Unseen injuries

Hillier winery leads fundraising efforts for Wounded Warriors Canada

(L-R) Scott Maxwell, Kemp Stewart and Philip Ralph. Honourary colonel Kemp Stewart, proprietor of Hillier Creek Estates Winery, will donate one dollar from the sale of each bottle of newly released Colonel Cuvee to Wounded Warrior Canada.

When military men and women return home from violent places, some of the deepest and most insidious wounds aren’t visible. These injuries reside within the memories and consciousness of the folks who have seen terrible things—done terrible things. Some benefit from a psychological immune system that protects them from long-term debilitations. In some cases, however, soldiers can be overwhelmed by emotions of guilt, fear and loathing. Unable to compartmentalize their experiences, they combat these feelings daily, often alone and with limited support.

The situation is worse when they have been released from the Canadian Armed Forces. Lacking structure and support, life for some can become unbearable.

Wounded Warriors Canada (WWC) was formed in response to these men and women. Padre Phillip Ralph knows these military members. Ralph is Regimental Chaplain to the #2 Combat Engineer Regiment of the Canadian Forces in Toronto. He serves as the National Program Director of Wounded Warrior Canada.

It began simply enough—providing comfort items to wounded colleagues far from home. In 2012 WWC arranged for 25 serving military members to join a bicycle tour through the battlefields of Europe.

On day five of the tour, they persuaded their British hosts to stop at the memorial at Vimy Ridge, explained Ralph. A horn played Last Post. The scurl of bagpipes wailed a lament.

“They spontaneously began to embrace each other,” recounted Ralph. “Suddenly, they all began to sing O Canada—loud and off-key. It was great to see them come together. Just then, the grey mist that hung around us all day evaporated as the sun came out. I will always remember that day. It was a life-changing experience for all of us.”

This year, Wounded Warriors Canada is leading Battlefield Ride 2014 on the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of WWI. The County’s David McFaul is among the former Canadian Forces members to take part in the tour from JunoBeach to Vimy Ridge—an eight-day journey that gets underway on June 6. So far, David has raised nearly 70 per cent of his goal—$5,500— through donations and contributions from folks in this community.

Wounded Warrior Canada receives no public funding, said Ralph, relying entirely on donations and fundraising efforts.

WWC is getting a lot of help, however, from Honorary Colonel Kemp Stewart, Dr. Amber Hayward-Stewart and their winery, Hillier Creek Estates. On Friday night, the couple hosted a gala dinner at the winery, including steak dinner and dancing until the wee hours. A strong turnout of both the County’s medical and military communities filled the hall, bidding up an array of silent auction items.

The winery has also bottled a special label wine it is calling Colonel’s Cuvée—complete with the colonel’s four bars designating rank, and bearing an image of the CF Globemaster, the aircraft flown by 429 Squadron—the unit over which Stewart serves as honourary colonel.

Stewart has pledged a dollar from each of 9,500 bottles of Colonel’s Cuvee will be given to Wounded Warriors Canada. Colonel’s Cuvee is on sale at Hillier Creek Estates, and later this month will be available at the LCBO outlets in the County.

Scott Maxwell is the executive director of Wounded Warrior Canada.

You are why we are able to do this,” said Maxwell. “It’s overwhelming to me that this room full of people have come together to raise the money we need.”

Padre Phillip Ralph noted that WWC continues to expand its outreach to troubled military members. One such program involves pairing individuals with companion dogs for those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder—that the routine and responsibility of caring for animal may in some cases ease the focus from the terrible memories.

You can help David McFaul ride through the battlefields of Europe, as well learn more about the good work of Wounded Warriors Canada, by logging onto www.woundedwarriors.ca or by visiting Hillier Creek Estates.