600-Plus CAP Members Expected As Recognition Of Milestone
Anniversary Begins
More than 600 Civil Air Patrol members are
planning to gather in Louisville, KY, this month, as the
all-volunteer U.S. Air Force Auxiliary begins its observance of 70
years of service to America. CAP officially celebrates its 70th
anniversary on Dec. 1 of this year, but will get started early at
the 2011 Annual Conference and National Board meeting Aug.
17-20.
The theme of the conference is “Civil Air Patrol:
Celebrating 70 Years of Service.”
“This conference will celebrate our members’
dedicated service to America and their extraordinary achievements
above and beyond the call of duty,” said CAP National
Commander Maj. Gen. Amy S. Courter. “We will honor members
with much-deserved awards for their service and will participate
with them in training seminars customized to fulfill their unique
professional development needs in CAP.”
Its citizen volunteers make CAP one of America’s premier
humanitarian service organizations. With a versatile fleet of 550
aircraft, members save lives, find those who are lost, help fellow
citizens in times of disaster, work to keep their communities safe,
honor the nation’s veterans and prepare its future leaders.
The organization also inspires youth to excel through aerospace
education and cyber defense competitions.
CAP members attending the 2011 conference will hear from a
number of dignitaries, including U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, who
represents Kentucky’s 3rd Congressional District in the U.S.
House of Representatives. The 3rd District includes CAP’s
host city of Louisville. Yarmuth is now in his third term on
Capitol Hill, serving on the Committee on Budget, the Committee on
Oversight and Government Reform and the Committee on Ethics.
CAP National Commander Amy
Courter
The keynote speaker for the conference banquet will be the Rev.
Jill Robb Paulson, who will share stories about her famous
grandfather, Gill Robb Wilson, known as one of the founding fathers
of Civil Air Patrol. He also served as CAP’s first executive
officer. During the conference, CAP’s National Board also
will elect a new national commander to succeed Courter, CAP’s
first female national commander who has served as the
organization’s top executive for the past four years.
Other conference highlights include:
- 60-plus training seminars Aug. 19-20. Many of the courses will
focus on new CAP technology, such as operation of the
auxiliary’s new Geospatial Information Interoperability
Exploitation Portable go-kits, which feature self-contained
communications equipment and other hardware that allow for real
time or near-real time full-motion video, digital imagery and
in-flight chat capability. The training seminars will target topics
of interest to members, such as chaplain service, cadet programs,
finance, disaster relief, homeland security, communications,
safety, aerospace education and public affairs.
- An awards ceremony honoring exceptional CAP members and units.
It will begin at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 20. Honorees will include the Cadet
of the Year and Senior Member of the Year.
- The evening banquet at 7 p.m. Aug. 20. It includes a change of
command ceremony for CAP’s new national commander and
national vice commander.
- The Kentucky Wing, host of this year’s conference, boasts
665 members – 406 adult volunteers and 259 cadets. Col.
Robert J. Koob of Fort Mitchell is the wing’s commander.
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