A surprising yet perfect fit with the Navy: Tyson Babcock profile

Lieutenant (Navy) Tyson Babcock

Lieutenant (Navy) Tyson Babcock

Lt(N) Michelle Scott, 
HMCS Vancouver PAO

A career in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) was never on his radar, yet Lieutenant (Navy) Tyson Babcock now finds himself with 17 years of service under his belt.

Lt(N) Babcock currently serves as an Operations Room Officer deployed aboard His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Vancouver.

“It is hard to define a most memorable moment of my career because each step has been unique. Perhaps, the best part is seizing all the opportunities I never knew I would have,” Lt(N) Babcock said.

With both grandfathers in the Army and the Air Force, he was intrigued by the notion of serving his country, but he never considered the Navy.

Growing up in Kamloops, he decided to try out cadets and joined 204 Black Maria Air Cadet Squadron at 15 to see how he liked it.

That led him to discover the Royal Military College (RMC) and the Regular Officer Training Plan (ROTP), which pays participants to earn their degree while obtaining an officer’s commission. He applied for ROTP for all Air Force trades in Grade 11 and was offered a position as a Naval Warfare Officer a few months before graduation.

“I had no idea what they did, but after some research and great advice from my dad, I decided it fit what I was looking for,” he said.

Throughout his career, Lt(N) Babcock has served in a variety of roles – from being a member of the RMC marching contingent sent to participate in the Nijmegen Marches commemorating the liberation of Holland during the Second World War, to a Junior Officer deploying for the first time with HMCS Regina, to the prestigious role of Executive Officer in HMCS Edmonton.

“I got to share trips with some pretty great friends and shipmates,” he said. “My current position has been memorable so far for the great team I get to be a part of and the incredible achievements we’ve had over the past year-and-a-half.”

Vancouver is currently deployed on a six-month mission supporting Operations Projection and Neon. While Vancouver’s work is important, it doesn’t make being away from home any easier.

Lt(N) Babcock, who is married and has four young children at home, said that balancing the demands of his career and his family’s needs has been his biggest challenge during his deployment.

“An RCN career means going to sea for sometimes months on end, and this can be very difficult for children to understand. Our current six-month deployment is the longest I have ever been away from our youngest three,” he said, adding that when he’s home, he dedicates one-on-one time to connecting with each of them.

The connection to family and home also extends to his parents – who are still living in Kamloops. Despite leaving home years ago to pursue his military career, Kamloops hasn’t left him.

“The community I grew up in is still extremely supportive of my career; my parents regularly get asked how I am doing, where I am now, and what I have been up to,” he said. “It is amazing because I’ve lived away from Kamloops as long as I lived there growing up,” he said.

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