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Wheat City Journal edited my essay. The original letter said:  
 
Some weekends she is higher than a kite. A few times she went to a party after school Friday and did not return until Saturday afternoon. Then there were the occasions that I did not hear from her until Sunday. There is talk of community service and now shooting has become important. It has become a source of cash for her that I do not really understand. Now there is talk of meeting EVERY Friday evening.  
 
She spends hours getting her hair to look just right and what she has on her feet can not be described as comfortable. Even her earrings are decided by the gang! A classmate is in a rival gang and there is name calling at school. “Guppy,” she calls out. “Pigeon,” replies the classmate. Last year she was given a gang nickname and now students in her school have started using it too rather than the beautiful feminine name I gave her.  
 
Most parents would not be jumping for joy but I am because when she was twelve years old she was introduced to the gang at 82 Squadron Air Cadets.  
 
They are higher than a kite because a glider or Cessna is flying them above the city. The plane may land but the sparkles in my daughter’s eyes indicate that her brain is still up in the clouds. Community Service is not court imposed but they help the Rotary run their Book Sales and Hazardous Material Drop Off days and in return the Rotary pays for additional glider or Cessna training. One of the instructors qualified as a Range Safety Officer so there will be increased access to the shooting facilities at the Armoury.  
 
She started taking a serious interest in her personal appearance. Her latest haircut had to meet cadet standards. The earrings are limited to gold or silver studs for safety reasons. Guppy and Pigeon are nicknames for Sea Cadets and Air Cadets and it is actually a form of endearment. Pilots have call names and having one means acceptance into this gang.  
 
When there was a party, the parents made arrangements for the cadets to stay at the house until the next day rather than trying to drive home at 3:00 AM when the risk of an accident was too great. Then there were the weekend exercises where they lived in barracks at CFB Shilo or in tents on an instructor’s farm.  
 
The cost to me was a tin of boot polish and a Kiwi cloth and they would have given it to her for free if I asked. Everything else has been provided including the uniform, food during weekend exercises, gym clothes, and transportation to and from summer camps. They pay a “Training Allowance” for those cadets that qualify for summer camp. My daughter came home with over $150, a course t-shirt she bought, and friends from across Canada in her heart. As an instructor, she could earn $50 per day working at a summer camp.  
 
One member of this gang got her Gliders License this past summer. Another spent a couple of weeks with the Air Cadets in Great Britain. An Air Show in the states had one of our gang members helping out. I cannot recall where many of the other cadets spent part of their summer but they came back better citizens and role models for the younger members.  
 
If you know of a twelve year old that needs something to do, I highly recommend you check out this gang. Because she is part of this gang at 82 Squadron, my daughter has very little interest to join other gangs. Which gang do you want your teenager to be a member of?