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Ride with Fire present cheque to Boots on the Ground

By Casandra Turnbull

A rather new Canada Day tradition is picking up some steam and after its second annual ride earlier this month, organizers were able to present a cheque to its supporting cause

Ride with Fire organizers, along with a couple dozen ride participants, gathered at the Airport Fire Station on July 19th , to present a $2,000 cheque to the Boots on the Ground organization The money was raised during the second annual Ride with Fire cycling event that took place on July 1st . It was created by Brant Fire Captain Mark Stouffer in 2022. The century ride (100km) spans all eight County of Brant Fire Stations and was designed to accommodate riders of all skill level and age groups, including families Riders have the option of cruising through all fire stations where they can stop for refreshments before moving on to the next. It’s an excellent opportunity for the fire department to host open houses and recognize first responders, while raising money for Boots on the Ground

Stouffer said next year’s Ride with Fire will be bigger and better. He has big plans of expanding the concept. “Next year Fire will host the ride, but it will be open to and include all first responders,” he said, adding this will align more with the cause the ride supports

Boots on the Ground is an anonymous helpline providing confidential and anonymous peer support to First Responders across the province, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It is a charitable organization completely run and staffed by volunteers

Boots on the Ground has one chapter located in Ontario and a second one is set to launch in Alberta in September. The program works because a lot of the anonymous peer supporters are PTSD survivors themselves and can provide valuable support, conversation and resources to those in need. The Ontario chapter consists of over 100 peer supporters and over the last five years they’ve fielded more than 2,300 calls, said Steven Wilton, who was on hand Wednesday night to accept the cheque on behalf of Boots on the Ground. He retired from the Military Reserve but also worked as a volunteer fire fighter and with the Toronto Paramedic Services over the span of his career.

He strongly feels that Boots on the Ground provides invaluable support, filling a gap in service to first responders who often experience PTSD as a result of a traumatizing incident or years of traumatizing moments on the job.

“It’s now becoming a well-known issue. We (first responders) are human We don’t think or talk about what’s happening we just go to the next call and that’s not a healthy way to live ” Wilton said it’s grassroot events like Ride with Fire that continue to help fund critical Boots on the Ground services.

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