The Spaatz Award - is it worth it?

[Shawn W.]

I dont have any numbers or statistics for you, what i will tell you is that, while I was not a Spaatz cadet, I did earn my Earheart award and finished my Cadet career as a C/Maj. The experience that I gained off of what I learned since my Mitchell is invaluable and I still put into practice today, things that I learned as a cadet. I am a 15 year member of CAP and I am proud of everything that I have done. And let me tell you that even as a Senior Member, the learning still continues. When I turned over, I was put into the Professional Devlopment Track. That was nealry 9 and a half years ago. I again learned so many things that I never knew, and leaned many different ways of doing things. The point here is this.... YOU GET OUT OF C.A.P., WHAT YOU PUT INTO IT. So I say keep working toward your Spaatz. Do the best that you can do and I bet you will find it rewarding.

Thank you

Shawn Warneke, Capt., CAP.
Professional Devlopment Officer
St Cloud Composite Squadron
Mn Wing, Civil Air Patrol

[SaBeR33]

One of the biggest regrets I have in my CAP cadet career is the fact I only got one shot at the Spaatz Award and didn't earn it before I was forced to switch to Senior Member due to going to USAF BMT.  My motivation was the fact that I wanted to be the best and I wanted to finish what I started.

How very weird since this is the same thing I experienced as well.

As was stated above, the lessons you learn while striving to achieve that goal are important.  In fact, those lessons are more important than the award itself in my opinion.

+1

[James Shaw]

I was recently talking to my parents about my goal was to get the Spaatz award. I was talking about how it will take at least another two years to get it. They brought up the subject on whether it was worth it or not. Their big question is was if it will help me get anywhere in life when I start my career in the military. They also wanted to know, that in the event I didn't do the military and slected a civilian career, if it would actually help me in get anywhere.

Help?

Any type of achievement that you want like the Spaatz has to be one that you solely desire for yourself and the satisfaction of knowing that you set your mind and path to do something and you finished it. I am not a Spaatz cadet and the highest I made it to as a cadet was C/SSGT. Some of the long term benefits are known and shown by some previous posts, they can be great. I would try not to look at it as "what can I get in the future" for the work required. I would look at it and try to decide if the return on the investment of time and energy is worth it. Thatis a decision that only you can make. I personally think it would be worth the time and energy.

I would also like to add the SM professional development Gill Robb Wilson to that level of personal accomplishment that we as SM's have to decide if we want to go for it. We as SM's can go all the way to Lt Col without reaching the GRW and Level V. It has to be a personal choice and we have to determine if we want to do it for oursleves and not necessarily for CAP. It does take a bit more effort and time.

Go for it!!

[noodles]

It is certainly well worth it. It does not have the name recognition outside the CAP world vis a vis "Eagle Scout" but you will be able to say that you completed the cadet program.  That being said the fact you earned the Spaatz should not be the end-all/be-all of your CAP life (or otherwise). I personally do not like Spaatz recipients who carry themselves as if they are better than those around them--this goes for current cadets and those who earned the award years ago.  I make it a habit not to bring it up when talking with cadets or seniors who do not know my background unless they ask (i.e. how far did you go in the cadet program, etc).  I'm not embarrassed but believe that I've done plenty of other things since I was 17. 

[PA Guy]

^^^^^^^^^

:clap:  :clap:

[The Leev]

There is NO failure in reaching for any greater knowledge and experience. A lifelong positive attitude will be the proof of what you can not know as a Cadet.  .... C/Lt. Col.