2Lt Devon Greene of the Nova Scotia Highlanders hits her mark at the Canadian Armed Forces Small Arms Concentration (CAFSAC) in this edition of I Am Strong, Secure, Engaged.

As a Reservist, 2Lt Greene is self-employed outside the CAF as a personal trainer and as a ballet teacher. This provides her the flexibility to participate in training opportunities like CAFSAC to improve her soldiering skills. She is one of the many dedicated women and men across Defence working hard to implement the Defence Policy: Strong, Secure, Engaged.

Watch the video to find out more.

Keep an eye open for more profiles in the weeks ahead and learn more about SSE and how members of the Defence Team are supporting its implementation.

Transcript

I am 2Lt Devon Green of the Nova Scotia Highlanders.

My parents both served in the unit that I’m a member of now and my brother is also a member. Watching him go up through the ranks and progress through his career really inspired me to join and make that a part of my life as well.

I am also employed as a ballet teacher and it’s convenient for me because we shut down classes for the summer so I can go and work full-time. The full-time summer employment works really well for me because it employs me full time during the summer while my hours are cut back for things like school breaks with the students on the civilian side of things.

The concentration starts out with more conventional ranges and marksmanship ranges and then we go into things like dynamic ranges.  Transitioning from the C7 rifle to the pistol and doing more semi-urban operational environment. Clearing rooms, close quarter combat, that sort of thing.

It’s all new to me, it’s a steep learning curve, but it’s helping develop my basic soldier skills. As an officer and as a leader, sometimes those things can kind of fall to the back burner but it’s helping me to develop my marksmanship skills which are so important. It’s going well, it’s been a learning experience for me. I’m not exactly in the running for the Queen’s Medal this year but hopefully I’ll be able to come back next year and continue to improve throughout the years.

I just finished my qualification as a Dismounted Platoon Commander so for the reservists that’s my full qualification. So I’ll return to my unit after the concentration is over as a Rifle Platoon Commander. I will continue to develop my skills and to be employed as a platoon commander.

The best part of my job is being able to influence as a leader and to be able to participate in a unit that has been a family to me literally and figuratively my entire life and to help inspire change and influence the training and watch the troops develop, and watch their skills develop and grow throughout their careers as well