Minnesota Wing - Jun 2005

8/8/2019 Minnesota Wing - Jun 2005

1/11

WingTipsThe official publication of Minnesota W ing Civil Air Patrol June 2005

by Col. Kevin Sliwinksi,

Minnesota Wing

The Minnesota WingCommander Col. Stephen

Miller presented 50 year

membership plaques tofour members of the wing

in May.

The 50 year members areLt Col. John Evans, Col.

Richard Murphy Sr., Lt.Col. Diane Oliver and

Capt. J. Albert Oster.

Evans joined CAP in 1954.He has held positions such

as Minnesota Wing directorof cadet programs and

director of aerospace

education.

(Left to Right) Col. Steve Miller, wing commander; Lt. Col. John Evans, Col.

Richard Murphy, Sr.; Lt. Col. Diane Oliver; Capt. J. Albert Oster; and Lt. Col.

Thomas Kettell, wing vice commander. Photo by Col. Kevin Sliwinksi

50-yearmembers

recognized

Murphy joined CAP in1953. He is a pastMinnesota Wing command-

er and North CentralRegion commander.

Oliver joined CAP in 1949

as a cadet. She has a masterrating in the administrationspecialty track and has held

numerous positions inMinnesota Wing and North

Central Region.

Oster joined CAP in 1950.He has a master rating inthe logistics specialty track

and has supported wingmembers for years with

supplies and equipment.

Wing Conference Featured Inside

by Maj. David Odette,

Group One commanderApproximately 111 mem-

bers from 16 Minnesota

squadrons attended the

Group One search and res-cue/disaster relief training

exercise, hosted by DuluthComposite Squadron,

May 19-22.

The exercise was held in anAir Force evaluation format

with the incident command-

er being given preliminary

Sixteen units send members toGroup One exercise in Duluth

(Left to Right, facing front)

Dan Jorganson, Robert

Swearengin and Jim

Hetherington, all Viking,

and (front) Lt. Col. Roger

Brogan, St. Croix. Photo

by Maj. David Odette SAR / Page 10


2/11

by Col. Steve Miller,

wing commander

If any of you have drivenby the South St. Paul air-

port, you may have seenthe construction of our newmaintenance facility. At this

point, the walls and roofare up. As this article is

written, the internal work is

ongoing. The expectedcompletion date is mid-July

2005. Watch for furtherannouncements on this.

Another on-going activity

of note in the wing is themembership drive. To

improve Civil Air Patrol's

membership, national head-quarters has put together a

membership drive. All unitsshould have the details of

this drive. The importantthing here is that, like the

rest of the country,

Minnesota Wing has expe-rienced a drop in member-

ship. This drop in member-ship may be attributed to

any number factors many

over which we have nocontrol.

My philosophy has always

been to control what wecan control and be aware

of, but don't dwell on, whatwe cannot control. There

are many reasons why our

membership has droppedslightly.

At the Group I search and

rescue exercise held inDuluth, I found an interest-

ing notice on the squadron'sbulletin board. I pass it on

for consideration:

The Six Deadly Sins of aVolunteer Organization that

is Losing Members:

l Lack of fun (no plannedactivities)

WingTips is a publication ofMinnesota Wing Civil Air Patrol,

U.S. Air Force Auxiliary

P.O. Box 11230, St. Paul, MN 55111

[email protected]

The views expressed, either written or implied, are not neces-sarily those of the U.S. Air Force, the Civil Air Patrol or

Minnesota Wing. Submissions should be sent to the aboveemail address.

Wing Commander: Col. Steve Miller

Wingtips Editor: Maj. Shannon Bauer

Commanders Column: Six deadly sins of a volunteer group

Col. Steve Miller

l Neglect (no follow-upon members)

l Incompetence(leadership and staff not

doing their jobs)

l Overwhelming members(burnout)

l Complaints (internalstrife)

l It has been found thatmore than 60 percent of

the non-renewed mem-bers did not have any

further training nor did

they participate in anyactivities.

Most of these six "sins" arerelatively easily fixed. It

takes a focused effort by

leaders AND followers tomake it happen. Don't wait

around for someone else tocome up with the solution.

Get involved.

Remember, you will get out

of this organization what

you put into it.

This is an exciting time to

be a member of CAP.

Minnesota Wing is a leaderin CAP. We have been

selected to have theGippsland aircraft assigned

here. We have the fourth

glass cockpit sent out toCivil Air Patrol wings. We

have a great training budgetand are using it for training

throughout the state.

Each of us make this wingthe best in the nation. Let's

continue our efforts to bethe most highly motivated,

the best trained and the

most operationally effectivewing in the country.

-Semper Vigilans

Page 2 WingTips June 2005

Col. Stephen Miller, Minnesota Wing commander, pre-

sented Minnesota Senator Paul Koering with his mem-

bership in the Minnesota Legislative Squadron. Day

represents District 12 (Little Falls, Crosby-Ironton and

Fort Ripley area) and recently joined CAP. Photo by

Col. Kevin Sliwinski


3/11

June 2005 WingTips Page 3

by Lt. Col. Bill Rutten, St. Croix Squadron

Minnesota Wing held its 58th annual conference April 29-May 1 at the Breezy Point Resort north of Brainerd, Minn.

More than 350 seniors, cadets and guests attended and car-

ried away with them their new experiences and friend-ships. Highlights included the Spaatz and Wilson, the

awards presentations, the specialty fair and the "Rock."

The North HennepinSquadron Color Guard start-

ed the general assembly with

the posting of the colors.

Assistant Director of

Aeronautics for the

Minnesota Department ofTransportation Steve Hurvitz,

North Central RegionCommander Col. Rex

Glasgow and the Air Force

North Central Liaison RegionCommander Lt. Col. Larry

Brockshus all addressed thegeneral assembly.

Receiving the "Pipestone

Rock" Award was MinnesotaWing State Director Maj. Bill

Willis. Lt. Col. Robert Dykstra

and Maj. Richard Wenzel pre-sented the award to Willis and

explained its

meaning.Willis received "The

Rock" for his gallant

attempt to use it as aplatform to address

members present for asearch and rescue exer-

cise. He apparently fell

off it three times.

Commander's commen-

dation medals and

plaques were presentedto Col. Kevin

Sliwinski, MinnesotaWing, for his years of

work as a chief of staff

and Lt. Col. Betty JoEckhoff, Minnesota

Wing, for her decade ofwork as the wing

finance director.

The following members

received longevity cer-tificates from national

headquarters for serv-ing 20 years in CAP

(photo on next page):Lt. Col. David Skaar,

Minnesota Wing; Maj.

Wayne Sherman,Minnesota Wing; Lt.

Col. Dennis Ostlund,Red Wing Squadron;

Lt. Col. Stanley

Kegel, MinnesotaWing; Capt. David

Kellesvig, MinnesotaWing; Maj. John

Hole, Minnesota Wing;

Capt. Jay Randall,North Hennepin

Squadron; and 1st Lt.Ronald Jansen, St.

Croix Squadron.

Minnesota Wing Conference ReviewMoving Ahead in 2005

(Left top) North

Hennepin Squadron

Color Guard. (Left

lower) Steve Hurvitz.

(Right top) The Rock

award. (Right center)

Col. Kevin Sliwinski.

(Right bottom) Lt. Col.

Betty Jo Eckhoff.


4/11


The following members received longevity certificates for

serving 30 years in CAP: Maj. Roberta Zylla, NorthHennepin Squadron; Maj. Eric Grubb, St. Paul Squadron;

and Lt. Col. Bruce Hegrenes, Minnesota Wing.

Capt Paul A. Kief, Northland Squadron, received alongevity certificate for serving 40 years in CAP.

National headquarters also recognized the CAP pioneers

Col. Gerald M. Quilling and Lt. Col. John L. Evans,both Minnesota Wing, for their service to Minnesota and

the United States. In gratitude, they both received a plaqueand a membership card that will never expire, which

means they will never need to pay a membership fee again.

The following members received a specialist of the yearaward for their outstanding performance in one of the CAP

specialty tracks:

l Administration: Lt. Col. Keith Bischoff, Duluth

Squadron;

l Aerospace Education: Capt. Gina Palazzari-Chavz,North Hennepin Squadron;

l Cadet Programs:1st Lt. Seth Grenke, HutchinsonSquadron;

l Communications: 2nd Lt. John Snyder, DuluthSquadron;

l Emergency Services: Capt. James Hetherington,Viking Squadron;

lFinance: Capt. Hal Waale, Northwest MinnesotaSquadron

l Historian: 2nd Lt. David Hobson, North HennepinSquadron;

l Logistics: Maj. Douglas Mitchell, Duluth Squadron;

l Flight Operations: 1st Lt. Mark Helseth , VikingSquadron;

l Personnel: Capt. Kim Johnson, St. Croix Squadron;

l Professional Development: Maj. Rodney Broome,North Hennepin Squadron;

l Public Affairs: 2nd Lt. Michael Rice, Anoka Squadron;and

l Safety: Capt. Thomas Urban, Hutchinson Squadron.

Col. Thomas Simonet, Air Force National Security

Emergency Preparedness liaison officer to the MinnesotaJoint National Guard Headquarters and Emergency

Operations Center, served as the keynote speaker for the

adult assembly.

Members who received longevity certificates for

20 years service in CAP.

Members who received outstanding performance

awards for their specialty area.

Col. Thomas Simonet Col. Gerald Quilling


5/11


Gary Pendleton of the Federal Aviation Administrationpresented a special award to Lt. Col. Paul Thompson,

Viking Squadron. Thompson received the prestigious FAAMaster Pilot Award. Shaking hands with Pendleton is

Tedye Thompson, while Thompson looks on.

Col. Stephen Miller, wing commander, presented Senator

Carrie Rudd, Minnesota 4th District, with a membershipcertificate to the Minnesota Legislative Squadron. Her hus-

band, Richard Rostad, looks on.

Spaatz Award recipients included C/Col. Lori Sobolewski,Anoka Squadron, and C/Col. Joshua Gulbranson, Valley

Squadron. The presentation was made by Brig. Gen. Terry

Heggemeier, Minnesota

National Guard adjutant gen-eral - air. This is the highest

training award a cadet can

earn.

Maj. Charlotte

Miller,Valley Squadron, and

Maj. Rodney Broome,North Hennepin Squadron,

received the Gill RobbWilson Award. This is the

highest training award a sen-

ior member can earn.

Maj. Rey Casanova, North

Hennepin Squadron, received

the Dorothy SindelarMemorial Award. This award

is for an individual whoworked outside of his or her

assigned specialty by consis-

tently and dependability vol-unteering to assist other staff

members in processing theirpaperwork.

1st Lt. Bryce Duncan, Red

Wing Squadron, received theRobert Dunbar Memorial

Award. This award is for an

individual who expanded thecapability of the Minnesota

Wing communication fieldthrough his or her effort and

technical expertise.

Maj Sherrie Herzfeld,Anoka Squadron, received

the Coffin Memorial Award.

Although not assigned as acadet programs officer, she

went out of her way to assist

in promoting the programand provided solutions to the

many cadet challenges.

C/Sgt. Nathan Lundeen,

North Hennepin Squadron,

received the CadetNoncommissioned Officer of

the Year Award. This awardis patterned after the Air

Force Sergeants Association

Maj. Charlotte Miller

Maj. Rod Broome

Maj. Sherrie Herzfeld


6/11


NCO Award and recognizes

an outstanding cadet NCO.

C/1st Lt. Janna

Fosterling, St. Croix

Squadron, received the

Cadet Commander of theYear Award. She served asher units cadet commander

from July 2003 to July

2004.

C/Col. Jack Houck, Anoka

Squadron, received the

Cadet of the Year Award.Selection of this award is

based upon outstandingachievements contributed to

the success of CAPs mis-sion over the years. Withthis award, he was allowed

to select the recipient of theAir Force Torch Award,

which emphasizes the

importance of mentoringour future leaders and rec-

ognizes the dedication andleadership of a CAP senior

member. To receive this

award, Houck selected Lt.

Col. Michael Moen, AnokaSquadron, out of the manypeople who mentored him

through the cadet program.

1st Lt. Janelle Gates,North Hennepin Squadron,

received the Senior

Member of the Year Award.This award is based on the

member's lifetime contribu-tions to CAP, their enthusi-

asm, shared expertise, lead-ership and compliance withCAP rules, regulations and

objectives.

Gates also received theNorth Central Region

Senior Member of the YearAward. Brockshus and

Glasgow presented her with

her award. This award ele-

vates Gates to the national

competition.

Glasgow and Brockshusalso spresented Houck with

the NCR Cadet of the YearAward. This award elevates

Houck to the national com-

petition.

Minnesota Wing's Family

of the Year Award was the

2nd Lt. Thomas Lucey

family of Anoka Squadron.

Lucey's sons, Adam and

David, are also members ofAnoka Squadron. The

selection for this award is

based upon a familysunselfish contribution of

time, effort and skills insupport of CAP activities,

events and meetings.

Chap. (Lt. Col.) Donald

Mikitta received the Wing

Staff Member of the YearAward. The award is based

upon the wing staff member

C/1st Lt. Janna Fosterling (Left two) C/Col. Jack Houck Lt. Col. Michael Moen

1st Lt. Janelle Gates Members of the 2nd Lt. Thomas Lucey family

Lt. Col. Don Mikitta


7/11

who has best served the squadron members of Minnesota

Wing.

Capt. Alan Matson, Viking Squadron, received the UnitCommander of the Year Award. The Wing Commander

makes the selection for this award after consideringaccomplishment of the commanders emphasis items statis-

tical report and his personal knowledge of all the unit

commanders

The Squadron of the Year Award went to Grand Rapids

Squadron for accomplishing a higher level of success in

the commander's emphasis items. 1st Lt. James Miller,unit commander, and C/Chief Master Sgt. Jasper Berg,

cadet commander, accepted the award on behalf of thesquadron from Miller.

Viking Squadron received the National Headquarters

Squadron of Merit Award. Each year national headquar-

ters selects seven squadrons throughout the nation thatexcelled in its cadet program through educational achieve-

ments, membership growth and retention, aerospace edu-cation promotion and emergency service activities partici-

pation. Capt. Alan Matson, unit commander, and C/Capt.Joshua Waddell, cadet commander, accepted the award.

1st Lt. Ronald Jansen, St. Croix Squadron, earned the

Certificate of Recognition for Lifesaving. He volunteeredto work at a disabled adult camp last summer, when he

was directed to a camper who was choking. He delivered

the Heimlich Hug three times to finally dislodge the

obstruction.


C/Chief Master Sgt. Jasper Berg and 1st Lt.

James Miller accept the Squadron of the YearAward on behalf of Grand Rapids Squadron.

C/Capt. Josh Waddell and Capt. Alan Matson

accept the Squadron of Merit Award on

behalf of Viking Squadron.

Capt. Alan Matson

1st Lt. Ronald Jansen


8/11

The 2005 Wing Conference staff says thank you to all

the members and guests that attended the conference.Until next years conference at Breezy Point Resort, stay

safe!

1st Lt. Noel Westlind

Maj. Victoria Rock

Col. Dennis Rock

1st Lt. Barbara Kasper

Lt. Col. Richard Kirchner

Lt. Col. Anna Marie Bistodeau

Lt. Col. Bill Rutten.Prepared by Conference Committee public affairs team:

Bill Rutten, team leader, and 1st Lt. Bradley Heck andCapt. Al Pabon, photographers. (Maj. Shannon Bauer con-

tributed the last four photos.)


The 2005 Wing Conference team

Lt. Col. Tom Theis and Maj. Bill Willis

Col. Steve Miller and Lt. Col. Tom Kettell

Brad, 1st Lt. Cathy and Logan Cooksy

Maj. Brent

Halweg and Anita

Delegard

Seeyou

in2006!


9/11

Lt. Col. Tony Tarpy,

Fort Snelling Squadron

C/Senior Master Sgt.

Trevor Mathisen, FortSnelling Squadron,

received the Air Force

Association Award toOutstanding CAP Cadets

for his service.

Glen Schull, AFA represen-

tative, presented the award

to Mathisen during a unitmeeting in Minneapolis.

Mathisen has distinguished

himself as an outstandingcadet and leader at Fort

Snelling Squadron. As the

first sergeant, Mathisenassumed the highest leader-

ship position in thesquadron and has served in

that role since October of2004.

He supervised the growth

of newer cadets and servedas a link between the sen-

iors and cadets. His leader-

ship brought about a rapidincrease in the promotion

of his fellow cadets.

Mathisens activities haveextended outside the

squadron, attending thecadet encampment in 2004

and being selected as staff

for the 2005 encampment.

Mathisen received the

Wright Brothers Award in

November 2004 and wasselected as the 2004 Fort

Snelling NCO of the Year.

This award is an annualaward established by the

AFA to recognize the out-standing CAP cadet in each

squadron. Selections are

made by the unit com-manders concerned not

later than April 15 annually.


Mathisen awarded AFA award

Glen Schull, Air Force Association, presented C/Senior

Master Sgt. Trevor Mathisen, Fort Snelling Squadron,with an AFA Award to Outstanding CAP Cadets. Photo

by Lt. Col. Tony Tarpy

by Lt. Col. (Chap.) Don Mikitta, Minnesota Wing

Six wing chaplains and moral leadership officers attended

the North Central Region Chaplain Service Staff Collegeat Columban Father Retreat Center in Bellevue, Neb.,

located just off Offutt Air Force Base, from April 25-28.

Those attending from Minnesota for the first time includ-ed Capt. (Chap.) Hyle Anderson, Northland; Lt. Col.

Robert Juroszek, Anoka; and 1st Lt. (Chap.) Donel

Swanson, St. Paul. Past Minnesota graduates attendingagain included Capt. Terry Dull, Viking; Lt. Col. (Chap.)

Don Mikitta, wing; and Lt. Col. (Chap.) Jim Sickmeyer,Worthington.

Participants attended classes in suicide prevention, proto-col, uniform wear, aerospace education and cadet pro-grams. They received briefings from the CAP chief of

chaplains, the NCR commander and the NCR chaplain.

The highlight was a briefing from the Air Force DeputyChief of Chaplains, Brig. Gen. Cecil Richardson. Events

culminated with a banquet at Papillion Latter Day SaintsStake House, hosted by the youth members of the Stake

House. The color guard was provided by the Douglas

County Composite Squadron in Nebraska.

Sickmeyer gave a briefing to the attendants on suicide

prevention, and 28 attendants earned QPR SuicidePrevention Certification.

Minnesota chaplains and moralleadership officers go to school

Capt. (Chap.) Hyle Anderson, Northland Squadron,

gets his uniform checked by Maj. Tim Steppan, Sioux

Falls Squadron, S.D.


10/11

scenario clues periodically, starting mid-week.

This first training scenario included a miss-

ing Cessna-172 with two people aboardthat departed Mankato, Minn., en route to

Hibbing, Minn. The route required a flightof approximately two hours for the Cessna-

172. An eyewitness at Mankato verified the

aircraft departure, but a flight plan on filewas not opened nor was there any commu-

nications with flight services.

This scenario provided the staff with a verybroad area to search; and due to scenario

weather reports, the first search flightscould not start until Friday evening.

The mission command staff and search per-

sonnel assembled at the Duluth Squadronheadquarters on Saturday morning to set up

the search for the simulated missing air-

plane. During the morning briefing, theincident commander received an announce-

ment that a severe storm had passedthrough an area west of Duluth late Friday

night and three additional disaster relief

type scenarios were given. The staff imme-

diately went to work on solving the scenar-ios by dispatching aircraft flight crews andground teams from various unit locations in

the state.

Additional disaster relief scenarios weregiven as others were solved. The partici-

pants completed the disaster relief scenar-

ios on Saturday and the missing aircraftscenario on Sunday afternoon.

A special thank you to the members of the

Air Force-Civil Air Patrol-ReserveAssistance Program, or CAP-RAP, program

who also attended. They provided overviewsupport and helped CAP members become

better in providing emergency services.

SAR / from Page 1

Lt. Col. John Quilling,wing headquarters,

served as air operations

director. Photo by Maj.

David Odette

Despite temperatures in the 30s and frequent snow showers, the Owatonna Squadron showed their patriotism by

marching in the Owatonna, Minn., Loyalty Parade held May 1. The local chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars

hosted the parade. Loyalty day is observed on May 1 and originated during the cold car as a way for Americans

to counteract the Russian's May Day observances in which communists celebrated their hate for the United

States. This parade had not been held in Owatonna since the early 1980s. The unit was cold...but proud to

serve." Photo by SM Julie Dally



11/11

NONPROFIT ORG.

US POSTAGE PAID

PERMIT NO. 7109ST.PAUL, MN

Minnesota Wing Civil Air Patrol,U.S. Air Force Auxiliary

P.O. Box 11230, St. Paul, MN 55111

Senior member promotionsLt. Col.

Lt. Col. Joe Volding, Group III

Major

Jim Abeler, Matt Dean, John Dorn, Tom Emmer, Larry Hosch,

Dean Johnson, Neil Peterson, Char Samuelson, and Kurt

Zellers all Minnesota Legislative

Captain

William Hienz, Viking; Richard High, Grand Rapids; James

Kline, Fort Snelling; Eugene Sellen, Valley;

and Stefan Sylvander, St. Croix

1st Lt.

Andrew Boshart, Anoka; Kathleen Eeten, Southeast

Minnesota; Thomas Eeten, Southeast Minnesota; Earl Gibson,

Northwest Minnesota; Gail Kephart, Southeast Minnesota;

Don Mooney, St. Croix; Kevin Odette, Northwest Minnesota;

Brent Smith, Fort Snelling; John Snyder, Duluth;

and Linda Tyner, Crow Wing2nd Lt.

Thomas Atol, Duluth; Michael Blowers, Northwest

Minnesota; Julie Dally, Owatonna; Tom Flemming, Grand

Rapids; Aaron Peterson, St. Cloud; Richard Sather, St. Croix;

and Robert Swearengin, Viking

Momentous occasions ...The 130th Squadron celebrated a cadet change of com-

mand ceremony May 10. C/1st Lt. Jennifer Willhiteassumed command from C/Maj. Brian Anderson.

Valley Squadron celebrated a cadet change of command

ceremony June 2. C/Capt. Ben Piehl assumed commandfrom C/1st Lt. Michael Jacobsen.

Lt. Col. Robert Juroszek, Minnesota Wing, was ordained

into the priesthood on June 3 at St. Bridget's Church inMinneapolis.

Taps ...Dr. (Maj.) Richard Hall, a long time member of Mankato

Squadron, May 1.

Capt. Victor Olesen, a long time member of HutchinsonSquadron, early April.

Cadet officer promotionsC/Capt. Mark Pomerleau, North Hennepin

C/2nd Lt. Shawn Cruze, North Star; Nicholas Johnson,

St. Croix; and Cory Titus, Viking


Minnesota Wing - Jun 2005

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