CAP World War II Volunteer to be Honored With Distinguished Service Medal

Compton is one of some 60,000 unsung heroes who volunteered through CAP during its early years to protect the American homeland. At ages ranging from the late 80s to more than 100, their numbers are substantially reduced today.

Legislation is pending in both houses of Congress to award CAP a Congressional Gold Medal for its World War II service, but two-thirds of the membership in both the Senate and House of Representatives must sponsor the bills – S. 418 and H.R. 719 – before they can be brought to the floor for a vote. Sample letters and other details are available at www.capmembers.com/goldmedal. Meanwhile, anyone with information on adult CAP members who served the organization during World War II is encouraged to upload their information into the World War II Congressional Gold Medal database at www.capmembers.com/goldmedal

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 a major partner 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