Public scrutiny of the military took a turn for the better last week.
While having lunch at Red Robin, seven junior sailors were handed a $100 restaurant gift card from a mother and her ward of children - a gesture of thanks for serving their country.
“The world we live in right now is not a very safe one, and for the people who volunteer to serve our country so that we can stay safe and free is a wonderful thing,” said the mother, who asked to remain anonymous. “They know they may be sent into situations that are dangerous. I felt that if I sent over a gift card to pay for their lunch, it would be a concrete way to say thank you.”
Delivering the gift was the youngest of her brood, a three-year-old who shyly handed it to the sailors.
“The reason I sent the children over was to impress upon them that military personnel help to keep us safe in our country,” said the mother. “We also talked before they went over about who they were and what their job is, and how we need to let them know we are thankful for them, and that we think about the people serving in many situations throughout the world.”
The sailors were stunned by the gesture; some even brought to tears, says OS Dana Ficke, one of the sailors at the table.
They had just completed their qualification level three training for naval communicators and were helping a few of their classmates ship boxes for their move to Halifax when they decided to have bite to eat.
A few hours before, OS Kent Brooking was debating with OS Ficke about the lack of support shown to the military from the Victoria community. OS Brooking said he was proved wrong.
The mother said she’s surprised to hear this was their first encounter of support from the public. “Many of the military personnel have left families behind when they come to train here, showing them that we are thankful may help them cope with the loneliness,” she says.
The sailors were reluctant to accept such a generous gift, and, after a brief chat with the mother, decided to give the gift card to the Military Family Resource Centre (MFRC).
“One good gesture for another,” said OS Shawn Lawrence.
Gaynor Jackson, executive director of the MFRC, said she was moved when she heard the story, not only for the sailor’s gesture to give the card to her charity, but by the mother’s actions.
“I really felt a lot of admiration for the mother; not only was she letting a group of young sailors starting their careers know that what they do for their country is appreciated, she was also passing on a great gift to her foster children in teaching them the value of appreciating others,” she said.
Jackson says the gift card will be used during HMCS Ottawa’s upcoming overseas deployment.
“We will have, and continue to have some tough deployments over the next year, and it can often be hardest for families when deployments go over the Christmas period. So we will probably look for an opportunity during this time period to put some smiles on the kids faces who are part of our deployment workshops, and take them on a road trip to Red Robin,” she says.
