Civil Air Patrol

Six, well practiced, cadets from Minot, represented North Dakota over the weekend at the Civil Air Patrol North Central Region competition in Salina, Kansas. The closely formed team, from Magic City Composite Squadron, proved their skills against the best teams from the region in multiple events including military discipline, physical fitness, public speaking, and academics. This competition marked the first time all seven states gathered with at least one team.

Arrival and opening events took place Friday night, testing each team’s performance in the mile run, followed by an early morning the next day. “Judges were very impressed with how well [the North Dakota team] communicated!” exclaimed adult team coach, Capt. Nichole McLaughlin. Team members grew to know their tasks and each other well over the past four months as they practiced an average of four hours per week. The team could not have accomplished the training required to properly represent the state without the service hours provided by nearly one-dozen CAP volunteers, guided by McLaughlin.

Competition season may be over, for now, but Minot and the surrounding community still has the chance to witness a performance by Civil Air Patrol. The discipline and skills learned have allowed the team to present the American and State flags at community events, such as the Air Force Association banquet last month. CAP can be joined as age 12 for cadets; adults can volunteer at any age. More information can be found at gocivilairpatrol.com/join.