WO Tommy Bourgeois, CD will be retiring from the Canadian Armed Forces and the CME Branch with 21+ years of service. His official release date is the 20th of Dec 2016. (see bio attached) A DwD will be held on 5th of December 2016, 1200hrs to 1400hrs, at Huston Bar and Grill on 7 Boulevard Montclair, Gatineau, QC.

Please send all congratulatory messages, anecdotes, photos, farewell messages to Capt K Lui and indicate if you plan to attend.

Warrant Officer Bourgeois joined the 62nd Field Artillery Regiment situated in Shawinigan, QC the autumn of 1994. After having completed his basic training in the reserves, he joined the Regular Forces in April 1995. In June of 1995 he completed his regular force basic training at CFB Borden and became qualified as a Sapper at CFB Chilliwack in December of 1995.

After his trade training, he was transferred to the 5 Combat Engineer Regiment at Valcartier in January of 1996, and in the summer he was deployed with a water purification section to Saguenay, QC during the floods then. In 1998 he participated in helping the population of Estrie, QC with the ice storms. During OP Palladium in 1999 he participated as a section member. Throughout 2003 he completed his basic EOD course at the EOD School at CFB Borden and his advance course with the American Airforce at a base in Eglin, FL. During the same year he was promoted to the rank of Master Corporal and was deployed on OP Athena in Afghanistan in February of 2004 as CIED/EOD Detachment second in command.

In the summer of 2005 he was posted to the Peace Support Training Centre (PSTC) at Kingston. Within the two years, he worked in regimental operations and as an instructor on basic support courses for major deployments as well as on the military observers’ course. He was promoted to the rank of Sergeant in 2006. In February and March of 2007, he was deployed to Botswana in Africa as a course instructor specifically for the military observers of Africa.

In July 2007, he was posted to 4 Engineer Support Regiment in CFB Gagetown where he spent the majority of his time in the C-IED role. He was sent to St Louis in the United States for his EROC detachment commander’s course. In 2009 he was deployed as EROC section commander in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Following his return, he worked in a training cell specifically created to teach and standardize the first Canadian EROC course. He was promoted to the current rank of Warrant Officer in 2011 and worked in the position of EOD Troop Warrant.

In 2012 he was posted to Ottawa as SME of EOD and EROC on the replacement projects for EOD equipment at ADM(Mat). He completed his Master Gunners Course in 2013 at Kingston and was posted to Ottawa in the Directorate of Land Requirements. During the last three years he worked as Deputy Project Director and Project Director.

Warrant Officer Bourgeois is retiring from the Forces after 22 years of service. He will continue his service to the Minister of Defence as a public servant as an Analyst in Controlled Technology Access and Transfer.