Group 2 On Guard Magazine - October 2021
Welcome to San Francisco Bay Group 2 October Edition of On Guard Magazine. Click the link above for the video enabled magazine or download a PDF below.
Welcome to San Francisco Bay Group 2 October Edition of On Guard Magazine. Click the link above for the video enabled magazine or download a PDF below.
Welcome to San Francisco Bay Group 2 September Edition of On Guard Magazine. Click the link above for the video enabled magazine or download a PDF below.
Dear Parents and Cadets,
I continue to be impressed by the hard work of our cadets and their amazing participation in our program. Last month, our squadron set a record for new cadet members. This month, we are setting a record for promotions and cadet orientation rides.
Our squadron also qualified today for the Quality Cadet Unit Award for the third time in a row as a squadron that has existed for only three years. Our squadron grew faster than any squadron in California Wing last year. We have more cadets that have completed the General Emergency Services training than any squadron in Group 2. We were one of only 2 squadrons in the group that onboarded 70% of our cadets this year… but I’m not proud of any of those feats nearly as much as I am proud of the excitement that our cadets bring to our meetings and the support we get from our cadets’ families.
Thank you very much for your ongoing support of our squadron and of Civil Air Patrol in general.
Welcome to San Francisco Bay Group 2 August Edition of On Guard Magazine. Click the link above for the video enabled magazine or download a PDF below.
Dear Parents and Cadets,
We’ve had an amazing summer. Our cadets participated in Encampment, the STEM Academy, two cyber security camps, the Reignite celebration, and multiple Emergency Services activities. Our cadet corps grew by nearly one third and we completed a Great Start orientation. We also had a new cadet staff transition and multiple orientation ride opportunities. As an organization, we are in a much better place than we were last year. Because of that, I am incredibly excited about what the rest of year will bring as our cadets start the new school year.
These successes are only possible because of the dedication of our cadets and their parents. Thank you for the effort and support you give to this amazing program.
I’d also like to share that Group 2 has developed a magazine named On Guard for our members and families that also shares great stories about accomplishments as well as upcoming special activities and opportunities. In future months, many of the stories in the squadron newsletter will be submitted to On Guard. We will still publish squadron-specific information to our monthly newsletter, but I know that you will find On Guard to be a tremendous resource for everything CAP-related in the Bay Area.
Welcome to San Francisco Bay Group 2 July Edition of On Guard Magazine. Click the link above for the video enabled magazine or download a PDF below.
What an amazing month! Since our last newsletter, our squadron has returned to fully in-person meetings, we’ve started our second Great Start program for a record number of cadet recruits, had a great pair of fun and social activities in Cricket on PT night and a board game night last week. We’ve also announced the cadet staff for our next 6-month term. Furthermore, our squadron is forming teams for Ultimate Bear and Wings Challenge (UBWC), StellarXplorers and CyberPatriot.
Outside of our squadron, we’ve had cadets participate in the week-long encampment and orientation rides. We’re also in various phases of planning and execution on the Group 2 CAP Reignite celebration, the Aerospace Education STEM Academy, two Cyber Camps, and now a Wing Conference.
I’m amazed by the resiliency of our members through the past year of the pandemic. Although COVID will continue to play a role in our lives for a while longer, our cadets are driving the return to normal in our squadron. They, as well as our new visitors, bring a tremendous amount of energy to our meetings. After only a few weeks of fully in-person meetings, I am eager to see how far our squadron can go and am honored to be a part of this journey with all of you.
I am honored and grateful for the opportunity to work with you all.
From 14 to 21 June 2021, two San Francisco Group 2 Check Pilot Examiners, Maj Jeffrey Ironfield and Capt Keith Breton, both from Tri-Valley Composite Squadron 156, spent seven 12-hour days training Hawaii Wing (HIWG) pilots.
20 cadets attend California Wing’s Group 2 NRA Marksmanship event in Hayward, CA.
Representing seven of the eight Squadrons with cadets in San Francisco Group 2 and ranging in age from 12 to 19, these cadets fired over 2000 rounds from .22LR bolt-action rifles as they earned their Marksmanship badges. One cadet stated they waited over three years to participate in an event like this and was eager to get started.
Summer is upon us, and life is starting to resemble “normal”. Let’s take a moment to celebrate that. As the State of California removes all restrictions on June 15th, I hope that you will be able to take advantage of all the opportunities that Civil Air Patrol is making available to our cadets.
During the month of June, we hope to make in-person meetings the norm. For the past few weeks, we’ve seen our in-person cadet meeting attendance grow. Many parents have reached out to me to mention that you are ready to come in-person as well. I’m so grateful for your support and know that meeting in-person will be much more fulfilling than the virtual meetings we’ve been experiencing for the past year.
Beginning this month and lasting through the summer, we have a full slate of activities on the schedule. The full list is on page 5 of this newsletter, but details are provided throughout. In short, we have an encampment scheduled, two cyber camps, a balloon challenge, the STEM academy and the Reignite Celebration. Not surprisingly, more activities are likely to come up along the way.
Finally, as we return to in-person meetings please expect me to start reaching out to each cadet family to learn how we can include all of you in the cadet program as well. Cadets are most successful in the program when they have the support of family at home. I look forward to learning from each of you how we can improve our program.