With Remembrance Day approaching, many of us are taking the time to reflect upon Canada’s fallen warriors, those who have given their lives to defend our country and the values we stand for. But often during this solemn time of the year, we forget about the veterans who have returned to our country physically wounded or emotionally scarred.
The reality is, many Canadian veterans live with operational stress injuries; a persistent psychological difficulty resulting from operational duties performed while serving in the Canadian armed forces, or in first responder positions. Many of these veterans struggle to resume their lives as civilians.
Located in Fredericton, NB, Vincovis Strength and Support seeks to aid those veterans suffering from operational stress injuries through physical exercise. “If you are physically fit, you generally feel good about yourself,” says Amy Palmer. For many veterans, the Vincovis program is the first step in becoming “better”.
Vincovis Strength and Support runs group functional fitness for veterans and first responders living who are visibly and non-visibly wounded and are looking to enrich their physical and mental wellbeing. A team of coaches and professionals work to help these individuals build their physical strength, and therefore their mental strength. “The reality is that many veterans with operational stress injuries spend their days in a dark place. Vincovis gives them an opportunity to get out of their basements and use the exercise program as a release of tension,” says Palmer.
Last month, Vincovis held their first ever Vincovis 158 Challenge, a fundraising event to raise funds for Vincovis. The Challenge was developed to honour the 158 Canadian soldiers who gave their lives in Afghanistan. To mirror the camaraderie of the Canadian Forces, the Challenge was formed as a team event. Teams of 3 completed a 6km trail run, followed by a weight carry. Between the 3 team members, they had to carry 158lbs, 158 meters.
Vincovis turned to Entripy for custom t-shirts and custom tank tops for event participants to wear during the challenge and to show their support for Vincovis around town after the event. “When people sign up for an event like this they often expect something they can take home to commemorate the event,” says Palmer.
The custom t-shirts and personalized tank tops screen printed by Entripy featured the Vincovis Strength & Support logo on the front to help raise awareness for the work of the organization. 21 people participated in the first event and several purchased custom t-shirts for their family members who were not at the event to help spread awareness further. Vincovis hopes that participants will wear their Vincovis custom t-shirts everywhere they go to boost their presence in the community and have even more participants in the Vincovis 158 Challenge next year.
Here’s what they had to say about the experience using Entripy:
“Our participants were so happy with the t-shirts and tank tops that many purchased extras for family members who were not at the event. The low cost provided by Entripy meant that more of the registration fees are going directly to help more veterans and first responders access this program.”
