Appleton, WI – Cadet Captain (C/Capt) William Voelker, was awarded the coveted Amelia
Earhart Award during the Fox Cities Composite Squadron Awards Banquet, March 6th.
The Earhart Award is accompanied by promotion to the grade of Cadet Captain. Voelker has been in Civil Air Patrol for two and a half years and has been constantly motivated to take that “next step”. Voelker is currently the Cadet Commander of Fox Cities Composite Squadron. In his CAP career he has attended two Wisconsin Wing Summer Encampments, Region Cadet Leadership School (RCLS), and is an active member in the squadron. Now that he has earned this milestone, he is eligible to apply for participation in the International Air Cadet Exchange which he looks forward to applying to next year. “Each promotion is like a short-term goal which eventually leads up to a long-term goal such as your Wright Brothers or Billy Mitchell Award” said Voelker “If you have the motivation to reach those short-term goals every time, then eventually you will meet the long-term goal.”
To highlight the significance of this accomplishment, only 5% of cadets have earned this award since its inception in 1964. Cadets who receive this award and later enter CAP’s Senior Member program, are eligible for immediate promotion to CAP 1st Lieutenant at age 21. Cadets who receive the Amelia Earhart Award also enjoy all the benefits gained from earning the General Billy Mitchell Award (advanced placement in the grade of E-3 (Airman First Class) should they choose to enlist in the US Air Force, advanced credit in the Air Force ROTC program, and the opportunity to apply for a variety of scholarships and CAP special activities.
The Amelia Earhart Award honors the late Amelia Earhart, aviatrix, advocate, and pioneer, who set many records for women aviators in aviation’s infancy, and then disappeared in 1937 near Howland Island in the Pacific Ocean while trying to circumnavigate the world in a twin-engine Lockheed Electra. Her disappearance is one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of the 20th century. “The stars seemed near enough to touch, and never before have I seen so many, she said after one of her record-setting flights. I always believed the lure of flying is the lure of beauty, but I was sure of it that night.”
