Our 122nd Anniversary of the Canadian Military Engineers coincides with the end of my tenure as your Colonel Commandant. This four-year term has been for me a great honour and an immense privilege. This term allowed me to witness and participate in two historical events. The first was my attendance at the State Funeral of Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II, who had been our Colonel-in-Chief for over 60 years.
The second was the promotion of Jennie Carignan to the rank of General and her accomplishment, as the first women and first Military Engineer, to become Chief of Defence Staff. This last historical moment means so much to me given that 29 years earlier when I was the Senior Combat Engineer at the Army Headquarters, I had the chance to present to the Army Commander the documents officialising the reintegration of Combat Engineers into the Combat Arms and, as such, the possibility for any of our members to rise to any of the highest positions of the Army and the Canadian Armed Forces.
My different visits of the last years, across Canada and overseas, have allowed me to witness your impressive professionalism and devotion towards the Branch, the Canadian Armed Forces and the Defence of Canada. While the situation around the world is currently very unstable, I am convinced that, as key members of our Canadian Military Engineer family, you have the expertise and agility to face any given challenge. You will also be able to capitalise on the great expertise of my successor as Colonel Commandant, LGen Paul Wynnyk (Ret’d), who is not only an outstanding Engineer but also a former Army Commander and Vice-Chief of Defence Staff.
On this, I wish you a very happy 122nd Anniversary with lots of fun through different activities and I offer you my most sincere thanks for the excellent support you have been providing me over the last four years as your Colonel Commandant.
Chimo!
MGen Daniel Benjamin (Ret’d) , CMM, CD
Colonel Commandant