The Red Friday Ladies

Karen Boire and Lisa Miller

Hero To Hero Celebrity Ambassadors

Reprinted from the Petawawa Post

Wearing red on Friday is like giving our troops a huge round of applause

Like an undulating ocean of red and CADPAT green, a literal sea of supporters flowed down Petawawa Boulevard waving Canadian flags, banners and handmade signs.

In an impressive show of appreciation for the men and women of the CF and their families, thousands turned out for a homegrown Red Friday Rally and March of Military Appreciation, filling the parking lot at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 517, Petawawa with the signature colour.

“Wearing red on Friday is like giving our troops a huge round of applause,” said Lisa Miller who along with Karen Boire brought Canada-wide attention to the grassroots Red Fridays Campaign. “When we all wear red together, it adds volume to our voices in colour. It speaks of our support, our pride and our appreciation for our Canadian Forces members and their families.”

Ms. Miller and Ms. Boire, the “Red Friday Ladies”, worked closely with 580 CFRA last year to bring a massive Ottawa Red Friday rally to Parliament Hill, and wanted to bring the initiative to the home front where so many have seen their loved ones deploy to Afghanistan, and so many soldiers have paid the ultimate sacrifice. “No matter how many people show up, whether it be 15 or 15 000, it makes the rally, and the message we're sending, a success,” noted Ms. Boire.

Like ‘Red Fridays’, the local rally also garnered national attention; among the dignitaries were Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor, and Chief of the Defence Staff General Rick Hillier.

“These rallies and all the other demonstrations of support are immensely important to those of us in uniform and I don't need to tell this crowd about sacrifice, service or duty. You live it every day,” said Colonel Denis Thompson, 2 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group commander, who through personal experience, attested to the positive impact local support has had on morale overseas. “It's significant, it does resonate here, and frankly it gives our efforts real meaning.”

To date, successful Red Friday rallies have been held in numerous communities. The Prime Minister applauded the Petawawa community not just for fanning the flames of the Red Friday movement, “but because of the incredible strength and support this community has displayed over the past 12 months while hundreds of troops from CFB Petawawa have been deployed in Afghanistan,” he said.

“I know that it hasn't been easy. This community has had more losses to mourn than any other base in this country. But you have stood firm in support of our troops because you're so proud of them and you should be.”

He spoke of the numerous unsung heroes in Afghanistan, not just Canadians but everyone who has had a part in helping the Afghan people reclaim and rebuild their war ravaged country. He also noted that nine soldiers from the base were recently honoured for their service overseas.

It’s progress made possible, too, by the support Canadians have for their military and the mission in Afghanistan, said Mr. O'Connor. “I've been to Afghanistan three times, and I can tell you how important it is for our troops over there to know that this mission has the support of Canadians, a mission that is critical to the future of Afghanistan,” he said. “Today, through this rally, we can remind our troops that we are behind them 100 percent.”

The rally, he added, is also an opportunity to acknowledge the sacrifices made by military families, and the “vital support they provide to our men and women in uniform, sustaining them while they carry out their duties. Thank them for all they do to keep the Canadian Forces strong.”

Ms. Brazeau is a writer with the Petawawa Post.

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TAMMY GOULD

In the fall of 2008 i received an e-mail from Tammy Gould from Otterville, Ontario.
Tammy was looking for a way to show support for our troops and she happened upon the HeroToHero.US website.
She had previously worked as a 911 dispatcher for 28 years with the Tillsonburg Police Service (which later became the Oxford O.P.P. detatchment).
Tammy knew right away she had something to contribute to our troop morale campaign.
Tammy has been very busy contacting all the first responders in Oxford County (Ontario) and has so far recruited six Police and Fire Depts., including the O.P.P. Golden Helmets Precision Motorcycle Team, to support our troops through Hero To Hero Team Canada.
Tammy is presently working for the Woodstock Credit Bureau but her passion is photography.
For the last 8 years she has run a successful photography business "Tammy Gould Photography".

In November Tammy called and asked me if i thought the military families who have a deployed family member would be interested in having a Christmas photo taken to send to their deployed loved ones.
We put her in touch with Bev Robbins at the London Military Family Resource Centre (LMFRC) in London, Ontario. Bev arranged for Tammy to photograph the families of over 40 deployed troops from S.W. Ontario. Tammy travelled to Windsor, London, Cambridge and Hamilton to photograph the families at the MFRC's in each city.

I travelled to Windsor to meet Tammy and take some pictures of her taking the family portraits.
I wanted to tell her story. Maybe someone else will see this and run with Tammy's idea in other parts of the country.
Even though the LMFRC offered to help with the travel costs,Tammy paid all her own expenses and donated the pictures to all the families.
This was something she wanted to contribute to the troops and their families.

I know the families were very appreciative of Tammy's efforts.
Many of the families have made a point of inviting Tammy to their events, including troop homecomings. I know that means a lot to Tammy.

To see the photo's of Tammy taking her portraits, click on our photo gallery from the homepage or click here... herotoheroteamcanada.smugmug.com/Troop%20Support
All the photo's are posted here with the families permission.

Keep in mind the majority of these photos are my behind the scenes snapshots.
The last 10 pictures are a sampling of Tammy's professional finished photos which the families received.

One of the neat things Tammy did was have the family members hold a glass globe while gazing into it.
Tammy then took a photo of the deployed troop that was provided by the family and she photo shopped the troops photo into the globe.

Tammy has worked tirelessly to promote Hero To Hero and generate shirts for our troops.
She has also introduced many other folks to our program who are offering their support. There will be more about that in the near future.
Tammy's website is presently under construction but here is the link.... http://www.tammygouldphotography.com/

We can't thank Tammy enough for all that she has done and continues to do to support our troops through Hero To Hero.

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