18 May 2023 / ,
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I’m a Canadian soldier. I’m also Sikh. I shouldn’t have to choose between faith and service

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/first-person-sikh-canadian-soldier-1.6842131

26288 Maj. Sarabjot Anand, RMC Class of 2015,  serves as a communications and electronics engineering officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. He is based in Ottawa, where he is a project director and develops new cyber capabilities for the CAF.

A proud Métis from Manitoba, Chief Warrant Officer (CWO) Renee Hansen joined the Army Reserve in 1992 and transferred to the Regular Force in 2001.
She has seen postings across the country, served on two deployments to Afghanistan with the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry as well as a six month rotation as the Station Warrant Officer at Canadian Forces Station Alert, Canada’s most northernly inhabited point. Named as a Member of the Order of Military Merit in 2015, CWO Hansen is currently serving at 8 Wing/CFB Trenton. #IndigenousAwareness #DefenceTeam #Indigenous #Diversity
We are pleased to welcome Major Heather Smith as the new CAF CISM Women’s Basketball Team Manager!
Originally from Kingston, ON, Maj Heather Smith is an Aerospace Engineering Officer currently posted to 418 Squadron in Comox, BC and is posted to 8 Wing Trenton this summer as the Training Flight Commander at Aerospace and Telecommunications Engineering Support Squadron (ATESS).
Maj Smith has had a passion for basketball since she started playing at 8 years old, with the majority of her involvement as a player but also as a coach and referee. She played for the RMC Women’s Basketball Team from 2002-2006 and graduated with a bachelors degree in Chemical Engineering. She has gone on to compete at all levels of the CAF Sports Program in various sports including basketball, hockey, running, triathlon, slopitch, and soccer. She has been recognized throughout her career with being awarded CAF Female Athlete of the Year, RCAF Female Athlete of the Year and CAF Team of the Year – women’s hockey. Maj Smith has been a member and co-captain of the CISM Women’s Basketball team since it began in 2016 and competed in the 2nd CISM World Military Women’s Basketball Championships in San Diego, USA. The highlight of her CISM basketball career was getting the opportunity to represent Canada and compete at the 2019 World Military Games in Wuhan, China. She is a strong believer in the CISM Motto “Friendship through Sport”, and has made many of her long lasting friendships through participation on CAF sports teams. When she is not on the court or on the ice, she is usually found driving her two kids around to their sporting events, or spending time with her family, friends and dog.
Maj Smith is looking forward to continuing to grow the CAF and CISM Women’s basketball program and prepare for the upcoming 3×3 Basketball World Championships this summer in Lithuania.
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Nous sommes heureux d’accueillir la majore Heather Smith, récemment nommée gérante de l’équipe féminine de basket-ball des FAC CISM!
Originaire de Kingston, en Ontario, la Maj Smith est officière du génie aérospatial actuellement affectée au 418e Escadron à Comox, en Colombie-Britannique, et elle sera affectée à la 8e Escadre Trenton cet été à titre de commandante des vols d’entraînement de l’Escadron de soutien technique des télécommunications et des moyens aérospatiaux (ESTTMA).
La Maj Smith se passionne pour le basket-ball depuis qu’elle a commencé à jouer à l’âge de 8 ans, principalement en tant que joueuse, mais aussi en tant qu’entraîneure et arbitre. Elle a joué pour l’équipe féminine de basket-ball du Collège militaire royal du Canada de 2000 à 2006 et a obtenu son baccalauréat en génie chimique. Elle a ensuite participé à des compétitions à tous les niveaux du Programme de sports des FAC dans divers sports, notamment le basket-ball, le hockey, la course à pied, le triathlon, la balle lente et le soccer. Tout au long de sa carrière, elle a été récompensée par le titre d’Athlète féminine de l’année des FAC, d’Athlète féminine de l’année de l’Aviation royale canadienne et Équipe de l’année des FAC, pour le hockey féminin. La Maj Smith est membre et co-capitaine de l’équipe féminine de basket-ball du CISM depuis sa création en 2016 et a participé au deuxième Championnat du monde militaire de basket-ball féminin du CISM à San Diego, aux États-Unis. Le point culminant de sa carrière au basket-ball du CISM a été la possibilité de représenter le Canada et de participer aux Jeux Mondiaux Militaires de 2019 à Wuhan, en Chine. Elle croit fermement à la devise du CISM : « L’amitié par le sport », et a noué bon nombre de ses amitiés durables en participant aux équipes sportives des FAC. Lorsqu’elle n’est pas sur le terrain ou sur la glace, on la trouve généralement en train de conduire ses deux enfants à leurs événements sportifs, ou de passer du temps avec sa famille, ses amis et son chien.
La Maj Smith est impatiente de continuer à développer le programme de basket-ball féminin des FAC et du CISM et de se préparer pour les prochains championnats du monde du basket-ball 3 x 3 qui se dérouleront cet été en Lituanie.
Royal Canadian Air Force Veteran Jean-François Godbout’s almost three decade long military career introduced him to 35 countries and countless heads of state.

As an aide-de-camp to Governor General The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson (2002-2005) the Montreal native was in charge of protocol and logistics for state visits and formal events. But it wasn’t the fancy titles or elegant dinners that impressed him most – it was the humility of the people he met.

He remembers a meeting at Rideau Hall with the then Prime Minister. Godbout told him about his girlfriend at the time, a ballerina with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet.

Upon their next meeting the Prime Minister asked him about her by name.

“That made such an impression on me, that he remembered,” he said.

“People who interest themselves in your life and remember what you’ve told them make you feel valued and important. It takes a degree of concentration and intellect to do that.”

His military career led him to explore the world and experience unforgettable things, like falconry with Sheikh Zayed in Abu Dhabi, lunch with then Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and a stay at the Kremlin on a state visit to Russia.

“My kids are looking through my photo albums and asking “like, what the heck were you doing?”

Godbout was Military Assistant to Defence Minister Peter MacKay (2009-2011) staff officer in the Headquarter for the UN mission to Haiti (2012) and completing the Australian Command and Staff College in Canberra (2014). He is now the General Manager of Airbus Defence and Space Canada Inc.

His transition to civilian life was scary at first. Health issues from his years of service required treatment and he had to find employment.

“The transition support I received from Veterans Affairs helped me worry less about my health and focus on my next career.

“Looking back, RCAF was the most gratifying career I could ever have imagined.

Unique details of a new HMCS Ottawa morale patch revealed

His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Ottawa recently rolled out a new morale patch rich with meaning to keep the crew’s pride and morale strong.

Sailor 1st Class (S1) Luke Wieler, the illustrator, explains the design is intentionally full of history and unique details.

“You can learn a lot with each detail. It tells a story of the ship and the crew, and encompasses characteristics such as Ottawa’s hull number represented by three unique U-shapes on the top and four on the bottom, laid out to represent 341,” he says.  Read More

60 Seconds with 22260 Colonel Christopher Horner, RMC Class of 2002, Commanding Officer of the Canadian Joint Warfare Centre

 

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