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On 20 July 2008, the Civil Air Patrol's Blacksheep Composite Squadron (CS) celebrated their 30th anniversary at the Mesquite Metro Airport. The evening was filled with several recognitions to mark the occasion as well as a dinner.
Lt. Col. Owen Younger, a former Blacksheep CS cadet, presented the Group III Squadron of the Year plaque to Lt. Col. Mike Eberle, the squadron’s commander. Lt. Col. Younger explained, “Whenever I needed something done, the Black Sheep Squadron was always there.”
Cadet Program Officer of the Year went to 1st Lt. J.M. Coffman. Communications Officer of the Year went to 1st Lt Toby Buckalew.
In attendance were some of the former squadron commanders, including Paul Salos, Jim Quinn, Dennis Gross, and Gary Woodall. Jerry Leath, The widow of former-commander Chuck Leath, also attended. Other commanders recognized but not present were Al Hagan, the first commander, Art Hendon, Kelly Bryant, Peggy Acker, R.W. Russell, and Steve Marsden.
Lt. Col. Eberle then announced that the 2007 Annual Mishap-Free Award was recently presented to the squadron for a job well done.
Eight members had received the Commander’s Commendation Award for their involvement in the Tuskegee Airmen event held on 25 August 2007 at the Cavanaugh Museum in Addison, Texas. Recipients included 1st Lt Jerry Barron, Cadet Chief Master Sergeant Brittany Stelting, Cadet Tech Sergeant Tim Kleinmeier, Cadet Chief Master Sergeant Andrew Smith, Cadet Airman First Class Jeremy Banks, Cadet Second Lieutenant Mitchell Graham, Lt. Col. Mike Eberle, and Johanna Cohen, former member and Cadet Senior Master Sergeant.
Lt. Col. Eberle also promoted three cadets who continue to excel in the squadron. Garrett Porter and Caroline Stelting were both promoted to Cadet Airman First Class, and Tim Kleinmeier was promoted to Cadet Master Sergeant.
The Blacksheep cap and patch are items that are earned by cadets who can prove that they are familiar with the real story of Col. Gregory “Pappy” Boyington’s Blacksheep Squadron of World War II. The latest recipients were Cadet Airman Basic Brandon Keehan and Cadet Airman First Class Garrett Porter.
Lt. Col. Eberle acknowledged special thanks to P&S Aerowest (for providing the hangar space for the event); Airport Manager Cynthia Godfrey; 1st Lt J.M. Coffman (for organizing the event); 1st Lt. Jerry Barron, 1st Lt Opal McKinney and 2d Lt LeeAnn Garcia (for providing the food); and most of all to the family members who supported the cadets and senior members while they were away performing all the CAP activities.
A copy of the Mesquite Neighborsgo newspaper, an addendum to the Dallas Morning News, was held up by Lt. Col. Eberle as he acknowledged Cadet Chief Master Sergeant Andrew Smith for his 19 July article submission. The article entitled “CAP Hosts Flag Ceremony” covered the annual Flag Day event that was recently held on 17 June.
Recognition was given in memoriam to Major Merle Depue, a dedicated senior member who lost his life during a non-CAP plane crash in 1998.
After the dinner and awards ceremony, a special presentation was made by 1st Lt J.M. Coffman explaining the true story of the original USMC Black Sheep Squadron as well as the history of the Civil Air Patrol’s own Blacksheep Composite Squadron.
“Col. Boyington personally gave his approval for our squadron to carry the name Blacksheep Composite Squadron, which was never done for anybody else,” said 1st Lt Coffman.
Here’s to another 30 years to the Blacksheep Composite Squadron!
Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, was founded on Dec. 1, 1941, less than a week before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought the U.S. into World War II. CAP is a nonprofit organization with more than 55,000 members nationwide. CAP performs 95 percent of inland search and rescue missions, as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center, and was credited with saving 103 lives in 2007. Its volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counterdrug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. Members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the more than 22,000 young people currently participating in the CAP Cadet Program. For more information, go to www.cap.gov.
There are approximately 3,100 members of CAP in Texas Wing who have played a leading role in hurricane relief, damage assessment, humanitarian missions, firewatch flights, and search and rescue missions. Texas Wing is dedicated to saving lives, safeguarding property, and working with the Texas Emergency Services State Operations Center. Additional information about Group III, Texas Wing can be found at www.group3txwing.org.
The Blacksheep Composite Squadron meets at 7 p.m. every Tuesday at the Mesquite Metro Airport and offers a variety of activities and classes each week for cadets. For information concerning membership in the Black Sheep Squadron as an adult or cadet (age 12 or older), visit www.tx214.org.
Capt. Kelly Castillo, Public Affairs Officer of the Blacksheep Composite Squadron
