House resolution, breakfast held to honor Civil Air Patrol members

To celebrate the dedication and service of the men and women of the Civil Air Patrol, Washington State Sen. Jim Honeyford, R-Sunnyside, coordinated an honorary breakfast today in Columbia Room of the legislative building in Olympia. After the meal, participants were invited to the gallery of the state House of Representatives to observe as the body adopted a resolution recognizing the Washington state wing of the Civil Air Patrol.

“I’ve been a proud member of the Civil Air Patrol for three years,” said Honeyford. “The organization has helped to develop our state’s young people into future leaders who go on to succeed in whatever they set their minds toward. For me personally, this breakfast was just a way of saying ‘thank you’ to these dedicated individuals and to the organization.”

The Civil Air Patrol was established in 1941 to conduct liaison flying operations and interdiction of infiltrators on the east coast and the southern border of the United States. The Civil Air Patrol's mission grew to include a 1,000-member coastal patrol, 64 of whom died in service and 26 of whom were lost at sea. For the duration of WWII, the Civil Air Patrol flew 24 million miles, identified 173 enemy submarines, attacked 57 of those, hit 10, and sank two.

“We had over one hundred patrolmen and women attend the breakfast this morning,” said Honeyford, a lieutenant colonel with both the Washington Wing Legislative Squadron and the Yakima Composite Squadron, “followed by the House’s adoption of House Resolution 4662. It was truly an amazing sight to see so many volunteers come together for this event.”

During the postwar years, the Civil Air Patrol was put to work in search and rescue missions as well as natural disaster response and recovery missions. With over 26,000 young people between the ages of 12 and 20, the Civil Air Patrol also provides both classroom and practical instruction in aerospace flight and rocketry with an emphasis on military history, leadership, and service to others.