MAR-NC-001 (NC Wing)
Main Content

Cunningham Field Cadet Wins Challenge Coin Design Competition!

March 8, 2021

News Item Image

By: C/SMSgt Grace Anderson, CAP

CAC Challenge Coin Committee Member

 

On November 28th 2020, a request for challenge coin designs was sent out by the North Carolina Wing Cadet Advisory Council. Many cadets responded, but one prevailed, C/SrA Luke Lewis. The design was for the 2021 North Carolina Wing Virtual Conference, which took place on Feb. 6th, 2021. The competition was limited to cadets, and the cadets provided!  

Over 15 submissions were received during the 25 days in which the competition was open. Entries ranged from rough sketches to photoshopped masterpieces, with creators from squadrons just as varied. Cadets from over 16 squadrons participated in the competition. It was requested that the designs incorporate the virtual aspect of the conference in some way or other. Cadets were allowed to work in pairs or work alone, but only to submit one design per group.  

C/SrA Lewis submitted two designs, as he did not see the one design per group notice in the announcement. His images were excellently photoshopped, and turned out to be the two finalists in the competition! His first submission was of a Cessna 182 over an image of the North Carolina flag with a blue border with “2021 Virtual NC Wing Conference” on the top and “Civil Air Patrol” on the bottom. His second entry was of crossed North Carolina and United States flags with the core values (integrity, volunteer service, excellence, and respect) and a biplane below it, with the same border as the first.  

While one side of the coin was supposed to be designed by cadets by way of the competition, the other side was designed by the North Carolina Wing Cadet Advisory Council’s Challenge Coin Committee, led by C/2d Lt William Nesbit. The design of that side of the coin was done by C/Capt Jenna Gwaltney, and her original and final design was of a North Carolina flag background with a yellow North Carolina state outline filled with binary code that translates to 2021 NC Virtual Wing Conference. The binary artfully tied in the technological aspect of the conference with the intrigue of a secret message. She was assisted with the perfection of her vision by C/SrA Lewis.  

The final draft of the coin took C/SrA Lewis’ design and C/Capt Gwaltney’s design and put them on different sides of the coin. When the coin design got to Vanguard for production, however, C/SrA Lewis’ design had to be edited. The design of the coin pays tribute to him by placing an image of the Cessna in the white portion of the North Carolina flag, but with the normal gold lettering and embellishments on the blue portion of the flag, and keeping the Civil Air Patrol plane propeller triangles on both sides of the blue border. Congratulations to C/SrA Luke Lewis of the Cunningham Field Squadron!

The coin is available for purchase here: https://www.vanguardmil.com/products/civil-air-patrol-north-carolina-conference-coin-2021?fbclid=IwAR0KPcT1THClArylA_23QF9kh2k0C3jrnKYByj4XtgJuOVAuAjwKsWmMZKg

« Back

© 2024 Civil Air Patrol. All rights reserved.
×