logo

Canadian Coast Guard Welcomes New Fleet Officers at College Graduation Ceremony Français

Cision Canada12 hours ago

SYDNEY, NS, June 7, 2025 /CNW/ - For the past six decades, the Canadian Coast Guard College has been a leader in maritime training, equipping students with the skills needed to safeguard Canada's waters.
Today, the College is celebrating its latest graduates, welcoming 51 new Officers to the Canadian Coast Guard. The Honourable Joanne Thompson, Minister of Fisheries, honoured the graduating class of 2025 during a ceremony at the Canadian Coast Guard College in Sydney, Nova Scotia. Minister Thompson was joined by Deputy Minister, Annette Gibbons and Canadian Coast Guard Commissioner, Mario Pelletier.
The Officer Training program plays an important role in ensuring the Coast Guard has the professional employees it needs to provide essential services to Canadians. The graduates have spent the last four years studying and getting hands-on experience of ship operations and cutting-edge knowledge in marine technology. Now, they will be joining vessels across the country in various positions to put their skills to use in protecting Canadians, the environment, and ensuring safe navigation.
The Canadian Coast Guard College is an internationally-recognized maritime training facility that provides training and services in both official languages. This year, the College is celebrating it's 60 th anniversary of training Canadian Coast Guard personnel. Since its establishment more than 1,500 Fleet Officers have graduated from the College.
Quotes
"For the past 60 years, the Canadian Coast Guard College has been one of our country's most trusted, respected and cherished institutions. Congratulations to our newest graduates as they embark on a long, rewarding and adventurous career with the Canadian Coast Guard.
The Honourable Joanne Thompson, Minister of Fisheries
"The Canadian Coast Guard is proud to welcome this year's graduating class into its ranks. As a graduate of the College myself, I can attest to the commitment these students have put forth over the past four years and congratulate them on their success. These graduates will now put their dedication and skills to serving Canadians as part of our Coast Guard family."
Mario Pelletier, Commissioner, Canadian Coast Guard
Quick facts
Established in September 1965, the Canadian Coast Guard College offers the opportunity to train in either Marine Navigation or Marine Engineering in its four-year Officer Training Program. The program provides Officer Cadets with a thorough understanding of ship operations and the latest in marine technology.
All Canadian Coast Guard College students receive free tuition, a training allowance, and free room and board.
Graduates of the Officer Training Program receive a Bachelor of Technology (Nautical Sciences) Degree from Cape Breton University and a Diploma from the Canadian Coast Guard College. Navigation Officers receive a Transport Canada Watchkeeping Mate Certificate, and Marine Engineering Officers receive a Fourth Class Engineering Certificate from Transport Canada.
Stay Connected
SOURCE Canadian Coast Guard

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

New Canadian Coast Guard fleet officers graduate in Sydney, N.S.
New Canadian Coast Guard fleet officers graduate in Sydney, N.S.

CTV News

time10 hours ago

  • CTV News

New Canadian Coast Guard fleet officers graduate in Sydney, N.S.

The Canadian Coast Guard welcomed more than 50 new officers to its ranks at a graduation ceremony in Sydney, N.S., on Saturday. The Canadian Coast Guard College honoured 51 graduates at a ceremony, according to a news release from the Canadian Coast Guard. Minister of Fisheries Joanne Thompson was in attendance, along with Canadian Coast Guard Commissioner Mario Pelletier. 'The Canadian Coast Guard is proud to welcome this year's graduating class into its ranks,' Pelletier said in the release. 'As a graduate of the College myself, I can attest to the commitment these students have put forth over the past four years and congratulate them on their success. 'These graduates will now put their dedication and skills to serving Canadians as part of our Coast Guard family.' The college was established in 1965 and it allows students to train in marine navigation and marine engineering across its four-year officer program. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page

Canadian Coast Guard Welcomes New Fleet Officers at College Graduation Ceremony Français
Canadian Coast Guard Welcomes New Fleet Officers at College Graduation Ceremony Français

Cision Canada

time12 hours ago

  • Cision Canada

Canadian Coast Guard Welcomes New Fleet Officers at College Graduation Ceremony Français

SYDNEY, NS, June 7, 2025 /CNW/ - For the past six decades, the Canadian Coast Guard College has been a leader in maritime training, equipping students with the skills needed to safeguard Canada's waters. Today, the College is celebrating its latest graduates, welcoming 51 new Officers to the Canadian Coast Guard. The Honourable Joanne Thompson, Minister of Fisheries, honoured the graduating class of 2025 during a ceremony at the Canadian Coast Guard College in Sydney, Nova Scotia. Minister Thompson was joined by Deputy Minister, Annette Gibbons and Canadian Coast Guard Commissioner, Mario Pelletier. The Officer Training program plays an important role in ensuring the Coast Guard has the professional employees it needs to provide essential services to Canadians. The graduates have spent the last four years studying and getting hands-on experience of ship operations and cutting-edge knowledge in marine technology. Now, they will be joining vessels across the country in various positions to put their skills to use in protecting Canadians, the environment, and ensuring safe navigation. The Canadian Coast Guard College is an internationally-recognized maritime training facility that provides training and services in both official languages. This year, the College is celebrating it's 60 th anniversary of training Canadian Coast Guard personnel. Since its establishment more than 1,500 Fleet Officers have graduated from the College. Quotes "For the past 60 years, the Canadian Coast Guard College has been one of our country's most trusted, respected and cherished institutions. Congratulations to our newest graduates as they embark on a long, rewarding and adventurous career with the Canadian Coast Guard. The Honourable Joanne Thompson, Minister of Fisheries "The Canadian Coast Guard is proud to welcome this year's graduating class into its ranks. As a graduate of the College myself, I can attest to the commitment these students have put forth over the past four years and congratulate them on their success. These graduates will now put their dedication and skills to serving Canadians as part of our Coast Guard family." Mario Pelletier, Commissioner, Canadian Coast Guard Quick facts Established in September 1965, the Canadian Coast Guard College offers the opportunity to train in either Marine Navigation or Marine Engineering in its four-year Officer Training Program. The program provides Officer Cadets with a thorough understanding of ship operations and the latest in marine technology. All Canadian Coast Guard College students receive free tuition, a training allowance, and free room and board. Graduates of the Officer Training Program receive a Bachelor of Technology (Nautical Sciences) Degree from Cape Breton University and a Diploma from the Canadian Coast Guard College. Navigation Officers receive a Transport Canada Watchkeeping Mate Certificate, and Marine Engineering Officers receive a Fourth Class Engineering Certificate from Transport Canada. Stay Connected SOURCE Canadian Coast Guard

Serving a greying church
Serving a greying church

Winnipeg Free Press

timea day ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

Serving a greying church

'God must like old people. He keeps creating more of them.' So quipped Scott Tolhurst, a former pastor who, over the course of his 48 years in ministry, developed a heart for service to seniors. Current demographics prove him right. According to Statistics Canada, seniors are the fastest-growing group in Canada. Today there are over seven million Canadians 65 and older — or about 20 per cent of the population. By 2068 that is projected to rise to 25 per cent. But it's not just society that's greying; so are churches. According to the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, in 2024 36 per cent of members of American congregations were over 65. At the same time, the percentage of those under 35 who attended religious services of all denominations fell to 32 per cent. Graham Hughes / THE CANADIAN PRESS files According to Statistics Canada, seniors are the fastest-growing group in Canada. Or, as the institute put it, there are now more churchgoers older than 65 than younger than 35 in U.S. churches — and likely in Canada, too. Despite the rising number of older adults in congregations, many churches are still focused mostly on serving younger people and families, Tolhurst said. 'Seniors can be people nobody thinks of much,' said the 69-year-old. 'These are people who were very loyal, sacrificial, and who had a love for Jesus beyond words. But now they are often on the periphery in the church, left on their own.' What hurts many seniors is how their churches don't see them as having much to offer beyond money. For Tolhurst, that's a form of spiritual ageism. 'Churches need to shift their thinking to see seniors as a resource in their congregations,' he said. 'Seniors still want to serve. They have given all their lives. They're not ready to stop now.' He acknowledges seniors face unique challenges that can impact their service, such as health, loss, grief, loss of independence and other limitations. 'But they still have much to give,' he says. 'They just need someone to ask them.' Jane Kuepfer directs the Schlegel Institute in Spirituality & Aging at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo. She also feels many churches today don't value older people. Instead, many are putting all their efforts into attracting younger people. This is a great loss. 'There is great potential in older people,' Kuepfer said. 'They are an incredible resource. We need to encourage churches to pay more attention to people in the third act of life.' Kuepfer wants churches to realize God doesn't stop calling people to various kinds of service just because they're older. 'God will call us to different things at different stages of our lives,' she said. But, she added, God still calls — including when people are older. The best way for churches to do a better job of serving seniors is by just listening to them, Kuepfer said. 'Find out what they need to keep them spiritually sustained and healthy. Ask them what they need, where they're at and how they might become involved,' she said. As for churches worried about their futures, she suggests they would do well to focus on who is in the pews right now. 'What if the future is serving older adults? An older congregation doesn't infer a dying congregation,' she said. Tom McCormick, 75, felt a call to serve seniors when he was in his 20s. He ended up serving people in long-term care for some 50 years and also wrote two books on nursing home ministry. For him, serving seniors is 'about following a scriptural mandate. It's what it means to be the people of God.' What disappoints McCormick is how few churches seem interested in service to seniors. 'When I talk to churches, I'm often told they want to focus on the emerging generation, there's more future there,' he said. 'It must break the Lord's heart to see older people neglected by the Church in this way.' McCormick is also disappointed by the lack of courses about ministry to seniors at Canadian seminaries. 'Seminaries tell me [that subject] isn't marketable,' he says. And yet, he noted, people graduating as clergy today will find themselves in churches with a large number of seniors — but with little training in how to minister to them and their unique needs. 'Not enough seminaries are preparing clergy for this reality. It's a real blind spot,' he said. In 1971, singer-songwriter John Prine wrote a song titled Hello in There, about an older couple whose children had moved away and left their parents on their own. In the song, the couple describes the loneliness they felt. The chorus goes like this: 'You know that old trees just grow stronger And old rivers grow wider every day Sundays Kevin Rollason's Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba. Old people just grow lonesome Waiting for someone to say 'Hello in there, hello.'' I wonder how many churches, and other places of worship, are saying hello to seniors as society ages? faith@ The Free Press is committed to covering faith in Manitoba. If you appreciate that coverage, help us do more! Your contribution of $10, $25 or more will allow us to deepen our reporting about faith in the province. Thanks! BECOME A FAITH JOURNALISM SUPPORTER John LonghurstFaith reporter John Longhurst has been writing for Winnipeg's faith pages since 2003. He also writes for Religion News Service in the U.S., and blogs about the media, marketing and communications at Making the News. Read full biography Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store