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Maryland Wing cadet accepted to US Air Force Academy

Rowan in front of USAFA Chapel
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Civil Air Patrol Maryland Wing Cadet Maj. John Rowan has been accepted to the US Air Force Academy. Rowan is shown here in front of the USAFA Chapel in Colorado Spring, Co.

Rowan is member of Calvert Cadet Squadron

By Maj. Brenda A. Reed, CAP
Maryland Wing Public Affairs

5/6/2012–BALTIMORE, MD–Civil Air Patrol Maryland Wing Cadet Maj. John Rowan has been accepted to the United States Air Force Academy. Rowan, a cadet in the Calvert Cadet Squadron, will be a member of the class of 2016.

Rowan, a member of the Civil Air Patrol Maryland Wing since 2008, has been active at all echelons of the state organizational structure. He has served as cadet commander of his home squadron where he also is on the unit’s emergency services ground team. At the group level, Rowan is currently the chairperson of the Group III Cadet Advisory Council. At the wing and region levels, Rowan has held staff positions at the Tri-Wing Encampment in 2010 and 2011, serving as a squadron first sergeant and squadron commander respectively.

“CAP has helped me prepare for USAFA by teaching me how to both follow and lead. I have learned so much about both things that it has been invaluable. The things like drill and the wear of the uniform will also put me a step ahead of my peers in terms of military training,” said Rowan of how being a cadet in Civil Air Patrol has influenced him.

Of all activities he has been involved in, Rowan considers his years at the Tri-Wing Encampment to be the most valuable by teaching him about both followership and being a leader. When asked about lessons learned, Rowan stated, “The little nuances of something such as setting realistic goals and praising your staff are all things I learned as a squadron commander. Nowhere else could I lead over 50 people as a high schooler.”

In addition to his volunteer service in CAP, Rowan has been a member of the Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (NJROTC) since 2008 where he currently holds the grade of Lieutenant and has served as the drill team commander, color guard commander, and platoon commander among other duty assignments.

Rowan is a senior at Northern High School in Owings, Md., and is a member of the National Honor Society. His plans are to become a fighter pilot with the US Air Force after graduation from the USAFA.

Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with more than 61,000 members nationwide. CAP, in its Air Force auxiliary role, performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and was credited by the AFRCC with saving 113 lives in fiscal year 2010. Its volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the more than 26,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for 69 years. It is the largest sponsor annually of Wreaths Across America, an initiative to remember, honor and teach about the sacrifices of U.S. military veterans. For more information on Civil Air Patrol, visit www.gocivilairpatrol.com or www.capvolunteernow.com.

More than 1,500 members of CAP serve in Maryland. Last fiscal year wing members flew 42 search and rescue missions and were credited with 31 finds. For more information, visit www.mdcap.org.