Being a member of the CMEA helps us to perpetuate and foster the traditions, the well-being and the ésprit de corps of the entire CME Family, while keeping you up to date with the people and activities of the Canadian Military Engineers. The CMEA is the Voice of the Engineers; it honours our traditions and heritage, and is here to assist Engineers and their families in times of need.

Through our Chapters spread across the country, retired, serving members, and friends of the Branch can stay in contact with old and new friends, and help is usually just a phone call away. As you peruse our site, you will quickly appreciate the value of belonging to the Association. Not only will you see the benefits to you, but more importantly you will see how being a member helps all members of the wider CME family, especially fellow Engineers in need. What Membership Brings You The Who We Are section of this website describes the formal aspects of the Association’s raison d’être. To be brief and to the point, there are three key benefits to belonging: 

• We help you stay in touch. We provide regular communications covering Engineer unit and individual activities and accomplishments. We have active local Chapters providing professional development and social opportunities. This website is your portal.
• We provide a helping hand to engineers. We help families of members with limited financial support in times of crisis. We provide uniform accoutrements to all Engineers on joining the Branch and provide Engineer flags to all deployed Engineer units. We make available $6,000 annually to a Bursary program for post-secondary education and provide financial support to Engineer sporting tournaments and to annual Engineer Birthday celebrations.
• We have a valuable affinity program for members. The home and auto insurance program for members with TD Insurance Meloche Monnex saves members from Sapper to General hundreds of dollars a year in premiums. You not only benefit from personal savings but the program provides a direct financial return to the CMEA each year that helps us achieve our objectives. Just click on the icon on our home page for more information.

What You Can Bring to the CMEA

Becoming a member of the CMEA is more than simply joining the “Old Boys Club” and helping to perpetuate our heritage. You will bring your own talent and perspective to all Engineers in Canada and you can make a difference in the lives of fellow Engineers who are less fortunate than you. The Association offers to you the chance to make a difference by offering your skills and viewpoints to others. Each Chapter offers you the opportunity to participate in our future with rewarding experience in a Not-For-Profit Corporation. You can gain experience that will enrich your career and allow you to offer back to the Canadian Armed Forces and the CME your particular skill set. 

Family Support 

As a member you can assist a fellow Engineer or ask for assistance yourself. Responses are handled individually and with confidentiality. It is important to know that needs for assistance should be identified at local levels so that the most appropriate solutions can be found and applied. All CMEA Chapters have an executive committee member who will be familiar with the available resources and possible solutions. If you have any problems or difficulties contacting a local CMEA Chapter, please contact anyone on the National Executive Council [link to NEC Page] and we will see that your request is appropriately actioned.

Here are a few examples of the types of emergency support we have provided:

• An off-duty firefighter in Edmonton was shot in the head during an armed robbery. The CMEA provided airfare and personal support for a family member to fly from Ontario to be with and assist the family.
• The son of a Corporal in Halifax was injured in an automobile accident. The CMEA provided daycare support for a second child in order to allow the family time to deal with the hospital care of the injured son.
• The son of a Corporal in Petawawa required regular visits to the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario. The CMEA provided cash to assist with the travel between Petawawa and Ottawa.
• The child of a fire fighter in Cold Lake required hospitalization in Edmonton. The CMEA provided financial support for the family to acquire nearby lodging while in Edmonton.
• A Sergeant at MCE was killed in an automobile accident. The CMEA provided financial support to help the family get to Nova Scotia to spread his ashes.
• During the reconstruction and rededication of the All Sappers Memorial in Chilliwack, the CMEA paid for air fare for the family of the Victoria Cross winner, Lt Col Mitchell, the former Commandant of RCSME who originally built the memorial.

Job Search and Transition Assistance

If you are a member, you will be advised of employment opportunities as soon as we are. We will post them on our site, and if you want to be informed by email we maintain a list of members looking for work. Just provide your email address and we will add you to the distribution list, whether you are serving or retired, contemplating making a change, or anticipating a transition to civilian life after a career in the CME. There are members in every chapter who can advise, share knowledge, have similar experiences or are otherwise able to help. Once you are a member, the CMEA Chapter executive committee can point you in the right direction.

Last Post

Whenever a member hears about a death or serious illness, he or she should advise the national Officer-at-Large (History and Heritage) as soon as possible via email. This information will be disseminated to our email distribution list to members and all CME family associations, as well as being posted to this site. We ask that you provide as much detail as you have at the time – details can follow. The key is to let fellow engineers know. A newspaper Obituary is helpful, especially if you can provide a link. As a guide, we would like to have the address of Next of Kin, funeral arrangements if known, and family wishes with respect to floral tributes or memorial donations. Outline military career details are also requested as well as suggestions as to where (or from whom) additional details might be obtained.

Lost Trails

As we move through our careers, we serve with hundreds of fellow engineers, make friends and lose touch. If you want to find someone you served with at some point, we have an informal network of people and affiliate associations that may be able to help out. We also have access to several official archives and databanks. If you cannot find the person on our site, you simply need to complete the form we provide to initiate a wider search.

Keep Up on What’s Happening

Our Events Section lists all the events we know about. If you know of additional events being help by units or affiliated organizations, please advise the Director of Communications and we will add it to the list.

Contact Us

Should you have any questions or related issues concerning membership, please contact the CMEA Registrar.