Called to Serve

During his summer break in 2017, Samuel Goldfarb ’20 spent a week honing his skills as a Civil Air Patrolman at the Lone Star Emergency Services Academy (LESA). 

 

For more than two years, Sam has been an active member of the Civil Air Patrol’s Dallas Composite Squadron (TX-391). The Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is a nonprofit organization and an auxiliary of the United States Air Force devoted to emergency services, cadet programs, and aerospace education. Now serving as a Cadet Second Lieutenant, Sam was one of two cadets from the Dallas Squadron selected to attend LESA, held at the Texas Wing Civil Air Patrol headquarters in Nacogdoches. While there, he successfully completed the Flight Line Marshaling qualification and demonstrated proficiency in all of the required tasks for Urban Direction Finding, allowing him to serve on future missions searching for downed aircraft. 

 

These skills proved useful during the CAP’s response to Hurricane Harvey. As Sam explains, “I served at CAP’s Denton Incident Command Post. We were working on plans for demobilization as the relief effort was winding down. Personally, I was responsible for organizing the mission’s files and communications, monitoring radio communications, and determining the location of Texas Wing aircraft and how to get them back to their home airports if necessary.”

 

For his service, Sam was received a Meritorious Service Ribbon with a V-clasp for Valor at the Texas Wing Conference in February 2018. At the same event, Sam met up with fellow Marksman and CAP member John Dorie ’63, who was named the Safety Officer of the Year for the Texas Wing.

 

“Sam’s rank of Cadet First Lieutenant makes him second-in-command of all 24 Cadets in our Squadron,” John Dorie said.  “When Sam attends a Group-wide, Wing-wide, or nation-wide activity, his rank puts him into a leadership position.”

 

Sam joined the Civil Air Patrol in August 2015. He was attracted to the program by his interest in World War II aviation, the opportunity to learn leadership skills, and the CAP’s mission of emergency service and response. He is already looking into joining either the ROTC or the Air Force.