On Saturday, Jan. 31, members of the Lewis County Civil Air Patrol (CAP) composite squadron will be hosting an open house recruitment drive event, where those interested in joining the CAP — or just curious about what the CAP does — are invited to come learn more about the squadron’s work.
The open house will be held at Centralia Christian Church, located at 1215. W. Main St. in Centralia, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., according to Lewis County CAP Operations Manager Lilly Emerson.
A U.S. Air Force auxiliary, the CAP is made up of volunteers who mainly work search and rescue efforts for everything from lost hikers to natural disasters, but also provides aerospace and engineering education to its cadets who range from 12 to 21 years old. The training includes both flight lessons and drone training.
At the CAP open house on Jan. 31, Emerson stated a drone room will be available for visitors to try piloting a drone, on top of educational displays for emergency medical procedures like applying a tourniquet. Examples of Air Force drill training will also be shown.
Once older than 21, volunteers are free to either remain with CAP and continue volunteering, or pursue other endeavors.
At the open house, Emerson added there will be a raffle for a $25 Dairy Queen gift card, with the requirements to enter the raffle being able to pass the physical fitness standards for CAP members and be able to do the minimum amount of required curls, push-ups and a sit-and-reach exercise.
CAP’s website states, “founded in 1941 and established as the official civilian auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force seven years later, Civil Air Patrol is chartered by Congress as a nonprofit organization for the purposes of youth development, aerospace education and to promote general aviation. In an auxiliary role … of the Air Force, CAP operates the world’s largest fleet of single-engine aircraft for search and rescue, disaster relief, training and education.”
A total of 26 CAP auxiliary squadrons currently exist in Washington. For more information, including how to get involved, visit https://wawg.cap.gov/.
To learn more about the Lewis County composite squadron, visit its website at https://www.lewiscountycap.org/.
