He’s going from the hockey rink to a sailboat.
The first time Kayden Milford set out onto the water he was in love. As a member of the Okotoks Sea Cadets, the fifteen-year-old got the chance to learn to sail after joining the corps.
Milford played hockey for five years, and joined the corps after hanging up his skates. Moving across the water in a small echo-class sailboat, he knew he wanted to learn more.
“The first time I went sailing at the end of the day I knew sailing was my favourite part,” he said, about being part of the cadets.
Milford will attend a basic seamanship camp this summer. Once he completes the course, he can go on to pursue CANSail 1 and move up to higher levels from there.
Joining the Sea Cadets two years ago and learning to sail is the first step towards a possible career in the Canadian Forces for Milford.
“When I’m older I want to join the military, possibly the Navy,” he said.
Lt. Linda Wellwood, Okotoks Sea Cadet commanding officer, said the skills of leadership and teamwork learned in the cadets will serve the youths well, no matter what they do with in the future.
“It’s one thing to teach a 12-year-old to be a leader, that’s why we have the stages that we have,” she said. “By the time they get to be about 17 they’re ready to take on those leadership roles and a lot of them are very eager to do it, ready to teach the new ones and show the new ones everything they got to learn.”
Okotoks may be far from Canada’s coastline, but the young cadets are carrying on a proud naval tradition on the Canadian prairies.
The Okotoks corps was founded in October 2015. Wellwood said their membership has grown slowly to 16 members.
The corps needs at least 30 cadets to receive a charter from the Department of National Defence.
“Which would make us a full-fledged Sea Cadet Corps and then we can pick a true nautical name,” said Wellwood.
In the Okotoks corps, the young cadets learn regular training courses and lessons set out by the Department of National Defence.
They also have a chance to take part in summer training opportunities.
Six young cadets from Okotoks have received invites to attend summer training programs. Wellwood said it’s an honour to go because not everyone gets the opportunity. Sometimes there are opportunities for bigger experiences, such as going onboard on Canadian naval vessels or a coast guard deployment.
“How often does a 16-year-old get to go spend six months on a coast guard ship?” said Wellwood.
Wellwood is a full-time officer in the reserves, she also works at the Rocky Mountain Cadet Training centre northwest of Cochrane.
Wellwood joined the sea cadets as a teenager in 1975, when the cadet corps were first opened to females. She was told she couldn’t do it because she was a girl. So, Wellwood decided to prove to the boy who said it, he was wrong.
“Seriously, a boy told me that I was a girl and I wouldn’t be allowed to join sea cadets,” she said. “Within six months they allowed sea cadets into the program and I joined.”
Wellwood said she fell in love with the program.
“The program itself was attractive, I just really fell into it,” she said. “I loved the drill, I loved to do the rifle drill we used to do, all kinds of things.”
Drill is a large part of the cadet’s weekly activities, it’s all about learning to work as a team.
“It’s probably the hardest thing you have to do because you have to all have to march perfect,” said Milford.
Cadet Elizabeth Wallace, 13, is getting a chance to learn a lot more than marching this summer at basic training camp at HMCS Quadra in Comox, B.C. At the camp, the young cadets learn and hone their abilities in a number of areas, such as fitness, sailing, marksmanship, sports.
Wallace said it will help her to progress in the Cadets.
“You get a chance to learn and practice skills,” she said. “Just for more knowledge of general skills that you learn in your corps group.”
Teighan Russell, 13, said being a part of a small corps in Okotoks is a bonus. He is attending a cadet camp at Cold Lake this summer.
“If we have a bigger corps, it’s going to be harder for people to get there,” he said. So, I’m glad to have the opportunity,” he said.
The Cold Lake camp puts the young cadets through their paces with a focus on sports and fitness. He expects to be doing a lot of exercising during the three-week camp.
The Sea Cadets meet every Tuesday at Big Rock School. For more information and to join as a cadet or adult leader, contact [email protected].
