West Orange Teen Earns Prestigious Civil Air Patrol Award

WEST ORANGE, NJ — A teen from West Orange recently earned a prestigious award from the Civil Air Patrol, joining an elite group that only about 15 percent of cadets reach.

Erin Feeney, 15, received a General Billy Mitchell Award during a ceremony at the American Red Cross Northern New Jersey Headquarters in Fairfield.

Presented by Major Jim Menoutis and Colonel Carol McCloud, the Mitchell Award recognizes “sustained excellence in all four areas of cadet life: leadership, aerospace, fitness, and character.”

According to the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), Feeney joined the organization three years ago and immediately embraced its missions, which include aviation, aerospace, volunteerism and emergency services. She pursued opportunities to learn and lead in her home squad – the Curtiss-Wright Composite Squadron – which has 45 cadets plus adult members who reside in West Orange, Caldwell, Cedar Grove, East Hanover, Fairfield, Livingston, Morristown, Parsippany, Roseland and Wayne.

The squadron meets on Tuesday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. at the American Red Cross Northern New Jersey Headquarters, 209 Fairfield Road in Fairfield.

Here’s why Feeney earned the honor, according to the CAP:

“In 2022, [Feeney] was named Cadet of the Year as a non-commissioned cadet officer. Currently, she is the deputy cadet commander for her squadron of 45 cadets. For the past two years, Feeney has represented her squadron on the Cadet Advisory Council (CAC) for the New Jersey Wing, and recently she joined CAC’s leadership team as recorder. She has completed several search and rescue training exercises in New Jersey and participated in orientation flights on CAP aircraft, a USAF C-17 transport and a Blackhawk helicopter. Earlier this year, Feeney trained at the National Emergency Service Academy in Indiana, where she completed her ground team member certification. This past summer she also led two 45-cadet squadrons at cadet encampments hosted at Joint Base McGuire–Dix–Lakehurst (NJ) and at Camp Nett in Niantic, Connecticut.”

But that’s not all, the CAP says:

“Feeney is a 4.4-GPA honors student at West Orange High School and an active community member outside of CAP. She helps lead the West Orange High School’s award-winning Sports Media Association and is a member of her school’s Future Business Leaders of America club. She is a manager for the West Orange High School co-ed swim team and a vocalist with her school’s Honors Chamber Choir and the Glee Club. Feeney plays softball year-round on her school team and the Roxbury Rebelz. Feeney works part-time as a lifeguard at the West Essex YMCA (Livingston, NJ).”

The Gen. Billy Mitchell Award was established in 1964. The award honors the late Brigadier General Billy Mitchell, an aviation pioneer and supporter of an "independent Air Force for America." The award is earned after completing the first eight achievements of the cadet program. Mitchell recipients must pass a series of examinations on leadership and aerospace topics and have completed a week-long encampment immersing them in a challenging leadership and STEM environment.

Mitchell Award recipients are eligible to attend CAP’s Cadet Officer School and the Civic Leadership Academy. Eventually if they choose to enlist in the US Air Force, they may enter at the grade of E-3, Airman First Class. The award is also looked upon favorably by the admissions staff at the USAF Academy and the AFROTC.

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