Civil Air Patrol----anyone have kids in this?

[Ottakee]

We have a 12 year old foster son.  He wanted to play lacrosse but that if FIVE nights a week plus games and weekend tournaments.  That is just too intense for us.

 

He is also interested in civil air patrol.  That seems to meet 1 night a week which is much more doable.

 

Any pros/cons?  Things to consider?

 

 

[Faithr]

I don't, but I know several families who have and they all loved it.  They often talk it up to the other homeschoolers in our area.  Of the three I know the best:  One kid is now doing ROTC with the air force in college.  The other is training to be an aircraft mechanic and the third, is a girl and I don't know if she actually did anything with it, but she did love it.

[K&Rs Mom]

My kids are not, but I was from age 12-25ish.  It starts as one night a week, but quickly escalates. ;)  He will want to go to weekend activities and there is a weeklong summer camp that is required after a couple of years or you can't advance any higher, plus there are other summer activities of various lengths available all over the country.  It is an amazing program but can become a big commitment of time & money.  He'll need uniforms & equipment, which can often but not always be provided by his squadron, and a lot of the activities have fees.  But if he stays in for a few years, he will gain leadership skills and personal growth that can be a benefit for the rest of his life. 

[mom22es]

My 13  dd is in CAP.  She joined last May.  It is only one night a week, but it can become a lot more.  My dd participates in Cyber Patriot through CAP and that has taken up a few hours each weekend as well.  She has done a Mini-Glider Flight Academy that was 3 days last summer and she just got home from Winter Encampment that lasted 5.5  days.  This summer she wants to participate in a week long Glider Flight Academy and is going to go to a mini color guard camp that will be a 3 day weekend event this Feb.  She doesn't have to do all those things, but she wants to. The minimum requirement is the weekly meeting.  The Encampment is required to advance in rank, but is not usually expected in their first year.  We are fortunate that we have a winter option since the Winter Encampments are typically shorter and cooler since we live in TX.  The summer encampment can be anywhere from 7-14 days.

 

There are some expenses involved.  Uniforms for instance, but you can get scholarships for events and some squadrons have a sharing closet.  Also after they get their Curry ribbon (one of the first) they receive a voucher that will pay for their first blues uniforms.  We buy most all of our stuff 2nd hand at a local Army Navy store.

 

CAP has been fabulous for our dd.  She has made some really lovely friends, but the leadership skills she is gaining are fantastic.  I would definitely recommend it.

My dd had an already full plate with Martial Arts, music lessons, fine arts co-ops and she started her freshman year this year with a pretty heavy course load, but we have found CAP totally doable.  

 

My dd's favorite moment in CAP this past year was the moment they gave her the controls in her first Powered flight ( in a small Cessna).  She said it changed her life - grin.  She is now determined to get her pilot's license. 

[Ottakee]

Thanks for the input.  We need to wait until after court next week to see what his long term plan will be.  He needs good strong male leadership in his life (and female too) along with some discipline and a way to succeed at something.

 

I just hate how sports seem to be 2 hours a night, 5 days a week along with weekends.  That just seems so much.  He would love the 3 day to a week or more camps.

 

I emailed the local group for more information.

[vonfirmath]

We have a 12 year old foster son.  He wanted to play lacrosse but that if FIVE nights a week plus games and weekend tournaments.  That is just too intense for us.

 

He is also interested in civil air patrol.  That seems to meet 1 night a week which is much more doable.

 

Any pros/cons?  Things to consider?

 

My niece and nephew do it and both really love it. It seems to be one evening a week and some camps throughout the year.  They have both advanced and developed leadership skills, and my nephew this last event (Winter Encampment) put on a presentation with the support of his squad (he's a 1st sargeant or something now. This is really big. He has a stuttering issue that causes him to not want to talk in front of people a lot)

Edited January 13, 2016 by vonfirmath

[AFwife Claire]

My older 3 boys are all involved.  My older 2 have had a lot of squadron leadership positions, and it's been a very good thing for them.  They have been involved in some activities outside of the weekly meetings, like a TARC rocketry team, drill competition team, several cadet special activities in the summer, and encampment.  Oldest was on encampment staff one year, and ds2 will be on staff this summer.  We haven't found it to be too terribly expensive, as far as extra-curricular activities go.  Air Force thrift shops (on air force bases) often sell used uniform items to CAP cadets pretty cheaply for blues uniform pieces, and our squadron has a supply closet for BDUs.  

 

I'm sure a big part of it is how each squadron is run.  I don't think you can even join until you visit something like 4 times, so there is time to see how everything goes before making a commitment.  

 

My oldest got an appointment to USMA and also a 4 year ROTC scholarship, and I'm sure his CAP involvement was a big part of that.  It's an easy way for homeschoolers to gain leadership experience.

[Lolly]

It really depends on your local group as to how the experience will be. Meetings are once a week, but as others have said that isn't all they do. Our group has something most weekends, it seems. While it can be something you just send the dc off to do, it is a group that depends heavily on parental involvement as well. Dh does make an extra effort for people with foster children in his group. (Picks them up at home and takes them with him to activities.) It can easily become an every weekend activity in addition to the once a week meeting. Plus, the additional practices if they are in color guard and are having heavy call outs for use in the community (this fall was crazy with groups wanting color guard here). But, you can always decide to participate at a lower level. Got to admit that I loved Christmas break. CAP takes over life here most of the year. (Admitting that this is because dh has become so heavily involved. It probably isn't like this for most families who just have a kid in it. CAP enters our lives at some point every single hour of every single day. Honestly, I can't wait for dh to quit it. Which will hopefully be next year.)

Edited January 13, 2016 by Lolly

[BlsdMama]

I *very* much wanted DS to give CAP a  shot, but with his schedule he couldn't fit anything else in. :(  Still bummed.  

[G5052]

Yes, my oldest really wanted to, but we just couldn't swing it schedule-wise and financially. When you're struggling to buy gas for the van, CAP is probably not the activity for you...

 

Friends have observed that of course each group is a little different. One family we know moved to be closer to the dad's work, and they ended up driving back to their original group. The one closest to home wasn't nearly as active and had some leadership issues.