Civil Air Patrol

The Cadet Oath

Hey y'all I hope you're doing well! In this chapter we will be breaking down the cadet oath so as to understand it better. In my squadron we say the Cadet Oath and the Safety Pledge during First Formation, and some times I think we know all the words to the cadet oath by heart, but don't really give those words any meaning. We fly through the words and never stop tho think about their importance. Now I will admit, I was guilty of this until I heard a class, and I don't remember who taught it or were it was, but I remember looking at the Cadet Oath differently. So let's get stared. 

I hope you all know the words to the Cadet Oath but if you don't here they are: 

I pledge that I will serve faithfully in the Civil Air Patrol cadet program

and that I will attend meetings regularly

participate actively in unit activities 

obey my officers

wear my uniform properly

and advance my education and training rapidly 

to prepare myself to be of service to my community, state, and nation.

Now we will break it down line by line and take a look at what all this means.

I pledge that I will serve faithfully in the Civil Air Patrol cadet program

Ok, this line is saying that you will be true, or faithful, to CAP. You understand what you're doing by joining and you accept all the things that come with it.

And that I will attend meetings regularly

This one is something that my squadron struggles with. Look if you are in CAP, come to the meetings. Now of course if you have a sport part of the year or family stuff then that's fine, but if you're just decide that you don't want to go to CAP that week (which sometimes is totally relatable) then go any way. 

Participate actively in unit activities 

Go to events y'all. Even better, staff events. Whether those events are squadron, wing, or even region events, go as a student, come back as staff. You will have so much fun when you do!

Obey my officers 

Obey the people put in charge over you. Now like everything this does have its exceptions, so don't do anything that is unsafe or goes against your morals. If you see something wrong morally or dangerous to yourself and those around you, use either respectful decent or "knock it off" whichever is more appropriate for the situation. But in general, obey the people that have been put over you, they are there for a reason and they often tell you to do things because they see things that you may not see.

Wear my uniform properly

There is only one way to wear the uniform, the right way. Please don't show up to meetings and events with your uniform all jacked up. I recommend looking at yourself in a full length mirror and checking to make sure your uniform looks good as well as getting your wingman to check your uniform when you arrive, and make sure to return the favor. Also pay attention to the things they tell you during uniform inspection.

And advance my education and training rapidly

Take every opportunity you get to grow as a cadet. Go to events, be active in your squadron, apply for many different staff positions, and meet new people that will help you grow. 

To prepare myself to be of service to my community, state, and nation.

Volunteer service is a big part of CAP, In fact it's a core value! Whether you are into ES and search for missing people, or are HG and present flags to hurting families, you are serving your community. 

Ok, there is the cadet oath broken down by line. I hope this helped you see it in a new way or reminded you if you've forgotten the significance of it. If you have any comments, questions, concerns, addendums, mental outbursts, or animal sacrifices, please comment or message me. I am almost done with Uniforms (Part 2) so hopefully that will come out shortly. If you would like to see a more official thing on this, you can look on page 15 of Learn to Lead book 1. Stay safe and soar high!