V.I.P. Guest List
Lieutenant General Nicholas B. Kehoe, USAF (Ret.)
Lt Gen Kehoe serves on Civil Air Patrol’s Board of Governors – CAP’s governing body. He retired from the Air Force in 2000 and was the inspector general, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force at the Pentagon. He oversaw Air Force inspection policy; criminal investigations; counterintelligence operations; the complaints and fraud, waste and abuse programs; intelligence oversight and two field operating agencies, the Air Force Inspection Agency and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. Kehoe entered the Air Force in 1966 after graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy. He has commanded an Air Force flying wing and numbered air force, and served in numerous staff and operational assignments in training and fighter commands. He is a command pilot with more than 3,600 flying hours in trainer and fighter aircraft.
Major General Ralph J. Jodice II, USAF
Maj Gen Jodice is the commander of the Air Force District of Washington, Andrews Air Force Base, Md. The Air Force District of Washington provides the single Air Force voice and component to the Joint Forces Headquarters-National Capital Region, as well as organizes, trains and equips combat forces for the aerospace expeditionary forces, homeland operations, civil support, national special security events and ceremonial events. In addition, AFDW serves as Uniform Code of Military Justice authority for more than 40,000 personnel and provides major command-level support for more than 24,000 personnel assigned worldwide.
Major General Amy S. Courter, CAP
Maj Gen Courter is the national commander of Civil Air Patrol. As CAP’s commander, she is also a member of the CAP Board of Governors, CAP National Executive Committee and CAP National Board – CAP’s governing and advisory bodies. Courter was elected national vice commander in 2006, and additionally served as the national chief of staff for a portion of that year. In August of 2007, Courter was appointed first acting, and then interim national commander. Her commitment to public trust and transparency in governance aided CAP during an unanticipated transition, thereby stabilizing the organization. She also energized a new staff structure, with clearly articulated expectations and processes, and cast a wide net across the organization for the best qualified members to join the national staff team. Courter joined CAP’s Michigan Wing in 1979 and served as commander of the wing from 1999 to 2002. She also served CAP as chair of the Cadet Programs, Professional Development, and Infrastructure Committees and as female senior adviser to the National Cadet Advisory Council. Courter also helped found and for many years she directed the nationally recognized Civic Leadership Academy, which gives cadets an in-depth hands-on understanding of government.
Colonel Joseph R. Vazquez, CAP
Col Vazquez is Civil Air Patrol’s Middle East Region commander, which includes the National Capital Wing. He joined CAP in June 1975 as a cadet in the Warner Robins Composite Squadron in Georgia. He has also served as vice commander of the Parkersburg Composite Squadron in West Virginia Wing, Group 2 commander in South Carolina Wing, commander of the Wicomico Composite Squadron in Maryland Wing, Group 1 commander in Maryland Wing, Group 4 commander in Virginia Wing and vice commander of Middle East Region. Vazquez currently holds Emergency Service specialties as an incident commander, air branch director, mission pilot, observer and check pilot examiner. He is a CAP command pilot with 2,800 hours, holds a commercial multiengine license with instrument flight instructor rating and is a glider instructor and tow pilot.
Colonel Jane E. Davies, CAP (outgoing wing commander)
Col Davies is the commander of Civil Air Patrol’s National Capital Wing. She joined CAP in1969 as a cadet in Connecticut earning the Mitchell and Earhart awards; attended Cadet Officer School; served on several Cadet Advisory Councils; earned her solo wings through a CAP scholarship; attended various encampments and national special activities; and participated in the International Air Cadet Exchange in the Netherlands. Davies became a senior member in 1975, which encompassed many squadron and wing positions in Connecticut, Maryland, California, Alabama, Missouri and D.C. She served as squadron commander of Monterrey Cadet Squadron in California and NatCap’s Mt. Vernon Composite Squadron. She also served as the inspector general for National Capital Wing in 1996 and was selected as chief of staff the following year. In 1998, Davies become the Alabama Wing Director of Cadet Programs, and in 1999, the Missouri Wing Group III Cadet Programs Officer. Upon returning to National Capital Wing, Davies was appointed as chief of staff and then vice commander before assuming command of the wing in 2004. Davies is a graduate of CAP’s Pacific Region Staff College and National Staff College.
Colonel (select) Richard J. Cooper, CAP (incoming wing commander)
Lt Col Cooper is the vice commander of Civil Air Patrol’s National Capital Wing. He returned to CAP in 1991 as a senior member in Challenger 1 Cadet Squadron, and later become its commander. Cooper also served as the commander of the South Carolina Glider Encampment and National Capital Wing Encampment. Cooper holds private pilot and instrument ratings, emergency services specialty as an observer and is working towards an air operations branch director rating. He has served as the assistant wing aerospace education officer, wing inspector general and was appointed as the wing vice commander in 2004. He is a graduate of CAP’s Middle East Region Staff College.
The Airmen of Note, Air Force Band
The Airmen of Note is the premier jazz ensemble of the United States Air Force. Created in 1950 to carry on the tradition of Glenn Miller’s Army Air Corps dance band, the Note adopted a more contemporary style under the direction of the legendary Sammy Nestico. Beginning in the ’70s, SMSgt Mike Crotty, the Note’s chief arranger for more than 25 years, helped elevate the band to the forefront of modern big band jazz. Today, MSgt Alan Baylock, the Note’s current chief arranger, maintains the band’s commitment to driving innovation and respect for tradition. To augment its talented writing staff, the Airmen of Note has commissioned works by such celebrated arrangers as Bob Florence and Bob Mintzer. Sammy Nestico and fellow Note alumnus Tommy Newsom have each composed works for the group as well.
