Military Personnel
New foundation makes a difference
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There’s a new resource on the block, and it’s already had a profound effect on the life of one member of the CF.
Just in time for Christmas,The Military Casualty Support Foundation gifted Captain Trevor Greene and partner Ms Debbie Lepore with a wheelchair-accessible van.
Capt Greene is the Vancouver-based Seaforth Highlanders Reservist who was critically injured in an axe attack in Afghanistan in March 2006. He was hospitalized for many months with a severe brain injury, and is now a resident of the brain injury rehabilitation unit of the Centennial Centre for Mental Health and Brain Injury in Ponoka,Alberta. “
God bless you for coming so far,” Capt Greene said to foundation representatives Mr. Greg Edmonds and Ms Theresa Hacking, who had traveled from Ontario to deliver the customized 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan. “This is beyond great! It means the world to me.Thank you so much.”
“I’m speechless,” added Ms Lepore. “There are no words that can describe what it means to be together as a family. It’s the best thing that could happen, not only for Christmas but for any day of the year.” The van is a welcome and vital resource for the Greene family because, at present, Capt Greene is unable to transfer from his wheelchair independently.
The foundation was launched in March 2007. Ms Hacking, her husband, Jim, and their business partner, Mr. Edmonds, own IMT, an Ingersoll, Ontario-based company with ties to DND/CF. IMT manufactures the drive trains and other components for light armoured vehicles (LAVs), large-calibre munitions, and other products for DND and for defence contractors worldwide.
“Through our dealings with the Department of Defence,” Ms Hacking said,“we discovered that the needs of wounded soldiers are very well addressed, but that public funds cannot be used to meet all of their ‘wants’. Our foundation focuses on the wants of these wounded soldiers and their families – whether it’s special medical devices, or anything else they require to return to a normal lifestyle. Trying to fulfill these wants is the foundation’s main goal.”
The first fundraiser, a golf tournament in Ingersoll in September 2007, raised almost $50 000 – well above expectations. Some of that went to Capt Greene’s van.
“I cannot put into words,” Ms Hacking said, “how heart-warming it was to be able to provide a van to the Greene family, and see what an impact it would be making in their lives. It was truly a rewarding experience, and one that will continue to motivate me.”
The foundation is now working with Director of Casualty Support and Administration (DCSA) to identify other injured CF personnel who require additional resources.
With files from Ms Tiffany Williams, Editor, Ponoka News.
- Visit the Military Casualty Support Foundation at www.mcsf.ca for information, updates, and contact information for making a donation.
- Find DCSA at www.forces.gc.ca/hr/centre/.
- Visit IMT at www.imtcorporation.com.
