Meritorious Service Decorations are an important part of the Canadian Honours system. Like the Order of Canada, they recognize excellence. However, they honour either a single achievement or an activity over a shorter period of time, while the Order of Canada focuses on lifetime achievement. Meritorious Service Decorations are separated into military and civil divisions, with two levels in each category: a medal and a cross. The military division recognizes individuals for outstanding professionalism and for bringing honour to the Canadian Forces and to Canada. The civil division recognizes individuals who have performed an exceptional deed or an activity that has brought honour to their community or to Canada.
Chief Warrant Officer Donald Gerald Fox, M.S.M., C.D.
Kingston, Ontario and Burton, New Brunswick
Meritorious Service Medal (military division)
CWO Fox, then MWO, has provided exceptional service in the field of mine awareness training. His detailed reference materials and training packages are directly credited for saving life and limb of Canadian soldiers and air personnel deployed throughout the world, as well as the lives of countless international military and United Nations communities. In particular, the United States 82nd Airborne Division specifically requested that CWO Fox conduct its mine awareness training prior to deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, in 2002. The outstanding service provided by CWO Fox brings credit to himself, to the Canadian Forces, and to Canada.