Meritorious Service Medal
- Awarded on: January 14, 1993
- Invested on: February 12, 1993
Rank: Colonel
As the Director of Peacekeeping Operations since 1990, Colonel Houghton has provided outstanding leadership, successfully coordinating the creation of seven new Canadian missions, while maintaining professional support to ongoing missions. His work as a member of the United States Diplomatic Negotiation Mission to Haiti and the Canadian member to the United Nations Technical Negotiating Mission to Somalia had been acknowledged by other countries. His performance at a time of unprecedented demands from the international community has brought great credit to Canada and the Canadian Forces.