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SEAFORTH HIGHLANDERS OF CANADA

REGIMENTAL ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER

Message from the President

Seaforths, Regimental Association Members, family and friends, I hope everyone is having a great summer. The new training year for the Regiment will begin in a few weeks. With the energy and enthusiasm the serving soldiers will bring to this year's training calendar, we aim to do the same with the efforts of the Association. Stand-to for the Battalion is 12 September 2015. I would like to invite all Association members, as well as their families, to attend a Welcome BBQ at 1500 that day. Returns for numbers greatly appreciated. This is an opportunity for Association members to mingle with serving soldiers, strengthening a bond that exists between serving and former members; a bond that unites generations in our dedication to each other and the regiment. I would like to mention the efforts of HLCol Rod Hoffmeister. As the Honorary Lieutenant Colonel of the Regiment, as the past Association president, and as someone who has taken on many extra “hats” for the Association, HLCol Hoffmeister's undertakings on behalf of the Seaforth have been large and tireless. I will have big shoes to fill succeeding him as the incoming president and I offer a heartfelt thank you to him for all he has done and continues to do on behalf of the Seaforth family. During my service with the Battalion, the Association was looked at as something members would join “eventually,” after release or upon retirement. We hope to change that by making it more interesting to serving members and by getting feedback from everyone in the Regimental family. We are seeking input/suggestions/ideas from all quarters. If you have a notion on how we can increase visibility or cooperation between the Association and other parts of the Regimental family we'd like to hear from you. The 2015 Association committee is somewhat uniquely comprised of myself, a recently released CAF member, and two still serving members. This, I hope, is the foundation for a diverse and inclusive Association, one that will bridge gaps of generations, interests and experience. Anyone reading this, join us, and please encourage your comrades to do so. The remainder of 2015 promises to be exciting for the Association, and I hope to see you on 12 September! Josh Muir. CD President, Seaforth Regimental Association joshmuir@hotmail.com

Association News

Association Bursaries

The Regimental Association is pleased to announce that it is ready to receive applications for the 2015 Post Secondary

Bursaries. This Year, the Association will offer two $500 bursaries and the $1,000 John Conway Memorial Bursary.

Application can be obtained at: http://seaforthhighlanders.ca/organization/regimental-association/

The bursary is open to all current and past members of the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada and their dependants.

The deadline for applications is September 30, 2015

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A Leaner Executive

At the AGM on 20 May 2015 bylaw 27 of the constitution was amended to reduce the number of members that sit on the Regimental Association Executive from five to three. The motion was passed unanimously. The executive is now made up of the President, the Treasurer and the Secretary. The reduction is in response to the difficulties of finding members that are interested in sitting on the executive.

Introducing the New Executive

Association President

Josh Muir CD

Josh Muir, served nearly 15 years

in the Primary Reserve, including

10 years with the Seaforth. He

represented the Seaforths during

two deployments to Afghanistan

with 1PPCLI. Recently he was

medically released from the CAF

and has decided to return to

school to further his education.

While waiting to attend school he

is spending time with his two year

old son Max and his wife Carol. He

is excited to continue serving the

Seaforths in the position of

Association President.

Association Treasurer

Kent Fabian

A 15 year veteran of the Seaforth

Highlanders, Kent has spent much

of the past decade as a section

commander and/or 2 IC and

recently has been a part of the 39

BDE Influence Activities cell. He

has deployments in the Balkans as

well as around Canada for various

domestic operations. Presently,

he is serving as the President of

the Junior Ranks Mess as well as

the Vice President of the Jericho

Garrison Combined Mess.

Association Secretary

Patrick Farrell CD

Patrick Farrell is currently serving

with the Seaforths as the

Regimental Quartermaster

Sergeant. He has served with the

regiment for 13 years, deploying

to Afghanistan in 2006 attached to

A Coy, 1 PPCLI. He brings

experience from serving as the Bar

Manager and President of the

Junior Ranks Mess as well as two

years as the treasurer of the

Jericho Garrison Combined Mess.

He is also currently the Sergeant at

Arms of the Seaforth Sgts and WO

Mess.

Upcoming Events

Seaforth Regimental

Family BBQ

15 September 2015

Time: 1500

Location: Jericho Garrison Mess

We would like to invite all Seaforths both currently serving and retired to come down to the Jericho Garrison, for a BBQ. The regiment will be doing their annual Stand To administration during the day and then heading to the mess for the BBQ. This will be an opportunity to meet some of the new soldiers and catch up with friends that are currently serving. Families are more than welcome. We would appreciate an email to let us know that you are coming so we can provide enough food but don’t feel that you cannot come if you didn’t send one. We are also looking for volunteers to help with setting up, cooking and clean up. Please contact Patrick Farrell about this event at p_farrell1@hotmail.com.

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Regimental News Seaforths Participate in 2015 Nijmegen March

This year marked the 99th year that the Netherlands has held its annual Nijmegen march. I am proud to say that three members of the Seaforths represented the regiment as part of the 39 Canadian Brigade Group team during this year’s march. The CAF have been sending members over since 1953. Each year over 40,000 civilians along with 5,000 military personal participate in this event. The Nijmegen march, which originally began to promote physical education in the Netherlands, consists of 4 days of marching through the countryside and crowded streets around Nijmegen. Military participants walk a total of 160km carrying a minimum weight of 10kg. The Canadian contingent was made up of fourteen teams of eleven people plus about 50 support staff. Each team needs to start and complete each day with all eleven members crossing the finish line together as a team. Completing the march with less than 90 percent of your team will disqualify your team and your team will not receive the team award, however the individuals from each team that do complete the march will receive their Nijmegen medal. During the March as ambassadors for Canada you are required to interact with the crowds, handing out souvenirs to children, singing and not just supporting your own team members but other military and civilian marchers on the route.

Remembrance Day

11 November 2015

Time: 0930

Location: Jericho Garrison /

Victory Square

The Association will have a bus laid on this year to take members from the Jericho Garrison to Victory Square and to return to unit. There will also be a ceremony by association Padre Neill McRae at the Jericho Garrison for those that are not able to make it downtown. The Association's showing last year was impressive. Let's aim to expand attendance this year.

The Ortona Dinner

12 December 2015

Time: 1700 Reception 1800

Dinner

Location: Jericho Garrison

The Annual Ortona Dinner will be held again this year at the Jericho Garrison. The traditional dinner will be held complete with a menu inspired by what the soldiers ate at that fateful meal 72 years ago. We desperately need Veterans for this event that we can make nervous young Privates sit beside. Whether your service was in World War II, Korea, peacekeeping, Afghanistan or if you never went overseas at all. Come with some war stories prepared and we will supply the helmets.

Vimy

Memorial Service and

Regimental Reunion

Dinner

2 April 2015

Location: Bessburough Armoury

1150 11th Ave Vancouver

The Vimy Dinner is quickly becoming one of the best Regimental events of the year. Over the last two years Rick Ciccone, Chair of the Vimy Dinner Committee, has gone to great lengths to increase attendance and make this event more about the reunion and less about the dinner. The day will start with a memorial service to remember our fallen Seaforths, complete with a Vigil guard of serving members mounted around the Vimy Cross. There will then be a brief reception, followed by dinner. While all the elements of a formal mess dinner are included the format has been relaxed so that we do not bore our guests. More details on timings will come out closer to the event. We need volunteers to make this event work. Please contact Rick Ciccone at ciccone.rick@gmail.com if you are interested in helping out.

MCpl McDonald, Lt Calvert, and WO Shannon pose with the Seaforth camp flag on the last day of the march.

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We began our training in early March starting off with 25 members from across 39 CBG. The training consisted of all team members marching together two to three times a week, with each team member accumulating between 500-600km between the start of training and the final team selection that took place mid-June. Team selection was based on esprit de corps, ability to commit to the training schedule and the ability to complete the 2x40km marches. By mid-June there were 11 members selected to the team by way of attrition. The trip was well organized beginning in Ypres which included an evening memorial ceremony held at Menin gate. Every evening since 1928 at 2000hrs the last post has been played at the gate with the exception of the German occupation during the Second World War. The following morning was a visit to Tyne Cot Cemetery which is the largest commonwealth cemetery in the world. From there it was on to France for a tour of Vimy Ridge that included a memorial ceremony. From Vimy Ridge our next stop was Camp Heumensoord a temporary camp set up for the Nijmegen march that housed the 5,000 military participants. This was the starting point each morning over the next 4 days. Each morning during the march we would wake up around 0230hrs, have breakfast and form up as a contingent heading out for a day of marching. The end of each day was the same, we would walk back to your rooms, peel our boots offand then soak our feet in cold salty water while enjoying a beer. With each morning it became a bit more difficult to get up, put our boots on over our blistered feet and march out the front gate. Our team medic would wake up an hour earlier than the rest of us to have breakfast and then tend to his own feet before taking care of the rest of the team. I needed to mention this because I really appreciated what he did and I know that for some of us he reduced the amount of pain and suffering that we may have experienced without his expertise. Not to say that there was still not a certain level of discomfort. He put the welfare of his team before his own, well done Serg. Along the route even as early has 0400hrs the streets were lined with spectators and supporters of the event. The streets are all shut down to local vehicle traffic to allow open access to street venders and bands during the march. We would stop along the way to interact with the people and to talk with other marchers along the route and occasionally stop to accept offers of local hospitality. On the third day after 30kms the Canadian contingent stopped at the Groesbeek cemetery for an afternoon ceremony spending about an hour there to look around and to pay our respects to the fallen. From there it was back on the road to complete the marching for the day. On the fourth and final day of the march the last 10Kms, is called the ”Gladiola Parade”. The streets are lined with tens of thousands of spectators to cheer on the marchers and to hand out gladiolas to all the participants. With all the excitement and distractions, the last 10kms seemed to be the easiest part of the march. After completing the final 10kms all teams lined up to receive their Nijmegen medal as well as for team photos. Once this was complete the entire Canadian contingent formed up into six ranks and marched the final 5 kms toward the finish line without the weight of our packs. This was the first time in 10 years that the entire Canadian contingent has completed the march and each member that completed the 160km was awarded the four days March Cross. You can participate in this march as a civilian and by yourself. Although to train, participate, and work together to complete this as a member of a team in the CAF and with two other Seaforth brothers is indescribable. It is truly one of the most memorable moments of my time in the military. –WO Keith Shannon, CSM Admin Coy

Change of Command

The regiment has a new, Commanding Officer as LCol Paul Ursich returns for a second tour as CO. Three years ago LCol Ursich turned over command of the regiment to LCol Scott Raesler after a short two year tour as CO. He left early to take on the job of Chief of Staff at 39 Canadian Brigade Group HQ and then moved on to work at 3rd Canadian Division HQ. Now with the regiment in need, LCol Ursich has returned to relieve LCol Raesler, who is moving on to a part time position with Land Force Doctrine and Training Center. The change of command ceremony took place May 30th at the Jericho Garrison where the regiment is currently stationed. The parade included a march past by the

Colours with a guard of serving Seaforths and a quarter guard of Seaforth cadets.

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Regimental Senior Appointments

Colonel-in-Chief HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Honorary Colonel HCol Michael Shields Honorary Lieutenant Colonel HLCol Rod Hoffmeister Commanding Officer LCol Paul Ursich Regimental Sergeant Major CWO John O’Connor

Regimental Association Appointments President of the Association Josh Muir Treasurer Kent Fabian Secretary Patrick Farrell Directors at Large Rod Hoffmeister Rick Ciccone Padre Neill McRae

Contact Information The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada Regimental Association Email: p_farrell1@hotmail.com Website: seaforthhighlanders.ca Facebook Page: The Old Guard The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada Orderly Room Email: vanor5128@forces.gc.ca Phone: 604-225-2520 Ext 2811

Regimental Association Kit Shop

Clothing

Blazer Crests .............................................................. $30 Blazer Buttons (Large) ..................................................$9 Blazer Buttons (Small) ..................................................$8 Baseball Caps Navy Blue ............................................ $15 Fishing Hats ................................................................$15 T-Shirt, wicking, Blue (Small to XL) …………………………..$20 T Shirt Blue Cotton (Small to XL) ................................$10 T-Shirt, Green ……..…………………………………………………. $10 Jacket, Black Softshell ……………………………………………..$50 Stormtech Jacket (Navy Blue) ....................................$40 Regimental Tie, Polyester ..........................................$30 Diced Hose ...............................................................$100 Tartan Hose ..............................................................$100

Jewellery

Junior Ranks Cap Badge..............................................$15 Cap Badge Officers, WOs, and Sgts.............................$60 Cap Badge WOs, and Sgts (Sterling Silver)................$160 Cap Badge Officers (Sterling Silver)...........................$175 Regimental Ring (Sterling Silver).................................$75 Seaforth Lapel Pin (Enamelled Blue Shield)..................$3 Canadian Flag Lapel Pin.................................................$1 Tie Tacks, (Sterling Silver Small)..................................$25 Tie Tacks, (Sterling Silver Large)..................................$30 Ladies Broach..............................................................$65 (Sterling Silver Miniature Officer’s cap badge on tartan rosette)

Miscellaneous

Regimental History (1919 - 1965) by R.H. Roy............$35 DVD Return to Agira Op Husky 2013...........................$20 Ice Buckets, Drum w/Regt. Battle Honours.................$50 Seaforth Crest Car Decal for Inside Window.................$2 Seaforth Crest Car Decal for Outside of Vehicle...........$2 Smokey Smith Print.......................................................$5 Coffee Mug Stainless steel with crest.........................$20 Glasses, Glen Cairn, Engraved with Seaforth Crest ….$20 Note: All items are subject to availability

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