NR - 10.144 - December 3, 2010
OTTAWA - The Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of National Defence, issued the following statement today on recognition given to two Canadian Forces members:
“I am pleased to extend my congratulations to two Canadian Forces senior female officers on the occasion of their being named among the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada by the Women's Executive Network. Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards is Canada’s most recognizable award for the country's highest achieving female leaders in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors.
These awards, presented to Brigadier-General Hilary Jaeger and Commander Josée Kurtz, affirm the training, leadership and make-up of the Canadian Forces, as these outstanding officers have been chosen from a vast pool of female business and community leaders, academics, artists, educators and health care providers as representatives of achievement and success in Canada.
BGen Jaeger was the winner of a Cisco Public Sector Leaders award for her outstanding contribution to health services in the Canadian Forces. The former Surgeon General, Commander of the CF Health Services Group and Director General Health Services was the senior medical officer during the crucial initial deployment of the United Nations mission in the former Yugoslavia in 1992 and the first woman and first Medical Branch officer posted to teach at the Canadian Land Forces Command and Staff College in Kingston. Most recently, BGen Jaeger was in charge of overseeing all medical support to NATO’s mission in Afghanistan. She is now Director General Reserves & Cadets.
Cdr Kurtz, the first woman to command a major Canadian warship, was the winner of an Xstrata Nickel Trailblazers and Trendsetters award. As Executive Officer of HMCSVille de Québec in 2008, Cdr Kurtz engaged in counter-piracy escort missions with the UN World Food Programme, delivering much needed food aid to Somalia. In January 2010, she commanded HMCSHalifax during the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief mission to Haiti following the devastating earthquake. She is now the Chief of Staff at Canadian Fleet Atlantic Headquarters.
The recognition that BGen Jaeger and Cdr Kurtz have gained through their exemplary service is a signal to the next generation of women that the Canadian Forces is a viable career choice.
I am tremendously proud of the recognition accorded BGen Jaeger and Cdr Kurtz, and I thank them for their continuing and admirable work with the Canadian Forces.”
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