National Blue Beret

This activity was started by Brigadier General Cass. It started as an emergency services school run by then Lieutenant Colonel Cass. It later was stopped because some high ranking officers thought that it was too tough. It was replaced by CAP/EAA Oshkosh. At CAP/EAA cadets helped run the EAA Oshkosh fly-in. They parked airplanes, worked with crowd control and did emergency services work. Several years ago it again became the Blue Beret. It is much less intensive than it originally was and it still includes the EAA fly-in. I am a member of the Blue Beret Cadre or staff. This is a really fun two week activity even with the many hours of work required. I was the J flight assistant (Lieutenant acting as flight Sargent) when I went to the NBB.

The Motto of a Blue Beret

“The mission comes first.”

“Follow Me!”

The Blue Beret Creed

“I am a Blue Beret
I am the heart of the mission—
where ever, whenever.

I am what my country expects me to be—
The best trained cadet in the world.

Never will I fail that trust.

In the race for victory,
I am swift, determined, and courageous,
Armed with a fierce will to win.

I yield not,
to weakness,
to hunger,
to fatigue,
to horrible odds,
for I am mentally tough,
physically strong,
and morally straight.

I forsake not -
my country,
my mission,
my comrades,
my duty.

I am relentless,
I am always there,
now and forever.
I AM A BLUE BERET!
FOLLOW ME!”

On being a Blue Beret

Being a Blue Beret is a special feeling. It is more than the rank on your shoulder, the ribbons on your chest, or even the beret on your head. It is a feeling inside, one that yields not to weakness, to hunger, to fatigue, to horrible odds. We are mentally tough. We are physically strong. We are morally straight. We wake up each morning with a desire to get the job done. There is nothing that stands in our way. We put our mission ahead of ourselves and give our all to succeed. We make our dreams a reality. I could easily be a Blue Beret without any of the symbols that makes me stand out, for being a Beret is not what is on the surface, but rather what is beneath. The strive to better ourselves, to push ourselves to our full potential, is what makes us. We can do anything we put our minds to. We develop a team, a strong bond between us that lasts throughout life. The friends we make along the way are our future companions all wanting the same thing-success. Failure is not an option, for if one person fails we all work together to make it a success. We can not succeed alone. We are a mighty unit, each with a function that is intertwined with the whole. Our leaders are our equals; our subordinates are our friends. We work together all year long in each others' hearts and minds. We never disappear from the thoughts of our people. We are the Blue Berets. We are the hearth of the mission, whenever, wherever. We are what our country expects us to be, the best trained cadets in the world, never will we fail that trust. In the race for victory, we are swift, determined, courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. We yield not to weakness, to hunger, to fatigue, to horrible odds for we are mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. We forsake not our country, our mission, our comrades, our duties. We are relentless. We are always there, now and forever.
We are the Blue Berets - FOLLOW US!!!

C/LtC Gary Dollinger
India Flight, NBB '97