Roger was born and raised in Kitchener, Ontario.
He joined the Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps Warspite in 1977 in Kitchener. Roger remained with sea cadets for six years attaining the rank of Chief Petty Officer First Class and was Coxswain of the corps. During this time he was sent for basic training at CFB Cornwallis in Nova Scotia and received basic and advanced sail training at CFB Kingston.
Roger received training in several other areas including marksmanship, First Aid, CPR, fitness and canoeing. He also received his wings as a Hovercraft Pilot, Para-Recue Wings and parachuting. Roger earned the Gold Duke of Edinburgh award which was presented to him by HRH Prince Philip in London, Ontario.
The advance sail training allowed Roger to teach sailing for three summers at CFB Trenton and he was part of a team of sea cadets that competed nationally and internationally in sailing. His team was ranked fifth in Canada and 32nd in the World Albacore Sailing Regatta.
Roger was fortunate to be selected for a cruise with the Canadian Navy. He joined HMCS Ottawa on her Caribbean tour in 1981, serving in the active Canadian warship for three months. Here he learned the workings of a warship and learned the various jobs and duties as a crew member.
In 1982, Roger joined the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve as a commissioned officer in the Cadet Instructors Cadre. He worked closely with several sea cadet corps and was posted to CFB Trenton as a sail instructor. Roger left the CAF Reserve in 1985 with the rank of Acting Sub-Lieutenant to start a new family and focus on his career.
Also in 1982, Roger started the Pre-Hospital Emergency Medical Services Course (Paramedic) at Conestoga College in Kitchener, graduating the following year. Rogers interested in Para-medicine and the ambulance field began while receiving first aid and CPR training as a cadet.
In 1983 Roger moved to Trenton, Ontario and began his career as a Paramedic, where he is still employed today. One of his duties involved Public Relations Officer and he began writing articles for the local newspaper. Roger has served his entire career in the field providing emergency medical response to the public. Other duties has included working on the Y2K committee with emergency preparations for the millennium, working with the Quinte International Air Show developing emergency response procedures, Kosovo Refugee Induction, coordinating the EMS participation in the repatriation of Canadian soldiers in Eastern Ontario, training and supervising.
Roger's activities as a paramedic were recognized when he was presented the Governor General's Medal for Exemplary Service in Emergency Medical Services in 2007.
Roger also worked as a volunteer with the Murray Township Fire Department as a firefighter for three years. His duties also included the automobile extrication team, fire prevention, home inspections and public relations.
In 1993, Roger was asked to help start a new Navy League cadet corps in Trenton. The corps was named after the Canadian corvette HMCS Trentonian. He joined the corps as an officer and took on the training officer position, designing a new training program for the cadets, several aspects of his program has been adopted into the national program for the Navy League of Canada. Roger eventually took command of NLCC Trentonian and was promoted to Lieutenant Commander.
During this time, Roger's interest was piqued in the ship and he began researching Trentonian, initially, to give the cadets a history of their namesake. As the research continued and the information collected, Roger quickly realized this was not a simple project, but a story of national and international importance and he began has goal to write a book.
When Roger's term as commanding officer was complete, he was appointed as Area Officer for Eastern Ontario with the Navy League of Canada. He now had seven cadet corps under his command with over 60 officers and almost 250 cadets. At this time he developed an officers training program for the volunteers that is still in use today.
Roger's activities were recognized by the Navy League of Canada with a Meritorious Service Award, the National Presidents Award and the Navy League of Canada Long Service Medal. When his term as Area Officer ended in 2008 he left cadets to concentrate on writing and photography.
As a photo artist Roger has sold several pieces of his art and has been shown in several galleries. Using digital photgraphy, he prefers to capture the moment instead of manipulating and forcing a "picture".
Roger's writing continued, he had several freelance articles published in newspapers as a paramedic, firefighter and Navy League officer, but now was the time to start building a portfolio for publishing. His first magazine article was published in Esprit de Corps in April 2007, called "HMCS TRENTONIAN, A victim of friendly fire." The next article to be published was in the Canadian Emergency News magazine titled "Highway of Heroes," in May 2008.
Knowing it would be difficult to have a publisher accept the large manuscript that Trentonian was turning into, Roger decided to write a smaller book of general interest in the Canadian Navy. He wrote his book "Warships of the Bay of Quinte", detailing the service of six of Canada's warships. The work took 11 months to research and write, then another two years to find a publisher.
Dundurn Publishing has accepted the manuscript and Roger's first book will be available in April 2010.
Rogers's research on the Canadian Navy has allowed him to participate and contribute to several institutions, events and activities in Canada and abroad. When the History Channel was finishing the documentary on HMCS Regina, Roger was contacted by the research team to confirm a similar incident that both ships faced and members of the crew that may have been in Trentonian. He has also provided material to the Porthcurno Cable Museum in England, detailing the friendly fire incident with the Americans and the British cable layer that Trentonian was escorting. A new museum display was created with the research that Roger provided. He has also contributed to information at the museums in Thunder Bay, Winnipeg and St. Peters Canal in Cape Breton.
Roger and his wife Rhonda were married in 2006 and they have a blended family of six children. Together they share many common interests and enjoy travelling in Canada and cruising.
Roger sums up his life, "I have been blessed with many great experiences, I have driven a warship, piloted a hovercraft, drove fire trucks and ambulances. I have been a paramedic, sailor, soldier, firefighter, researcher, teacher, artist and author. But my greatest joy has always been father and husband."
