News

35 Canadian Brigade Group “A” Company conducts the final attack in the training areas of Fort Pickett in Virginia, USA, during Exercise Noble Guerrier. A total of 1600 CF reservists deployed for the exercise.

Infantry members of 34 Canadian Brigade Group conduct a demonstration attack in the training areas of Fort Pickett, Virginia, USA, during Exercise Noble Guerrier. A total of 1600 CF reservists deployed for the exercise.

A Canadian Forces Loadmaster gives the thumbs up to the driver of a French military jeep, signaling that he is clear from hitting anything on the CC-177 Globemaster III aircraft at the airport in Bamako, Mali. French forces are attempting to stabilize the country.

Canadian Forces Loadmaster (left) and another CF crew member secure French military jeeps on board a CC-177 Globemaster III in Evereux, France, prior to being delivered to Bamako, Mali. French forces are attempting to stabilize the country.

A Canadian Forces Loadmaster uses chains to secure a French military fuel truck on board a CC-177 Globemaster III in Evereux, France, prior to being delivered to Bamako, Mali. French forces are attempting to stabilize the country.

[caption id="attachment_3227" align="alignnone" width="300"] Cdr Martin Drews, the Commandant of Fleet School Esquimalt, explains the capabilities of the new Universal Classroom to VAdm Paul Maddison (centre), Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, and other command personnel.[/caption] Last Wednesday, naval command was given an introduction into the future of Naval Training.Cdr Martin Drews, Commandant of Fleet School Esquimalt, took VAdm Paul Maddison, Commander Royal Canadian Navy, and RAdm Bill Truelove, Commander Maritime Forces Pacific, through the capabilities of Fleet School’s new Universal Classroom.Gone are chalk boards and overhead screens. In their place is a line of large displays on the walls, HD cameras on the ceiling and personal workstations atop desks. The goal of the specialty classroom is to cut travel costs for those sailors needing to go elsewhere for training. “Instead of sending someone to Halifax or another location, now we can virtually extend the classroom,” explained Cdr Drews. “We can have them learning here, and have the material be delivered from Halifax, or vice versa.” The $397,000 system has been in use for three weeks. It allows DND to seamlessly integrate the classroom in CFB Esquimalt with its sister classroom in Halifax.“If we don’t have an instructor with a certain expertise here we stream them in from somewhere else,” says Lt(N) Jim Meadley, the Training Technology Officer at Fleet School Esquimalt. “It allows us to create flexible and modern learning environments. We could have an instructor standing at the front of the room, we could combine two classrooms, or if the student wanted to learn on their own they could do that at their desk.”This virtual extension of the classroom is done by way of a complex system of HD cameras, monitors, microphones, and touch screens.Thanks to a series of pressure pads, an HD camera on the ceiling is...

[caption id="attachment_3224" align="alignnone" width="300"] PO1 Line Laurendeau (left) stands with fellow CFB Esquimalt Hockey Officials (left to right): CPO2 Yves Ouellet, PO2 Jarrett Taylor, and PO1 George Robinson. CFB Esquimalt is in need of new referees to officiate the numerous games on and off the base.[/caption] There are many things PO1 Line Laurendeau loves about hockey: the teamwork, the chill air of the arena, the flurry and clash of stick on stick. However, having played on CFB Esquimalt’s women’s hockey team for more than 15 years, the time came for PO1 Learendeau to think about her health. Three years ago she made the slide to referee.“I was a goalie, so I knew that my style of play had a shelf life,” says the 40-year-old Sea Cadet Advisor. “I didn’t want an injury to threaten my career, but I wanted to give back to the program and the game.”Becoming a certified official is quite simple; all that’s required are two four-hour classes. One class consists of a review of the game and rules, and the other sees the potential official on the ice, followed by an exam. Once certification is complete, the official is qualified to call hockey games for a number of organizations. PO1 Laurendeau officiates the Intersectional Hockey League for various Canadian Forces games, and the Panorama, Saanich, and Victoria Minor Hockey Associations as well. Just this past year she officiated the Bantam AAA Nationals hosted at the Bear Mountain Arena.“I was up against a lot of male officials a lot younger than me. It was a pretty good feeling to get that opportunity,” she says.Another benefit of being a referee is the increased time on the ice.“When I played hockey that was how I maintained my fitness, but I didn’t get to play all the time,” says PO1...

[caption id="attachment_3221" align="alignnone" width="300"] Ancestry.com is making it easier to access military family history records by teaming up with Library Archives Canada.[/caption] Have you ever thought about creating a family tree, or wanted to learn more about your family history?Information from military attestation papers, birth, marriage and circumstances of death records are now all accessible through www.ancestry.ca, a network of the global ancestry records. “Up until 2006, anyone wanting to view military records of their Canadian ancestors would have to physically visit the Library Archives in Ottawa and look at microfilm or original records,” says Lesley Anderson, Ancestry genealogist and content specialist.Now it’s as easy as logging onto the Internet.“The war graves and circumstances of death register were only viewable at Library Archives Canada. We partnered with them to digitized all the registers and now details like where a soldier was buried, if they were exhumed and reburied, or where they’re memorialized is available online,” says Anderson. An Attestation Paper was the first document a soldier signed before entering the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF). In many cases these may be the only surviving record of the enlistment of many Canadian soldiers who fought in World War One. Attestation papers provide a range of details about the enlistee, including place of birth, age, physical description and next of kin. Some also include valuable information about their lives before the war, such as their occupation, marital status and residence. The records of more than 600,000 World War One veterans are now online with billions of historical records from around the world.“Researching family history can be very addictive,” says Anderson.Users can build a family tree adding photos and stories free of charge and then share them with their families.To view the original images of historical records users are charged $9.95 per month for...

Food is prepared by Afghan National Army cooks at the Army Consolidated Fielding Centre dining facility in Afghanistan.

Sergeant Benoit Renaud from 5e Régiment d'artillerie légère du Canada in Quebec City, Quebec, observes a training scenario of the Afghan National Army soldiers, Infantry 2/4/215, at the Consolidated Fielding Centre training area in Afghanistan.

Warrant Officer, Mario Benard, mentor on Operation Attention, observes Afghan National Army soldiers from Combat Support Battalion during training scenarios with improvised explosive devices at the Consolidated Fielding Centre training area in Afghanistan.

Lieutenant-Colonel Jopeph Po, anesthesiology and critical care medical advisor on OP Attention, teaches intra-operative crisis management to Graduate Medical Education residents, professors and staff at the National Military Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan.

HMCS Regina along with its Sea King helicopter conduct a replenishment at sea (RAS) with United States Naval Ship Patuxent while in the Arabian Sea for Operation Artemis.

[caption id="attachment_3189" align="alignnone" width="300"] Julie Sweeney has created a nine-week self-help program for military spouses that addresses the thoughts and behaviour that can influence body image.[/caption] The Military Family Resource Centre (MFRC) is piloting a new self-help group on Monday nights starting in January and the person behind its creation is a MFRC volunteer.  Julie Sweeney developed the program and will act as facilitator for the sessions. Worth Your Weight is a nine-week program that helps military spouses deal with the thoughts and behaviour that can influence body image. The weekly group doesn’t focus on diet or exercise. Instead, participants look deep inside to examine their core beliefs and the issues they have with themselves. The idea behind the program is addressing the inside before working on the outside.  “Body image is a common theme amongst women,” said Sweeney on why she wanted to do Worth Your Weight. She started the group to help the women that constantly belittle themselves. The program is her latest effort in the past year to help members of the military family community.    “Julie is making a positive impact on people’s lives by filling a need in the community,” said Marianne Ostopovich, a registered clinical counsellor and social worker at the MFRC.  “She isn’t waiting for someone else to develop a program, she is taking an active role in helping members of the community.”Sweeney partnered with St. Peter’s Naval Chapel in January 2012 to create the Military Wives Bible Study monthly support group to fill a need in the community. The study takes place on the last Sunday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at St. Peter’s Naval Chapel in Belmont Park.She decided to become a MFRC volunteer in March 2012 in support of her diploma in applied psychology. She got involved helping the counsellors...

[caption id="attachment_3185" align="alignnone" width="300"] Ten-year-old Emily Tipper, sister Breanne and friend Madisson Daly handed out 150 bagged lunches on Dec. 23 to Victoria’s homeless. Tipper took thisinitiative by collecting more than $400 over the year by returning drink bottles.[/caption] It took 10-year-old Emily Tipper a year to collect and recyclable enough bottles to feed 150 homeless people in Victoria.On Dec. 23 she took to the streets with members of her family to see her efforts pay off.Joined by father MS Mark Tipper, sister Breanne and friend Madisson Daly, they handed out homemade lunches.The family baked gingerbread cookies, cooked three large turkeys, and then set up an assembly line in their kitchen to prepare turkey sandwiches. They added oranges and candy canes to the bagged lunches using the $400 Emily raised over the year to pay for the groceries. “We went through town to Pandora, Yates, Blanshard, Johnson Street, and ended up giving lunches in the chapel at the Salvation Army and Our Place,” says MS Tipper.“On Ellis Road we got stormed with people wanting food and we ended up running out and had to turn people away,” he said.“I felt happy to know that 150 people were going to have a meal, but was also really sad when we ran out of lunches and there were still people who needed them,” says Emily.One woman ran up to Emily and said she hadn’t eaten in days. She was emotional and told Emily to stay in school.At the Rock Bay shelter a First Nations man was so thankful he gave Emily a First Nations drawing. “I wasn’t expecting anything at all. I thought somebody should do something to help the homeless, and this was something that, as a 10 year old, I was able to do,” said Emily.“Next year I would like...

[caption id="attachment_3182" align="alignnone" width="300"] The Grey Selkie is one of two Victoria Harbour Ferry Company vessels that transport base employees between Colwood and Esquimalt. The money and time saved using this service is phenomenal says A/SLt Ron MacDougall.[/caption] Every weekday morning I ride downhill on my mountain bike to D-Jetty in Colwood to catch the Baseline Ferry, a service offered by the Victoria Harbour Ferry Company. I am one of the more than 300 passengers who ride the Grey Selkie or the Linda May II to Dockyard or Naden daily. Instead of sitting in my car driving in the Colwood Crawl, I’m happily avoiding the 40 minute nerve-racking drive by taking the ferry. Upon arrival here last February from Eastern Canada, I was surprised to see the sheer volume of traffic funnelling into Esquimalt, causing stop and go traffic on weekday mornings. The return trip can be even worse often taking at least an hour. On the other hand, the ferry trip across the harbour takes a maximum of 15 minutes, so for me it’s a no brainer. The cost of a one-way ticket is $2.50 and it is even cheaper as a regular commuter to use prepaid punch cards or a monthly pass. “I use the Baseline because of the frustration of being in traffic and it’s better on the environment,” says Anita Didrich from Shop 171 at the Fleet Maintenace Facility and fellow commuter. “Also, while we sit on the boat every day we meet new people - it’s very social.” As a friendly Nova Scotian, I find it’s easy to strike up a conversation in the relaxed atmosphere, which is obvious by the numerous conversations heard during the trip. This open atmosphere is also felt by the ferry staff. “We feel like they belong to a larger...

Major Jan-Peter Hoekstra from the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry currently deployed on Operation Soprano shakes hands with one of the young students from a school in Juba, South Sudan, which received a drilled well later that day.

WO Marc Bouchard, Staff Officer in charge of transport and spare parts, and Abgasajer Kebede, transport assistant for the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan, check supplies from a warehouse in Juba, South Sudan during Operation Soprano.

HMCS Regina prepares to fuel from Motor Vessel Almaas off Fujayrah, United Arab Emirates, in the Arabian Sea during Operation Artemis.

Members of HMCS Regina use a fire hose during a damage control exercise while deployed in the Arabian Sea for Operation Artemis.

Members of HMCS Regina’s naval boarding party descend the ship’s ladder to board a rigid hull inflatable boat in the Arabian Sea during Operation Artemis.

Pte Juha Humalamaki prepares lunch on board HMCS Regina while deployed in the Arabian Sea for Operation Artemis.

[caption id="attachment_3138" align="alignnone" width="300"] Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental Test Range has a new range patrol boat dubbed the Egret.[/caption] It’s not going to change the balance of power in the Pacific, but the newest addition to Canada’s Navy has her crew breathing a little easier nonetheless. Egret, a 14-metre, 22-knot patrol craft landed at Nanoose Bay Nov. 9, ushering in a new era of range patrol at the Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges (CFMETR).And if ever there was a time for a new era this was it. The Egret’s predecessor, the Canadian Forces Auxiliary Vessel Pelican was a used 1970s fresh-water crash boat, ill-suited to the rigours and risks of life on the ocean guarding CFMETR’s torpedo range. Her roll-happy hull, ageing diesels and threadbare insulation made a day at sea an uncomfortable, noisy and noxious experience.“We’d come home cold, tired, and a little dizzy,” admits MS Rich Loy, engineer on the Range Patrol crew known as “Ranger 1”. “The Egret is leaps and bounds above the Pelican. We’re isolated from the environmental hazards, she’s much more stable, and she’s got air-ride seats. It’s an entirely different boat.”Built by Kamma & Blake Industries in Port Alberni, Egret is powered by two 501-horsepower Caterpillar engines driving a pair of Alpha Power water jets. The jet boat design means she’ll not be as vulnerable to stray logs as was Pelican, whose holing by an errant Douglas Fir in 2010 finally condemned her. Egret’s arrival also heralds a return to Ranger 1’s passenger carrying role, which had ended years ago due to stability concerns with Pelican. The new vessel can carry six passengers in addition to three crew, a capability very much in need during ranging operations. Egret’s prime role, however, begins once she’s landed her passengers on Winchelsea Island, home...

[caption id="attachment_3135" align="alignnone" width="300"] Lt(N) Bob Cookson is receiving the Order of Military Merit for his distinguished service. This elite award is presented to about one in a thousand military members.[/caption] Lt(N) Bob Cookson was both shocked and humbled when he received a call from Hawaii in mid-December from RAdm Bill Truelove advising him that he will be appointed a Member of the Order of Military Merit (MMM).About one in a thousand Canadian Forces members receive this honour.“I was shocked,” said Lt(N) Cookson, Base Accommodation Officer. “Being on the committee as the Formation Chief for three years I understand the process, and quite frankly, I thought it was too far along in my career to receive such an honour.”Appointment to the level of member is made for exceptional service or performance of duty.“This is the Stanley Cup of merit awards as far as Canadian Forces members go,” said Cdr Tim Allan, Base Administration Officer. “Our Base Administration branch nominated him this time last year, but it takes a year to run its course.”The Order of Military Merit is not based on a single instance, but instead looks at the span of a military career. Appointments are made once each year and all appointees are published in the Canada Gazette. As of June 1, 2012, there have been 2,527 appointments at the member level of the Order since its institution in 1972. The MMM cannot be appointed posthumously. “Lt(N) Cookson’s career showcases exceptional service, visionary leadership and selfless devotion both as an NCM and an officer,” said Cdr Allan. “Lt (N) Cookson rapidly progressed through the ranks and achieved the rank of CPO1 in only 17 years. He was sighted for achievements at every level through his career.” When he was the Steward career manager, he shepherded the occupation from Logistics...

[caption id="attachment_3132" align="alignnone" width="300"] The Healthy Recipe Challenge was held Dec. 14 when 10 members of CFB Esquimalt tasted six healthy recipes submitted by personnel on base.[/caption] There’s a growing movement to eat healthy food at CFB Esquimalt.To encourage this change in diet, the base held its first Healthy Recipe Challenge. On Dec. 14, 10 judges from CFB Esquimalt sat down at Pacific Galley in Nelles Block to taste and determine the best tasting dishes from the challenge. “Earlier last month a call went out to the Formation to submit healthy recipes for judging,” said CPO1 Derek Ferguson, Base Foods. “We wanted to do this to raise awareness about food, diet and healthy choices.” Six recipes came in from across the Formation: •    Carrot Muffin - Karen Roberts, Clothing Stores •    Spaghetti Squash Remix - MS Mark Tipper, BIS•    Low fat Spaghetti Carbonara - OS Matthew Cormier, Fleet School•    Roasted Vegetable, OS Dana Kimoto, Fleet School•    Layered Rice Salad - LCdr Rob Waller, Halifax Class Modernization•    Fruit slaw - CWO Cate Gaudet, BAdm “Once you get healthy food in front of you and you like it, the next thing is the portion control,” said CPO1 Ferguson in front of taste testers CPO1 Shawn Taylor, CPO2 Lyn Edmondson, Lt(N) Duane Drew, CPO2 Valerie Saunders, MWO Joe Merritt, Lt(N) Lynda Hinch, Elese Francis, CPO2 Tim Gallinger and Lt(N) Logan Ashley. “These recipes have healthy cooking methods. They are not deep fried and our cooks have not used butter, but olive oil instead,” said CPO1 Ferguson. The testers voted subjectively on look and taste of each dish. After all the votes were in the Spaghetti Squash Remix and Low Fat Spaghetti Carbonara were the winners. “Now we are looking at suitability to prepare those dishes in the CF kitchen for a large quantity...

Chief of the Defence Staff, General Thomas J. Lawson (background), with assistance from LS Jamie McCurry, steers HMCS Regina during Operation Artemis in the Arabian Sea.

Lt(N) Christian Parise receives turkey dinners from the cooks to serve to students and instructors at the Annual Fleet School Junior Ranks Christmas Dinner at the Pacific Galley.

HMCS Protecteur returns to the navy side of Esquimalt Harbour after more than eight months at Victoria Shipyards in refit. Empty of fuel and furniture, the tanker sat high in the water as two tugboats eased it across the harbour.

Families wait eagerly on the jetty as HMCS Ottawa returns from Operation Caribbe. The ship departed late October and assisted a US Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment team with disrupting illicit trafficking of cocaine.

Lt(N) Darren Follick reuintes with children Tristen and Finnegan and wife Padre Angela James. HMCS Ottawa returned last week from Operation Caribbe off the coast of Costa Rica.