KINGSTON, Jamaica — State Minister in the Ministry of National Security, Pearnel Charles Jr has called on alumni of the Jamaica Combined Cadet Force, JCCF, to help further advance the institution.

This call comes amidst the recent renewed focus of the JCCF to engage more youth, according to a release from the ministry.To assist in that effort the JCCF has launched a new website, which allows cadet alumni to register and become involved in the advancement of the cadet corps.Since 1943, many generations of cadets have contributed to the advancement of the youth organisation through donations, volunteering and mentoring of young cadets. The minister of state lauded the establishment of this platform as important for facilitating support from alumni.“This initiative is timely as we seek to expand the JCCF across the island. Partnerships are critical to achieving our objectives and this alumni registry is an excellent tool to get people involved in promoting positive youth development. Through this structured medium, alumni will now have more opportunities to strengthen the JCCF’s capacity to nurture great leaders,” said Charles.Through the alumni registry the 74-year old organisation will galvanise support for many of its current and future activities. The registry will further help to resolve the perennial issue of inadequate adult volunteers who are trained by the JCCF to offer guidance to young cadets.Trevor McCurdy, cadet alumni from the batch of 1974 and current Force Special Projects Officer explained, “This [registry] would help to track persons where they are today and possibly identify how the force has impacted their lives as a vehicle to getting them to operate in the society. Persons like to identify themselves with their past, especially the positives. This alumni registry will strengthen the network of personal friendships and commitment to the organisation as a unified body.”McCurdy, who rose through the ranks of cadet corps to become a director, encourages alumni to get engaged in the process of advancing the JCCF.