62nd Royal Artillery Regiemnt Salutes

Honorary Lieutenant Colonel Ben Weider

Ben Weider, Lt-col hon.

The 62nd Royal Artillery Regiment, one of the most respected Artillery units in Canada, recently held a regimental dinner to celebrate St. Barbe, the patron saint of all artillery regiments in Quebec.

The regimental dinner represents one of the most formal aspects of military social life. The custom is a very old tradition, although its origins are not clear. Formal feasts to honor military victories and individual achievements have been customary from pre-Christiqn Roman legions to King Arthur's knights is the sixth century.

Known for its historic exploits during World War II, the 62nd Royal Artillery Regiment was a highly skilled and motivated fighting force and was victorious in many hard-fought battles.

Over 250 military personnel attended the dinner, which took place at the 62nd Royal Artillery Armory in Shawinigan, Québec, Canada. The regimental dinner is conducted to bring members of the unit together in an atmosphere of camaraderie and fellowship. It also provides an opportunity for military personnel to socialize with one another ant to introduce family and friends to other regiment members.

Ben Weider, an Honorary Lieutenant Colonel in the 62nd Artillery Regiment was the guest of honor and was warmly and enthousiatically welcomed by the troops. Weider is also the President of the International Federation of Bodybuilders (IFBB), a federation consisting of 173 countires and the 5th largest sports federation in the world. He also serves as the President of the International Napoleonic Society.

Ben Weider with Jacques Duchensneau

Also attending this event was Jacques Duchesneau,  an Honorary Colonel to the Military Police of the Canadian Armed Forces. Colonel Duchesneau was a police constable and served with the Montreal Urban Community (MUC) Police Service for over thirty years. Duchesneau was named Chief of the Montreal Urban Community's Police Service in 1994, where his duties not only included the mangement of a $400 million annual budget, but also included managing and providing leadership to 5,600 Officers and staff; serving a population of approximately 2 million. In addition to his distinguished career in law-enforcement, Col Duchesneau has enjoyed a long association with the Canadian Forces.

Recently, Colonel Duchesneau has been appointed the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA). In this position, he is responsible for all security related matters in Canada's 500+ paved airports. CATSA has a staff of over 1,000 employees and an annual budget of over 1.4 billion dollars.