The Kamsack Air Cadet Squadron No. 633 has resumed activities after a summer break.
“So far the group has 17 cadets, 13 returning and four new,” said CI (civilian instructor) Karen Bodnaryk on September 12 when the cadets held their first range training night at Kamsack Comprehensive Institute (KCI) in the large gymnasium.
WO2 (warrant officer second class) Keanna Romaniuk is a returning seventh-year cadet and led the group through introductions.
Captain Don Thomson, zone training officer based out of Yorkton, who works with all the squadrons in the Yorkton area, was there to help CO (commanding officer) Karen Tourangeau with the cadets and oversee her qualifications as a range safety officer.
“A first-year cadet can begin range training as soon as they have their in-class safety instructions,” said Thomson. “They are mentored by seasoned cadets and begin their progression through the sport of marksmanship.
“Marksmanship training can be a great stepping-stone as some cadets in the past have utilized the skills they have learned to qualify for the Canada Games.
“The skill aspect is to learn about your body and how it affects the trajectory of the shot,” he said.
Developing consistency, patience and skill to improve and master the aiming and shooting principles in the marksmanship sport develops self-discipline with a component of physical and cardio fitness, he explained.
“From a sports standpoint it functions to develop muscular and skeletal control of one’s body.”
During the summer, seven cadets attended either a two or three-week camp at Cold Lake, Alta. “Those who went for two weeks left on August 4 and the cadets who went to camp for three weeks left here on the August 7,” said Bodnaryk.
Cpl. Boston Guillet is now in her second year with cadets and is 13. This was her first time attending cadet camp and she went for two weeks.
“I enjoyed meeting new people, getting to know what cadet camp is all about and learned how to tie some fishing knots,” she said.
“It was interesting to learn about flying by using a flight simulator to guide a plane during take-off and landing,” said Cpl. Teanna Raffard, 12, and in her second year with cadets. Raffard spent two weeks at camp and said she learned a lot about drill and how to be better at it.
“I was taught how to make ‘hospital corners’ really well on my bed, and we were taught how to keep the dorm clean in a certain way to get top marks,” she said.
Cpl. Gerri Leigh Basaraba, 12, is in her second year with cadets and spent two weeks at camp, saying she learned different types of drill and how to be better at it. “I met new people, and we did a lot of group activities so we learned a lot about the cadets we attended camp with.”
Another second-year cadet, Cpl. Sage Tourangeau, 13, spent two weeks learning drill, making new friends and learning the proper way to make beds.
Cpl. John Dungen, 12, in his second year with cadets spent two weeks at camp learning how to make a bed properly, how to march properly and “how to shine my boots,” he said.
Flt/Corp. Tara Taylor is a third-year cadet who attended camp for three weeks and she is 13. “I was interested to learn survival skills like how to collect water from plants and how to forage for food in the wild if I were lost. We were also taught how to tell time using things other than watches like the sky and sticks,” she said.
Fourth-year cadet, Sgt. Megan Raffard is 14 and spent three weeks at camp learning about drill, meeting new friends and learning about how to survive in the bush. “If you get lost in the bush with a person you barely know, you learn a lot about them while trying to find water and food and building a shelter and making camp crafts like chairs out of trees,” she said.
