Photo by Curtis Maynard
The Kingston Branch – held their annual Spring dinner at the Senior Staff Mess – 9 Apr. Pictured is Andrew Robb, Gail and Ed Murray.
The black tie affair was well attended and the Guest Speaker was current college commandant, BGen Al Meinzinger.
More photos from the Dinner may be viewed here.
The regular monthly luncheon for May will be held at the SSM – Wed 7 May. Ex Cadets from the area or anyone who happens to be passing through are invited to attend. The usual suspects start showing up shortly before noon; lunch at 1230; the Annual General Meeting ; followed by the guest speaker for May – 14444 Dorothy Hector will wind up the afternoon.
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Toronto Branch Does it in Style
26219 Ocdt (IV) Colin Cook
On Friday April 25th – 8 Cadets had the privilege of attending the RMC Club of Canada Toronto branch annual dinner. Those who were fortunate enough to attend had the opportunity to network and socialize with a vast array of different ex-Cadets that had come from as far as California and British Columbia in order to attend.
Caption: Pictured are many members from the Class of ’69 who for the past number of years have had the best class attendance at the dinner. This yer was no exception. Some years ago, the class “adopted” the Major, Danny McLeod to be their special guest every year at this event. Danny passed away in January; The Toronto Branch executive invited his widow, Sheila McLeod pictured above front & centre to attend.
RMCC Commandant Al Meinzinger and his wife Joy were amongst those seated at the head table alongside the late Maj Danny Mcleod’s wife Sheila; Bryan Bailey and Rod McDonald both representing the Club and the Foundation respectively. Toronto Branch president, 7278 Peter Fosbery handled the MC duties with a flair of humour in a highly professional manner.
It was a very exciting day for the Cadets, particularly the fourth years, as they had all finished their final exams that morning. Indeed, General Meinzinger highlighted his pride in the many individual achievements of a few current Cadets in attendance and discussed his own experiences during his first year as Commandant, most notably his list of “10 Perks of being Commandant”. The list included his assertion that he “No longer needed to be afraid of the Sergeant Major and DCdts!” which garnered much laughter from both current and ex-Cadets.
RMCC Varsity Hockey Coach Adam Shell was also invited to speak and provided an overview of university hockey in Canada in the course of thanking the Toronto Branch for their generous fundraising contributions to the RMC hockey program.
Following dinner, the roll was called with club members standing and giving their college number in descending order by year of graduation, ranging from 2016 to the early 1950s.
The evening was filled with much brevity, laughter and camaraderie. The most striking aspect for the current Cadets was the nature of connection that being an ex-Cadet embodies because of the shared experience and understanding that graduating from RMCC entails. I dare say that there are not many institutions in the world that foster such a unique connection between alumni that have graduated over 50 years apart. The opportunity to attend this dinner reinforced amongst the current Cadets how special it is to be part of such a unique family that is held together, in no small part, by the efforts of the RMC Club and the dedication of Branch executives across the country.
As Cadets we appreciated the very nice gesture from the Toronto Branch to be special guests at this prestigious dinner and I also want to publicly express our combined thanks to the RMC Foundation for providing the transportation from Kingston to Toronto for the eight Cadets.
Photos from the Toronto Dinner by 7077 Paul Wehrle
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HMCS Iroquois welcomes alumni aboard
By: Sub-Lieutenant Emilie Beland, HMCS Iroquois UPAR (Article received through Sadie Toulany, Maritime Forces Atlantic/Joint Task Force Atlantic Navy Public Affairs
HALIFAX (N.S.) – On Monday, April 14 2014, the Commanding Officer of Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Iroquois, Commander Matthew Coates, welcomed senior alumni of the ship, Rear-Admiral (retired) Mike Saker and Commander (retired) Bill Gard, aboard the vessel for soup, coffee, and a tour. During the tour, the retired officers enjoyed learning about how the ship has evolved over the years while reminiscing about their experiences as young sailors.
RAdm (ret’d) Saker is one of the few remaining members that was aboard HMCS Iroquois when she first left the jetty in Sorel for sea trials in 1972. At the time, RAdm (ret’d) Saker was a young engineer participating in the 280 trial team. Cdr (ret’d) Gard was the Marine Systems Engineer Officer aboard the vessel from 1983 to 1985. Cdr (ret’d) Gard has maintained his relationship with the ship and her crew ever since. He even partook in a day sail aboard HMCS Iroquois in February 2014 as the President of Royal Military Colleges Club, N.S. Branch.
Photo below courtesy of : Joint Task Force Atlantic Navy Public Affairs
Photo (DND), from left to right: Cdr Coates, RAdm (ret’d) Saker, Cdr (ret’d) Gard, Lieutenant-Commander Raphael Liakas
Photo du MDN, de gauche à droite : Le capitaine de frégate Coates, le Cam (à la retraite) Saker, le Capf (à la retraite) Gard, le capitaine de corvette Raphael Liakas
Le NCSM Iroquois accueille des anciens à son bord
Par l’enseigne de vaisseau de 1re classe Emilie Beland, RAPU, NCSM Iroquois ( Sadie Toulany – Affaires publiques de la Marine Forces maritimes de l’Alantique/Force opérationnelle interamées de l’Atlantique)
HALIFAX (N.-É.) – Le lundi 14 avril 2014, le capitaine de frégate Matthew Coates, commandant du navire canadien de Sa Majesté (NCSM) Iroquois, a accueilli à bord des anciens du navire, le contre-amiral (à la retraite) Mike Saker et la capitaine de frégate (à la retraite) Bill Gard, pour une soupe, un café et une visite du navire. Les officier à la retraire ont pris plaisir à se remémorer leurs expériences de jeunes marins. Ils ont aussi pu constater à quel point le navire a évolué au fil des années.
Le Cam (à la retraite) Saker est l’un des derniers membres qui se trouvait à bord du NCSM Iroquois quand il a quitté le quai de Sorel pour des essais en mer en 1972. Le Cam (à la retraite) Saker était à cette époque un jeune ingénieur qui faisait partie de l’équipe des essais du groupe des 280. Le Capf (à la retraite) Gard était l’officier du génie des systèmes de marine à bord du navire de 1983 à 1985. Le Capf (à la retraite) Gard a gardé contact avec le navire et son équipage depuis ce jour. Il a également passé une journée en mer à bord du NCSM Iroquois en février 2014 en tant que président du club des Collège militaire royal, division de la N.-É.