A group of East Side air cadets is hoping for a squadron and a home of their own.
It all started with an increasing number of East Side Vancouver kids attending North Burnaby's 759 Falcon Squadron of Royal Canadian Air Cadets. There are now enough Vancouver cadets to branch off and begin a group of their own.
So far, 18 cadets have signed up for the new group, but more members are needed in order to apply for a charter and officially be their own squadron.
"We need to develop good roots in the community around Commercial Drive and get enough interest from the youth in the area," said Lt. Sarra Lyford who will be the new squad's commanding officer.
To start the application process for the charter, a group needs between at least 25 and 30 cadets, according to Terri Slater, spokeswoman for the B.C. Provincial Committee of the Air Cadet League of Canada, the organization that grants squadron status.
Slater said both have and have-not youth benefit from cadets. She said she sees kids who feel like they don't fit in, often around the time they are in Grade 8, join cadets and begin to feel part of their community. "They feel like they belong," she said.
Come September, the new group, officially called East Vancouver Flight of 759 until they receive their charter status as a squadron, will temporarily gather at the Grandview Legion on Commercial Drive.
"[They were] gracious enough to give us a home in the upstairs hall at their Legion and have given us a good start," said Lyford via email.
When the group has more than 50 cadets they will have to move to a home of their own.
According to Lyford, most squadrons in the Vancouver area are home to between 60 to 160 cadets. To achieve their goal of a home of their own, the East Van cadets will be fundraising in the community.
"Cadets is a free program, and while funding from DND [Department of National Defence] covers our administration and Wednesday night training costs, we need to fundraise to cover the costs of our optional activities and for any supplies that we need to run the program," said Lyford.
Depending on the community, squadrons find homes in schools, which sometimes, such as in Richmond, supply free space, or they rent space in halls. The Vancouver School Board does not offer free space to cadets.
The Air Cadet program organizes various activities for youth aged 12 to 18 including a drill team, marching band, first-aid team, effective speaking classes and other sports teams such as biathlon and Sun Run teams.
"It is an amazing program that we hope will get enough support from the community in East Vancouver to grow roots and create a well-established air cadet squadron that will be in the community for the next 50 plus years," said Lyford.
For now though Lyford is focused on the immediate future.
"First we have to prove that we are here to stay and that we are a positive influence in the East Vancouver community," she said.
According to the Air Cadet League of Canada website, half a million Canadians are involved in air cadets. There are currently 57 squadrons in B.C.
The cadet program started in Canada during the Second World War as a way to train pilots for the Royal Canadian Air Force. Today there is no requirement to go on to the Armed Forces.
For more information on the cadets go to aircadetleague.com
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