Introduction

“We all have our stories. I deserve to be here” are the words etched on a bracelet on Sergeant Rufca Hanna’s wrist. It was a gift from her Invictus Games coach and she never takes it off. The motto reminds her that mental and physical health go hand-in-hand.

“I wear it proudly because it shows me that there is a life after the military. There is a life after everything that happened to you. I want to do well for myself and my country, but I want to show up for every one of my teammates,” says Hanna.

Getting here

Hanna, who has served for almost 24 years in the army, was deployed to both Bosnia and Afghanistan. She is now training for the 2025 Invictus Games which take place in Vancouver and Whistler this winter. She says it’s been a positive experience for her in the midst of her PTSD diagnosis and upcoming medical release.

Although her military career had many highs—seeing different parts of the world and making lasting friendships—she says it also had a lot of lows.

“I’ve been struggling for a long time, but I just kept moving forward with my career thinking, ‘I can do this’ until one day I couldn't anymore and I broke down.  At that point, I decided it was time to go see my doctor and seek help because I was going down a road that I didn’t want to be on,” she explained.

“I’ve been struggling for a long time, but I just kept moving forward with my career thinking, ‘I can do this’ until one day I couldn't anymore and I broke down.”

Team Canada – Invictus

When the opportunity to join Team Canada presented itself, she was unsure. But after her “very honest” application was accepted, she says she realized the chance to compete with other soldiers with similar experiences would be the push she needed to propel herself forward.

Hanna will represent Team Canada in Nordic skiing, indoor rowing and—her favourite—wheelchair rugby. She’s encouraged and motivated by those who conquer big challenges, like Paralympians and adaptive athletes.

“I see that, it gives me the motivation to say, ‘I have all these capabilities, but what am I doing with them?’ I see people overcome so much that it's teaching me how to overcome what I've gone through.”

Veterans offer each other a unique type of understanding, she says. “They’re the kind of friends you can call at three in the morning and they will be right there for you.”

Hanna’s initial reluctance quickly faded when she found out she had been accepted onto the Invictus Team for 2025. Upon arriving at her first camp, she realized how open and accepting her teammates were. She instantly felt like part of the team.

“The other athletes were helpful and communicative, it just made you feel like you were at home.” The bond built with her fellow Team Canada members pushes her to work hard to improve her athletic skills.

“They’re the kind of friends you can call at three in the morning and they will be right there for you.”

Challenges and changes

Hanna has never been resistant to challenges and change.

She joined the military in 2001 at age 36 because the frequent deployments of her military spouse (at that time) made it hard for her to keep jobs. She figured she might as well be deployed right along with him.

She was working at the YMCA in her hometown, Fredericton, New Brunswick, when she applied for the military clerk position. Soon after, she got the call she was being sent to Quebec for basic training.

Her first posting was to Edmonton with the First Combat Engineers Regiment, where she deployed to Bosnia and worked with the volunteer firefighting team. “I was a Private, but I deployed in a Master Corporal position because I had done the training with the squadron to go to Bosnia,” she says.
She deployed to Afghanistan in 2006 as a human resources clerk.

As most soldiers and Veterans know, the job description in a war zone is never exactly as advertised. “But you had to do whatever came up, right? It was not easy. We went through a lot. I suffered a lot of trauma. I witnessed some really tough situations. I lost a close friend while I was there, and many other friends were shot or injured. After that, I started having frequent nightmares,” Hanna explained.

After Afghanistan, she started to suffer symptoms of PTSD. For example, loud noises really impacted her. One day a garbage truck dropped a dumpster to the pavement and the loud bang brought her to her hands and knees on the floor. “This happened among a safe family home and environment, as my brother looked at me and asked if was OK?”

Some of the trauma Hanna experienced was at the hands of fellow soldiers. She has endured discrimination and harassment. “The physical injuries, the mental injuries, and all of the harassment eventually compounded over the years. Every day I struggle to do things, I struggle to get up, I struggle to go out, it’s a struggle being around a crowd of people, but I push myself to do better,” she says.

“There is a life after everything that happened to you. I want to do well for myself and my country, but I want to show up for every one of my teammates.”

Optimistic future

Since her PTSD diagnosis, Hanna has been comforted by the full support of her large extended family (nine siblings), some of whom will be cheering her on when she competes in Vancouver.

Training for the games has helped her get fit and feel more optimistic about her future. “I needed to find a purpose in life. Part of my purpose in life now is Invictus. That was the part that pulled me out and showed me that I do have a purpose, and that there is a light at the end of a dark tunnel and that I can live a better life. I haven't had that in my life for a long time, but I'm ready for that now.”

“Part of my purpose in life now is Invictus. That was the part that pulled me out and showed me that I do have a purpose…I haven't had that in my life for a long time, but I'm ready for that now.”

Video: Rufca Hanna

With courage, integrity and loyalty, Rufca Hanna is leaving her mark. She is one of our Canadian Veterans. Discover more stories.