Officer Cadet David Francesco Cozzi – who spent a good chunk of his life in Moose Jaw - is the most recent graduate of the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario. 

Cozzi first attended Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax before making the decision to attend the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC), which has a 10 per cent acceptance rate, because he wanted better opportunities and a bigger sense of community. 

“Because we go through hard times like the first-year orientation program – where we learn to be in the military with lots of exercises and team building activities – we bond and create lifelong friendships,” says Cozzi.  

 Cozzi earned a bachelor's degree in arts and psychology which he said was directed by his childhood as a military kid who moved from community to community. 

“I really wanted to explore the psychological aspect of how moving around as a kid impact us. How moving around can help us grow as a person or harm us as a person,” said Cozzi. 

“I want to understand myself and others better and in the long run I hope to help people in the military and those in the general public with their mental health struggles,” added Cozzi. 

Cozzi, who is currently stationed at 22 Wing North Bay where he’s currently volunteering with a local mental health hospital. 

While helping the community of North Bay, Cozzi is continuing to study and getting ready for his next course in Cornwall to become an Aerospace Control Officer with the dream of becoming an Air Battle Manager. 

“This would transfer over in the civilian world as an Air Traffic Controller,” noted Cozzi. 

Then it’s back to 22 Wing North Bay for more training in real life situations and scenarios before taking up a post anywhere in the world. 

“I’m really hoping to move around. Thanks to the trade I picked, it gives me the opportunity to go anywhere in the world. I’m hoping to go down to the States or to Europe like the Netherlands or Germany,” stated Cozzi. 

Cozzi’s family was first posted to 15 Wing Moose Jaw in 2008 – where his dad worked as an Instructor Pilot, before moving to Winnipeg and then back to Moose Jaw in 2019. 

Cozzi says his summer spent at 15 Wing Moose Jaw helped guide him down this current path. 

“I would like to thank 15 Wing Moose Jaw for giving me the opportunity to come and work there over the summer as on the job training experience and also helping me understand the trade I wanted to do,” said Cozzi.