LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
Two staff members at Thomas Simpson School have joined the Canadian Forces Reserves so they can provide more support to the local cadet corps.

Martha Drake, left, and Jim Broomfield, right, were sworn into the Canadian Forces Reserves as members of the Cadet Instructor Cadre by Cpt. Steve Nicoll on Jan. 28. The ceremony took place in front of the members of the 2860 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps in Fort Simpson. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

Martha Drake and Jim Broomfield were sworn into the Canadian Forces Reserves as members of the Cadet Instructor Cadre on Jan. 28. The ceremony took place in front of the members of the 2860 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps.

"It's tremendously important," said Cpt. Steve Nicoll about the impact Drake and Broomfield will have in their new positions as officer cadets.

With 50 cadets, the corps in Fort Simpson is the largest it's ever been. Staff are needed to help with all aspects of running the corps, including instruction of the cadets, maintenance of equipment and administration. If there isn't enough staff the official cadet program can't be run, Nicoll said.

As officer cadets, Drake and Broomfield will be eligible to do all of the training for members of the Cadet Instructor Cadre including courses on being an orienteering or cold weather instructor or an air rifle range safety officer. If they take the basic officer qualification course they can become second lieutenants.

Nicoll joined the cadre in 2008. He said he's enthusiastic about the positive aspects of the training Drake and Broomfield will receive and how that will influence them.

"You can't help but be personally changed," he said.

Drake, a junior high special needs assistant, has been volunteering with the corps since the fall of 2012, first as a civilian volunteer and then as a civilian instructor. Her daughter is a cadet.

Drake said she was both excited and nervous to be sworn into the reserves and that she's looking forward to doing the basic officer qualification course.

"I think it's a good program for the youth," she said.

Cadets builds up the youth's self-esteem and gives older students the opportunity to learn how to teach and lead younger ones. The cadets like earning different badges that show what they've learned.

"I enjoy helping out because I know all of the students and they know me," said Drake.

Drake is also the corps' supply officer in charge of issuing uniforms and combats to the cadets. She said she's interested in learning more about that position.

Broomfield agrees that the cadet program is beneficial for youth. He's seen the evidence first hand in his two children who have been part of Air Cadets in Newfoundland.

"I knew there was so much there for the kids," he said.

Broomfield, a junior and senior high teacher, started volunteering with the corps in Fort Simpson in September 2011, right after he moved to the village. There were only 18 to 20 cadets in the corps when he started.

"We've grown huge," he said. "We've got so many kids and so much to do."

By becoming an officer cadet, Broomfield said he'll be able to help Nicoll with the responsibilities of running the corps.

"It's a definite commitment, not only to the program, but also to the students and the corps," he said.

Other people who volunteer with the Fort Simpson corps include civilian instructor Therisa Sayer, civilian volunteer Earl Hutchinson and Cpt. Robert Gallant.