Staff and Squadron Sponsoring Committee

Staff

Squadron Sponsoring Committee

Officers of the Cadet Instructors Cadre (CIC) are members of the Canadian Forces Reserve working as part of the Cadet Organizations Administration and Training Service (COATS) whose primary duty is the supervision, administration and training of youth from 12–19 years of age who are members of the Royal Canadian Sea, Army and Air Cadets in more than 1,100 corps and squadrons across Canada.

Our Commanding Officer is Captain Murray Charlton. Captain Charlton will be familiar to many, as he has been involved with 140 Aurora Squadron in many capacities for the last 23 years, including Chair of the Squadron Sponsoring Committee and as a training resource. Captain Charlton has also had a long career in the military, having served with The Queen's York Rangers 1st American Regiment for 43 years prior to his retirement in 2019.

Captain Charlton is also a former cadet with 94 Optimist Squadron in Newmarket and his three sons were also cadets with 140 Aurora Squadron.

Commanding Officer: Captain Murray Charlton

Deputy Commanding Officer/Training Officer: Captain Adrian Travis

Administration Officer: Captain Lynda Holowatyj

Assistant Training Officer: Officer Cadet Noah Fadaei-Azad

Standards Officer: Captain Neil Gagnon

Civilian Instructors (CIs) and Civilian Volunteers (CVs) are members of the staff and are tasked with many duties to assist the CIC Officers with effective management of the Squadron activities.

Assistant Administration Officer/Social Media Liaison:

Civilian Instructor Julia Marren

Supply Officer/Assistant Ground School Instructor:

Civilian Volunteer Marcus La

Ground School Instructor:

Civilian Volunteer Chad Strong

Squadron Officers:

Civilian Volunteer Maya Dholakia

Civilian Volunteer Adam Utarid

Civilian Instructor Gail Waller

Squadron Warrant Officer:

TBA

Squadron Sponsoring Committee

The Royal Canadian Air Cadet program is a unique partnership between the Department of National Defence and the Air Cadet League of Canada. At the community level, the Squadron

Sponsoring Committee (SSC) represents the Air Cadet League. The SSC is responsible for managing the Squadron’s finances and fundraising, organizing facility permits and providing

food, transportation and other supports not provided by DND. The 140 Aurora SSC organizes other special events such as the Annual Holiday Mess Dinner and Annual Banquet.

SSC Executive positions of Chair, Vice-Chair, Treasurer and Secretary are all volunteer and are

filled by election.

SSC Executive Chair: Mrs. Karen Strong (140chair@gmail.com)

Vice Chair (acting): Mrs. Lisa DelVecchio (140vicechair@gmail.com)

Treasurer: Ms. Carmen Simpson (140treasurer@gmail.com)

Secretary: Mrs. Rozina DeBoer (140secretary@gmail.com)

Immediate Past Chair: Ms Mae Sung

About 140 Aurora Squadron

Our History

For over 30 years, 140 Aurora Squadron has been home to several hundred cadets from across York Region. Involvement in Air Cadets provides youth aged 12 - 19 with opportunities to pursue interests in aeronautics; develop leadership abilities; demonstrate citizenship, promote physical fitness and stimulate an interest in the Canadian Armed Forces. The Squadron's alumni have gone on to careers in aviation, business and the military.

This hard-working organization is a prime example of an organization that considers community involvement and betterment an important part of its mission, while exemplifying its motto:

Through Excellence to the Stars

Our 30th Anniversary!

On 19 October 2019, 140 Aurora Squadron made history. We received Freedom of the Town from the Town of Aurora in a ceremony that began with a parade to the Town Hall and a Proclamation by Mayor Tom Mrakas, read by the Town Crier, John Webster.

Freedom of the Town is an honour rarely given to cadet units. 140 Aurora Squadron is proud to receive it in recognition of our 30 years of service to the citizens of Aurora.

We thank the Mayor and the Councillors for this honour. A special thank you to the Town Crier for his participation in this event.

That evening, the Squadron hosted a 30th Anniversary Gala Dinner at the Cardinal Golf Club. Our guest speaker was Jacquie Perrin, the noted Canadian journalist. Ms Perrin is an Honourary Member of the Squadron and entertained us all with her memories of her time with the Squadron as our Effective Speaking Coach.

Days like this don't happen without a lot of work behind the scenes by so many.

Our Squadron Sponsoring committee made the dinner come together. Thank you to our Chair, Tony Francis, our Vice-Chair, Mae Sung, our Treasurer, Suzanne Gilbody, our Secretary, Marina Rudenko, and Karen Strong, who, with Ms Sung, made the table decorations.

Our EmCee was a recent addition to the staff, but with his own history at 140 Aurora Squadron. Thank you to Captain Javed Khan for filling this role.

Special thanks also to Mike Degteariov, who was our official photographer for the day. Be sure to go to the Gallery here to see his wonderful pictures.

Of course, none of this would have been possible without our Founder, Lieutenant Colonel Ferguson Mobbs (retired). Without his vision, we would not be the Squadron we are today.

On to the next 30 years and beyond.

Disclaimer: This is the official website of the 140 Aurora Squadron Sponsoring Committee, the civilian sponsor of 140 Aurora Squadron. This is not a Canadian Forces website. These pages are not intended to be, nor do they represent in any way, official comments, statistics, or opinions of the Department of National Defence or the Air Cadet League of Canada. These pages are not provided, endorsed, sponsored or approved by the Department of National Defence or the Air Cadet League of Canada. Links to external sites are provided for completeness. Links were active at the time of writing. Content at external sites is not necessarily endorsed by 140 Aurora Squadron.