The Canada Retirement Information Centre (CRIC) could not have picked a more ideal day to celebrate military families, and Marketing Breakthroughs was there help lend its support.With both the War Memorial and Peace Tower looking on from across the Rideau Canal on a beautiful sunny day, about a thousand people gathered inside Ottawa’s historic Government Conference Centre to kick off Army Week and thank families from CFB Petawawa.
“We think an afternoon of worry-free fun is the best way to show the military just how much they mean to us,” said CRIC President Franco Frangione.
The event featured speeches by local Mauril Bélanger and John Baird, local Members of Parliament, as well as Lieutenant-Colonel Keith Rudderham, Base Commander at CFB Petawawa. There was a ‘best dressed in red’ contest, where attendees showed off their “Support Our Troops” outfits, and free boat tours courtesy of Paul’s Boat Lines. All this in addition to a delicious free Barbecue.
The entertainment kept up throughout the afternoon, as stilt-walkers, jugglers, magicians, and a live band performed for the attendees, most of whom were dressed in their favourite red shirt.The event went off without a hitch, thanks to the help of the CRIC, Paul’s Boat Lines, and members of the Marketing Breakthroughs team, who donated their time to organize the event and even paint some faces.
"Events such as this allows soldiers’ families a venue to celebrate,” said Lieutenant-Colonel Rudderham. “It makes them feel extra special about the fact that their mother or father, brother or sister is in the military."
