Lakewood Civil Air Patrol Unit tabbed as state’s best

LAKEWOOD – The Lakewood-based Foothills Cadet Squadron has been selected as the Squadron of Merit by the Colorado Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, according to an announcement by Col. Edward Phelka, commander of the Colorado CAP.

“The Squadron of Merit is an annual program established to recognize the top Civil Air Patrol composite or cadet squadron regionally and nationally for distinctive accomplishments in he cadet program during the preceding calendar year. It is a measure of the strength of the cadet program in a unit.” Phelka said. “ Foothills Cadet Squadron was selected from among twenty-four cadet units within the Colorado Wing for this prestigious award.”

The Foothills Cadet Squadron has also was selected to receive a Quality Unit award by National CAP Headquarters.

“The unit is very pleased and honored to have been selected,” said 1st Lt Preston Horn, commander of Foothills Cadet Squadron. “The forty cadets of the unit have worked very hard over the past year, conducting community service, training for emergency services, and have made the unit’s cadet orientation flight program one of the most robust in the wing.”

The award will be presented to Foothills Cadet Squadron at the annual Colorado Wing Conference in Glenwood Spring in April.

The Foothills Cadet Squadron meets at the Belmar Baptist Church, 480 South Kipling in Lakewood on Thursday nights.

The Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the United States Air Force, is a non-profit organization and performs more than 85 percent of inland search and rescue missions in the continental Unites States through the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. Membership is open to United States citizens age 12 and older. Its missions, as chartered by an act of Congress, are Emergency Services, Aerospace Education, and Cadet Programs. For more information call 303-805-3611.