Proposed program for Island youth 9 to 12 seeks interest from community
LITTLE CURRENT—Lieutenant (N) Sylvain Boucher may be retiring as commander of the Manitoulin Sea Cadet Corps, but the veteran cadet leader is not ready to step away from providing Island youth with alternative things to do. In the coming weeks, the Manitoulin North Shore Navy League hopes to sponsor a Navy League Cadet Corps, for younger children, ages 9 to 12, and Lieutenant Boucher, who has more than a decade-and-a-half experience as a commanding officer of a Navy League Cadet Corps in Sudbury (prior to moving to Manitoulin and becoming involved with the Sea Cadet Corps here) is spearheading the project.
“We are hoping to start up Navy League cadets on Manitoulin and are looking into it,” said Manitoulin Navy League President Bob Jewell. “We have been hearing a lot of interest in it and Lieutenant Boucher gave us a presentation on it at our last meeting. We believe it will be pretty good.”
Mr. Jewell noted that there are some significant differences between the Sea Cadets and Navy League Cadets, notably the latter are sponsored in part by the Canadian Department of Defence, while the first 25 cadets in Navy league have their uniforms paid for by the Navy League of Canada.
Lieutenant Boucher explained that Navy League Cadets are between the ages of nine and 12. “We know there is interest because a lot of parents calling about the Sea Cadets have children who underage for Sea Cadets,” he said. “There is not all that much going on here on the Island for youth in that age group.”
Right now, Lieutenant Boucher’s focus is on the change of command at the Manitoulin Sea Cadets, he said, but adding “as soon as that is done, I will be focussing my whole attention on getting the Navy League Cadets up and running.”
“The Navy League takes care of 100 percent of the costs,” said Mr. Boucher, “the officers are all volunteers and not part of the Canadian Armed Forces like the Sea Cadets.”
The name of the new cadet corps is still under wraps, albeit they have a logo already designed and ready to go.
Establishing a Navy League Cadet program on Manitoulin will be a win-win situation both for youth and the Manitoulin Sea Cadet Corps explains Lieutenant Boucher. “Youth will learn a lot about all things nautical,” he said. “From tying different knots, all kinds of on-water activities, even learning to sail. It’s not the same as the Sea Cadets, but it is complementary. Youth will learn leadership skills and develop confidence, discipline and respect. Later, they can transition into the Sea Cadets and help bolster their numbers.”
Lieutenant Boucher recalls from his 15 years in command of the Navy League Cadets in Sudbury that many parents told him their children had been struggling in school, especially with homework and studying, but after being in the cadets they were finding much better results scholastically.
A number of volunteers are already stepping forward to help out, so the future looks bright.
Those interested in learning more about the Navy League Cadet program are invited to contact Lieutenant Boucher at 249-777-3114 (call or text) or by email at
sylvain.boucher@cadets.gc.ca
