A FORMER teenage rebel has managed to turn around the navy cadet unit in Spearwood, after it was on the verge of winding up last year.
Sub-lieutenant Melanie Hayward stepped in last July when the unit was down to its last officer and parents were fretting it might sink without trace.
Nine months on, Hayward has the unit ship-shape, with one cadet a finalist in the RSL’s cadet of the year 2015 awards, and another representing the Westralia Flotilla in the national sailing regatta in Sydney.
Hayward has been involved with navy cadets for 37 years: her time with the unit started after being ordered to attend as punishment for being a rebellious 13-year-old.
“For the first year I absolutely hated it,” she laughs.
TS Cockburn Cadets along with US Consul Cynthia Griffin after a hard day assisting the US Navy with a project at Native Arc in 2015. Cadet LSMN Manning (the tall one at the back) joined the RAN last year. Photos
supplied | Melanie Hayward
“When you got punishments back then, they were real punishments, not like now, where things are a bit more regulated.
“So I soon learned about discipline and it really helped me focus and decide what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.
“The leader of my childhood unit went on to become the flotilla commander of WA and is a real father figure to me.”
Teenage Hayward wanted to be a fighter pilot but her less-than 20-20 vision scuppered those dreams.
Nowadays, she gets solace from the number of young women enrolling in the cadets.
“I would say the average is about 60/40 men to women, and we have loads of unisex units,” she says.
Cadet recruits in 2015, now Cadet seamen Jack Pepper, Zane Chase & Ezra Myers will be showing off their year of training at the annual inspection.
“At Spearwood we only have one girl cadet, but I’m hoping more will sign up.
“We’ve seen the numbers increase as women over the years have become more independent.”
In an era where narcissism and games consoles are de rigueur, Hayward says recruiting cadets can be difficult, but believes organisations based around community service and activity are slowly coming back into vogue.
“We are technically a ‘dry unit’ because we are inland, but we still get out on the ocean and do lots of fun things,” she says.
“Employers look very favourably on people who have been in organisations like the cadets. We do an important job in help preparing teenagers for adult life.”
The Spearwood cadets will undertake their annual efficiency inspection on May 1 at TS Cockburn, Kent Street in Spearwood.
by STEPHEN POLLOCK
