Veterans’ Week Q&A with Brigadier-General Jamie Spieser-Blanchet, commander of Cadets and Junior Canadian Rangers
Video / October 25, 2021
Transcript
Hello, I am Chief Petty Officer Cadet Second Class Ruth Nobossi from Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps Forty Falkland. And I am here with Brigadier General Jamie Speiser-Blanchet.
She is the Commander of Cadets and Junior Canadian Rangers of Canada. And as the Commander, she's technically my Commander as well. So I'm very excited to be with her today.
Hello, ma'am and thank you so much for joining us today.
We are so excited to speak with you and hear what you have to say about Remembrance Day.
Well, thank you very much I'm delighted to be here.
So to start off as the Commander of Cadets and Junior Canadain Rangers, why is it important that youth participate and be involved in Veterans Week?
I believe that it is very important for youth to have the opportunity to connect with
and learn from veterans.
It will allow the younger generation to ensure that future generations can be aware of the sacrifices and the stories and all of the history that is so important to Canada.
Clearly, conflict is still something that is very prevalent in the world today for adult and youth.
And I feel that it allows us to really appreciate what we have in Canada, the freedoms that we have that have been possible due to a lot of the sacrifices of members and veterans.
Well, that was a very insightful answer. Thank you so much for that, ma'am.
And now moving on to our next question. I've seen in your biography that you have served overseas with the military. Could you share a little bit more about that?
Certainly, I have had the privilege of serving on several deployments. The first was a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Haiti. And that really allowed me to open my eyes to experiences in another country and to be part of Canada's efforts to help at that time.
I also served in Bosnia. Both of those missions were flying helicopters and allowed me to not only see the country, but but learn what I could about it and and feel that I was helping to make a difference.
I more recently served in Kuwait with Joint Task Force Impact and was involved in Canada's mission in the Middle East. So all of these deployments have been tremendous learning experiences that I'm very grateful for.
Well, it's evident that you've had a lot of experience serving abroad with Canadian Armed Forces. So that's very interesting. And thank you for sharing that with us.
But could you also share a little bit more about how serving in all these different countries has changed your perspective on service and being a veteran?
Certainly, when we have the opportunity to deploy on missions in other countries, it really allows us to appreciate the freedoms that we do have in Canada and as many other members of the Canadian Armed Forces.
I know that I joined because I wanted to serve my country and I wanted to make a difference.
And this really allows us to contribute to something that is important for Canada.
Okay. Thank you so much, ma’am, for sharing your unique perspective.
I know that I myself would also like to one day travel abroad and help people in need while serving in Canada.
So it's very interesting to hear and how your experience has been in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Now, speaking of your unique experience in the Canadian Armed Forces, was there anything in particular that led you to decide to join the military, for example, do you have any other family members who have also served?
And how did that impact your decision to join?
So, yes, my father was also a pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force.
So I was exposed fairly early during my childhood to the military lifestyle.
We had the opportunity to live in various provinces across Canada and also in Germany when I was younger.
And I remember from those experiences feeling very proud to be Canadian and really appreciating the the opportunities that I thought would be available to me in the Canadian Armed Forces.
So it certainly did influence my decision to pursue a career as a pilot in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Thank you for sharing that with us, ma'am.
It's very interesting to hear. And now onto our final question.
As a long serving member in the Canadian Forces, what does Remembrance Day mean to you?
So Remembrance Day to me is an important day for us to reflect on the sacrifices and the contributions from all former and serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces.
Certainly in earlier conflicts, it is important to learn from their contributions and from what they've been through.
But there have been many conflicts since the world wars that also have been difficult for Canadians, we've lost Canadians in Afghanistan, for example, and many people have contributed to Canada's efforts around the world, and I feel it is extremely important to try to learn from that and to ensure that future generations don't forget some of the lessons that previous generations have have taught us and the freedoms that we now enjoy thanks to their efforts.
Thank you, ma'am, for that inspirational ending to our question and answer session.
It was very nice to hear your perspective on being Canadian Armed Forces in the military, and I'm sure our cadets, Junior Canadian rangers and youth across Canada will be glad to hear your message on Remembrance Day.
Thank you very much.
Thank you for what you're doing as well.
And I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you today.