S1 Eric Archambault: Sailor maintains healthy work-life balance

Navy News / February 10, 2021

Sailor First Class (S1) Eric Archambault, from Fall River, near Halifax, Nova Scotia, is a naval communicator on board Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Toronto.

“I joined the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) to travel the world and to help people in need. My work is important to me, because I have the opportunity to repair and maintain all of our internal and external communication equipment on high readiness in multiple operations at sea.”

His most memorable experience with the RCN was helping Quebec during the 2017 flood crisis.

“I was on board HMCS Montréal when the flooding happened, and we stopped in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, to help civilians by making berms out of sandbags to save their houses from the floods. We went on to Montreal to help clear the roads of the debris caused by the tragedy. This is why I joined the Navy: to make an impact by helping others.”

There are many advantages in the RCN, but being at sea does present challenges from time to time, which modern technology has helped mitigate.

For S1 Archambault, maintaining a healthy balance between his family and his career obligations is essential, particularly on deployments.

“I handle the challenge by sending messages or talking to my wife and son almost every day when I have free time at work. I focus all my energy on work, and I plan activities for the ship, such as kickboxing classes. I meditate and learn different martial arts to improve my mental and physical well-being.”