Civil Air Patrol promotes squadron leaders

By 2nd Lt. Paul DohertyMay 6, 2011

Civil Air Patrol promotes squadron leaders
Lt. Col. Rob Couch, Group III Commander (right), and Capt. Jason Kerpleman's daughter, Caroline (left), attach new epaulets to Kerpleman's uniform while Capt. Joe Kekich, Apollo I commander, looks on during the recent promotion ceremony held at Civil... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, Md. (May 5, 2011) -- Senior Civil Air Patrol members Jason Kerpleman and Ron Miller were recently promoted to captain and first lieutenant respectively, at Civil Air Patrol Maryland Wing's Apollo I Squadron.

Kerpleman is the squadron's emergency services officer and was cited for outstanding service in facilitating the training of squadron members in air and ground operations and for successfully brokering an arrangement with the Tipton Airport Authority and Tipton Airport Pilots Association for a squadron facility at the airport.

Kerpleman has been a member of CAP since 2000.

Miller is the squadron's transportation officer and wears additional hats as Information Technology officer for the squadron and for Maryland Wing. He was lauded for establishing a new squadron website and for maintaining the Maryland Wing web pages. Additionally, in just the past three months, he has been part of team efforts in two Urban Direction Finding nondistress finds.

Miller is a relatively new member of CAP, having joined in 2009.

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. 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 the largest sponsor annually of Wreaths Across America, an initiative to remember, honor and teach about the sacrifices of U.S. military veterans.

More than 1,500 members of CAP serve in Maryland. Last fiscal year, wing members flew 42 search and rescue missions and were credited with 31 finds.

The Apollo I Squadron meets 6 to 8 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month at Tipton Airport on the second floor of Hanger 80, 7515 General Aviation Drive.

For more information, email Capt. Joe Kekich, Apollo I commander, at apollocap@verizon.net or 2nd Lt. Paul Doherty, public affairs officer, at pfdoher@comcast.com.

For more information on CAP Maryland, visit www.mdcap.org. For more information on Civil Air Patrol, visit www.gocivilairpatrol.com or www.capvolunteernow.com.

Related Links:

Fort Meade Facebook page

Fort Meade website

Civil Air Patrol

Civil Air Patrol Maryland