A NEW CHAPTER
(CONCLUDE THE RAPPROCHEMENT)
Following the closing of le Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean
(CMR), the Board of Directors of the CMR Ex-Cadet Club concluded an
amalgamation agreement with the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada, which
already brought together Ex-Cadets from the other Colleges and which gladly
welcomed the Saint-Jean Ex-Cadets.
Commencing in 2001, life memberships of the CMR Ex-Cadet Club were
transferred to the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada - memberships which
were insufficiently resourced. The Royal
Military Colleges Club of Canada nevertheless kindly absorbed the deficit and
with the voluntary help, support and the determination of Hélène Ladouceur, the
transition was carried out smoothly.
The amalgamation of the two clubs was accompanied over a five-year
process known as the Rapprochement. Among other things, the Rapprochement provided CMR Ex-Cadets (identified as l’Escadre
Saint-Jean to avoid confusion with the dormant CMR Ex-Cadet Club) one seat at
the Executive Committee of the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada to ensure
the interests of CMR Ex-Cadets would be duly taken into account in decisions
taken at the national level. The Rapprochement, however, did not address
the activities of the Montreal Chapter of the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada. Ex-Cadets of the two
organizations nevertheless have since grouped together and successfully operated this
Chapter. In parallel, the CMR Ex-Cadet
Foundation has remained in operation, and successfully continues with its work
today. It is indeed the Foundation that massively invested in the rebirth of
the Musée du Fort Saint-Jean, spectacularly executed under the direction and
management of Hélène Ladouceur, Executive Secretary of the CMR Ex-Cadet Foundation.
It is important to note that all membership fees sent to the Club,
including those received by Hélène Ladouceur and her team in Saint-Jean, are
forwarded to the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada, which in turn gives
back an annual grant (calculated by member) to the regional Chapters to which
the paying members belong. In the case
of the CMR Ex-Cadets who transferred in this process, starting in 2001,
membership fees were given to the various Chapters. The Montreal Chapter
organized most of the activities at the Fort Saint-Jean Campus and the Montreal area, except for
the Ex-Cadet weekend in September which has been organized by the CMR Ex-Cadet
Foundation since the closing of CMR. The
Foundation also organizes fundraising activities, such as an annual spring golf
tournament and a benefit supper with guest speaker.
The process of Rapprochement,
however, never reached a definitive conclusion.
In 2007, a Rapprochement
Committee, composed of the representative of the CMR Ex-Cadets on the Executive
Committee of the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada (Pierre Daigle), the
President of the Montreal Chapter (André Durand), and the President of the
Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada (Pierre Ducharme), met on several
occasions to examine this issue. In May
2007, a conclusion proposal was jointly submitted to the General Council of the
Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada at a meeting held in Halifax.
The following proposal was unanimously supported by all members of the
General Council:
The Rapprochement
Committee recommended that the Montreal Chapter be merged with l’Escadre
Saint-Jean to become a new Chapter. The mission of this Chapter would be to:
c bring together its members for their mutual benefit and support in
giving a focal point for the Ex-Cadets of all Canadian military colleges who
live in the Montreal
area, and particularly for the CMR Ex-Cadets across the country;
c support current CMR Officer Cadets by promoting their well-being and instilling a
feeling of belonging to the history of Fort Saint-Jean;
c encourage and maintain the sense of companionship that always
existed among the Canadian military colleges;
c within the General Council of the Club, represent the interests of
the members of the chapter, and specifically of all the francophones who are
active members of the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada ;
c advance the cause of bilingualism and biculturalism within the Royal
Military Colleges Club of Canada; and
c participate in the preservation of the heritage of CMR and Fort Saint-Jean.
The setting up of this new Chapter offers CMR Ex-Cadets two
advantages. First, Saint-Jean Ex-Cadets will have two seats within the Executive
Committee of the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada. Second, if requested
by the individual member, this new Chapter will be able to collect the annual
memberships fees of the CMR Ex-Cadets who are not already members of a chapter,
wherever they are in the country.
The intention of the Rapprochement
Committee was to consult the Escadre Saint-Jean and the Montreal Chapter
members after the presentation to the General Council. It was at this point that the announcement of
the reopening of CMR was made by the Minister of National Defense (in September
2007). The members of the Committee then
decided that it was wise to postpone the consultation within the members, as
some classes expressed an interest in reviving the dormant CMR Ex-Cadet Club.
Today we are at the beginning of a ‘new’ Collège militaire in Fort Saint-Jean. The apprenticeship of the young Officer
Cadets will be in accordance with the methods and traditions of the Canadian
military colleges.
Having now been made aware of the “new” CMR, it is time, in
coordination with the conclusion of the Preparatory Year and the opening
ceremonies of CMR in May 2008, to finally conclude the Rapprochement process.
In order to take a definitive decision on the subject, many
Ex-Cadets who went to CMR were invited to express their opinion on the
question: should the amalgamation of the CMR Ex-Cadet Club with the Royal
Military Colleges Club of Canada be confirmed definitely or should we revive
the CMR Ex-Cadet Club?
From this informal consultation, the Board of l’Escadre Saint-Jean
concluded that the proposal of the Rapprochement
Committee concerning the amalgamation of l’Escadre Saint-Jean and the Montreal
Chapter into one entity within the Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada
should be adopted.
Consequently, some Ex-Cadets volunteered to form an interim
Committee for this new Chapter and have created an Executive Council of three
persons (Claude Tassé [President], Robert Benn [Vice-President] and André
Durand [Executive-Secretary]). Pierre Daigle has taken this opportunity to
retire as president of l’Escadre Saint-Jean, as his professional activities in Ottawa monopolize his
time. We thank Pierre Daigle for all his
time and effort as President of l’Escadre Saint
Jean.
Following the Ex-Cadet weekend in September 2008, Hélène Ladouceur
will be devoting her time solely to the CMR Ex-Cadet Foundation, after more
than 35 years of dedicated collaboration to the Club and all the CMR
Ex-Cadets. A special event underlining
our recognition of a person who, without doubt, has devoted the most time to
ensure the continuity of l’Escadre Saint-Jean is planned for the next Ex-Cadet
weekend in Saint-Jean (September 19-20).
Many Ex-Cadets have volunteered to support the interim Committee.
The election of a first Board of Administrators will take place on September 19, at 16h00 in the Vieux Mess du
CMR Saint-Jean, at the beginning of the Happy Hour of the Ex-Cadet weekend
in Saint-Jean.
Everyone who wishes to participate is invited to contact Claude
Tassé (450-923-4889). From this historical moment that constitutes the
re-opening of our College, the creation of this new Chapter, which already is
proposed to be named le Chapitre du Fort
Saint-Jean1,
promises to be a most enjoyable event. The dynamism of our alumni will be
restored and the occasions to revive our network will be multiplied. We
therefore invite you all to participate fully to this new area.
Thank you.
The Rapprochement
Committee,
_____________________ ___________________________ ______________________
9485
Pierre Daigle 12046
Pierre Ducharme 12944 André Durand
Répertoire