The Bosn’s Call

Volume 24, No. 3, Autumn 2017

PEACEKEEPERS PARADE

Pictured above is the Colour Party from the Calgary Naval Veterans Association at the Peace- keepers’ Parade held on Sunday, August 13th. Left to Right ~ Cal Annis, Bill Bethell, Art Jor- genson and Master-at-Arms Eric Kahler.

Calgary Naval Veterans Association • www.cnva.ca CALGARY NAVAL VETERANS ASSOCIATION Skipper’s www.cnva.ca Autumn 2017

| Corvette Club: 2402 - 2A Street SE, Calgary, AB T2G 4Z2 Log [email protected] ~ 403-261-0530 ~ Fax 403-261-0540

n EXECUTIVE Paris Sahlen, CNVA President F PAST PRESIDENT • Art JORGENSON – 403-281-2468, [email protected] – Charities, Communication. The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s hope everyone has had a nice warm summer F PRESIDENT • Paris SAHLEN, CD – 403-252-4532, RCNA, HMCS Calgary Liaison, Charities, Stampede. with a little smoke thrown in. Here is an update

F EXECUTIVE VICE-PRESIDENT • Ken MADRICK Charities, Honours on the different activities the Club has been do- & Awards, Financial Statements, Galley Vice-Admiral. I ing this year so far. F VICE-PRESIDENT • Tom CONRICK • Sick & Visiting, Colonel Belcher, Charities, Honours & Awards. We still have Remembrance Day, our trip to Banff and our New Year’s Levee. The Club will F TREASURER • Anita VON – 403-240-1967. be closed December 23rd. One other thing—it F SECRETARY • Laura WEAVER. would be nice if we asked our Red Seal chefs if n DIRECTORS there is anything they need help with before leav- F Cal ANNIS – 403-938-0955 • Honours & Awards, Galley Till. ing the Club. F Tom SHIRLAW, CD – 403-569-2474 • Special Events, Ticket Sales, Galley Assistant.

F Jim GOLBOURN, CD – 403-281-4653 • Banff Trip, Membership, UPDATE: Grant applications accepted: Horizons

F Eric KAHLER, CD – Master-at-Arms, Financial Statements, grant for $25,000 to purchase new chairs and ta- Museum. bles, audio-visual equipment for our club room. F Chuck VON – 403-240-1967 • Assistant Secretary, Entertainment, The speaker series is part of the grant. Banff Trip, Ticket Sales.

F Terry KENT – Galley Till. DECLINED: The right to grant income tax re- F Bill BETHELL – 403-276-4252 • Casino/Bingo. ceipts to any person or company that donates F Ken MADRICK – 403-601-1715 • Ass’t Bar Manager / Honours & Awards. goods or services to the Club. Ir was denied on

F Al HUDAK – Bingo. the grounds that we are a social club

F Lorne BAIRD, CD – 403-240-1967 • Cadet Liaison. We continue to support our Club by working n APPOINTMENTS Casinos and Bingos. We are fortunate to have the F Rev. Lloyd NORTHCOTT, CD – 403-283-8455 • Padre. volunteers to do this. The funds from this allow F Lorne BAIRD, CD – 403-512-5838 • Editor, Bosn’s Call. us to support our Cadet Corps as well as HMCS F Dave MADRICK – Galley Admiral, Inventory. Calgary’s benevolent fund. We contribute to six F • Phoning Committee – 403-226-0502. John NORTH or seven charities as well as fund seven or eight Updated 7 January 2017 scholarships annually. The Bosn’s Call is published by the Calgary Naval Veterans Association. Items may be reprinted without permission but kindly give credit to the author and/or The Bosn’s Call. Contributions are always welcome and should be sent direct to the Editor, Lorne Baird c/o SOCIAL COMMITTEE: the address at the top of this column, or by email to [email protected]. The Editor is solely responsible for the content of The Bosn’s Call. New Year’s Levee Sweetheart’s Day Creative services and layout provided by Stampede Breakfast ® Cascade Creek Publishing Nanton Air Museum Trip LCdr (Ret’d) George A. Moore, President Dinner 1871 Primrose Crescent, Kamloops, BC V1S 0A5 Telephone 250-314-1284 • [email protected] Continued on page 4 2 The Bosn’s Call

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Autumn 2017

3 Continued from page 3 out of a still in an abandoned mine shaft. It was the year that the Russians launched “Sputnik.” Halloween Spooktacular Event The decision was made to name the moonshine

Autumn 2017 Banff Spring Bus Trip “Sputnik” thereby merely selling rocket fuel.

| While at the Kaslo Legion, I met the daughter of Through it all, Ken Madrick and his galley crew my Dad’s old partner. The last time I saw her was have ensured that the CNVA is truly the envy of 60 years ago! the Calgary naval community. Part of my summer was spent at the annual

The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s Our Colour Party (see cover) under the guidance Naval reunion at Dee Lake. Each year it gets a of Eric Kahler, participates in the Sunrise Ceremo- little bigger, much like the tales that accompany nies at the Field of Crosses. They also participate it. Some, because of failing health, were unable in the annual Peacekeepers Parade and ensure a to make it. We enjoy each other’s company now, dignified ceremony for our fallen shipmates. more than in our heyday. I think that was due to Many of our members are also members of the fact that we often took our lifestyle for grant- the Naval Museum of Alberta Society and work ed back then. Now, we realize that each meeting as watchkeepers onboard The Military Museums could be our last so we make the most of it. The in ’s largest naval museum. The Society one thing that hasn’t changed is the teamwork. held their first “Annual Navy Days” last October. We all pitched in for our share of the load and the It is planned to be repeated again this year. This work got done efficiently. As we move into Fall means a lot of our people will be working to make we can reflect on a long beautiful summer. That it a success again. weather, however, had a price. As we watch Brit- Cheers… ish Columbia under a haze of smoke and flame, Paris we know that price. We will soon meet for the fall season and the events planned. I hope to see you The all there. Editor’s Athabaskan Cabin Excerpted from Macleans Magazine, et al

Lorne Baird, ‘Bosn’s Call’ Editor

had the opportunity recently, to visit some of my childhood haunts. It’s been nearly sixty years I since I visited them. As a child I thought I was growing up in paradise; I later thought that be- lief was based on the fact that I’d seen it through the eyes of a child. Upon revisiting those places I came to the conclusion that the child was, in- deed, right. The scenery in the West Kootenays us every bit as beautiful as I remember. The dis- Athabaskan tances seem much smaller than in my childhood. Pictured above is on her way to the breaker’s yard. The RCN now has no destroyers, no supply ships and My Dad and his partner were running moonshine 12 aging frigates badly in need of upgrades. 4 The Bosn’s Call his October [year unknown now, Ed.], NATO sity’s Centre for Foreign Policy Studies and a former is launching “Trident Juncture,” its largest and naval officer himself, believes the ship will never leave Tmost ambitious military exercise in a decade. port [again, date unknown, Ed.] “The problem is that The massive land, sea and air exercise will be held you couldn’t send Athabaskan anywhere and reliably ex-

| in the Mediterranean and will include 36,000 troops pect her to get there, or to get home again.”

Autumn 2017 from 30 nations. Its goal will be to ‘help’ the fictitious Until very recently, Athabaskan had two sister ships country of ‘Sorotan,’ “a non-NATO member torn by that could have replaced it at the Trident Juncture ex- internal strife and facing an armed threat from an op- ercise. But in May and June of this year, these were de- portunistic neighbour.” Not surprisingly, this is widely commissioned as no longer seaworthy. After years of seen as an explicit response to Moscow’s increas- neglect, budget cuts and delays, our maritime forces ingly belligerent pressure on the alliances’ eastern have no more destroyers. Hanson believes the only borders. The Canadian government, an outspoken message now being sent to Moscow is: “Canada’s Navy critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the in- has crapped out and they [the Russians] don’t have to be vasion of Ukraine, had planned to send its flagship worried!” destroyer, HMCS Athabaskan, as “a strong signal [Jonathan Hayward/CP] to the Russians,” whose ships and aircraft have also Louis S. St. Laurent in Nunavut in 2008. [Jonathan Hay- been bumping up against Canada’s territorial claims ward/CP] in the Arctic. But last week [date unknown, Ed.], it Compared to its allies, the Canadian Navy is now only was reported by the Ottawa Citizen that the 43-year- one-third the size it should be, given our GDP, and can old Athabaskan was no longer seaworthy and is being only play smaller and smaller roles. Stanley Weeks of the sent back to Halifax for extensive repairs. The ship US Naval War College, a former US Admiral who follows is a fitting symbol of the overall state of the Navy; NATO closely, is dismayed at the decline of the RCN. its engines require overhaul, the hull is cracked, the “[Canadian politicians] need more seriousness. Canada decks need replacing and the weapon systems are is an inherently maritime nation, dependent on overseas questionable. Even Rear Admiral John Newton, markets, especially in Asia Pacific and, therefore, it has Commander of , describes to be a contributing stakeholder, militarily and diplomati- his flagship as worn and tired. cally.” He believes American military leaders in the Pen- In February, during a storm off the East Coast, tagon have not yet grasped the serious implications of Athabaskan was damaged and a number of engines losing the Canadian destroyers. Regardless, “Canadians failed. After that, the (RCN) should worry more about this than Washington.” decided it was no longer capable of weathering the Pirates off the coast of Africa? Assisting migrant refu- heavy seas of the North Atlantic, so it was sent south gees in the Mediterranean? Responding to the growing for calmer seas. Nonetheless, its engines broke down military tension in the South China Sea? Supporting a in Florida, then again in placid Caribbean waters. United Nations peacekeeping mission? The Canadian “It was garbage. Everything was always breaking,” Navy is no longer capable of mounting any of these mis- says Jason Brown, who served as an electrician and sions without significant help from others. technician on Athabaskan for seven years, ending in Even some domestic missions within sight of shore 2010. “We did 150 to 300 corrective maintenances may be beyond the Navy’s ability. For most of the year, a month.” Although Brown praises the ship’s crew, Canadian icebreakers would be unable to respond to a he often spent 20-hour days trying to fix equipment. Russian challenge of our Arctic sovereignty. The out- “The two main engines didn’t like to play nice togeth- come of a major maritime accident, such as a ferry sink- er. It was 4-1/2 years before that issue got fixed.” ing off Vancouver or Saint John, N.B., would depend on Related: Peter C. Newman on his naval career and how much the American Coast Guard was able to as- the ‘bad joke’ of our fleet. sist. Illegal fishing? People smuggling? An effective Ken Hanson, a research fellow at Dalhousie Univer- response to any of this requires a navy with more assets 5 than we have now. and Spanish governments to lease supply ships that will permit the RCN to at least conduct exercises and [Dirk Meissner/CP] maintain proficiency. Keep in mind that, not long ago,

Autumn 2017 Canada is a maritime nation. To the north, east and Spanish and Canadian navies faced each other in the

| west there are oceans and to the south, the Great Lakes Turbot War off the Grand Banks. Perhaps recognizing and the St. Lawrence Seaway. We have more coastline the delicacy of relying on Iberian goodwill, last month than any nation on earth; and the largest maritime ter- the government announced it intends to sole-resource ritory—approximately the same size as the continent of a contract to Davie Shipyards in Lévis, Québec, to ret-

The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s Australia. Yet, inexplicably, we have allowed our Navy rofit a commercial tanker for naval resupply and refuel- to rot so badly, it is now ranked with the maritime forc- ling. Even this stopgap measure would not be ready es of Bangladesh. until 2017 at the earliest. It is hoped that the long- When he became Prime Minister in 2006, Stephen promised and long-delayed replacements for the sup- Harper pledged to end what he called a “decade of ply ships will begin sea trials in 2019. But the new ships darkness” for the Canadian Forces. The outgoing Lib- are only in the design phase. eral government was castigated for bungling critical Defence Minister Jason Kenney skipped Protecteur’s procurement projects and cutting spending. Ironically, decommissioning ceremony, but four short weeks later, after 10 years of Conservative management, Canada he, Justice Minister Peter MacKay and Public Works effectively no longer has a blue-water navy (a force and Government Services Minister Diane Finley found capable operating across the deep waters of open time to fly out to Halifax to pose for a photo-op with a oceans). Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone, the military’s replacement for Losing all our destroyers was bad, but not as bad its infamous Sea King helicopters. as losing our supply ships. Canada has relied on only The Sea Kings are even older than the Navy’ supply two auxiliary replenishment vessels for over a decade. ships. Various governments have been promising to HMCS Protecteur on the West Coast and HMCS Pre- replace them for 30 years. More than a third of the server on the East. These ships were the backbone of fleet has crashed, killing eight crew and injuring many the Navy, ensuring the fleet could travel long distances more. When the Conservatives came to office, there and, once there, remain on station. was already a contract to replace the helicopters by Last year, Protecteur caught fire and broke down off 2008. the Hawaiian coast. Backup generators failed and the crew was forced to fight the blaze through the night in [Tim Krochak/CP] darkness. Eventually, the US Navy towed the ship to One would think that, after an additional seven-year safety, but only after 20 sailors were injured. delay, Kenney and his colleagues would be somewhat embarrassed to bring attention to yet another procure- [Hugh Gentry/Reuters] ment failure. But this is election season, so the minis- Given their critical importance, Navy mechanics worked ters smiled and posed in front of the helicopter, gloss- hard to keep these ships afloat, but they were so old ing over the fact that this was actually just an interim the manufacturers had long since stopped producing test aircraft, that the fully operational helicopters will spare parts. Eventually, sailors resorted to scouring not arrive for some time, and that the Sea Kings will, eBay, but to no avail. In May of this year, Protecteur unbelievably, need to stay in service for at least another was finally decommissioned and Preserver is being two years. stripped out in harbour, leaving Canada’s Navy with no supply-and-refueling capability. Related: Military procurement is a national disgrace. Related: As the fate of the Protecteur shows, the Navy’s future is dead in the water. What actually remains of Canada’s naval forces? The In desperation, Ottawa has turned to the Chilean bulk of it consists of 12 Halifax-class frigates. The now- 6 The Bosn’s Call retired destroyers had crews of around 280, carried two sible for patrolling Canada’s seven million sq. km of helicopter, were armed with long-range radar and mis- ocean, should be taken into account. Some of these siles to protect the whole fleet, and contained exten- are now 50 years old. There have been plans to replace sive command centres. The frigates are smaller, have them since 2002. Thirteen years later, the government

| a crew compliment of 220 sailors, carry one helicopter, only released the request for proposals in March.

Autumn 2017 have shorter-range radar, less firepower and far less ca- For Arctic waters, the Canadian Coast Guard has 13 pable command abilities. They are more than 20 years icebreakers. However, only six are strong enough to be old, and are going through an extensive refit and mod- considered capable of truly polar operations, and none ernization that is expected to be completed by 2017. is able to travel in the far north during the winter. Of It’s hoped they’ll remain in service for another 10 to 15 these, CGGS Louis S. St-Laurent is the oldest, at 49. It years. was originally scheduled for decommissioning in 2000, By that time, the Navy plans to have launched a but it has been necessary to keep it in service with two new fleet of up to 15 “Canadian Surface Combatants.” long major refits. During his first press conference as These ships are intended to replace both the existing Prime Minister, Harper promised three new heavy po- frigates and destroyers. But, like the new supply ships, lar-class icebreakers to buttress this underpowered and construction is still years away and they will not enter over-aged fleet. This was eventually downgraded to service until 2025. one. CCGS John G. Diefenbaker. Originally estimated Canada also has four submarines, purchased sec- to cost $720 million, the budget has since doubled. ond-hand 20 years ago from the British navy. After a Its final price will not be known for years, as work has long series of accidents, including a deadly fire—and not even begun. It was scheduled to be launched in expenses twice their purchase price on necessary re- 2017, but this will likely now be pushed back another pairs and updates—the vessels did not become fully five years. operational until February of this year. In a recent inter- When Diefenbaker is finally commissioned, it will not view, the commander of the RCN, Vice-Admiral Mark have an Arctic base from which to operate. Eight years Norman, described their capability as “fragile.” Like ago Harper personally announced that Canada would the supply vessels, the submarines are so old, finding build a deep-water port in Nanisivik, Nunavut. Four spare parts can be extremely difficult. years later, due to budget constraints, the Navy down- For coast defence, there are twelve Kingston-class graded the base to just a refueling station that will only maritime coastal defence vessels. These ships are a operate during the summer. With luck, the station may fifth the size of the frigates, have about 35 crew, and be open three years from now. their primary role is coastal surveillance, search and rescue, fisheries patrols and training. They are also [Chad Hipoloito/CP] 20 years old and suffer from chronic engine trouble HMCS Algonquin in port in BC and must be continually rotated in and out of service. According to retired officers and naval experts, the RCN Because of the their slow speed and small size, there has objectively deteriorated to its lowest capability in are plans to replace them with a new class of “Arctic/ over 40 years. But the dire states of what remains of Offshore Patrol Vessels.” They will be twice the size Canada’s Navy is not fully apparent until one compares of the Kingston-class ships, and perform a similar role. it to other nations. Last fall, Ken Hansen published an Construction of these began only last month at Irving analysis in the Canadian Naval Review that did exactly Shipyards, which were past $288 million just to design that. In it, Hansen noted that, without destroyers and the ships. (A similar Norwegian vessel was designed replenishment ships, the RCN had been dealt a crip- and built for one-third that cost.) The first one is not pling blow. expected to be completed until 2018. The loss of the destroyers means the Navy can no Although they belong to the Royal Canadian Air longer defend a formation against long-range threats, Force, the search and rescue aircraft, which are respon- nor can it provide effective command and control. 7 Without replenishment ships, it’s now impossible to rusted out to failure, admirals repeatedly assured their sustain the fleet with the necessary supplies, ammuni- minister they would figure out a way to get by. In his tion and fuel over any distance. This, Hansen pointed recent testimony to the House of Commons Standing

Autumn 2017 out, means the RCN can no longer be considered a Committee on National Defence, Admiral Newton,

| “medium global force projection navy.” with diplomatic understatement, acknowledged that Naval forces can be ranked on a nine-point scale the loss of the supply ships “presents a challenge,” but called the Todd/Lindberg Classification System. At in the very next sentence, promised the Navy would Rank 1 is the United States, whose navy is capable of be able to “preserve, to some degree, our freedom of

The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s “global-reach power projection.” The Canadian Forces manoeuvre across the vast distance of the North At- has long aimed to maintain itself at Rank 3, which the lantic and in the European theatre.” In the long term, Department of National Defence, in its planning docu- this can-do attitude and unwillingness to speak painful ment “Leadmark: The Navy’s Strategy for 2020,” de- truth to power only made it easier for the political class scribes as “navies that may not possess the full range to squeeze out more and more cuts. of capabilities, but have a credible capacity in certain Nevertheless, as Newton explained to the commit- of them, and consistently demonstrate a determination tee, “the size of the Canadian Navy is established by to exercise them at some distance from home waters.” governments,” not by officers. When Prime Minister Without the two key abilities to provide command and Jean Chrétien’s Liberal government took office, Cana- control, and resupply, the RCN no longer meets this da had 21,400 sailors (including reservists). When the description. It is no longer a blue-water navy. Liberals departed 13 years later, there were only 16,000 So where does the RCN rank? According to Han- left. The military cuts during that period “badly un- son’s analysis, it is now a Rank 5 navy, only capable of dermined the foundation” of the Navy, as one retired “offshore territorial defence.” Other navies that share admiral explained. In 2001, when Operation Apollo this capacity include Bangladesh and Indonesia. Both was launched in the Persian Gulf, the Navy was forced are developing nations, poor enough to be long-term to scrape together crews from its schools and reserves. recipients of Canadian aid. The Conservative government let the Navy shrink Who is to blame for reducing the Canadian Navy to further. While new ships were announced and re- such dire straits? There’s a long list of culprits and it’s announced, nothing was actually built. Worse, while difficult to single out any one, given that the gradual failing to replace the aging ships, the government has decline of the Navy can be traced back over decades quietly cut the money that would be needed to actu- and through multiple governments. ally renew and maintain the fleet. According to parlia- Many observers point the finger at the Department mentary budget officer Jean-Denis Fréchette, the next of Public Works and to a lesser extent, the Department government will need to find between $33 billion and of National Defence itself. Jointly, they have presided $42 billion to put Canada’s military as a whole back on over a procurement system that a recently retired Cana- a sustainable footing. By his calculations, at current dian General describes to Maclean’s as “divorced from budget levels the Canadian Forces can only maintain a reality.” Procurement funds are not allocated on an on- military around the size it had in 1999. going basis, preventing regular fleet renewal. (Imagine Does anyone have a plan to refloat Canada’s Navy? if FedEx waited until all its delivery trucks broke down, Liberal candidate Andrew Leslie, a retired lieutenant- and only then began shopping for replacements.) The general and the co-chair of Justin Trudeau’s Interna- bureaucrats’ procurement failures are not limited to the tional Affairs Council, told Maclean’s the situation is in Navy. None of the five major defence purchasing proj- crisis, and claims that fixing the Navy would be “just ects in the governments 2008 Canada First Defence about the top priority” for a Liberal government. NDP Strategy has been completed. Defence Critic Jack Harris told Maclean’s “the Conser- The military leadership also deserves to shoulder vatives had known for years that HMCS Protecteur and some blame. As Canada’s naval assets relentlessly HMCS Preserver needed replacing. Yet they delayed, 8 The Bosn’s Call and now the Navy is left scrambling to fill the gap.” plans on paper. Harris promised that improving Canada’s Navy would Meanwhile, in the upcoming election, like they did be a priority of an NDP government. The Office of 10 years ago, the politicians will pose in front of ship- Minister Kenney did not return calls from Maclean’s. yards, talk passionately about Arctic sovereignty and

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Many Canadians know that, at the end of the Second the proud reputation of the Royal Canadian Navy, and

Autumn 2017 World War, the Canadian Navy was the fifth-largest in re-announce long-promised ships with ever receding the world. Fewer realize that it has been so badly ne- launch dates. glected for so long, it’s now effectively reduced to a —with Meagan Campbell coastal defence. Our rusting fleet sits out of sight to most Canadians, over the horizon, but not too far from shore juggling to constantly do more with less. And Publisher’s Note: While the material contained in the no one is proposing to fill the massive funding gaps. preceding can perhaps in a few cases be said to be And replacement vessels remain nothing but unreliable ‘dated,’ it is nonetheless totally relevant today. [GAM] Bonaventure Anchor Monument

Pictured above is the enthusiastic group of ‘volunteers’ who showed up recently to complete some impor- tant remedial work on the Bonaventure Anchor Monument in Halifax. BZ folks!

Report of an ad hoc Committee: 4. Ms. Kellie McIvor, Halifax Regional Municipality Cultural Asset Manager. Ad hoc Committee Members: 5. HCol Tom Birchall, RUSI(NS). 1. Cdr (Ret’d) Wayne DiPersio, CFB Halifax Chief of Staff. The ad hoc Committee was struck to resolve issues 2. CPO1 David Steeves, CFB Halifax BCPO. pertaining to the Bonaventure Anchor Monument 3. Mr. Mike Bonin, CFB Halifacx, PAO (“Monument”) located in Point Pleasant Park, Halifax. 9 In recent months, concerns had been raised by Halifax had taken on the interim responsibility of a number of interested parties that the Monument keeping the Monument maintained and the MOU had been falling into an unacceptable state of re- would expand and clarify this role.

Autumn 2017 pair and that no one group had accepted owner- A number of interested parties expressed con-

| ship of either the issues or the Monument. One cerns that some of the names on the Monument party in particular, Kootenay Families led by Mr. may be “wrong.” It appears that some of the Allan “Dinger” Bell, have been raising concerns in names currently listed may have been misspelled, excess of 10 years, apparently without resolution. some of the current names may represent dupli-

The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s The Committee’s first challenge was to clearly cates, and there may be a significant number of articulate the concerns. In the end, the various names omitted. parties have four (4) main concerns. It was agreed that Mr. Birchall would take the lead on this issue and he would: (1) Immediate repair and ongoing maintenance of the monument. 1. Arrange for Mr. Bell to provide an updated (2) The names listed on the Monument are: list from the Kootenay Family perspective a. Incomplete outlining the names of the missing, miss- b. Inaccurate pelled and duplicates. c. Duplicated 2. Arrange for Col (Ret’d) John Orr to provide (3) The monument should be rededicated once the same listing from the RCAF perspective. the names have been confirmed. 3. Determine from any other interested party (4) The Annual (“BOA”) whether there are any other potential names Parade in Halifax should fully recognize the missing. monument with the paying of honours and the laying of wreaths. Once we have a consolidated listing, the names would be circulated firstly to both the Shearwater There was also an additional concern raised spe- Aviation Museum and the Navy Museum at CFB cific to the HMCS Kootenay disaster and that was Halifax for accuracy. The list would then be for- the recognition and laying of a separate wreath in warded to Ottawa (DGNP?) for consideration and Ottawa at the National Battle of the Atlantic Pa- either the additional names added or an explana- rade. tion as to why the names should be omitted. It is While the question of ownership may never be recognized that this process could take some time fully resolved, it was the Committee’s view that ef- to complete. forts should be made to have the ownership of the It was agreed that October 23rd, 2019, would Monument assumed by a national organization be an appropriate date for the Monument re-ded- but only once an appropriate Memorandum of Un- ication as it represented the 50th anniversary of derstanding (MOU) has been executed between the HMCS Kootenay disaster and was a reason- HRM and CFB Halifax. able target date to finalize the names. The proposed MOU would encompass the on- While the Base Chief thought the idea of pay- going care and maintenance of the Monument ing honours to the Monument was a good one, with neither HRM nor CFB Halifax assuming re- he wanted to reserve fully committing to a change sponsibility for the re-capitalization or ownership in the existing BOA Parade Order until he had an of the actual monument. The Committee under- opportunity to review any potential ramifications. stood that the MOU could take a couple of months The Base Chief also agreed to find out why to complete. there was no Kootenay wreath at this year’s parade 10 Cdr (Ret’d) DiPersio acknowledged that CFB in Ottawa—which appears to be a departure from The Bosn’s Call prior years but may indicate a change in proce- dure. Prior to adjourning the meeting, the Committee agreed to the following action plan:

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1. CFB Halifax and HRM would follow for comp- Autumn 2017 letion of an acceptable MOU; 2. The Chief of Staff would start the process for a rededication ceremony in 2019. 3. The Base Chief would confirm the intention regarding the laying of a Kootenay wreath at the Ottawa BOA and would also confirm the BOA Parade Order at the Halifax BOA parade. 4. Mr. Birchall would follow for the confirmation of the names to be inscribed on the Monu- ment. 5. Mr. Bonin would coordinate the holding of a Town Hall Meeting for all interested parties on or before 31 July 2017. Hey shipmates,

Respectfully submitted where’ve ya bin?

T. R. Birchall RUSI(NS) Come on down to The Corvette Club Canada 150 as Bill Wilson Sees It to spin some ‘salty dips’ and sample our variety of great food hot off the grill!

We’re open every Saturday

except during Stampede

from 1100 to 1600.

Galley service is available

Shipmate Bill Wilson celebrates Canada’s 150th from 1200 to 1400. Anniversary with a display of flags that leaves no doubt where his loyalty lies! BZ Bill! 11 Corvette Club John Cowan RAN Introduces Retires Autumn 2017

| Speakers Program Your Editor knew John as a PO2 Bos’n in the RCN in the 1980s. John later took his commission and transferred to the Royal Australian Navy. Fair Winds and Following Seas John and Congratulations on a great naval career! The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s

Last Thursday was my final working day in the RAN and on Saturday I retired after almost 42 years of service in the RCN and RAN. The skills, values and experiences I gained as a Boatswain have served me well throughout my career and I can’t imagine a better founda- tion for my career as an officer than the years I spent as a sailor. I look back with as much Eric Kahler (left), presents guest speaker Tom fondness as being the Starboard watch Sea- Shindruk with a Navy cap after his presenta- boat Coxswain in HMCS Terra Nova off of Van- tion “Dealing with Life’s Challenges.” It was couver as I do in rounding the Cape of Good the second in a series of speakers who are part Hope in HMAS Choules as an experienced of the grant that Eric applied for on behalf of CO. Many of you were instrumental in shap- the Calgary Naval Veterans Association. The ing me and I thank you for your friendship, grant, not only paid for our new chairs, but your mentoring, your patience and persever- also provided us with a new sound system for ance and occasionally a kick in the ass, all of the Club. Eric is in the process of applying for which I benefitted from greatly! Many thanks. another grant. Cheers, John 12 The Bosn’s Call CNVA 2017 SOCIAL EVENTS

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Sept 16 Calgary Cup Sailing Regatta – Autumn 2017 Sept 23 Nanton Bus Trip Sign up at Club October 28 Spooktacular Event Regular Menu Nov 11 Remembrance Day Up Spirits / Splice the Mainbrace

Dec 2 Banff / Canmore Bus Trip Price TBD

NOTE: All paid events will be pre-ticketed with no refund and may be subject to change due to circumstances beyond our control.

Administrative Services Department. He was active in youth development with Crossed the Bar leadership roles with Scouts Canada and the Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps. He pro- vided extensive volunteer work for the Naval Museum of Alberta and served as a member of the Board of Directors. After retiring, he and Barbara traveled to Europe, Asia and Australia and spent many winters in Hawaii. He also enjoyed with en- thusiasm his many friends and colleagues in the Royal Canadian Naval Association. Neil will be remembered by all who knew him as a gentle and kind man who was always Neil Nicholas MURRAY willing to lend a helping hand to anyone in need of it. November 16, 1926 ~ August 26, 2017 Neil is survived by his loving wife Barbara Calgary, Alberta Murray, sons Glenn Murray (Karen) and Darrell Murray, sister-in-law Beverley Buchanan and eil, beloved husband of Barbara Lois several nieces and nephews. Murray (nee Tosh) of Calgary, Alberta, He was predeceased by his parent Michael Npassed away on Saturday, August 26th, and Dora Murasky, his sister Frances “Fran” 2017 at the age of 90 years. Smith (nee Murasky) and brother-in-law Gor- Neil retired from Imperial Oil after 35 years don Smith. Graveside services were held at of service, starting in the Drafting Department Queen’s Park Cemetery on September 2, and moving to increased responsibilities in the 2017. 13 Hands Long Ago Autumn 2017

| to I was a Sailor Prayer Long ago I was a sailor. The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s Rev. Lloyd Northcott, CNVA Padre I sailed the Ocean blue.

ometimes our past comes back to I knew the bars in Singapore... haunt us. We all know that it is best to Slet bygones be bygones and to get on ...the coastline of Peru. with life. The devil is in the details. The ancient Hebrews showed the way. They I knew well the sting of salt spray. had suffered much nastiness as slaves in an- The taste of Spanish wine. cient Egypt. They took some satisfaction in the memory of Pharaoh’s army drowning in The beauty of the Orient… the sea. But their main focus was on The Promised Yes, all these things were mine. Land, a land of milk and honey, and a land But I wear a different hat now, where God’s Law would rule and not some cruel autocrat. They dreamed of a largely No tie and jacket too. egalitarian society with a few Commandments to keep order and decency. My sailing days were long ago… It is never too late to dream our dreams and with that life I am through. do our bit to make the world a better place. Club is an opportunity to spread some cheer But somewhere deep inside of me… and we can be grateful for the efforts and wis- dom of those who guide us. The sailor lives there still. Never take the cooks for granted! Saying He longs to go to sea again, thank you never hurts. A smile and a kind word can go a long way. But knows he never will. We know all that but it is good to know that each and every one of us has something posi- My love, my life, is here at home, tive we can do. Then we can forget our wor- ries and hurts in an atmosphere of friendship and I will leave here never. as we enjoy the company of shipmates. Though mind and body stay ashore,

Padre Lloyd My heart’s at sea forever. 14 The Bosn’s Call Plaque Awarded to Capt(N) Bill Wilson

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Autumn 2017

Pictured above at the unveiling of the plaque are (left to right) Vice Admiral Ron Lloyd, Commander of the RCN, Captain (N) Bill Wilson and Command Chief Petty Officer 1st Class Michel igneault.V

n Saturday, August 10th, the naval community of Cal- to say that he is “Mr. Navy” in Calgary. gary gathered at the Naval Museum of Alberta for The Commander of the RCN, Vice-Admiral Ron Lloyd Othe unveiling of the Captain(N) Bill Wilson Plaque. spoke at length of the work of Bill and his committees over The purpose of the plaque was to leave a tangible mark to all the years. He mentioned that RAdm Ron Buck had intro- the effort Bill has put into preserving the history of the RCN in duced him to Bill many years ago. He stated that he felt the Calgary. Bill’s long connection with the Canadian Pacific Rail- high praise Ron had for Bill was justified in light of the great way stood him in good stead to assist the Naval Museum. It facility in which he was standing. was his efforts that resulted in artifacts like the 3”-70 gun from Bill, humble as ever, stated that he really didn’t need a Terra Nova and the periscope from an “O” boat being trans- plaque, but appreciated the gesture. He added that as a re- ported to Calgary from . The cost of commer- servist, he learned to keep volunteers by keeping them busy cially shipping these artifacts would have been prohibitive. and interested. He stated that he made sure that when one Bill has long been a stalwart of the Naval Community and has project was complete, there would be another on the horizon. steadfastly promoted the history of the RCN. It would be safe BZ Bill, for a long and productive career! 15 CNVA Autumn 2017

| Regalia Messages

Cal Annis The next GENERAL

The Bosn’s Call The Bosn’s MEETING is on Saturday, September 16th at 1100.

DIRECTOR’S MEETINGS The next meeting is on Saturday, September 16th at 0900.

©LBJ THERE ARE NO DIRECTOR OR GENERAL MEETINGS DURING JULY AND AUGUST!

Navy pen and business card holder set ~ $2.00 Visit the Corvette Club on Saturdays!

The CNVA Corvette Club is now open at our new location on the Stampede Grounds at 2402 - 2A Street SE (about 100 yards due east from the Erlton Stampede LRT station) every Sat- urday (except during Stampede) from 1100 to 1600 (Galley service from 1200 to 1400). Come out and join your Shipmates! Royal Canadian Legion Things Military Ltd. CENTENNIAL CALGARY BRANCH 285 #616, 3208 - 8TH AVENUE, N.E., CALGARY, AB, CANADA T2A 7V8 Telephone: 403-235-4713 Fax: 403-569-1460 SPECIALIZING IN ALL SIZES AND Cellular: 403-617-4713 Toll Free: 1-866-336-0103 TYPES OF CATERING FOR ANY FUNCTION THAT YOU NEED Captain W. (Bill) Treleaven CD Store Hours GREAT FOOD AT REASONABLE PRICES Mon. - Fri. 9:30 am to 5:00 pm Sat. - 10:00 am to 4:00 pm 9202 Horton Road, SW Branch: 403-255-5772 www.thingsmilitary.com Calgary, Alberta T2V 2X4 Fax: 403-255-0331 Email: [email protected] 16