Features

NAME: Helen MacDonald

RANK: MCpl

OCCUPATION: ACop  170/337.2- PAR Controller

UNIT: WNBCD

YEARS IN THE CF: 18+

REG/RESERVE: Regular Force

ANY PREVIOUS OCCUPATIONS IN THE CIVILIAN WORLD:Commercial Copywriter, various radio and television stations (CKMW/CFNY in Toronto, CKSA/CITL in Lloydminster, AB)

CURRENT POSTING: 19 Wing Comox

PREVIOUS POSTINGS: Portage La Prairie, Manitoba, Greenwood, Nova Scotia

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR MOST RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENT?
From being Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Comox Military Family Resource Centre to volunteering with the Comox Valley branch of the BCSPCA as well as the local Children’s Wish Foundation, I like to keep busy (too busy, some say).  It’s important to me to show my sons that we need to give back to our community, if even in a small way..  Recently, I was lucky enough to attend the Defence Public Affairs Course where I got the opportunity to renew rusty skills and apply them in a military context. It’s been like coming full circle writing news releases and articles for the base and local papers on everything from section events, to the Armed Forces Day activities.  I am especially excited to have featured the outstanding volunteer work of 19 Wing personnel in an article published in The Maple Leaf.  Getting the CF “out there” in the public eye is something that I think is very important.  Our members do such interesting and vital work in the communities and it’s imperative that all Canadians see us in this capacity.

WHY WOULD YOU SAY YOU ARE SO VERY INTERESTED IN HERITAGE AND VETERAN’S ISSUES?
Growing up in a military environment provided a great deal of exposure to the military from a very early age.  My father was in the Royal Canadian Navy for many years and I can remember running the outline of the 22 on the flight deck of the HMCS Bonaventure as a little girl.  I guess being around the ships and the aircraft all my life just naturally translated into a desire to pursue a career in the military.  I truly believe in the military as a way of life and have such respect for all those who paved the way before my generation in CF.

HOW DOES THIS WORK HELP YOU IN YOUR ROLE AS A CF MEMBER?
My current work is out of trade in the NBCD field.  I find that being in a training unit has provided many opportunities to meet so many more base personnel and to broaden my knowledge of the CF as a whole. When you are more aware of the operation in a “big picture” kind of way, I believe you become a better ambassador for the Canadian Forces. In my current position here at NBCD, I have been able to expand my military horizons and create several public affairs products for local papers and for The Maple Leaf, which, hopefully, showcase the CF in the way the Canadian public deserves to see us.