Teal Up Day recognizes military children in CFB Shilo

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This article was published 28/04/2022 (1408 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

SHILO — On Thursday morning, dozens of kids from École O’Kelly School and École La Source lined up outside in anticipation of Teal Up Day, a celebration recognizing military children across the country all started by an initiative in the community.

Despite the brief snow flurries and cold wind, military children in Shilo cheered with excitement as organizers from the Shilo Military Family Resource Centre (MFRC) arranged for a big parade filled with different military service vehicles and a walk with military families who live at the base.

With April marking the month of the military child, Shannon Chapman, the youth programs co-ordinator for MFRC, and Stephanie Laviolette, the former youth programs facilitator for MFRC, said the feeling in the air and emotion from the community was overwhelming.

“You can totally feel the energy difference this year with everyone being able to be outside and see the support they have in the community as well,” Laviolette said.

Chapman said with COVID-19 restrictions easing up, it has been very refreshing to be able to host and organize some bigger events in the community. Last year, the two went to each school and met with each classroom individually outside to describe the message behind Teal Up Day.

“We’re able to do some big events for the kids, and they actually get to see the impact and we get to see the impact, which is completely different from last year,” Chapman said.

“That feeling alone was worth it.”

Laviolette, who made the trip over with her family from Ontario for the day, was instrumental in getting the idea off the ground last year.

After taking inspiration from Purple Up, a day that celebrates the children of United States military families on April 15, Laviolette said it was time to create a colour and day that recognized the hardships military children face in Canada.

She chose the colour teal while brainstorming different options, trying to encompass blue for the air force, green for the army and a combination of blue and white for the navy. The closest result to that combination was teal, and the idea was born.

“It had to be done,” Laviolette said with enthusiasm.

On the fences of each schoolyard on the base, teal streamers flew in the wind as each child wore their teal-coloured shirt with pride.

Before the first police cruiser passed by, children were anxiously waiting for each service vehicle to honk their horn and they would not be disappointed as three fire trucks, a couple of semi-trucks and a large military transport truck saluted everyone in attendance.

Children from the Early Learning and Childcare Centre and Les Amis De La Source also took part in the parade from the base.

As previously reported by the Sun, Chapman said she was beyond excited to recruit 26 other MFRC locations across the country to celebrate April 28 as Teal Up Day at different levels of participation.

She was able to reach out to co-ordinators in Winnipeg, Moose Jaw, Edmonton, Petawawa, Halifax and other facilities, some of which also arranged for special activities similar to the Shilo parade and evening barbecue. The two were thrilled to see the original local initiative catch attention at a national level.

“We wanted Canadian military children to have their own special celebration,” Chapman said.

Laviolette shares a strong connection with the military, as she has continued to raise three children with her husband, a retired officer.

Her family lived in Shilo for 12 years, and she described the challenges her children and those around her experienced over the past decade. Often, it was the fear of the unknown that caused her family stress in that work environment.

“You just never know where the day is going to go, where the month is going to go, where the year is going to go,” Laviolette said.

“For your own children and my own children, they had friends all over Canada. They have started from kindergarten to the age they are now, their friends come and go. The military community, the Shilo MFRC becomes your family.”

She described the one constant element during that time was making close relationships with other military families and their children making friends, but knew those relationships could be temporary.

With most relatives of family living far away from the base, it’s the people around Shilo who became extensions of family for her and her children.

“It’s very diverse and things are always changing, it’s not the same.

“We live now in a small town [in Ontario] and there’s nobody in the military and it’s a completely different culture.”

Chapman said that feeling of being uprooted and having to make new friends really inspired their idea behind showing the resiliency military children in the country continue to display.

“The most amazing thing about seeing Teal Up go national is that children know no matter where they go, they are not alone,” Chapman said.

“That impact alone speaks a thousand words.”

Later on this year, Chapman is looking forward to being able to offer more cooking programming, arts and crafts and summer field trips to the children at the base and is delighted to have more involvement from the Shilo community.

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