Black History Month: Corporal Wens Mestidor
Black History Month is a time to honour Black Canadians, both past and present. It is also a time to reflect and learn more about their distinguished service. In honour of Black History Month, the RMR Foundation is publishing profiles of service of some of the Black Canadians who have served (and continue to serve) in our ranks.
Westmount, Quebec – 26 February 2022: Born and raised in Haiti Corporal Wens MESTIDOR emigrated to Canada when he was 10-years old. Growing up in Ottawa he joined the RMR in July 2019 and is currently serving as a Rifleman in “B” Company, the RMR’s operational rifle company. In his civilian life he is a dental assistant student.
His advice to young soldiers in the Regiment is not be shy and ask lots of questions. “I wish I knew more about the training aspect, because the difference between civilian life and army life is like night and day. The advice that I have for young soldiers who are currently serving is to not be shy and ask questions.”
Like a lot of soldiers, Corporal Mestidor feels that the coolest thing he has done in the army probably was learning how to operate the various interesting crew-served weapons, such as the Carl Gustav (image of it being fired by RMR members below).
What he likes the most about serving in the Regiment is the camaraderie. He noted “I really appreciate the team of instructors and leaders at the RMR and the strong bonds I have developed with fellow members that joined at around the same time as I did, we overcame many challenges together.”
Corporal Mestidor’s favourite memory of serving with the RMR goes back to his first exercise field after completing Development Phase 1 (DP1), the Infantry trade qualification course, because he was able to put some of the knowledge he had acquired during my training into practical use. One of his proudest moments was getting his RMR cap badge, because it meant that as he was being welcomed into the RMR, all the hard work that he had put into his training had finally paid off.
