MWO Jeff Calhoun will be retiring from the CAF on 01 Nov 2017 after 28 plus years of loyal and dedicated service to Canada, the Canadian Armed Forces and the Canadian Military Engineer Branch (See bio attached).
Friends and colleagues are welcome to attend his depart with dignity presentation function which will take place at the WO's and Sgt's MESS bldg A9, On the 27th of October 2017 at 1400hrs. Congratulatory messages or anecdotes can be sent to WO Rodney Tatchell by the 15th of October 2017 to the following email address Rodney.Tatchell@forces.gc.ca<
Master Warrant Officer Jeff Calhoun joined the Canadian Armed Forces in September of 1989 as a Field Engineer and after completing recruit training in Cornwallis, N.S. he attended trades training in Chilliwack, B.C. Upon completion of Field Engineer training in May of 1990, Jeff was posted to 22 Field Squadron, CFB Gagetown and within hours of his flight arriving from British Columbia, he joined 22 Fd Sqn on his first training exercise. Later that summer, Jeff deployed with 2 Troop, 22 Fd Sqn in support of 2 RCR’s aid to civil power during the OKA crisis.
In 1993, after several years of unit life in the now renamed 4 Engineer Support Regiment, and some high-level training exercises such as ex Rendezvous 1992 and opposition force for an American division in Fort Irwin, California, Jeff was back in Chilliwack, B.C. for 042 QL5 Field Engineer Equipment Operator training. Upon completion of his 042 QL5,
Jeff was promoted to the rank of Corporal and attach posted to 5 Brigade as part of the Canadian Logistics Battalion for the United Nations Protection Force former Yugoslavia from October 1993 until April 1994. Jeff completed grader operator training in Chilliwack, B.C. during the summer of 1994. He then went on to complete a Combat Leaders Course early in 1995 followed by a 6 month deployment to Alert, N.W.T. (now Nunavut) from April to October. It was following this deployment that Jeff met his wife Jennifer. 6 months later she was seeing him off on the United Nations Support Mission in Haiti from March to September 1996. In 1997 Jeff deployed to Manitoba for the Red River floods and then to Montreal in 1998 for the ice storm. Jeff was promoted to Master Corporal in November of 1998 just before deploying to Bosnia in January of 1999, leaving behind a 3 month pregnant Jennifer. Luckily Jeff made it home on leave for the birth of their first son Darian June 1999. Jeff returned from Bosnia in July of 1999 and attended Armoured Engineer Operator training soon after. Jeff spent the next few years employed as a Det Commander/ Badger instructor in 4 ESR’s Armoured Troop. During this time Jeff and Jen welcomed their second son, Braydon, Oct 2001.
In July 2002, Jeff was posted to 2 Combat Engineer Regiment Petawawa, ON and was promoted to Sergeant after attending the last FEE OP 042 QL6A before the 041 and 042 trades were amalgamated. Jeff was posted back to Gagetown to the Canadian Forces School of Military Engineers in July of 2005 as an instructor in Gap Crossing Cell. Jeff attend the Combat Engineer Troop Warrant course January 2008 and was promoted to Warrant Officer September 2008 and employed as a Demolition Cell instructor for several months before returning to Gap Crossing Cell as the Cell Supervisor. He received the School Commandant’s commendation for his dedication in development and instruction of the Advance Bridging Course in the spring of 2009.
Jeff returned to 4 ESR as the Heavy Equipment/ Resources Troop Warrant in July 2009 and was tasked as an Engineer liaison officer with the 2 RCR Battle Group in Chilliwack, B.C. during the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. After returning from the Olympics, Jeff was employed as the acting Squadron Sergeants Major for 42 Fd Sqn and deployed to the Arctic radar station Dye M as the Camp Sergeant Major tasked with part of the dew line clean up.
Upon returning from the arctic, Jeff was given and seized the opportunity to have a second year as a Troop WO, this time with the Expedient Route Opening Capability (EROC) Troop. This resulted in almost a full year of training for a possible 2011 deployment to Afghanistan with 1 Combat Engineer Regiment/ 1 Brigade. After the year of training and a cut to the required troops for the mission, Jeff was reassigned as the 4 ESR Operations Warrant Officer until he was promoted to the rank of Master Warrant Officer in February 2013.
In May of 2013, Jeff was assigned to 45 Support Squadron as the Squadron Sergeants Major (SSM) until July of 2014 when he was reassigned as the SSM of 43 Counter Improvised Explosive Device Squadron. He was transferred once again in 2015 to Regimental Head Quarters. Jeff was posted to Joint Personnel Support Unit Gagetown in September of 2016 and will be released from the CAF on 01 November 2017. Jeff, Jen, Darian and Braydon plan on staying in the Fredericton area.