{"id":41637,"date":"2023-06-23T01:43:42","date_gmt":"2023-06-23T08:43:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=41637"},"modified":"2023-06-22T08:18:52","modified_gmt":"2023-06-22T15:18:52","slug":"honouring-human-spirit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2023\/06\/23\/honouring-human-spirit\/","title":{"rendered":"Honouring human spirit"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lorne Segal, chair of the Courage to Come Back Awards. (photo from kingswoodproperties.com<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>\n

This year marked the 25th anniversary of the Courage to Come Back Awards \u2013 and 18 years since Lorne Segal has been chair of the event.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first year I attended Courage as my father\u2019s guest, I thought it was just another event \u2013 until I saw the box of tissues on the table. That\u2019s when I knew Courage was different,\u201d Segal told the Independent.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cCourage is so important because of the stories,\u201d he said. \u201cThey give us hope. The stories that are shared every year move me and the whole room to tears, they put our own lives into perspective, and remind us of what the human spirit is capable of.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd, of course, there\u2019s the fact that Courage raises funds for such important programs at Coast Mental Health, which simply wouldn\u2019t happen if it weren\u2019t for the generosity of those in the room, who are inspired to give thanks to the stories our recipients graciously share with us. Programs like peer-support training, brain training, meals, art therapy, therapeutic gardening and much more are only possible thanks to donations \u2013 and they truly make such a difference for those who are able to access them.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year, the awards dinner took place at the Vancouver Convention Centre on June 9, and the honourees were Jodi Gray (mental health category), Rachel Goldman (medical), John Oakley (addiction), Patricia Henman (physical rehabilitation) and Danielle Laviolette (youth). The event included a special tribute to Segal\u2019s father, Joe Segal.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe always said, \u2018Give until it hurts.\u2019 His commitment to giving back to his community was such an inspiration to me and to so many around him,\u201d said Segal. \u201cAfter he passed away last year at the age of 97, I wanted to create an opportunity to share his message one last time, and to honour his incredible work over his long life. It was really moving for me and my family to hear so many people talk about how my father had touched their lives \u2013 I continue to be inspired by him every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Calling it \u201ctruly a family event,\u201d Segal said his children Matthew and Chanelle have been coming with him since they were little, and \u201cthere\u2019s no doubt the recipients\u2019 stories have shaped their lives and inspired them in their own pursuits. My wonderful wife Melita\u2019s unwavering support for Courage and Coast amazes me every day,\u201d he continued. \u201cShe may not be officially chair but she has certainly played a big part in the success of the event \u2013 she is always talking about the event to anyone she meets and many who attend do so because of her word of mouth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many other members of the family also attended on June 9, said Segal, including his brother Gary and wife Nanci. \u201cMy sisters Tracy and Sandra could not be there but were part of our family donation in Joe\u2019s honour,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Reflecting on his 18 years as chair, Segal said, \u201cHonestly, I didn\u2019t realize it was going to be this long when I signed up for the job, but, every year, I am moved by the recipient\u2019s stories and just know they need to be shared.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwenty-five years ago, people were not talking about mental health,\u201d he added. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t a \u2018sexy\u2019 cause, as my father would have said, and the Courage to Come Back Awards have helped to create a lot of awareness and conversation. It\u2019s my hope that these awards continue to help make us all more understanding\u2026. It\u2019s hard to believe we had 1,700 in the ballroom this year after four years without an in-person event, when it wasn\u2019t that long ago we were barely allowed 10 people in one room! But we have continued to innovate and find ways to share our recipient\u2019s stories and raise funds for Coast Mental Health Foundation.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information, visit coastmentalhealth.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lorne Segal, chair of the Courage to Come Back Awards. (photo from kingswoodproperties.com) This year marked the 25th anniversary of the Courage to Come Back Awards \u2013 and 18 years since Lorne Segal has been chair of the event. \u201cThe first year I attended Courage as my father\u2019s guest, I thought it was just another […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":41638,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[8192,5244,3128,7114,2763],"class_list":["post-41637","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","tag-coast-mental-health","tag-courage-to-come-back","tag-fundraising","tag-lorne-segal","tag-philanthropy"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41637","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41637"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41637\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41638"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41637"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41637"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41637"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}