Members of the Saddle Lake Community Cadet Corps experienced the trip of a lifetime earlier this month, as 18 cadets took on an exchange trip with the Brooklyn Youth Marine Corps from April 28 to May 5.
“It was a great trip, some proud moments and real humbling moments meeting some of the Brooklyn Youth Marines. Some of their cadets come from low-income families and neighborhoods themselves with the same issues as some of our kids, just in different locations,” said Saddle Lake Community Cadets Corps commanding officer and RCMP constable Robert Hynes. “There was some real positive interaction, the kids learned a lot from them. They learned what a cadet corps should look and act like from these guys.”
Over the short span of a week, the Saddle Lake Cadets managed to pack in everything one could hope to see on a trip to New York City, and then some.
“The things we crammed into the week were just amazing. Our hosts were so helpful, they helped us with getting around . . . They just bent over backwards to give us the royal treatment while we were there,” said Hynes. “We saw all the tourist sites, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Times Square, Central Park, Ground Zero.”
Visiting Ground Zero was a particularly moving experience for the group, Hynes said, as they all took a moment to reflect on the infamous day that changed so many lives.
“To go to Ground Zero, and just to walk on that site and I guess just to pay your condolences and reflect on that day and what it meant to you and what it meant to the rest of the world. It was such a devastating day for everybody and just to go there and see what they’ve done with that location,” said Hynes.
“Where the towers once stood they left pits, of course, and they’ve turned them into man-made waterfalls and all the names of the victims are engraved in marble slab surrounding each of the two waterfall locations. It’s just so serene. It was very, very emotional to be there.”
The cadets were even present to watch a chapter of history unfold, as they got to see construction crews put the finishing touches on the recently completed One World Trade Center tower, a structure built to commemorate the lives lost during the attack on the World Trade Centre on September 11, 2001.
“If you see a skyline of New York, you’re going to see that tower because it stands out,” Hynes said. “The very top was still under construction when we were there. The glass had not been put around the top dozen floors or so.”
In between visiting the sights of New York City, the Saddle Lake Cadets also managed to pitch in for the community, as they visited a lower-class neighbourhood in Brooklyn and cleaned it up for the local children with the help of the Brooklyn Youth Marines.
“We painted park benches, painted playground equipment, painted the walls, swept up garbage, took all the weeds out of the area, just to kind of make it look that much more presentable for the kids,” said Hynes. “That was pretty rewarding. I think the kids benefitted from that, giving back to the community. It’s something that we want to do here now was well, start giving back to Saddle Lake and even the surrounding areas and stuff, do our fair share of community service and get the kids involved that way.”
The Saddle Lake Cadets even managed to fit in a Major League Baseball game on May 1 when the New York Yankees defeated the Houston Astros, 5-4, at Yankee Stadium, and to take it a step further the cadets all joined in on an autism walk that brought them right onto the Met’s ball diamond at Citi Field.
“The Sunday before we left to fly home, that morning we met with the (Brooklyn Cadets) and we did an autism walk at Citi Field, which is the home of the New York Mets,” Hynes said. “We got to actually walk on the field. That was pretty cool.”
The efforts of the Saddle Lake Cadets did not go unnoticed, as CBC stopped in to document their exploits for a short piece that will air on national television at some point this week, and New York State Senator Eric Adams provided the cadet corps with an official proclamation honouring their contributions to New York.
“The (Brooklyn Youth Marines) went out and got some proclamations from Eric Adams, the New York State Senator, just basically stating a proclamation to our cadet corps for their service to the community. It was pretty cool to receive something like that.”
Just before the troop finished up the trip, they got a true taste of what it is to be a member of the Marine Corps, as the captain of the Brooklyn Youth Marines pushed them through a workout they will never forget.
“The kids did really well, they all stuck in there right until the end. They gave it their 110 per cent. It was a proud moment seeing them work hard like that. I can probably guarantee that none of them had ever worked out like that before in their life,” Hynes said, adding that the workout rivaled the intensity of what he had to go through to become an RCMP officer. “It’s a similar workout to what we’ve had in our RCMP training that they went through that night. It’s something that they want to incorporate into the program in Saddle Lake as well, the real strict physical fitness.”
If there was a single low point to the week, it only came when the Saddle Lake Cadets had to say goodbye to their new friends with the Brooklyn Youth Marines, but with any luck the American troop will be making a visit to Saddle Lake for the annual summer pow-wow.
“There were hugs and tears when we were leaving the airport. These kids now keep in contact over Facebook and things like that. They treated us so well down there it was like we’ve known them for years. It was just positive interaction, I think some good friendships have been made from it,” Hynes said. “We’re looking forward to having them come up and visit us now.”
