The Newton Civil Air Patrol’s color guard presented the colors at the Rockdale Republican’s President’s Day Dinner. The dinner took place on February 28th at the Cherokee Run Golf Club.

The dinner was to honor the accomplishments of Presidents Lincoln and Reagan and to award two community leaders. The dinner was attended by many veterans, elected officials, and included remarks by Senator Michael Williams, Phil Kent of the Georgia Gang, and State Chairman John Padgett. The Dinner also included a tribute to the POWs and MIAs, and a call to never forget them or their families’ sacrifice.

Two life-long residents were presented with awards. Ms. Barbara Bunn was presented with the Trailblazer Award for her bravery in running for public office and winning when women were not encouraged to seek public office. She remarked on her life in Rockdale as an accomplished educator, elected official, and a citizen who has worked tirelessly to make Rockdale County a great community.

Ms. Hilda Westmoreland was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award for her service Rockdale County for several decades. She is a lifelong resident of Rockdale County, a business owner, and has worked for several decades to make Rockdale County a great place to live. She recalled her experience as a Democrat and the inspiration of President Reagan’s call to patriotism and has been a Republican ever since.

“We were proud to be asked to present the colors both for the community and the many veterans that were in attendance. They are in inspiration to these young people. I am very proud of how well they performed their duties for this crowd and honored our nation and our local veterans,“ said 1Lt. Paul Rekamp, Commander, Newton County Composite Squadron.

The Newton County Composite Squadron meets every Monday in the lobby of the Covington Municipal Airport beginning at 7:00pm and membership is open to all youth ages 6th grade and older, and adult volunteers.

Civil Air Patrol (CAP), the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization, volunteer organization, with over 61,000 members nationwide, operating a fleet of 550 aircraft (the largest fleet in the world). CAP, as Air Force auxiliary, performs more than 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and is credited by the AFRCC with saving an average of 80 lives annually.

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 more than 26,000 young people currently participating in the CAP cadet programs. CAP received the World Peace Prize in 2011 and has been performing missions for America for over 75 years. CAP also participates in Wreaths Across America, an initiative to remember, honor and teach about the sacrifices of U.S. military veterans.

For more information about the Newton Squadron visit www.ga157.org or contact the commander at [email protected] or (770) 788-1168.