For a kid growing up on the West Coast, it’s hard not to look out onto the vastness of the ocean and ponder all the opportunities and experiences it can offer. As a child, Jocelyn knew she wanted a life that let her explore those opportunities. At 12, she joined the Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Program and would end up spending five summers at HMCS Quadra in Comox, initially gaining first-hand experience learning what it takes to be a deckhand. At 15 she would have her first exposure to marine engineering and worked on achieving her Watchkeeping certificate. The Sea Cadet Program provided plenty of opportunities, with weeks-long deployments, and would even end up operating a patrol craft before she had her learner’s license.
For Jocelyn, what fascinated her about the marine industry was understanding what made the ships run. After graduating high school, she would continue to BCIT to pursue a diploma in marine engineering spending her time at Princess Cruises for her co-op.
Naturally, the question comes up of how a person who’s dabbled in experience with the navy and cruise line industry, like Jocelyn, ended up working with a marine oil spill response organization. As mariners at WCMRC know, our line of work allows for a blend of a life at sea while not missing those “lifetime” moments at home. Having been laid up in Singapore on a cruise ship for 6 months due to COVID, Jocelyn was ready for a transition. For her, a career with WCMRC presented the opportunity to “do what I love doing, all while being a part of the prevention and solution to marine oil pollution.”
What stood out in particular for Jocelyn was the science and engineering behind mechanical oil recovery. For someone who found enjoyment in taking a toaster apart, the different skimming strategies, like what skimming brush is best used for what type of petroleum product, brought together two of her passions – one for the marine industry and the other, for a healthy and thriving ocean for future generations to enjoy.
As Jocelyn sees it, working at WCMRC “allows you to get to know your own coast and enjoy it, and while for many it may be right outside your door, it may not necessarily be within reach.” Whether it’s hauling boom off the front of a landing craft while deploying a Geographic Response Strategy or engaging in corrective maintenance to ensure that whatever is broken gets fixed, both WCMRC and the marine industry as a whole have something for everyone, no matter what skill set you have.