|
The 859 Crowsnest Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets currently has fewer than 20 cadets enrolled, and would like to see more local youth take advantage of the program.
“The program teaches the kids such incredible skills like leadership and teamwork skills, and teaches them how to work with other people without hostility,” said Captain Adele Heisler, commanding officer of the squadron. “It is a place where everyone belongs and it teaches kids about acceptance of each other.”
The program allows each cadet the opportunity to fly a glider twice a year in the spring and fall, and promotes leadership, citizenship, fitness and aviation among its members.
Cadets also have the opportunity to attend summer training camps, for which they receive a training bonus of $60 per week upon completion.
Camps are two, three, or six weeks in duration, and senior cadets can be paid salary if employed as instructors during summer training.
Some cadets from the Crowsnest Pass squadron have gone on to earn their pilot’s licence free of charge through the program, or become an athletic instructor.
“It teaches them how to instruct others, and it looks wonderful on a resume, because it reflects on their character and work ethic,” said Heisler.
Other programs offered to cadets include rifle marksmanship, biathlon, music training, wilderness survival training, and effective public speaking opportunities.
“It also teaches them about the military so that they will understand more about it in their adult life,” said Heisler. “They may not want to go into the military, but part of being a Canadian is at least knowing and understanding what our military is doing.”
|
|
Heisler said she thinks much of the reason that enrolment is down all over Canada is because parents and children don’t know about the program, or properly understand what it is.
|
 |
| Herald contributor photo |
|
“They think it obligates them to join the military afterwards, and it doesn’t,” she said, “and they don’t realize how much it can do for a person.”
She said it is also a great way for kids to meet other people, and to get the opportunity to travel to various countries around the world, such as Australia, England, and the United States, through international exchange.
Heisler added that the program comes at no cost to parents, aside from volunteering a little bit of their time on occasion.
Over the past decade, the 859 Squadron trained and educated more than 300 cadets from all over the Crowsnest Pass, Lundbreck, Cowley, Beaver Mines and Pincher Creek, with the highest cadet membership of 46 people in 2003.
In 2008, the squadron saw its lowest membership of only 12 people, and this year, 17 boys and girls are enrolled in the program.
The minimum enrolment age for the program is 12 years, or 14 for an accelerated program.
For more information on the Air Cadets program, visit www.cadets.ca.
For information on enrolling your child in the 859 Crowsnest Squadron, email Captain Adele Heisler at co.859air@cadets.gc.ca.
The squadron trains every Monday night at the Elks Hall in Blairmore from 6:50 to 9:20 p.m. from September through June, and new recruits are welcome at any time.
|
 |
|
|
