3045 ACR 2019

April 24 was a very special day for the army cadets of 3045.  It was the day of the Annual Ceremonial Review (ACR) Parade.  The ACR is the second most important parade of the regular training year after Remembrance Day.  It’s similar to the Parents Night Parades held every two months but this one is extra special due to the number of awards and announcements that are presented and made.  Corps administration prepares a program pamphlet and books a Guest Reviewing Officer (GRO) to inspect the cadets on parade.  Last year, the senior leadership of the Royal Regiment of Canada, based in Toronto, Ontario, were the GROs.  Unfortunately, due to high travel costs, they were unable to visit again.  Thankfully, the corps was able to secure the services of one of our local RCMP officers.   

In southern Canada, ACRs are usually held in June near the end of the school year, but in the Arctic, we hold ours in April because school ends in early June.  Most people want and/or are already out on the land camping by this time.  The cadets deserve an audience for all their accomplishments over the past year.

Preparations for the parade began three weeks in advance.  The cadets practiced the required drill movements and worked on their uniforms.  Staff focused on the program, finding a GRO, recruiting volunteers to prepare snacks for the reception, and finding a photographer.  Everything & everyone were ready when the day arrived.

The cadets spent an hour setting up the gym with tables, chairs, and flags.  They also brought down the many awards that would be given out; they just didn’t know who would be getting them.  Printed programs were placed on the foldout chairs.  The “reception party” arrived about 20 minutes before the start of the parade to set up the receptions table.  They brought many snacks.  The corps provided the coffee & tea.

The parade began at 6:30pm.  I marched into the gym while the audience stood.  The RCMP officer followed closely behind me.  Everyone remained standing for the General Salute, O Canada, and the Opening Prayer.  The audience took their seats and the Inspection begun.  I kept the crowd entertained with a short speech while the RCMP inspected the cadets in uniform.  The March Past soon followed.  The RCMP officer gave a short speech to the cadets congratulating them on their nice-looking uniforms and marching skills.  He concluded his speech by encouraging audience members to continue supporting the cadet program and to get involved.  The GRO stood close by because he would be assisting us in presenting awards.

Biathlon Team.

The awards section of the parade was quite extensive.  We began by recognizing three senior cadets who participated in Silver & Gold expeditions in Manitoba.  They’re field training exercises (FTXs) where cadets camp, hike, canoe, and portage over a weekend.  The Biathlon Team was next to be recognized for their accomplishments in Whitehorse and Prince Edward Island.  I then moved on to awarding marksmanship badges to four cadets.

Marksmanship Team.

The Marksmanship Team was called to the front so that I could officially & publicly state their accomplishment at the Stage III Competition in Gimli, MB.  (They came in first place in the Eastern Arctic Region).  I informed everyone that they would be leaving Arctic Bay in early May to compete at the national competition in Victoria, BC.  (More on that in future posts).

PT Excellence cadets.

I took a quick break from speaking and let Lt. (ret) May do the next two presentation.  He called the platoon warrant officer to the front to give a quick summary of what she did & learned at the Northwest Region Alpine Tour Expedition last month in Alberta.  Her favourite part of the trip was the avalanche survival skills training.  May then moved on to presenting physical fitness badges to several cadets.  There are four levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold, & Excellence.

Skills Team.

I took over for Lt. May by publicly recognizing the corps’ Eastern Arctic Skills Team for flying down to Iqaluit at the end of March to participate in a skills competition with 795 Iqaluit Air Squadron and 3055 Naujaat Army Cadets.  When the team members returned to their positions, I brought out the Nunavut Commissioner’s plaque the corps received on April 18.  I even read the inscription for added effect.

           

The first half of the awards and recognitions were complete.  Yes, we’re only halfway.  I had the platoon warrant order the cadets to bend their knees for a few seconds.  Standing in one place for a long time is quite a challenge for youth.  At least they were standing easy and not at attention.

            

The second half of the awards portion of the parade began with the Best Attendance Award.  Corps administration stresses the importance of attendance to the cadets a lot.  Attendance plays a big part in deciding which cadets get to be on teams, travel outside the community, and go to camp.  Attendance doesn’t have to continuously at 100% but at an “acceptable” level, somewhere in the 70+% range.  We also look at ability & attitude.  Together, they are the corps’ “3 A’s”.  This award is for the cadet who achieves the highest award percentage.  The award went to Sgt. Willie.  He received a free t-shirt for his efforts.  Not to be left out, I also called out the three cadets who were tied for second place.  

            

There was only one promotion and it went to cadet Willie (not related to the Sgt).  She was promoted from the rank of cadet to Lance Corporal.

            

Lt. (ret). May presenting Long Service Medals.

The Warrant saluting after receiving her bar.

Lt. (ret) May gave me another short break and presented the Long Service Medal to three senior cadets.  The medal was created by the Army Cadet League of Canada and is awarded to deserving cadets for “continuous meritorious service of at least four years.  Additional years of service [are] marked by a [gold coloured] bar [added] to the medal.”  To cadet Sergeants received their medals and the cadet Warrant Officer received her bar.

            

The Most Improved Cadet Award is awarded to the cadet who has made the best effort in improving themselves in areas of the dress, drill, deportment, attitude, ability, and attendance.  This year, the award went to cadet Issuqangituq.  The RCMP officer presented this award to the cadet.  The award is also known as the Ben Williams Award, named after a former cadet who had plans to become an RCMP officer but tragically passed away in an accident.

            

The Best Boots & Deportment Award is pretty self-explanatory, awarded to the cadet who maintains a high dress & deportment standard.  The award/trophy was given to LCpl Audlakiak.

The last big trophy to give out was the Best Female & Male Athletes.  The cadet program strongly encourages & promotes physical fitness.  The corps follows this approach by playing sports on the weekends and holding monthly physical training tests.  At the end of the year, corps staff review all the test scores and level of participation the cadets exhibit, and select the top female & male cadets.  This year the top athletes were Cpl Tilley & Sgt Ejangiaq.  They also received t-shirts as a reward.

The final award of the night was the Top Cadet Award.  It’s a plaque that carries a tremendous honour.  The award goes to the cadet who goes above and beyond the call of duty, sets the standard for dress, drill, & deportment, assists other cadets, and maintains a high level of attendance.  I awarded this honour to the cadet Warrant Officer.  This was her second time winning the award. 

The parade was almost finished.  Lt. (ret.) May gave the closing remarks, thanking all the sponsors, parents, guardians, volunteers, and friends for their assistance & coming to the parade to show their support.  The cadets did the Advance In Review Order followed by the General Salute.  Everyone remained standing for the playing of God Save The Queen and when I escorted the GRO out of the gym.  The audience applauded the cadets after they were dismissed.

All the cadets assembled in front of the Royal Regiment & NEAS flags for a group photo.  It didn’t take too long to get the perfect picture . . . most likely because the cadets wanted to enjoy the snacks at the reception tables.  The reception lasted around thirty minutes.  During this time, several parents, guardians, and community members congratulated me on another successful training year.  I personally thanked the RCMP officer for being the GRO, Lt. May for helping me plan the parade, and the volunteers for preparing the food.

I formed up the cadets after the gym was cleaned and everyone had left.  I congratulated them all for a successful parade and made several announcements.  The most important one was that I would be travelling with the Marksmanship Team to Victoria, B.C.  Lt. May would look after the corps in my absence.  I let the cadet Warrant Officer dismiss the cadets for the night.    

Note: All photographs were taken by cadet Aksarjuk.