Meet the Huber PO1s: Service Runs in the Family

Archana Cini, Contributions from Lt(Navy) Jonathan Lacasse and PO1 Brendan Huber

What started as a father’s way of helping his children through the separations of service has since turned into a family of Petty Officers, 1st Class (PO1) at the youth and Royal Canadian Navy level.

Meet the Huber family, united by both blood and a shared love of the navy. Among the Hubers are three PO1s: Brendan (52), his son Patrick (15), and son Matthias (10), serving in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), Lanark Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps Program (RCSCC LANARK), and the Carlplace Navy League Cadet Corps Program (NLCC Carlplace) respectively. At the helm of the Huber family stands Patrick and Matthias’s mother Kathryn Huber, an active member of the Navy League board.

The Sea Cadets are a Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) supported program focused on leadership, fitness, and citizenship for children aged 12-19. The Navy Cadet Corps, delivered by the Navy League of Canada, teaches children aged 9-12 seamanship, leadership, and RCN traditions.

To PO1 Brendan Huber, having his children join these organizations was not only a way to help them understand what he was doing away from home, but also a way to cope with his deployments. Now, his son Patrick has taken to his role of PO1 with enthusiasm and pride, with highlights including taking a Fitness and Sports Instructor Course and winning a RCSCC LANARK sportsman award. His son Matthais also won the Navy League Seamanship Award from NLCC Carlplace.

When asked if his children might consider pursuing military careers, PO1 Huber shared that Patrick has already applied to a co-op program with the 33 Canadian Brigade Group. Matthias is still unsure of what he’d like to pursue in the future — understandably so at ten years old.

“I will say he [Matthias] has given me a good shoulder shrug in the past while saying ‘Maybe,’ regarding the CAF,” PO1 Huber shares. “Patrick seems to look forward to outranking me, and Matthias sure would love to boss me around a bit.”

Importantly, sharing a naval link with his sons has brought the Hubers even closer, with the family looking forward to participating in Defence Community events next year as ‘the PO1s.’ When home with his children, PO1 Huber often spends time teaching seamanship with the Navy League and Sea Cadets.

“I’ll teach knots and other rope work. I show the kids how to use the bos’n call. I also talk about my times at sea, what we do on trips, and how life is onboard.”

Thank you to PO1 Huber and family for sharing your close history with the RCN.