No, we’re not kidding!  After attending the Lost Person Behavior seminar at Waukesha County Technical College last Friday, seven Civil Air Patrol members learned this was one tool we should have in our CAP vans to more effectively manage a missing person search for lost children, persons who are depressed or suicidal, have Alzheimer’s or autism, or are cognitively disabled.  Why?  It can be used to comfort a lost and bewildered child, a frightened adult suffering from Alzheimer’s, it can help someone who cannot speak tell you where they feel pain, and it can also serve as a soft splint for a wrist or ankle.

Attending the half day seminar, were Lt Colonels Marcia Cunningham, Tom (Flash) Gordon, Dean Klassy, Gerald Krueger, Danielle Michaels, Julie Anne Sorenson, and Jo Stys. 

The featured speaker was retired Lieutenant Kimberly Kelly from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. Joining her were Detective Fred Carsky of Wauwatosa Police Department, People & Paws Co-Founder Geoff Gardiner, and retired Lt. Jeanne Frost of the Waupun Police Dept.  These individuals had stories to tell based on first hand knowledge of searches and insight into how to identify the behavior patterns of lost persons. 

In contrast to statistics-based lectures on where and how far to search for certain groups of persons, Ms. Kelly gave the audience scenarios and facts about how the brain is affected during the stages of Alzheimer’s and other cognitive disorders so that they could understand the underlying reasons why someone affected would wander, why they would be unstable on their feet, why they might not respond to their own name.  The key to understanding the person’s behavior can lead us to be more effective in our searches beginning with the interview process.  Asking more questions, and more in-depth questions at the beginning of the search can lead to better and faster results for search teams.

The effectiveness of search dog teams was shown and the many types of search dogs were explained along with the availability of People & Paws teams in southern Wisconsin.  We tend to think only of tracking and air scenting dogs, but they introduced us to disaster dogs and Human Remains Detection dogs, as well.  The uses for these dogs are borne out by the recent disasters in Haiti and Chile. 

CAP members attended the seminar presented to emergency management, Fire/EMS, and community volunteer groups.  A morning session had been held for active law enforcement only.  Together they were the first of a kind in the Midwest combining national and local expertise in a presentation for emergency services.  Ms. Kelly is now the director of Project Far From Home.

Captain Robert Koehler joined Civil Air Patrol in November 1997 at the age of 12 as a cadet member of the Fox Cities Composite Squadron, then based at a small grass airfield in Neenah.  As a cadet in the Civil Air Patrol he received training in a variety of subjects including aerospace, leadership, communication, physical fitness, and emergency services.  With this knowledge Captain Koehler quickly advanced through the ranks of the squadron eventually becoming the Cadet Commander. 

Today Robert continues to serve as a senior member in the organization after over 12 years of membership.  As the new Squadron Commander he is responsible for all the assets and personnel assigned to the local unit and for the training being provided to its membership.  Captain Koehler will hold this position for a term not to exceed four years.

Wisconsin Wing Civil Air Patrol was host to over 60 members for a weekend of Professional Development February 19-21 at Volk Field, ANGB, WI. The courses which are designed to help Civil Air Patrol (CAP) officers are typically offered one at a time and on the group level, but for the first time they were offered as a wing activity with multiple courses being offered at the same location.

There are over 30 specialty tracks in Civil Air Patrol in which an officer can choose from in order to volunteer in CAP. However one must start with learning the basics. A course such as Training Leaders of Cadets (TLC) is a great start in understanding the goals of CAP in working with cadets. One of the missions of CAP is the Cadet Program. This course is essential for an officer to learn the fine art of training a cadet to become a leader in their squadron and community. Major Joseph Hackett taught this two day course to those wishing to mentor cadets.

The Corporate Learning Course (CLC) taught by Major Greg Schulz, discussed the relationship that the CAP squadron has with the next major echelon of command -- the wing. Describing the working relationships that wing staff officers have with each other, and with their squadron level counterparts, was the goal of this course as well as how wing-level operations help to accomplish the three missions of CAP.

For those wishing to help in Aerospace Education, (AE) Lt Col Woody Williams held a one day course. AE is one of CAP's three missions, along with Cadet Programs and Emergency Services. Cadets are required to learn about aerospace education which can be fun and exciting with the hands on activities that go along with it. Hands on activities allow the officers of this course to try out a hover craft.

Lt Col Chris Trossen's specialty is in Emergency Services. This half day course touched on and answered questions such as:  I'm the Squadron ES Officer - now what do I do?; Navigating the ES Training roadmap; ES Training Resources; Requesting ES Ratings or how to navigate and use OpsQual for ES; as well as ES Training Opportunities. Since ES is one of CAP's missions, there are never ending opportunities to train in it. Scenarios in an emergency are endless, and preparing for them to the best of one's ability is essential.

Public Affairs is for the member whose major role is to tell the CAP story and to protect the image of CAP. National Headquarters is developing a Public Affairs Officer Basic Course and Wisconsin Wing was fortunate to have Major Al Pabon, National Public Affairs Team Leader, come and pilot the course. Captain James Kalemis, Great Lakes Region Deputy Chief of Staff for Cadet Programs, shared with the officers not only the importance of taking pictures, but how to take a better than average picture.

Stevens Point, WI. If you were out enjoying the sunshine last weekend, you were not alone. The Civil Air Patrol cadets and senior members from the Stevens Point Composite Squadron ground team spent the weekend outdoors sharpening their winter survival and search and rescue skills on a private property near Wisconsin Rapids. 

Under the watchful eye of Major James Johnson, a retired member of the U.S. Army Special Forces and Navy SEALs, the cadets conducted a search for a missing aircraft that developed into a missing person search.  The cadets utilized snowshoes to make their way through heavy snow drifts to find their "missing pilots."  They also had the opportunity to learn about K9 SAR work with Lt. Terese Barta, who is training her golden retriever "Pip" for  wilderness air scent work.

Other skills that cadets learned included ice rescue techniques, and improvised winter shelter construction.  Cadets slept in their shelters overnight despite the snow and near-zero temperatures. 

According to Major Johnson, the training weekend was not only a great way to build skills, but build teamwork in solving problems.

"Semper Vigilans," meaning "Always Vigilant,"is the motto of the Civil Air Patrol, a volunteer organization which conducts 90 percent of all inland search and rescue in the United States. Civil Air Patrol is the official Auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force and has three missions: Aerospace Education, Cadet Progams, and Emergency Services.  

Article and photo submitted by C/1st Lieutenant Mark Flage.

The Stevens Point Composite Squadron is making plans to host the 2010 Wisconsin Wing Conference April 23-25.  The location will be the Ramada Inn, on the northern edge of Stevens Point, just off Highway I-39.

A variety of break-out sessions will be offered, as well as special cadet training opportunities.  The Stevens Point Squadron cadets will also share the story of their Project Hyperion. 

The culmination of the conference will be the awards banquet Saturday night, in which the flag of command will be passed from current Wing Commander Col. Don Haffner to Lt. Col. Clarence Peters, incoming Wing Commander recently chosen by the Great Lakes Region Selection Board. 

In honor of the Civil Air Patrol’s 1940s inception, the social event that will kick off the conference will be a hangar dance Friday night at the Noel Hangar, Stevens Point Municipal Airport. The John Greiner SwingShift Big Band will play from 7 pm to 11 pm.  A free dance lesson will begin at 6:30 pm.  Cadets and Seniors are encouraged to attend.  Cost is $10 per person.  Beverages and hot food will be served. Attendees wearing 1940s military or civilian dress can enter a costume contest.

Reservations for lodging at the Ramada Inn can be made by calling 1-800-998-2311. Be sure to identify yourself as a Civil Air Patrol member to obtain the standard room rates of $69 per night. Rooms will be guaranteed available until March 26.

 Registration forms and more information on break-out sessions will be posted in the coming weeks on the Wing Website.

Milwaukee Composite Squadron #5 is one of twenty squadrons in the country to have received a $250 grant from the Air Force Association. They will use the grant to help fund their trip to the Challenger Learning Center in Woodstock, Illinois in March. Challenger Learning Centers provide aerospace education experiences suitable for CAP cadets as well as adults.

The programs in Woodstock include the opportunity for our members and families to take part in a two-part activity with some members in simulated Mission Control and others in the simulated International Space Station.

We thank our Squadron Commander, Captain Hutchison, for bringing this about. We expect loads of fun as well as learning to occur! Photos and follow up article will be released upon our return!