Cadet Corporal Shania Roche-Dowdal

Sea Cadet

I'm Royal Marines Cadet Corporal Shania Roche-Dowdall from Sheffield Detachment. I've been in the cadets for five and a half years and have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. When I first started cadets I was just 11 years old and really shy. The opportunities I have been given along with the staff and community within the cadets have helped me to develop as a person. I now teach younger cadets the lessons I learned. This could only have happened with the confidence being part of the detachment offers.

With the Royal Marines Cadets I have shot a variety of different weapon systems including the L81A2 Cadet Target Rifle, the L98A2 GP rifle and the Scorpion Air Rifle. I've also taken part in different competitions such as the Gibraltar Cup Competition at CTC RM Lympstone. This is where the top 6 sections in the UK come together and compete to be the best. We came out at second with the best Section Commander. Another competition I attended was the CISSAM Shooting competition at Pirbright training camp. As well as this I have been to national football and drill competitions. We competed against the best teams in the UK and came a close 2nd in both. I've been given opportunities most people will never get. I've been across the country all the way from Scotland and all the way down south as far as Plymouth. I've also been on the boat T.S John Petchy for a week where I was able to travel to the Isle of White.

I've recently been appointed as the King’s Lord-Lieutenants Cadet of South Yorkshire which is a great honour. This gives me the chance to attend more events and parades. I've also achieved a variety of different qualifications such as first aid and catering along with being one of just 22 cadet drill leaders in the UK.

I'm very grateful for all the things I have had the chance to experience which would not be possible without the cadets. Along with all these experiences I have made life-long friendships and have memories I will never forget.

Cadet Corporal Charley Foster-Tomlinson

Army Cadet

I first joined the ACF in 2019 at the age of 12 when I first entered year 8. Since then cadets has quickly became a passion of mine. I've been a member of the ACF for just over three years and have loved every minute of it. Cadets allowed me to gain more confidence in myself and has helped me in all aspects of my life. It has also taught me valuable skills such as first aid and navigation which I surprisingly use more than I thought I would. Cadets has also given me the opportunity to develop my leadership skills through the lessons I teach as a corporal and the camps we do.

In cadets you meet a lot of people you may not normally meet or talk to. Speaking from personal experience however, they become some of the closest friends you have. Cadets has also given me a lot of opportunities, for example I’ve completed my bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award and I'm one expedition away from completing my silver. In cadets you do a variety of different subjects, my favourites are fieldcraft and first aid.

Outside of the ACF I'm an active member of Girlguiding and undertake three different roles within it. The first is that I'm a ranger which is the oldest section girls can partake in. It helps you develop skills, take part in international experiences, and allows you to help your community. I'm also a young leader. This means I help younger girls learn new skills and I help make sure they can try lots of different things that aren't necessarily in the programme. Through this role I’ve gained a young leader qualification which can help me progress to being an adult leader if I choose. The final role I have is being a peer educator. This gives me the ability to travel across our division to deliver sessions to different units about important topics. When I’m not at cadets or guides, you’re most likely to find me reading. If I’m not reading, I’ll probably be sewing.

I've recently been accepted to a sixth form to study maths, biology, chemistry, and English literature at A level. I hope to go to university to study medicine and become a doctor. After completing my degree I’m unsure on what I'll do but I’m currently thinking about joining the Royal Army Medical Corps and training to become a surgeon. If I don't serve in the Medical Corps I would like to go straight into the NHS and still hopefully train to become a surgeon. I would also love to be able to travel the world and immerse myself in the different cultures. I may consider travelling as a doctor to go help those in different countries that need it. If it's possible in the future I would like to return to the ACF as an adult. I'm unsure if that would be possible though due to my career path. At the minute I can't really imagine life without cadets, so it'll be strange when I age out and must leave, but hopefully I will return.

Cadet Flight Sergeant Joseph Doszczeczko

Air Cadet

I am Flight Sergeant Joseph Doszczeczko of 366 (King Ecgbert) Squadron. I am seventeen years old and currently in my second year of A-levels where I am studying maths, physics, further maths and engineering.

Cadets has offered me many exciting activates such as flying, climbing and shooting which I have thoroughly enjoyed over the last five years. However, cadets have also given me the chance for personal development in which my confidence has greatly benefitted.

Looking forward I would like to go travelling around the world then join the RAF Regiment as an Officer or pursue a career in aerospace engineering.

Some of my main accomplishments in cadets include representing the Royal Air Force Air Cadets (RAFAC) on a bi-lateral cadet exchange to France. This helped to develop relations with the French Air Cadets. I have also represented my wing by participating in a national shooting competition, the Inter-Service Cadet Rifle meeting. This was held at Bisley Ranges in Surrey using the L81 full bore cadet target shooting rifle.

In the next year I hope to generate more interest in the cadet movement. I'd like to provide more young people within my county the chance to join a cadet force. This will give them the chance to progress new and existing skills, develop their character and make life-long friends. I plan on doing this by actively supporting the Lord Lieutenant at a variety of events throughout the next year. This will also mean I'll be representing my squadron, wing and the RAFAC as a whole.