Hi, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Cyndi Greene. I too am from Newfoundland and Labrador. I was born and raised in a small town of 150 people called Pinware on the southern shore.
I joined the regular force in 1989, immediately after high school. I was a cook for 15 years. In my first six years I served with 1 Combat Engineer Regiment out of Chilliwack as one of the very first females integrated into the field units. With them I did two tours of duty. In 1992-93 I deployed with 1 Combat Engineer Regiment to Croatia, and then I went back to Bosnia with them in 1994. In 1995 I was posted to the mighty warships out in Esquimalt, and we did many things with them as well.
Like Shawn, I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of my service in 2000. I was medically released in 2004. I started working with the OSISS program as a volunteer in Victoria, British Columbia, and eventually moved to Calgary to take the job of peer support coordinator for southern Alberta. I am based out of Calgary, but I work the whole area of southern Alberta.
I have been with OSISS since February 2006, and like Shawn my road to recovery was quite lengthy. There were administrative issues with work before I finally figured out what was going on. I spent three months in a treatment centre for prescription medication addiction, and from there I saw a psychiatrist and a psychologist. It's still ongoing, although it's not as frequent as it used to be.
I am married to Brad. We have a daughter named Rebecca, who is ten, almost thirty.
I am in contact with roughly 197 ex-military and a few still serving in southern Alberta.
Thank you.