LEADING Seaman Erwin Alexander is one of several northwestern BC serving on board Her Majesty's Canadian Ship (HMCS) Vancouver.
Alexander is a steward on the frigate, one of the Halifax Class frigates based at Esquimalt on Vancouver Island.
A graduate of Nisga'a Elementary Secondary School in New Aiyansh, he was attracted to the Canadian Navy through the Bold Eagle Program for aboriginal youth.
After pre-recruit training, Alexander enrolled in the Canadian Navy in 2008 and completed basic training at St. Jean, Quebec.
The son of Irwin Alexander Sr. of Greenville, B.C. he played soccer for the Greenville Wolverines and the Green Club.
HMCS Vancouver participated in an anti-submarine warfare exercise with U.S. Navy submarines off the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean in February.
Another Halifax class frigate, the HMCS Winnipeg, was also on the exercise as was the HMCS Protecteur, a supply ship.