideals itrepresents.

and advance my education and training rapidly

The word cadet can be defined as a young per-son in training to become a leader. Therefore, acadets primary job is to learn how to lead. In theCadet Oath you promise to take that duty seri-ously.

to prepare myself to be of service to my com-

munity, state, and nation. CAP is a volunteer organization whose main pur-pose is community service. Everything we do isaltruistic, meaning that it is for the benefit of oth-ers, not ourselves personally. By participating incadet activities, you gain from those experiences,but the overall goal is to build yourself into a re-sponsible citizen, so America benefits too. Americaneeds leaders who look out for the needs of thecommunity, not their own selfish desires.

By: 1st Lt. Christine M. Colbert, Deputy Commander for Cadets


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This Month I n Hist ory

1620 The Mayflower departs England bound for America (9/16)1789 The Bill of Rights is ratified (9/25)

1847 Wild West legend Jesse James is born in Missouri (9/5)

1864 Atlanta is captured by General William T. Shermans army (9/2)

1939 Hitlers armies invade Poland, staring World War II in Europe (9/1)

1947 The United States Air Force is established as a separate military service (9/18)

1948 Teacher and astronaut Christa McAuliffe is born (9/2)

2001 The United States is attacked by terrorists (9/11)

Squadron website: www.polkcountycomposite.webs.com

Group 3 Website: group3.flwg.cap.gov

Florida Wing website: flwg.us

CAP Website: www.gocivilairpatrol.com

CAP eServices: www.capnhq.gov

6 Sep Labor Day

7 Sep Squadron Meeting (Aerospace Education & Achievement Testing)

11 Sep Group 3 E.S. Evaluation Day (Albert Whitted Airport & Starkey Park)

14 Sep Squadron Meeting (CPFT & Drill)

21 Sep Squadron Meeting (Safety Stand Down)

23 Sep First day of Autumn

25 Sep First Aid class at squadron headquarters

25 Sep Group 3 Cadet Glider Flights (Zephyrhills)

28 Sep Squadron Meeting (Emergency Services & Character Development)

30 Sep End of CAP Fiscal Year

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Polk County Squadron - Sep 2010