I'm obviously a noob, haha, so I'm sorry for the very noobish questions. I didn't want to annoy my Commander too much with some crazy questions but I do have one specifically that's bugging me, as well as a less-important but still nagging one.
As the title states, I'm headed to my first meeting tomorrow. I want to make sure that I'm a good fit for the squadron I'm thinking of joining since I understand the culture is different in each. The squadron I'm going to meets once each week. I'm very much looking forward to what I can do for CAP and to serving my country in some manner. To that end, I want to make a good impression but don't want to go overboard, either on what I wear. As my major is business administration, my first thought was to just wear what I would to a job interview ( a suit), but I'm thinking that might be a little "too formal", so my secondary choice is a nice pair of dress slacks and a nice blouse (I'm a lady, although my handle probably gave that away haha). So the first question... what should I wear to my first meeting (when I join, I'll be a senior, if this info determines what I should wear).
Secondly, provided they like me and I fit in with the culture, should I also take my ID docs and application+check with me or do I have to abide by the three-meeting requirement like cadets?
Thanks so much for your input and time!
As for what to wear, a nice blouse and dress slacks is a good choice. Definitely bring your ID documents.
As for the three-meeting requirement, ask your potential commander. They'll have the most accurate information. I don't know if any of the posters here know the specific unit you're looking at, so anything we give will be based on regulation, best practices, and personal opinion.
Welcome to CAP and CAPTalk. People here are happy to answer questions with a couple of caveats:
1. Unit specific questions should be asked at the unit.
2. Check the regs before asking a question easily found in the regs. If you can't find it, please start with "I've looked in CAPR ##-#, but I can't find...". It makes members more likely to be gentle.
3. Beware of hot-button topics (Rangers, Blue Beret, Hawk Mtn, "my unit is the best" are a few that result in...highly spirited (yeah, that's it ;D)... debate.
4. Lurk for a while and bring popcorn.
5. Do not drink while reading CAPTalk - many keyboards have died due to sudden explosive sprays of soda and coffee. >:D
I have lurked quite a bit today and found that all of your caveats are true, specifically number four (coffee nearly landed on my screen this morning in one of the "wannabe" threads. Good stuff.
I appreciate your answer and advice very much. Regarding the CAPRs, I've read so many in the last three days that my head hurts so I'm likely to continue referencing them long into the future. I'm glad they're fairly readily available. (I actually cruised them to find out what senior regs were for joining but found no answer to my 3-meeting requirement). My potential future commander was rather to-the-point in emails so I didn't want to bug him. I know his time is given freely and is limited, and didn't want to annoy him (although I am not undermining anyone in CAP or the time they freely donate, which is much appreciated and not lost on me). I will definitely ask him about the requirement tomorrow.
Also...do NOT under any circumstances...ever...ask about getting the ABUs the Air Force is wearing.
As evidenced by your posts so far, proper grammar is not an issue.
I'm the resident smart-arse.
Your commander IS your go-to for a little while until you get your bearings. After that, your Professional Development officer is your go-to.
We will help as much as we can.
Expect much debate over minutiae here and elsewhere in CAP.
and remember...they may not say so, but just about everyone in command reads this, so be careful. It's bitten more than one of us in the keester.
welcome aboard.
Quote from: arajca on November 03, 2014, 04:16:31 AM5. Do not drink while reading CAPTalk - many keyboards have died due to sudden explosive sprays of soda and coffee. >:D
.. perhaps a good by-product of switching to water from Coke... water is harmless to keyboards, and helps clean monitors ;)
On the flip side, I went from "on the fence" for uniforms, in the top of the CAP 10% extra, to well under the AF weight standard for my height, in about 50 days.
..and I have a nice popcorn machine. :)
I don't think too many of us (and wisely so) would place ourselves in the position of telling you what to wear but credibility is an important key in dealing with cadets and other adults. If you join you'll be an officer in time so you'll want to set a good impression.
Once you start wearing a uniform that's another story. Our standards are very high and you'll find that we have very high expectations as far as proper uniform wear is concerned. But this is something you probably already know.
Many units require that you attend a certain number of meetings (usually three) to ensure that you're truly interested in joining. This is a unit-specified thing and isn't necessarily followed by all units. Once you've jumped through this hoop check with your unit personnel officer; he or she will get you started on the paperwork process such as fingerprints, fees and all the fun stuff. You should then check with your professional officer (a fancy term for senior training officer) who will get you started on your initial training which we call Level One. I won't bore you with the details; others at your unit can get you started in the right direction. I think you'll find CAP has a lot to offer and you should have a lot of fun. Good luck!
Quote from: ERAUgirl on November 03, 2014, 03:55:16 AMI want to make sure that I'm a good fit for the squadron I'm thinking of joining since I understand the culture is different in each.
In my area I have 3 Squadrons. One 10 minutes east, one 10 minutes west and one 10 minutes south. My three youngest prefer a different Squadron. So culture is a big thing. What you might love another teen might dispise. My youngest daughter really enjoys the punch and cookies at "snack time" of the one Squadron that is really embrassing IMHO. Have fun and enjoy 8)
Quote from: Garibaldi on November 03, 2014, 05:06:57 AM
Also...do NOT under any circumstances...ever...ask about getting the ABUs the Air Force is wearing.
LOL wouldn't dream of it. I'm gonna leave it at that.
The squadron I attended has very low standards for uniform (and only the cadets wear the USAF-style uniform, although that's more because of the standards for wear that the adults either don't meet or don't want to wear it --- most because of facial hair.) I arrived extremely overdressed and I'm okay with that. I WILL have extremely high standards for my personal grooming and uniform.
The people in the squadron are good people. There really is no other option for me in drivable distance for me to be a consistent contributing member, so it's either this one or none for me, unfortunately. I'll go to the meeting again next week and I'm pretty sure I'll join. We have five squadrons in the state but they're all close to the border of the state, I'm right in the center. I'd probably rather have a little more structure, but then again, that can push people away, too. I'm a very regimented person so disorganization makes me a bit twitchy but I get that there are those who enjoy a laid-back volunteer experience, too. I can't say as the squadron I'm joining is at all disorganized, but I know that they are very short-handed. It's unfortunate because it's such a good organization but I don't think enough people know about it!
Oh and thank you to everyone for your replies, BTW :)
Welcome! I hope your experience is a positive one.
A very warm welcome to a great organization!
:)
Never be shy! You need to talk to the cadets there, and a good commander never turns down any questions! Ask away!
As for what to wear, dressy shoes are perfect. Although, if you have a good pair of athletic shoes, those will work. I wore jeans to my first meeting, and a black shirt with no logo on it. I did not know drill on my first meeting, but if you have the time, Google it and practice! It will leave a great impression on your potential commander! Lastly, Always get to know the cadets at that squadron, you might find a very good friend there!
Anyway, You will be fine! Be sure to have fun!
She's considering joining as a senior member.
Business casual, listen quietly, don't get too wrapped up about it.
First let me say, Welcome to CAP and I hope you really find what you are looking for.
I am still fairly new to CAP myself (15 months as a member), and I admit many of your sentiments struck home for me as well. The squadron that I visited was also very short-handed in Senior member staff and that will easily give the impression that they are disorganized. What I did was, stick it out. Try not to let the laid back mood get to you and keep yourself to those higher standards as you plan. I too am one who likes structure and I also hold myself to high standards for uniform. I am unfortunately currently like some of your Senior members and I do not meet the USAF style uniform weight standards...so I properly and proudly wear the corporate equivalent uniforms until I can reach my goal. I try to set a good example.
For me, even though I could see the lack of staff in my squadron was really hurting the organization of the unit, I could see the tremendous potential of the unit. It's a long standing unit with some extremely talented and experienced members, so I saw the potential for this unit to rise again to it's peak. It does take time and perhaps you will find that there is a place on the staff of your squadron in the future where you can put your organization and structure mindset to use in helping the unit staff. It's amazing where you could find yourself in the unit 12 months from now!! Trust me!! :D I would never have imagined where I wound up in less than 12 months....New SM to SQ/CC!!
I don't post here much, but I do lurk as well and the comments made by the others were so very true! :clap: ;D
Good luck and let us know how your next few meetings go.