The Army, Navy and Airforce Veterans in Canada (ANAVETS) Bras d’Or #381 is a small organization that works hard to create a sense of belonging and kinship for Veterans in the sparsely populated Nova Scotian community of Bras D’Or, Cape Breton. ANAVETS members provide informal peer support in a rural setting and maintain ties among Veterans after service. Members organize regular visits to Veterans in hospital, fundraise together for various causes, and work to support Veterans and their families within the community.
Transcript
Well, we only have a few Veterans in our unit, but all of our Veterans know that we will help them in any way. Most Vets don't ask for much help, but we will then be there for them no matter what they need. This unit here, we go down to the Veterans Memorial Hospital in Sydney Mines. We have a pre-Remembrance Day ceremony for the Veterans and the residents that can’t get out due to mobility issues.
We have Christmas with the Veterans, we go down and bring gifts to them. We also have a little Christmas party for the kids. We hold memorial dart shoots, all money raised is returned back to the local community. It's a pillar of the community.
The people there welcomed me with open arms. They made me feel like family since I got in there. No questions asked, come in, join us, be part of us. I just want to thank them for being who they are. These guys just help me out. They probably don't know how much they helped me out, but I feel a lot better that I can go out and have a place to go and a bit of society and not feel judged. I love the organization. The organization is just wonderful.