Testimonial from Mitchell Gratton

At 26, Mitchell Gratton, Recreation Coordinator, took what he considers a huge personal and professional risk and applied to the Deployment Support Team to work as a civilian at the NATO base in Latvia. Until last fall, he’d rarely left New Brunswick, and barely made a move out of Gagetown, where he grew up as a military kid, until he was called for the September 2023 training and selection course at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Halifax to prepare him for deployment. 

A competitive swimmer in his youth, Mitchell has worked for CFMWS for nearly 11 years, as a lifeguard, swimming instructor and Aquatic Supervisor at Gagetown. He talks to us about overcoming his fears – of being young, gay, and inexperienced in the world – to discover his innate strengths through service to our members and other nations. 

“I have always been hard on myself thinking that I couldn't do a lot of things, but being here in Latvia, doing the work, serving our members and all the nations, with the incredible support of my team and my supervisors, I've grown. I've become stronger and, professionally, I've learned so much. I’ve learned that I can do it.” 

Growing up in Gagetown

Mitchell is no stranger to military life. His dad is former military and he’s lived his entire life in Gagetown on or adjacent to the base. Moving from competitive swimming to lifeguarding and teaching swimming lessons was natural and easy. It was through his part-time work at CFMWS as a 19-year-old university student that Mitch made his first big leap.

“A supervisor role to cover a maternity leave came up,” says Mitch, who was three years into a Bachelor of Arts program at the time at University of New Brunswick, Fredericton. “I jumped on it, took a break from university and with the encouragement of my managers, I really found my love in recreation management. So when the contract ended, I went back to university as a mature student to complete a Bachelor’s degree in recreation and sports studies, with a minor in management.”

“My grade point average went from mediocre to stellar. It’s interesting to see how well you can do when you go where your heart is.” 

Encouraged to apply to Deployment Support

He finished his degree program in 2022 and was keeping his eyes out for the next opportunity with CFMWS, when he saw the job postings with the Deployment Support Team.
 
“I have great colleagues in Gagetown. My mentors, my supervisors, the coordinators and managers, they've all deployed before. They mentioned how great it was and how rewarding it was,” says Mitch. “I thought it sounded cool and maybe I could throw my name in there, just to go through the application process.”

Weighing over 300 pounds, Mitch challenged himself to lose 100 pounds and boost his overall fitness before making his application to the Deployment Support Team, something he achieved within the year.
 
He took the plunge and, no surprise, made it through the initial screening and interview process and was invited to attend the training and selection course at CFB Halifax in September 2023.
 
Once it was a reality, he started to have doubts, about withdrawing from “complacency and comfort”, leaving his home province for the first time, and about how he’d fit in with the others in training.
 
“I was petrified, very scared,” says Mitch. “I’m typically really outgoing, I love to talk and I like to make myself known.  I didn’t know if I could be myself there. I didn’t want to waste people’s time doing the training and take a spot for someone who was confident and really wanted it.” 

“Because I’m gay, I also had the very real fear of sharing a room with a straight man on the base and wondering how they’d react or if I’d make people uncomfortable. Being gay is a huge part of who I am. I thought, if I can’t be myself at training, who am I going to be?” 

“The best week of my life”

Mitch spent the first days in training somewhat reserved, evaluating his surroundings to scope out who was there, how to blend into the group, and trying to determine expectations people may have of him.
 
“It didn’t take long for me to feel super welcome,” he says.  “I was in a room with someone who’s become a great colleague of mine and who’s in Latvia with me now. The Deployment Support managers make a point of matching you with people you know from training for deployment. My friend is also gay. In the gay community when you’re around people who are on the spectrum of being gay, it immediately makes you feel comfortable and kind of like home.”
 
Mitch says he was impressed by the incredible diversity of the candidates at the training, people with a variety of backgrounds and experiences. 
 
“All the different types of people they brought to training made me feel confident and comfortable to be myself,” says Mitch.
 
Perhaps no surprise, Mitch was nominated by many of the 60 or so “recruits” at training for the Peer-to-Peer Award, for an “exceptional display of the organization’s values and shared competencies throughout the course, as nominated by their peers.”

“I thrived in that environment because the people allowed me to show them who Mitch really is,” he says. “I thank the Deployment Support Team leadership for being so accepting and allowing me to blossom in an environment that I was initially so scared to be a part of.”

“The deployment selection and training turned out to be the best week of my life. I would trade nothing for my experience there.” 

Deploying to Latvia

Less than six weeks later, Mitch was ready to deploy to the NATO base in Latvia. Once again, he admits, fear almost crippled him. He was bolstered by recalling his meeting during training with Lisa Cameron, Associate Director of Deployment Support, before his departure from Halifax.
 
“I remember sitting down with Lisa and asking her what it would be like to be gay and be in Latvia,” says Mitch. “’I’m 26, I’ve hardly left New Brunswick. Is it somewhere safe for me?’ She assured me, ‘There are risks anywhere you go, but in Latvia we are supported as members of the CAF deployed team and that team looks out for each other.’”
 
Deep down, Mitch still had an underlying anxiety about working on a NATO base and encountering troops from many different countries. 

“I was worried to be called things because of my sexuality and that I would have to tap out early,” says Mitch. “I remember arriving and thinking, ‘if there’s any kind of slur at me, I’m gone on the next plane home.’”
 
As a Recreation Coordinator, Mitch sleeps in a four-person bunkie, eats at the mess three times per day embedded with troops from all NATO countries, and facilitates events for all the soldiers on base. 
 
“The Italians are here. The Spanish are here. All the nations are so awesome,” says Mitch.
 
He runs a bingo night monthly and regularly gets 600 or more people showing up.
 
“I remember wondering at first if I would get up on the mic and these people would notice right away that I was gay and shut me down, but it’s never been an issue. I've never had to dial myself down,” says Mitch. “It's kind of this misconception that everyone will be looking, judging, but in reality, no one cares.”

“After being here for almost five months now, I don't even know why I thought of that. Not one time being in Latvia have I ever felt out of place or cited for my sexuality. It’s not even in the equation.” 

A deployment with purpose – personal and professional

Mitch considers his job the best one in Latvia. 
 
“I get to intertwine myself with the members, I get to see them on the only free time they have, they're coming out to events that I put on and they’re so appreciative and it’s so rewarding,” says Mitch.

“Deployment is hard, you know? People don’t realize how much the members rely on us to help them. We’re here for their morale and if we weren’t here, they wouldn’t have the same level of support. It touches my heart.”
 
Another rewarding aspect of deployment is developing intense friendships, something Mitch knows he’ll hold onto for life. He’s especially grateful for his friends and colleagues in fitness, who’ve been his biggest motivators as he continues in his fitness and weight loss journey.
 
“It’s super motivating because I work right in the fitness office, so all the fitness instructors, the coordinators are here and encouraging me to be healthy,” says Mitch. “There’s only 26 of us deployed right now. We’re a family. We treat each other as such. I want to make them proud.”

“We’re all here to do the same job, which is to support the CAF and the other nations.” 

CFMWS values

Asked about what that sense of belonging means, Mitch emphasizes the value of having amazing peers and role models at CFMWS.
 
“My colleagues have taught me so much and my supervisor has literally opened so many doors for me professionally because of the way he’s helped me to become a better coordinator and a better person,” says Mitch. 

“I have grown here in Latvia. I’ve become stronger, I’ve learned so much professionally and so much about myself. I have learned what I am capable of.” 

Mitch is in the process of applying to do a master’s degree upon his return to Canada, which he hopes to use to continue his growth as an employee of CFMWS.
 
“In more than ten years with CFMWS, I have never felt uncomfortable to be who I am. CFMWS mirrors the CAF, and it’s my experience that the CAF, in 2024, is very progressive.”
 
He notes that the commitment to belonging and diversity goes beyond what some people may mistakenly view as mere symbolic gestures.
 
“Celebrating Pride Month, raising the flag at headquarters and ensuring that trickles down to all bases to make sure they promote it and tell people in the LGBTQ+ community that they are allies and that they’re here to support and not hinder people is really important,” says Mitch. “CFMWS does such a good job of that.”

“I’ve been very fortunate in Latvia and at Gagetown to have a number of mentors and supervisors who are part of the LGBTQ+ community, which makes me feel really welcome and really safe.”