By Robert Burgins, Jr.
On Monday, November 13th at 6:30 the Bessemer Composite Squadron will host their seasonal open house. This event will familiarize Bessemer and surrounding area(s) residents, parents and potential students with the Civil Air Patrol. For those interested the B.C.S. invites all, especially those willing to learn, obtain flight licenses and aerial knowledge are highly encouraged to visit this meeting where refreshments will be served as well as introduction speeches by B.C.S. staff regarding the times, scheduling and classes for those willing to join.
We spoke to one of the B.C.S. Program Leaders/Teachers, Dan Matteo. Matteo is a passionate aerial teacher who’s in high hopes for new cadets to see all the good things B.C.S. has to offer. He told us, “We’re very excited about our upcoming open house event and want as many as possible (parents and children) to come and learn more about us this coming Monday. Anyone interested in what our program offers, once joined, can learn essential knowledge such as flying planes, model rocket building, leadership skills, character development, survival skills, emergency services and more. I mean this program offers everything one would need to know and benefit from plus more within the aerospace forum. It’s beneficial to our country and students that’ll lead in the future, so we encourage our residents to come out and gain career knowledge and learn about the benefits that come with helping others.”
The Civil Air Patrol was founded in 1941 to “mobilize the nation’s civilian aviation resources for national defense services; CAP has evolved into a premier public service organization that still carries out emergency service missions when needed.”
The open house will showcase what B.C.S.(CAP) does and give parents information on how CAP can be an amazing program for youths of today. Three main programs will be discussed which CAP offers along with what each program entails to give parents and children a better understanding of aerospace education, emergency services and cadet programs. Ages 12 and up are required to join CAP.
The open house will start at 6:30PM Monday, November 13th at the location of Bessemer Municipal Airport’s lower gate, 700 Mitchell Field Road- Bessemer, AL 35022.
For further information email Mario.Matteo@alwg.us
We’ll see you there amongst the clouds.
