What Moms Say
Happy Mother’s Day to all the SAR moms out there! We asked our Saskatoon SAR members who are moms to share their thoughts on being a mom in SAR.
“As a mom and a volunteer at SSAR, I encourage my children to give back to the community that provides so much support to us as individuals. Being part of the SSAR team is one way to do that.” — Dianne Allen
Shelly (centre) and her team are excited about navigating back to the exact spot they were supposed to!
“Being part of SSAR has been one of the best volunteer experiences. It is an organization that you can be proud to be a member of. As a mom and someone still working full time, the people of SSAR are understanding of people’s limitations and don’t judge and know that sometimes life gets in the way. There are so many things that I have learned since joining. For example my first aid, survival and safety skills, and confidence in executing those skills. ‘Volunteers don’t necessarily have all the time but we have heart.'” — Shelly Ottley
“Well I have a couple of really moody teenagers. My 15 year old daughter is much fun on a good day. 😀 I just started in SSAR; however, it’s tough balancing their activities with SAR as they are in sports. I am thinking it will get easier as they get older.” – Stacy Senko
“I like being part of SSAR because having the opportunity to help someone in need is important. I would hope that if my child or a member of my family went missing that there would be someone there to help look for them. So I want to be there for another family. And have them feel like we are a bunch of people that care a lot. Balancing SAR and home and work has been interesting. It’s scary at my age starting something new and meeting new people. I’m hoping that my kids will see that helping people, with no strings attached, is an amazing feeling and that it’s ok to do something scary. I also balance dog training (canine search and rescue) and learning field tech stuff and going to Alberta for the training. It’s fun and it gets me doing something fun that I can include my kids in. I am hoping this shows by example that helping another person in need without expecting compensation is a good thing. I want to leave this gift for my family. The gift of helping in a moment’s notice without thinking twice. I know my family can. I think they just need to see it in action….so I will show them how much they mean to me. And how much I appreciate if someone were to help my family.” – Karin MacDonald
Rebecca enroute to setting out “clues” for teams to find during training.
“Remember the time when my girls participated in the May fundraiser by videoing what they have in their backpacks? I’ve never been so proud of my girls! Over the years SAR has given me the outlet to combine two things I love – being outdoors and teaching. My girls have participated in SAR events and always enjoyed being part of the SAR family. My volunteer roll in SAR has also shown my girls that sometimes we have to make choices and sacrifices to help someone else. I’ve had to leave family events before and have had to spend time busy managing activations while they patiently wait for me. They have learnt that we do things because others are suffering and SAR is my outlet to give my time to help others. They may not choose SAR in their future but they will see the value of volunteering in any capacity and they’ll enjoy our outdoor time along the way. Plus it’s a super proud moment when I go to their class and they are excited to show their friends their packs, brag about what I do, and talk about Hug-A-Tree advice while I sit back and listen!” — Rebecca Basset
