Meritorious Service Decorations - Military Division
Meritorious Service Medal
Awarded on: 2015-06-29
Invested on: 2016-04-29
From January to April 2013, Major Church deployed to Istres, France, as tactical commander of Air Task Force Mali. Demonstrating flexibility and ingenuity, he overcame a variety of operational challenges to ensure the successful airlift of over three million pounds of cargo and almost 800 troops in support of France’s operations in Mali. Major Church’s leadership, unwavering professionalism and capacity for improvisation were praised by the French authorities and brought significant recognition to the Canadian Armed Forces.