Fifteen Indigenous young people graduated from a special three-week basic training program in Halifax on Friday.
The Canadian Forces Aboriginal Entry Program is meant to attract Indigenous people to the organization.
“I was interested at an early age, and there’s something poetic about being First Nations and in the military being a warrior, and so that’s been a huge drive for me,” Evan Charters, a graduate, said in an interview following graduate ceremony.
The 27-year-old is from Edmonton, and he said he has family members working in the military.
Other participants came from Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, North West Territories, and British Columbia.
The morning event took place at HMCS Scotian. It included prayers, cultural dances, and a speech from Nova Scotia’s Lieutenant Governor Arthur LeBlanc.
Participants underwent various kinds of training and were exposed to different trades to get a feel for what it’s like to work for the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF).
“We give them an opportunity to understand the military culture and understand that the Indigenous culture and the military culture coexist,” Petty Officer First Class Shawn Swinimer said.
Last year, then-Rear Admiral John Newton apologized during the ceremony to graduates in a prior program who were taunted with a “whooping war cry” by a sailor earlier in the program.
READ MORE: Apology given for ‘war cry’ made during Canadian Forces Aboriginal Entry Program
Petty Officer First Class Shawn Swinimer said nothing like that happened to the candidates this time.
The candidates’ progress since May 4 was “really impressive,” he said.
Swinimer assumes that the name of the program will likely change in the future to use the word Indigenous instead of Aboriginal.
“The whole thing was just overwhelming. I absolutely loved it,” graduate Kayla Syrie, 20, said.
Having family members with a military history helped her prepare for the program, she said.
Syrie, who is Algonquin and from Wasaga Beach, Ont., said team-building activities were some of the most challenging parts of the program: “Everyone was very independent when they came here.”
“I joined this program because my mom works with Aboriginal youth, and they have a bit of hard way of life, and I want to be able to show them that a person from their small community can rise above the stigma and join the Canadian Forces or become something better,” Charters, who is Cree, said.
He said he has his sights set on joining the infantry and continuing with that until he retires.
This year’s program started with 20 candidates. Some members were injured and returned home. Including the graduates, 19 of the 20 have said they want take up a trade in the CAF, Swinimer said.
“I want to continue on because I have high expectations for myself,” Syrie said.
She has aircraft structures technician and military police officer roles top of mind, she added.
Of the 13 participants in last year’s program, 11 wanted to pursue a career with the CAF, Swinimer said last year. On Friday, he said all 13 participants wanted to continue.
Numbers for other years weren’t immediately available, but he said the numbers have been consistent.
According to an archived page on Canadian government website, “Based on self-identification figures from June 2015, there are approximately 2294 Aboriginal members currently serving in the CAF Regular Force and Primary Reserve Force combined, or a representation of 2.5 per cent.”
Recent numbers requested by Global News weren’t immediately available from the organization.
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