It was a hero’s welcome for 170 wounded veterans and first responders who landed at Saskatoon’s international airport on Thursday for the Wounded Warriors Weekend (WWW).
“These people deserve the respect and honor that’s owing them,” said WWW founder Blake Emmons.
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In early July, the Saskatchewan Legislature officially proclaimed August long weekend to be Wounded Warriors Weekend.
The event allows veterans, soldiers and first responders suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injuries to help each other heal.
The participants will spend July 28 to Aug. 1 in the Tobin Lake area, relaxing and enjoying a time of camaraderie.
“We have that common bond that we will help each other, we will be there, no man or woman will be left behind,” explained participant Chekotah Bronson.
Bronson is a residential school survivor and was in the military for three years.
“It was only recently, the last ten years or so, that I found out what PTSD was. Why did I blackout? Why did I get hurt? All these things and not knowing why,” Bronson said.
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He says the weekend gives him time to talk with people who share in his experiences.
“They won’t sit, talk and really bare their soul to psychologists, but they will bare their to each other.”
That’s exactly the soothing effect founder Blake Emmons hoped for.
“It’s amazing the healing that takes place when you’re talking to someone who says ‘I understand’ and you know that they do,” Emmons said.
READ MORE: ‘Self-stigma’ remains a barrier for military mental health: psychiatrist
Debbie Kent has been serving in the military for 32 years and explained that going to WWW for the first time in 2013 changed her life.
“I can tell you it was a keystone in my healing journey. I can pinpoint to that weekend being the real start of my healing,” Kent said.
Participants left the airport in a cavalcade and were surprised by residents, who lined up along the streets to pay tribute to the wounded warriors.
WATCH BELOW: Wounded Warriors Weekend brings together men and women who sacrificed much for their country