By Tim Bryant, Western Sentinel newspaper
Edmonton, Alberta — While members of 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (1 CMBG) were working their way towards High Readiness, much was going on behind the scenes to ensure the soldiers and their families receive the support they need.
“We're really fortunate in 1 CMBG that a flanking organization of ours is the 3rd Canadian Division Support Group (3 CDSG),” explained Colonel Bob Ritchie, Commander 1 CMBG.
As a support formation, 3 CDSG has a range of professionals at its disposal to provide needed support not only to the soldiers, but also to the soldiers' families and friends.
An extra layer of support from those who have been there
The support 3 CDSG provides is flexible and can be tailored to each family's needs, Col Ritchie said. It serves as an extra layer beyond the planning soldiers and their families have already done in building their own support networks.
As an example, he said, the 3 CDSG network can step in and step up in the immediate aftermath of an incident if the soldier's family's own network is not available. It is a 24-7 service that can muster resources if required, even if the only resource needed is someone to watch the kids so the spouse at home can deal more easily with the situation at hand.
In addition, the 3 CDSG network is well-versed in the military world. While a personal network has the shared experience of knowing a family both before and after it became a military family, it…
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