Character Development: Building Future Leaders

Character Development: Building Future Leaders

By: 2d Lt. Angela Long, CAP

Asst. Admin Officer, Pitt-Greenville Composite Squadron

Character Development is an essential part of the Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program. While cadets develop leadership skills, learn aerospace concepts, and participate in physical fitness, they are also challenged to become people of strong moral character. This is about more than preparing cadets to lead; it is about preparing them to make good decisions, serve their community, and become leaders who do what is right, even when it is hard.

The Pitt-Greenville Composite squadron explored this concept at their Tuesday night meeting, during a Character Development class led by Chaplain Smith. Cadets watched a video featuring Clarence Sasser, a U.S. Army veteran, recounting his wartime experiences and how he saved the lives of dozens of injured soldiers. Despite the danger, despite the difficulty, he acted to help others without wanting or expecting recognition. He had one simple motivation: to do what was right. His story demonstrated an important lesson, that heroism is not always about recognition or dramatic acts of bravery. Sometimes it's about making the...