
Both are 20 year old students at Royal Military College in Kingston, and have been trained to handle a situation like the one they found last night.
Flames were erupting from the engine area that the men described as being “about two feet on the engine.”
According to Brown and Whidden, the driver was in his mid twenties to early thirties. Police said the man’s condition has been upgraded to non-life threatening.
What struck me most in reading the report was how the Cadets described their actions: “That’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re mandatory first responders, we have the training, why wouldn’t we help?”, Brown said.
When asked about their decision to help, Brown said, “It’s what we’re meant to do, right? It’s serve and protect, service over self. Put yourself in the way of harm for others.”
They clearly understand and live the Military Ethos of “Service” to which they’ve been exposed during their time at RMC. And I believe this is true of all Graduates of RMC.
As Members of the Class of 1966, we remember the brave actions of one of our Classmates, 6758 Michel Coutu.
Michel put himself “in the way of harm for others”. For his actions, on September 22, 1975, the Governor-General of Canada awarded Michel Canada’s “STAR OF COURAGE” medal.
“Capt. Michel Coutu jumped from the Perley Bridge in Hawkesbury, Ontario, into the Ottawa River fifty feet below in an attempt to save the life of a seventeen-year-old motorcyclist. On May 27, 1973, when his motorcycle struck the rear of a car, the youth’s clothes became saturated with gasoline and caught fire. Overcome with pain, the victim hurled himself over the handrail and dropped into the river.
Recognizing the youth’s desperate plight, Capt. Coutu, in complete disregard for his own safety, leaped from the bridge into the fast-moving water. The would-be rescuer swam downstream after the victim, but the latter had already disappeared below the surface and was drowned. Presently, a boatman came to the assistance of Capt. Coutu who was brought safely to shore.”
These actions by Michel, Jadin and Cameraon happened fifty-two years apart. They show that the Military Ethos of RMC Graduates remains strong, clear, and constant over decades. This is not only one of the most important foundations of officer development at RMC, it is absent from the environment of other Canadian civilian universities and colleges. In today’s uncertain and dangerous world, Canada needs her Canadian Military Colleges – and our Graduates – more than ever.