Orangeville soldier wins Military Medal of Merit A 1978 graduate of Orangeville District Secondary School has been made a member of the Order of Military Merit, an honour denoting "exceptional service or performance of duty." The award is granted to only a tenth of one per cent of serving members of the Canadian military. Chief Warrant Officer Byron Bailey, 46, son of Gary and Connie Bailey of Orangeville, received the honour from Governor General Michaelle Jean at a ceremony in Rideau Hall last month. CWO Bailey is now entitled to use the designation MMM along with his Canadian Forces Decoration (CD), awarded to members of the military only if they have served at least 12 years without blemish. The medals on his tunic attest to the scope of his 28 years of service. The Orangeville native was chosen for the Order while serving as a Master Warrant Officer and chief cook at the Royal Military College in Kingston. He has since been promoted to the most senior noncommissioned rank, and posted to CFB Petawawa. CWO Bailey is a thirdgeneration soldier who joined the Royal Canadian Regiment (infantry) in 1978, shortly after his graduation from ODSS. In 1986, he made a switch to the kitchen from foot-soldiering, and served in Qatar in that capacity during the first Gulf War. There, says Gary Bailey, "he fed dusty, hot and tired soldiers, serving as frontline morale for the troops." Napoleon's edict, "an army marches on its stomach," held true in Qatar. Says Byron Bailey: "They come in (from the forward lines) and appreciate you." Gary Bailey served with the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps in the Korean War during the early 1950s, and retired as a Chief Warrant Officer in 1977 after 25 years of service. His father, Bruce, (Byron's grandfather) served with the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps in the Second World War.