Capt Dawson said the honour meant "the world" to her.
"All the years that I’ve put in, and to be recognised with this commendation from the commandant, is just awesome - just awesome."
Capt Dawson initially joined the cadet unit in 2007 and worked her way through the ranks to be commissioned as a unit captain by Squadron Leader Bruce Sinclair.
The commendation was granted on the 14th anniversary of Capt Dawson’s officer’s commissioning.
Her daughter’s involvement in the unit was the reason she went on the first camp.
"Major Kelly was the unit commander at the time, and after the camp I went up to him and said thanks for letting me come on camp . . . then I said ‘I want your job’."
She was promoted to unit commander in February this year.
Seeing the cadets who came in as shy, timid 13 year-olds develop into young people with confidence and leadership qualities kept her motivated and involved.
"It really gives them confidence out in the world. It puts a good head on their shoulders."
New Zealand Cadet Forces executive officer Sqn Ldr Sinclair, of Wellington, made the surprise presentation at the cadet unit’s base on Wednesday night.
The commendation was an award that was not often bestowed as it would cheapen the honour, Sqn Ldr Sinclair said.
"You have to be careful otherwise the more you give out the less meaning there is behind them. It drops the value of them in terms of their status," he said.
"We give them out sparingly and we [only] give them out to people who are very worthy of the nomination and conducted themselves and done something special."
Commanding Officer of the New Zealand Cadet Forces Wing Commander Mark Henderson had originally been scheduled to present the award but was unable to attend after testing positive for Covid-19.
Sqn Ldr Sinclair said while it was unfortunate the wing commander had not been able to attend, he felt honoured to be able to stand in for him.
It was personally significant for him to present Capt Dawson her citation as he had known her for many years and was the commanding officer who had commissioned her.
"I’m very proud of her and that I got to do it, given I got to commission her all those years ago.
"I’ve known her since she came into the system and directed her [officers] commissioning course."
While he was based in Wellington, he had been able to continue to follow her career through the esteem she had earned nationally.
"I’ve been able to follow the way she has developed as a person, and how she has developed the unit she commands."
She had seen the unit grow in size under her command and with the support of her committee and fellow officers.
"To grow a unit as much as she has done takes a lot of commitment."
Often cadets would contribute between four and six hours a week to the unit, but Capt Dawson had committed far more than that.
"The commendation she has been awarded tonight is a culmination of all that effort, activities, dedication and time she has put into building up the unit here in Invercargill," he said.
He recognised Capt Dawson’s "great personality" had made a big contribution to the Invercargill unit.
Consistently displaying loyalty, dedication, reliability, initiative and trustworthiness were among the qualities listed by the presenting officer as the reason for her receiving the commendation. And she continued to make a considerable contribution to the Cadet Forces by fostering great working relationships within the community.
- By Toni McDonald
