Pride for Being a Part of the Games

Interviewer: What message would you send to those people in the military that haven’t had the opportunities that you have had to be a part of this week and be a part of the games? What would you say to them? It’s already affected a lot of my friends because like I said I have been a part of the military community for a long time. There are friends that I know that never really heard of the Invictus Games, have prior service and the same thing with Soldier On and I’ve told them now the word’s out. They are now saying, “Wow, I can do this too.” So it’s giving a lot of people hope and knowing that they can be part of that team again. That’s a huge thing is being part of a team and wearing the maple leaf. When we walked into that stadium of the opening ceremonies it was like wow, you know, a lot of pride and everybody was pumped up and really excited about being there. All the hard work that we did like starting from our first camp in Victoria. When we first met each other in Victoria it was like I didn’t know anybody on the team and, you know, you are sort of feeling people out and getting to meet new people and all that. And then our second camp in Kingston it’s like okay we’re starting to come together as a unit, you’re getting to know more people. You’re making new friends and then you know by the time we wrapped up and we make it here, you know, it’s like we are a big group, brothers and sisters. I have made lifelong friends here now and people I probably would never had met had I not been part of this team so, you know, it’s very inspiring and like I said I’ve got a lot of friends now that I know will be applying for the 2018 games in Sydney, Australia because they want to experience all the things that we’ve been doing. Like I said this week in Toronto has been incredible, the way the community has come together for us. Just look at all the venues and it’s like wow you’re gobsmacked by it all. It’s hard to wipe the smile off your face. We are doing so well!

Ms. Bate speaks about her involvement in 2017 Invictus Games and how it gave her a sense of belonging.

Sandy Bate

Ms. Sandy Bate was born July 11, 1960 in Chatham, New Brunswick. Prior to joining the military, she was employed with DND for ten years. At the age of 28 she chose to join the military and with her clerical skills and sports background saw fit to join the air force. Throughout Ms. Bate’s career she had several postings across Canada and because of family connection in Comox, BC made a big decision to switch over to the navy as junior clerk and become part of the crew of the HMCS Huron. Eventually, due to declining health, Ms. Bate was medically discharged in 2009. Being part of the Invictus Games 2017 has been instrumental in providing a positive outlook to her retired life. She represented Canada as part of the Team Canada Golf team, an initiative she is most proud of. Ms. Bate now resides in Victoria, BC with her family.