A day dedicated to non-commissioned members

Quebec City, QC — Members of the Voltigeurs de Québec had a full schedule on Troop Day held on December 12.

The day was dedicated to non-commissioned members, who were well represented at the event; close to 200 people were in attendance.

The day began with a parade marked by the granting of various promotions. Then a Lieutenant-Colonel For-A-Day and a Chief Warrant Officer For-A-Day were appointed, the former being the regiment's youngest soldier and the latter the oldest corporal.

Then the annual Individual Battle Task Standards (IBTS) training for soldiers was carried out, an activity aimed at ensuring maximum participation by military personnel.

Following a longstanding tradition, the officers and non-commissioned officers served lunch, which consisted of turkey, meat pie, potatoes and stuffing prepared by 55 Canadian Service Battalion cooks. This offered a perfect opportunity for discussions on the work that had been accomplished over the past year and for conversations with Voltigeurs back from mission.

The afternoon was spent on sports activities: hockey games and races between the different unit platoons at the facilities of the military complex on boulevard Pierre-Bertrand and vicinity. Everyone was in a competitive mood, especially during the race between non-commissioned members, non-commissioned officers and officers. The non-commissioned officers ended up winning.

In the evening and during part of the night, the participants found themselves at the Mess celebrating a challenging year for the Voltigeurs de Québec. Despite the Quebec City Armoury Fire on 4 April 2008, two moves and the challenges involved in setting up the Arctic Response Company Group (ARCG) and the Primary Training Audience (PTA), the unit still managed to meet all its commitments.

Article: SLt Derek Picard-Fortin
Photo: SLt Vincent Voyer