Members of the 7 Penhold Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron shared their time and friendship when they stopped by Innisfail's Rosefield Centre last week.
“We're here visiting with the seniors. They're going to do a singalong which is familiar to the seniors,” said Lt. Jolyne Crashley during her squadron's visit on April 27. “Afterwards, they're going to do a food bank blitz for the community food bank.”
Cadets collected a total of 417 pounds of food for the Innisfail and District Food Bank.
“I think there's always a need, and especially right now with the economy and people being out of work,” said Crashley of the need in Penhold and in Innisfail. “If we can help in any way, I think it's good for the cadets to be able to give back in ways like visiting with the seniors here and then giving back to families (via the food bank).
“We really want to make cadets aware that this is important,” added Crashley. “Each of them brought a donation for the food bank tonight.”
A total of 31 cadets participated and contributed in the community service event. In addition to singing, cadets practised their stationary drill routine and showed off some of their techniques and skills to the residents of the Rosefield Centre.
“It's about giving back to the community. If we look at most of our seniors, a lot of them are familiar with the world wars and with the cadet movement, or maybe have served themselves in some way or knew someone within their family who served. That's how they identify with these cadets,” said Crashley, noting the seniors' anticipation for the cadets' visit. “It just goes to show how important it is for the seniors to see these cadets.”
It was their second visit to the Rosefield Centre since last December when they visited at Christmas.
“When they expressed interest of seeing the cadets in uniform we decided that we would come back in the spring and combine it with another activity,” she added, noting the food bank drive.
The evening singalong event ran from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. and was enjoyed by many seniors in attendance.
“They'll be singing some songs that go back to the Second World War era such as Long Way to Tipperary and Daisy, Daisy,” said Crashley. “It's familiar to the residents and I think it's fun for the cadets to see their side and their music.”
