There are 263 sailors serving onboard HMCS Regina, 22 of which are from Newfoundland and Labrador. Three of those are from the Bay St. George area: Petty Officer (first class) Eli Simon, Gregory Benoit and Chief Petty Officer (second class) Chris MacDonald.
Petty Officer (first class) Eli Simon is the son of Kathleen Hatcher and stepson of Bill Hatcher. He grew up on the Port Au Port Peninsula and now lives in Victoria B.C. He has served in the Royal Canadian Navy for over 29 years.
Civilian Gregory Benoit, son of Stephen and Agnes Benoit, grew up in Port au Port East. He currently resides in Whitehorse, Yukon, with wife Jean their children Joel, Joshua, Kellina and Alyssa. He has served in the Canadian Armed Forces for 29 years.
Chief Petty Officer (second class) Chris MacDonald is the son of Charles MacDonald and Viola Hannon (Jesso) and grew up in Campbell’s Creek on the Port au Port Peninsula. He now lives in Victoria B.C with wife Lynn and their five children, and has served in the Royal Canadian Navy for more than 23 years as a Boatswain by trade.
Operation ARTEMIS is Canada’s contribution to Combined Task Force 150 (CTF 150), a multinational maritime task force combating terrorism across the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean, and the Gulf of Oman.
