Captain M.J. Forestell

Operations Officer

Capt Michael Forestell was born in 1985 in Munster, Germany. He joined the Canadian Armed Forces in September 2006 as a Non-Commissioned Member (NCM). After completing his Armoured Crewman training he was posted to the Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) (LdSH(RC)) in July 2007. Upon arriving at the Regiment he joined A Sqn as the Op Reserve Troop Leader’s Driver and began work-up training to deploy to Afghanistan. He deployed to Afghanistan on an 8 month tour as part of Op ATHENA TF3-08 as the 2IC’s Gunner in September 2008. After his tour Capt Forestell became a member of Recce Sqn and began work-up training for Op PODIUM. It was during this time he prepared and submitted his application to the University Training Program for Non-Commissioned Members (UTPNCM). After completing Op PODIUM he was accepted into the UTPNCM program and posted to the Royal Military College in Kingston, ON in July 2010. From 2010 to 2014 Capt Forestell completed his Bachelor of Arts in Military and Strategic Studies and his Armoured Officer phase training.

In December 2014 he was posted back to LdSH(RC) after completing his DP1.2, and in January 2015 was given the responsibility of being a Tp Ldr in Recce Sqn. During his time as a Tp Ldr, Capt Forestell deployed on Ex MAPLE RESOLVE 15 as OPFOR, completed the Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear (CBRN) Unit Defence Officer course, and completed the Road to High Readiness training, culminating in Ex MAPLE RESOLVE 16. He then became the Recce Sqn Liaison Officer and worked as the acting second in command of Recce Sqn. In February 2017 he was posted to 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group Headquarters (1 CMBG) as the Personal Assistant (PA) to the Commander.

During his time as the PA he was fortunate enough to travel with the Comd to visit 1 CMBG soldiers deployed around the world. He also took part in Joint Warfighter Assessment (JWA) 17 at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the first Certification Exercise for Op REASSURANCE Roto 0 in Latvia and, JWA 18 in Germany. Upon completing his time as the PA he stayed in the headquarters and assumed the 1 CMBG G1 Services position. During this time he completed Ex MAPLE RESOLVE 18 and the Advanced CBRN Defence Officer course, after which he was given the responsibility of being the Bde Comd’s CBRND Advisor. Capt Forestell is extremely grateful for the time and variety of positions he held within the 1 CMBG HQ as it was his first exposure to formation level planning and operations.

Upon completion of his first tour of extra regimental employment, he was posted back to the LdSH(RC) as the Battle Captain and 2IC of Recce Sqn in the summer of 2020 until December 2021. Recce/D Sqn provided unique challenges to overcome and was a tremendous learning experience as training needed to be conducted abiding by FPMs due to COVID-19. In December 2021 Capt Forestell assumed the responsibilities of the Lead Mounting Unit Operations Officer for Op IMPACT, and planned and executed Pre-Deployment Training as well as, the deployment of Roto 7. In May 2022 he became the Operations Officer for the Regiment.

Capt Forestell resides in Morinville, Alberta. In his spare time he enjoys playing hockey, golf, and guitar (although not very well).