BY KEITH LACEY
Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.
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Herb Petras, right, and Timothy Grant are two of the most highly decorated soldiers in the Canadian Army. Both men are from Sudbury and met when Petras was the principal at the school Grant attended. |
That could certainly be said of the friendship and careers shared by Herb Petras and Timothy Grant.
Petras was a young gym teacher at St. Charles College 35 years ago when he first met Grant, a scrawny 15-year-old Grade 10 student. Neither would have predicted they would become good friends. And they certainly never would have imagined becoming two of the most highly decorated soldiers in the Canadian Army.
Petras, 58, was promoted last December to Chief of Reserves in charge of Canada?s 55,000 reservists and cadets and another 6,000 cadet instructors. He was promoted to the rank of Major-General 10 years ago.
Just a few weeks ago, Grant was promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General and Commander of Land Force Western Area, putting him in charge of 12,000 soldiers from Thunder Bay west to British Columbia.
When Grant discovered he was being given the big promotion, Petras was one of the first people he invited to attend a special ceremony in late June in Edmonton.
?Next to members of my family, one of the people I wanted there most was Herb,? said Grant, in an interview from Canadian Forces Base Edmonton. ?He?s been such a big influence during my military career and we?ve become very good friends...and I wanted him to be there with me to share in the special moment.?
There are only 60 generals in the Canadian Armed Forces and only 20 in the army.
Having two friends from the same hometown promoted to the prestigious rank is quite an achievement, said Grant.
?It is very rare and unusual, that?s for sure,? said Grant. ?When people find out he was my teacher and I was his student...and how we?ve become good friends, some of them don?t believe it.?
Petras was born into a military family in Austria and came to Sudbury at an early age.
After getting his degree from Laurentian, he received a master?s degree from the University of Toronto and started a long teaching career. He became principal at St. Charles between 1985 and 2000 and then an administrator with another Sudbury school board for three years before retiring from education two years ago.
He began his military career at age 16 and after graduating from university transferred to the infantry and was commissioned a lieutenant. He?s moved up the ranks ever since.
In 1976, he qualified as a military parachutist. That same year he was appointed Deputy Commanding Officer of the Second Battalion of the Irish Regiment of Canada here in Sudbury. He was appointed Brigadier-General and Deputy Commander of Land Force Central Area in 1996 and posted to Chief of Land Staff in 1999.
He was appointed Chief of Reserves and Cadets last December. More than 20 percent of the Canadian Army is made up of reservists and cadets.
He is consulted on a regular basis by General Rick Hillier, the top general in the Canadian Armed Forces, on all deployment, training and recruitment issues involving reserves and cadets, said Petras.
?It was just something I thought I?d be interested in and I loved it from the very beginning,? he said about why he entered the military. ?It was a great way to help my country, meet good people and have some fun.It was also a great way to pay for university.?
He worked part-time with the military most of his career, but did get to visit Bosnia and Afghanistan recently.
He considers himself blessed to have juggled two full-time careers throughout his adult life.
?I always wanted to be a teacher or work in the military and I?ve been fortunate enough to enjoy challenging and fulfilling careers in both,? he said.
His new job lasts for another three years and right now doesn?t believe he?s ready to retire.
?I?ll see what comes once this post is completed,? he said.
His friendship with Grant is something he cherishes, he said.
Grant?s father was a high-ranking officer at the old Falconbridge base and he got to know his family well.
?I lost track of Tim for a few years after he graduated from St. Charles, but I ran into him when he was promoted to a Lieutenant-Colonel and I was not surprised he was doing very well,? he said.
Their friendship blossomed when both worked at National Defence Headquarters on a regular basis between 2000 and 2003.
He was honoured to be invited by Grant to be part of the celebrations when he was officially promoted to the rank of general, said Petras.
?I wouldn?t have missed it for anything,? he said ?To see a former student do so well is a big thrill. To see a man promoted to a position thousands of people are fighting to get shows what kind of a man and soldier Tim is.?
Grant took a different path to becoming a general, but his career has been just as interesting and fulfilling. After graduating from the University of Guelph in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science Degree, he enrolled in the army as an armoury officer.
?I really didn?t know what I wanted to do with my life, so I thought I?d try the military,? he said. ?I loved it so much right from the start, I said I?d do this until I didn?t enjoy it and that has never happened.?
He has commanded soldiers, from troop to brigade level, in Canada and with NATO in Germany. He worked in Australia for two years as an exchange officer and deployed a Canadian battle group in Bosnia in 1997.
He returned to Bosnia in 2000 to command another Canadian contingent of soldiers and commanded the Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group from 2003-2005.
Like Petras, Grant doesn?t have any regrets about his life in the military, but does acknowledge his wife and two children have had to endure plenty.
?It?s been a great life,? he said. ?I?ve been able to travel all over the world and command some terrific soldiers.
?But it hasn?t come without personal sacrifice. This year marks my 24th year in the military and we recently moved into our 15th home. It?s hard on the family, no doubt about it, but my wife and children have always been very supportive.?
Grant said he was very proud to be considered for the promotion to Brigadier General.
?To be selected is quite humbling,? he said. ?It?s a little bit overwhelming to walk by fellow soldiers and have them call you general.?
Being responsible for the training, deployment and safe keeping of 12,000 soldiers is a huge responsibility he will never take lightly, said Grant.
?I?m ultimately responsible for what they do, where they go and what happens when they get there and I take that responsibility very seriously,? he said.
As for his relationship with Petras, Grant says he considers him one of his best friends.
?Our paths have crossed on a regular basis over the past several years and I?ve never failed to go to Herb when I need some advice and he?s never failed to give me good advice.?
