The Historian Program: Our Look to the Past to Teach the Future

 By:  Capt Brent Wooters, CAP

Commander, Dan River Composite Squadron

     The Historian Program of the Civil Air Patrol is often one that does not get a lot of notice and fame but is one of the best-looking glasses that we as an organization have into the past. Theologian William Rauschenbusch famously stated, “History is never antiquated, because humanity is always fundamentally the same.” The Civil Air Patrol has a great story to tell but it will just remain on the shelf like an old weathered book if someone does not dust off the cover and share the amazing accomplishments. This is where the historian program can bridge that gap in the flow of information from our past to our present and future.

               The Dan River Composite Squadron currently has two members assigned to the historian duty position and specialty track. Lt Charlie Manley and Lt Ed Paisley, both new members to the Civil Air Patrol beginning with the re-chartering of the squadron, have welcomed the challenge of carrying the mantle of the storytellers and keepers of the past. Lt Paisley stated, “The Historian Program is important to the cadets so they know the past and the present. How do we know where we are going if we don’t know where we have been? We need to document our accomplishments and be proud of them.” The squadron level historian program is unique in that when it is combined with the efforts of the public affairs program it can be a wonderful tool to educate our current members and bring in those new charged up potential members that we need to fill our bench of skills.

               The command staff and the historians at the Dan River Composite Squadron decided to use the historian program as a tool to reach beyond the doors of the squadron building at Shiloh Airport. Lt Charlie Manley stated, “The Historian program is a great tool for the squadrons to use to teach the cadets, our members and the public about the Civil Air Patrol’s past accomplishments and future goals.” The group began to work on a video outreach program that would look at past and recent accomplishments of the Civil Air Patrol as well as highlight some members that have strived to accomplish the mission goals. Each month a new video will be produced and released that will illustrate the accomplishments that took place within that month in the past. Episode 1 of This Month in The Civil Air Patrol was filmed on February 16, 2023 and covers the month of February and a unique event that took place as well as past member that was born in February of 1901 and later became a Lt Colonel in the Civil Air Patrol. The videos will be available on the Dan River Composite Squadron’s Facebook page, as well as their webpage located at https://rockinghamnc.cap.gov/about-us/in-the-news.

               The staff of the Dan River Composite Squadron hopes that this will be a tool that many other squadrons can use to share the wealth of stories, accomplishments and the important role that the Civil Air Patrol has in our country’s rich history. If you have any interesting stories to tell or any suggestions for future episodes, please feel free to email them to brent.wooters@ncwgcap.org and all of the episodes are available for use by any Civil Air Patrol units.

 

For More Information:

Capt Brent Wooters, CAP

E-mail: Brent.Wooters@ncwgcap.org