August 2024

A Message from the
Chief of Chaplains - Chaplain Colonel Linda Pugsley

My Last Message as Chief of Chaplains:

Dear fellow servants of God,



It is with a full heart that I can say goodbye as your Chief. So many of you have stepped up to the plate at the encampments, Cadet Activities, SAREXs, unit CD classes, prayer, counsel, Invocations/Benedictions etc. Some have even done the funerals and weddings of our CAP members. You have served God and man in such a special and unique way and I can never thank you enough. As I change duty positions back to a Squadron Chaplain, I shall continue to cover the FL encampments and teaching at NESA, so I will still see some of you out in the field.



And, for my staff. I will miss working with you more than you can know. You have been outstanding in all I have asked and tasked you to do. We are a team, for sure. Out on the Appalachian Trail, that I love to hike, the thru hikers call their fellow hikers their "tramily", as they have become like family enduring the many challenges, hardships and triumphs that life on the Trail can bring. I too can call you my "tramily", as we have been on a journey fraught with much work, many challenges and hills to climb. And we have done it together. There are a few things not yet tied down, but we shall pass them on to the next Chief, who will work with vigor to grow and maintain a strong CAP Chaplain Corps.

So, to all our Chaplain Corps members, thank you for a job well done. God bless you richly in all you do. Farewell.



Notice for National:

A big thank you to all who have registered to attend the National Conference in San Antonio, TX. It is a big sacrifice of time and money, but never forget, it is God you please in all your efforts, not just CAP. I know it is hard to attend sometimes, but I encourage you to take advantage of the National Conference as frequently as possible. It is one of the times that our Chaplain Corps can get together for fellowship, prayer, updates and training. We are in a spiritual warfare for sure these days, and we need each of you strong and in the fight, so to speak. God bless you all for your service to God and Country.

Summer Time!  Encampments and

National Cadet Special Activities

Captain Erin Briggs, Lieutenant Skylar Quade, Chaplain Linda Berez, C/CMSgt Logann Sackmaster, Captain Becca Boppre, Lieutenant Colonel Todd Meyer

Wisconsin Wing Encampment Health Services, Chaplain Corps and Safety Team

Excerpted from a letter sent out December 2023 by Mark C Dulaney, Chief of Safety.



"Toward the end of 2023 NHQ staff reorganized the reporting structure for Safety, Health Services, and the Chaplain Corps.This was done in part because having Health Services and Chaplains with Safety creates a better means to ensure you have the advocacy you need to better support and advance the value you bring to CAP.  Each staff area
remains an independent function as to the management of each of their respective programs and will work interdependently as partners for protecting the health and wellbeing of our members and those we serve."



In the picture above you see the members of Safety, Health Services and the Chaplain Corps team for the Wisconsin Wing Encampment.  Serving together and supporting each other in our duties we were able to provide care for the cadets and adult members in attendance.  The joy of working with a team of dedicated individuals is a joy.  I hope you are all having a great summer.  



Chaplain Major Linda Berez

Deputy Chief of Chaplains for Information Technology

It’s encampment season. It’s Cadet Special Activity season. Cadets are out of their comfort zones and often come face-to-face with challenges that looked fun on paper but seem a bit more daunting in person.



They’re not the only ones. In 2019, I signed on for my first National Cadet Special Activity. The coastal town we were in experienced a heat wave with highs around 108. The DFAC’s air conditioning broke. There were personality clashes. Medical issues. Spiders the size of mice. My best friend and I wanted to quit. What looked like fun wasn’t turning out to be fun at all.



Each morning between 0545 and 0615 we would both climb into a CAP van after performing its inspection and call her husband. We cried. We were uncomfortable. We were being stretched. Our mantra for the week became similar to something JFK once said. “We’re going to do the hard right (and stick it out), not the easy wrong (getting in the van and going home). Read More



Major Rachael J. Mercer

Character Development Instructor SC-032

South Carolina Wing Vice Commander