"As I begin my service as the squadron commander for Weston, I can only look back and be awestruck by the great accomplishments, dedication and competence of our previous leaders. I can only hope to emulate them and continue in their great traditions, of improving our squadron in any way possible. However while I look back at these great inspirations, they teach me to look ahead at the tasks to come.

Although the quality of our squadron has made great leaps since our foundation, I see many things we can improve upon. For instance, we need a lot of work in our drill, discipline, and the quality of our staff.  I plan on addressing these issues by having staff leadership labs where we will give specialized training for all echelons of the chain of command. I see a lot of potential in our cadets and I think the leadership labs will greatly improve the quality of our staff and thereby correlate in a drastic improvement in all cadets in the squadron.

Additionally, I plan to not only address the quality, but also the quantity of people attending our meetings. A rebooting of our recruiting system is in order, beginning with the way we draw people into the meeting, I plan on focusing on middle schools, where many children will be interested and available to attend meetings (not to mention it is the ideal time to become involved with the program). There will also be special POTCS programs with a specific enrollment and graduation date. This will help foster teamwork and pride in their unit.

As the new squadron commander, I see the importance of not only attending the squadron meetings, but becoming involved at the wing, group, and national level. There are so many exciting opportunities and activities that are only available above the squadron level; cadets should really consider participating at these levels. As the phrase goes, “People come to CAP for the meetings, but stay for the activities”.

I want to thank all my predecessors as well as all the cadets in our squadron, for this opportunity. And I plan on making the most of it, I hope you will to."

Farewell From Your Outgoing Cadet Commander Michael Lavin

“The Navy can lose us the war, but only the Air Force can win it. The fighters are our salvation, but the bombers alone provide the means of victory.” -Winston Churchill