2021-01-20

Soldier from Bridgewater receives Order of Military Merit

The Governor General's office recently appointed Bridgewater's Ed Hebb, a Master Warrant Officer with the Canadian Armed Forces, as a member of the Order of Military Merit, an honour recognizing his outstanding and exceptional service to his country.

"I knew nothing about it until it was presented, so it was a total surprise," Hebb, a full-time regular member of the airforce assigned to 14 Wing Winnipeg, told LighthouseNOW in a phone interview.

"I guess my supervisor in Winnipeg thought highly of me and wrote me up," he said with a laugh. "I honestly didn't know anything about it until I got it."

Hebb, 42, currently is in the midst of a deployment to Kuwait where he's participating in Operation Impact, a mission to build and improve security forces in the Middle East.

Hebb got word of the honour - which includes a decoration and certificate - while at camp. An official presentation will take place at a later date.

His background is as an electrician, but given his current rank he acts as a project manager supervising personnel working in an array of trades. In Kuwait, he oversees work involving electrical needs, transport and other jobs. "It's a lot of coordination," he said. "Further planning for the camp is something we're trying to work on too."

Humbled and proud of the honour, Hebb called his Order of Military Merit a team effort.

"It's not something I earned in isolation; I've worked with really great people," he told LighthouseNOW.

"It doesn't matter how good you are or how smart you are; if you don't have members or other people that will work with you, nothing would ever change or get better. A lot of what I do in my trade is fix, build or make things better, so, I feel it's more of collective effort."

Hebb felt he received plenty of recognition connected to his many deployments over the years "and I wasn't expecting anything extra."

He was a woods worker before joining the Canadian Armed Forces in 1998 after being encouraged by a friend to sign-up with the military. He served with the Pine Grove-based construction engineering unit as a reservist until 2003, when, at the rank of Corporal, he made the move to be a regular force member - assuming the rank of Private at that point. Deployments to the Golan Heights in 2002, Afghanistan (three times), and many others followed in the years ahead. His current assignment is six months in duration and is expected to wrap-up in May.

Hebb, a married father of two girls, 12 and 8, and a teenage boy, credited his family for his success. He indicated they've helped at home in his absence and embraced his efforts as he works on behalf of his homeland. Collectively, Hebb said, his deployments calculate to about three years abroad.

"I couldn't have ever earned this [Order of Military Merit] without the support of my family behind me," he said.

After the Kuwait deployment ends, Hebb, who resides in Manitoba, said he's going to be posted back at the construction engineering squadron near Bridgewater this summer. It's a move he expects will be the last for he and his family.

"I'm coming home," he said, "so I'm quite excited about that."