Evidence of meeting #17 for Veterans Affairs in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was families.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Ron Cannan Conservative Kelowna—Lake Country, BC
So what do you see regarding putting the resources into the forces today? Where do you see us having the biggest challenges in five, ten, fifteen years? Can you use your crystal ball from experience, even looking to the next couple of years?
Executive Director, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
The issue of occupational stress injuries is going to be the hardest part, you are absolutely correct. If I could tell you to do anything, it would be not to just give therapy and counselling to the veteran, but to work with the family, so that the family knows what to do and understands the whole aspect, because it's the family that's taking a beating.
Conservative
Ron Cannan Conservative Kelowna—Lake Country, BC
Are you utilizing the services of occupational therapists?
Executive Director, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
I suspect there may be some value there.
Conservative
Ron Cannan Conservative Kelowna—Lake Country, BC
Very good. Thank you very much for your dedication.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Anders
Thank you.
We'll now go to Mr. Stoffer with the NDP for five minutes.
NDP
Peter Stoffer NDP Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS
Thank you once again.
Quite simply, you reiterated on several occasions that you need to look at the family with a holistic view and not just at the individual serving member. You talked about secondary next of kin. As you know, a lot of these people in the service are young men and young women who may not be married yet, but they have a mother and father kicking around. I am sure all of us have gotten the calls. What happens to those individuals? What about parental advisement? The last thing a 19-year-old is going to tell mom and dad is what services are available and everything else. Would you include moms and dads in that as well, especially for single members, or grandparents or anything of that nature? You must get a lot of calls from people of that nature looking for information, assistance, etc.
Executive Director, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
The stories I could tell you about the phone calls we've received from grandparents and parents from across the country saying they haven't heard from their son or daughter who is over in Afghanistan and they're afraid....
I believe we need to educate the Canadian public, because everybody knows somebody in the military or somebody who is a veteran. So the more we can educate the Canadian public, the more all our families—the moms, dads, brothers, sisters, everybody—will know about what is available through our resources.
NDP
Peter Stoffer NDP Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS
I'm going to ask this question to both of you, because one is a veteran and the other is the spouse of someone who is soon to be a veteran--whenever he leaves.
Adult and Family Services Coordinator, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
He's due in a couple of months.
NDP
Peter Stoffer NDP Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS
A couple of months. So there's another one; you're going to be the spouse of a veteran. The Auditor General has stated, and I remember saying this to you before in a report, that the Government of Canada does not have a legal obligation to look after the families, but it has a moral obligation. I asked her if they should have a legal obligation. She didn't say yes or no; she said that is something the government should look at.
In your view, as a veteran and working here, should the government have a legal obligation to the family? I'd like both of you to respond, please.
Executive Director, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
I think it absolutely should. You're asking the family to make a tremendous amount of sacrifice. They're not the ones who signed up to serve Queen and country; it was the member. The family suffers by default. I think that needs to be recognized legally.
Adult and Family Services Coordinator, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
I'd have to echo that as well, being a family member. Absolutely, it needs to be supported through that way.
NDP
Peter Stoffer NDP Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS
Well, in conclusion, I want to thank you for the tremendous work you do, and your husband as well for the service, and you for your service. I like to brag that Shearwater is the number one base in Canada. I can only see, if you read the paper about the Chicoutimi issue and everything else, that your services are going to be required more and more and more.
Betty is right that more people are coming to us looking for funding. Possibly one of the issues for us, although we can't poke our head into DND, is to see what can be done to assist you to make sure the financial and human resources are there to assist you as you assist them in their transition to becoming veterans.
Thank you.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Anders
Mr. Parent is showing me a number two on his fingers, and I don't know what it is referring to.
Bloc
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Rob Anders
Monsieur Perron, you're coming up just after Mr. Sweet, if you can wait.
Conservative
Conservative
David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON
Thank you very much, and not only for what you do today, but I also understand you were a serving member of the force. So thank you very much for your dedication to this country and for putting your life on the line, and now, of course, for making sure you serve people who put their lives on the line. I can't say too much about that.
Have you heard of an organization called the Centre? It's a departmental initiative. Have you done any work with the Centre? Have you been in contact with them at all? Have they been in contact with you?
Executive Director, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
We've done a bit of work at the local level together. That's one of the silos I'm speaking of.
Conservative
David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON
All right, but you have done some work together, I guess--small projects?
Executive Director, Military Family Resource Centre, Halifax and Region
We have invited them on the road with us when we're going out to the communities and the families, to educate our families. We're doing our best to encourage them so that they can educate everybody.
Conservative
David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON
Well, that's one of the questions I wanted to ask. You've invited them. You've invited Veterans Affairs on the road. That's great.
The other question is, do they come?
