Saint John, New Brunswick
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Bernard Cormier
Bernard Cormier
Lieutenant (Retired) Bernard Cormier has been a member of the Royal United Services Institute of New Brunswick for over 35 years, with over 25 years on its board of directors. He also served as president from 2006-2008, secretary since 2018, and as treasurer of Naval Memorial Committee since 2016.
Since 1994, he has also been a part of 250 Wing of the Royal Canadian Air Force Association. He has sat on the board of directors since 2017, and was program designer for the Battle of Britain commemoration from 2008-2018. He has also served as master of ceremonies for commemorative ceremonies throughout the years.
For the Saint John Remembrance Day committee, he has been master of ceremonies since 2005 and committee chair since 2009. He is always sure to keep local Veterans front and centre. During the pandemic, he organized a community “roll-past,” allowing members of the public to honour Veterans while ensuring everyone’s safety.
He has also sat in various positions with the Canadian Corps of Commissionaires Board of Governors, New Brunswick and PEI Division, for over two decades. He has committed tremendous amounts of his personal time and used his vast network to provide meaningful employment to Veterans.
For the past five years, he has worked with a local historian and families of local Veterans researching their lives. For 100 days leading up to Remembrance Day, he posts pictures and stories of individual Veterans on various social media platforms. He also highlights their stories during Remembrance Day ceremonies.
Lieutenant (Retired) Cormier also connects with local Veterans on a personal level. He calls to check-in periodically, makes time to attend special anniversary celebrations and birthdays, and makes personal visits to the hospital and Ridgewood Veterans’ Wing. This has been particularly important during the pandemic.