CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL
On May 30, 2014, President Barack H. Obama signed legislation into law awarding th
e Congressional Gold Medal to the approximately 200,000 World War II members of CAP. The medal is the country’s highest expression of appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions. On Dec. 10, 2014, Speaker of the House John Boehner presented the medal to CAP National Commander Maj. Gen. Joseph R. Vazquez and former U.S. Rep. Lester L. Wolff, himself a wartime member of the New York Wing.
This medal commemorates the organization’s unusual contributions in World War II. On its obverse, Stinson Voyager 10A aircraft armed with demolition bombs escort an oil tanker. The aircraft in the foreground has the coastal patrol roundel and the number “65,” representing the CAP members killed during the war. To the left, two civilian volunteers, a male coastal patrol observer and a female pilot, both vigilantly scan the sky.
