Although this particular officer and a gentlewoman couldn’t seem to have more different backgrounds, both are equally enthusiastic about the Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps.
A new training season is opening next week for the Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps (RCSCC) Malaspina. Ken Stewart, fresh from officer training, and Jane Phenphonsy, who hopes to be an officer one day, both want local youth to know the benefits that being in the cadets can bring.
“I probably wouldn’t have about a third of the knowledge that I have now,” said Ken Stewart, administrative officer at the Malaspina sea cadet corps, when asked what his life would look like without the cadets.
Since starting with the cadets as a 13-year-old, rising through the ranks and becoming chief petty officer before joining the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve as a boatswain and diver, Stewart said the corps brought him discipline, a career and, most importantly, friendship.
A civilian volunteer for three years, and also a new Canadian from Laos, Jane Phenphonsy said she has her sights set on becoming an officer like Stewart for many of the same reasons.
She said her friends did a bit of a double take when she joined up, as she was a 22-year-old, self-professed “girly girl” with no military or sailing background. Still, she said, she wouldn’t change a thing.
“When I joined the cadets I found it was more than sailing or hanging out with friends; it’s about being a part of something honourable,” said Phenphonsy, who hopes to be a nurse one day. “It’s taught me so much, how to work as a team and take on a leadership role.”
According to Stewart, joining the sea cadets is a positive career step for Phenphonsy and for other prospective recruits.
“If an employer looks through two almost identical resumés and sees that one was a cadet...odds are that the cadet will get the job,” said Stewart. “A cadet is disciplined, they can work in a group, or think on their feet.”
Although the 2015/2016 cadet season begins Tuesday, September 8, registration for boys and girls between the ages of 12 and 18 is still open. Training nights will be held from 6:30 to 9:30 pm every Tuesday and will run until June in the cadet hall at Timberlane Barracks.
For more information about sea cadets or to sign up, readers can call Commanding Officer Lieutenant Dave McLennan at 604.485.5596 or visit online.
