CLICK PICTURE ABOVE OR LINK TO REGISTER:
No later than - Monday, November 11, 2024, noon.
Keynote Speaker: Colonel B. Christopher A. Brown, CD,
Commander, 31 Canadian Brigade Group
Topic: Remembrance Day
Host: Alex Brown
Rotary Toronto Meeting Friday, November 15th, 2024
Lunch at The National Club, 303 Bay Street, Toronto
Views and Opinions Expressed Disclaimer: The views and opinions are those expressed by the Speaker and do not necessarily reflect the official views or opinions, policy or position of The Rotary Club of Toronto or its Members.
Biography
In 2022, Colonel Chris Brown assumed command of the 31 Canadian Brigade Group (31 CBG) headquartered in London, Ontario. 31 CBG is comprised of twelve (12) Army Reserve Units located across Southwestern Ontario. The Brigade's area of responsibility reaches from Hamilton to Windsor and north to Owen Sound and Barrie. The Brigade has nearly 2200 members, the vast majority of whom are part-time Reserve soldiers. In recent years, the Brigade has deployed hundreds of soldiers on overseas operations in Latvia, Poland, and Iraq as well as other operations across Africa and the Middle East. 31 CBG has also deployed on domestic operations across Canada, including Operation LASER (national COVID-19 response). Annually, soldiers from across 31 CBG deploy on northern sovereignty exercises in the Canadian Arctic.
Col Brown joined the Canadian Armed Forces in 1986 as a Trooper in the Governor General’s Horse Guards (GGHG) and then transferred to the 1st Hussars (1H) in 1996. Colonel Brown is a graduate of The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina (BA) and the Royal Military College of Canada (MA). He has deployed overseas as Deputy Task Force Commander for Operation SAFARI in Sudan (2007-2008). He served as Commanding Officer of the 1st Hussars from 2010-2012. During this same period, he served as Commanding Officer of the 31 Territorial Battle Group (TBG 31-11) and was also awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal. Post-Command, Colonel Brown served as Deputy Director (Reserve) of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps and Assistant Chief of Staff (Reserve) at the Division HQ in Ontario and Atlantic Canada.
Colonel Brown is a graduate of the Canadian Army Command & Staff College (’06), the New Zealand Army Tactics Course, and the Canadian Force College Joint Command & Staff Program. He has an International Master of Business Administration from the University of South Carolina. He has completed the Senior Executives in National and International Security Program at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
Outside the Army Reserve, he is a senior executive with General Dynamics Land Systems. He serves on the Board of Directors for two industry organizations: Next Generation Manufacturing Canada (NGen) and the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI).