Roll Up of CAF/Veteran/Invictus News - 1 Aug 2024
CAF | DND
Retiring military members face months-long delays for severance, benefit payouts | CBC News
Canadian military members who are retiring in the foreseeable future will face delays in receiving severance, back pay and accumulated vacation payouts, the Department of National Defence has acknowledged. There's been concern and confusion among veterans for several weeks, after a note sent to members who are on track to be released warned them to expect delays in receiving their pension — a hot button issue for former soldiers and the federal government.
Canadian military spying on members' social-media accounts | Ottawa Citizen
Canadian Forces intelligence teams are keeping an eye on the personal social-media accounts of military members to see if they are posting classified information on-line. The monitoring initiative, codenamed Operation Fence Post, was launched in 2023 after a major leak of secret information from a United States military member on social media.
Alberta requests wildfire assistance from armed forces | CTV News
Alberta has called in the Canadian Armed Forces to help assist with the worsening wildfire situation in the province. As of Wednesday afternoon, 176 wildfires were burning in the forest protection area of the province, which doesn't account for the two wildfires threatening Jasper National Park, which is federal land.
The Esquimalt-based HMCS Regina returned to its home port on Thursday after completing an “Arctic awareness and sovereignty mission.” The mission included monitoring the Arctic entrances to North America, and to help maintain international maritime law, according to the Department of National Defence (DND). During its deployment, HMCS Regina sailed up to the 69th parallel north, making it the first West Coast frigate in Canada to cross the Arctic Circle, according to the DND.
Canada's defence department and military are approaching the implementation and use of artificial intelligence in a "fragmented," unco-ordinated manner, says a newly prepared federal strategy. The long-awaited overview of how to deal with rapidly evolving machine-learning technology is being met with mixed reviews by some high-tech and civil society experts who had been expecting more clarity on where the country stands and how far it's prepared to go.
Manitoba's CFB Shilo sending troops to help with Alberta wildfires | CBC News
Troops from southwestern Manitoba's CFB Shilo are on their way to help manage a massive wildfire that has consumed the heart of Jasper National Park in Alberta. A 2nd Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry company contingent of around 80-90 troops left Friday morning. They're headed to the Jasper area after the Canadian Forces received a request for assistance from the province of Alberta Wednesday asking for help managing the ongoing wildfires.
PHOTO GALLERY: Food Basics debuts in Petawawa | Canadian Grocer
Food Basics has opened a new store in the eastern Ontario town of Petawawa. … In a nod to the community, the exterior walls of the new store feature historical images sourced from the Garrison Petawawa Military Museum. As it joins the Petawawa community, Food Basics said it was donating to local organizations including the military museum, the Petawawa Pantry Food Bank and the Royal Canadian Legion.
Defence Minister Blair lands new press secretary from Bibeau’s office | iPolitics [May need signup for full article]
Minister of National Defence Bill Blair has a new press secretary, with Simon Lafortune coming over from National Revenue Minister Mari-Claude Bibeau’s office to replace the outgoing Diana Ebadi.
VETERANS
N.S. community gathers for veteran’s 100th birthday | CTV News
The party of the century was held Tuesday in Wilmot, N.S., as the community gathered to celebrate the 100th birthday of Tom Franklin. The Royal Canadian Air Force veteran is a father of two, with three grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. Family from as far away as Manitoba came into town for the party at the Wilmot Community Centre.
N.B.’s longest-serving doctor retires | Chatham Daily News
… “I’m going to miss my patients terribly because they’re my friends,” said Prosser, who retired Tuesday as the longest-serving doctor in New Brunswick after caring for generations of Oromocto-area families for the last 61 years. … Despite his love of forestry, Prosser, who graduated from Fredericton High School, decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and study medicine at Dalhousie University. He’d also serve in the military like this father; he was stationed for 45 months at Base Gagetown to help pay for his schooling but turned down an offer to go overseas following graduation.
10th Flags of Remembrance ceremony seeking more sponsors | rdnewsnow.com
The 10th annual Flags of Remembrance event in Sylvan Lake is quickly approaching. Veterans Voices of Canada founder Al Cameron says more sponsors are needed for the event, which honours past and present military and first responder heros. This is done by raising 128 flags to commemorate the approximately 128,000 Canadians who’ve lost their lives in the line of duty.
A 'painful' flight (ctvnews.ca)
VIDEO: A local veteran is sharing his story about his painful flying experience after his seat was given to someone else. Krista Simpson reports.
RESEARCH
Using retrospective accounts, this study explored the ways in which children in military families experienced a parent’s potentially morally injurious deployment, as well as how they perceived potential moral injury in their parents post deployment.
Military life is known to challenge family member well-being, as well as parent-child and marital relationships. Although coparenting predicts parenting quality, parent-child and marital relationships, and family member well-being, research has rarely considered how it is challenged by military life and how parents overcome these challenges.