Great Women

[Alex Blair (RIP)]

First woman in command of a Canadian Naval Formation

QUEBEC, Nov. 28 /CNW Telbec/ - The Canadian Naval Reserve, one of the
three Canadian Naval Formations, greets a new Commander. The Change of Command
ceremony will be held in Quebec City at HMCS MONTCALM, 170 Dalhousie St., on
December 1, 2007, at 11 a.m.
Commodore Jennifer Bennett, who officially assumes command December 1st,
becomes the very first woman to command a Formation in the Canadian Navy.
Born in a family boasting a total of over a century of service in the
Naval Reserve (her father, a judge who died last year, was himself a retired
commodore, and her sister and brother are also active in the Naval Reserve),
Commodore Bennett joined the Naval Reserve in 1975. Her service within
Maritime Command has brought her, among others, to staff positions in the
following establishments: Naval Reserve Training Centre, Officer Training
Division, KATIMAVIK and Maritime Forces Pacific Headquarters. She has also
been part of the directing staff of the Canadian Forces Staff College and
commanded HMCS MALAHAT, in Victoria, B.C., from 1995 to 1998. She has also
served as Director-Reserves at National Defence Headquarters, in Ottawa, as
member of the staff of the Canadian Defence Academy, and as Coordinator for
the Laurentian and Pacific Regions of the Naval Reserve.
And so, after three years as Commander of the Naval Reserve, Commodore
Robert Blakely will transfer the helm to Commodore Jennifer Bennett next
December 1st. The Change of Command ceremony will be presided over by the
Chief of the Maritime Staff, Vice-Admiral Drew Robertson.



For further information: Lt(N) Jocelyn Laroche, (418) 694-5560,
extension 5392, (418) 575-0567; It is requested that the media be at HMCS
MONTCALM by 10:30 a.m.; The two commanders will be available for interviews