Canadian War Museum’s Operation Veteran receives $35K donation from Montréal-area schools

July 29, 2014

Ottawa, Ontario, Juy 29, 2014 — The Canadian War Museum’s popular Operation Veteran program, which builds bridges between Canadian veterans and younger generations, received a big boost today from four Montréal-area secondary schools. Students at Loyola High School, Sacred Heart School of Montréal, Queen of Angels Academy and Villa Maria presented Operation Veteran with a cheque for $35,000, which the schools raised through a walk-a-thon held on May 3, 2014 and organized in honour of the First Word War Centenary.

“I am deeply touched by the generosity and extraordinary spirit of these teenagers, and I want to thank them all for working together in support of Canadian veterans,” said Dr. Paul Kavanagh, who established Operation Veteran in 2009. “Because they put their hearts into a cause they believe in, we will be able to serve almost 3,200 complimentary meals to Canadian veterans who visit the War Museum and further support the Canadian War Museum’s educational program Supply Line.”

Dr. Kavanagh founded Operation Veteran after a moving encounter with a veteran who couldn’t afford to buy coffee and soup in the War Museum’s cafeteria. The program, supported by school fundraising activities and private donors, provides meal vouchers to military veterans and invites Canadian high-school students to Ottawa for Remembrance Day.

“The purpose of Operation Veteran is to demonstrate respect for the men and women who have served this country, and to help perpetuate the memory of their invaluable contributions for future generations,” said Mark O’Neill, President and CEO of the Canadian Museum of History, which oversees the Canadian War Museum. “This impressive donation from the students at Loyola, Sacred Heart, Queen of Angels and Villa Maria once again proves that Canadian students understand and appreciate the importance of military history and the sacrifices made by veterans. I think it’s wonderful that they want to honour veterans with such a generous contribution.”

Students from Loyola, Sacred Heart and Queen of Angels high schools have donated funds and sent students to participate in Operation Veteran’s Remembrance Day activities every year since the program’s inauguration. Villa Maria has been participating since 2013.

Since 2009, Operation Veteran has offered more than 5,000 meals to veterans. More recently, Operation Veteran has enabled the Canadian War Museum to launch the Supply Line program. Supply Line offers schools across the country the opportunity to borrow authentic and reproduction First World War artifacts from the Museum’s collections for use in hands-on classroom activities, allowing students to see, touch and better understand the past. This program will begin in September 2014.

For more information about Operation Veteran visit us at https://www.warmuseum.ca/about-us/get-involved/support/operation-veteran

The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. Its mission is to promote public understanding of Canada’s military history in its personal, national, and international dimensions.

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Media contacts:

Yasmine Mingay
Manager, Public Affairs
Canadian War Museum
Telephone: 819-776-8608
yasmine.mingay@warmuseum.ca
Avra Gibbs Lamey
Communications and Media Relations Officer
Canadian War Museum
Telephone: 819-776-8607
avra.gibbs-lamey@warmuseum.ca