A heartfelt thank you to all who gave their lives for our freedom.

Nov 11

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts, Thoughts & Observations | 1 Comment

poppy_icon_transpOn this day of remembrance I am humbled by the thought that so many of my fellow Canadians sacrificed their lives so that I can enjoy the freedom to live the amazing life that I do.

To every woman and man that gave their lives in defense of freedom and the country I call home, THANK YOU!

As we come together today to remember all those who have fought and died for our freedom, I sincerely hope that no one should ever have to again suffer or give their life because of another humans decision to wage war. We are now a mature race, we have no excuse for intolerance and the need for war. We MUST find a peaceful solution to our differences. There is no longer an excuse for killing thousands of our race because of ideology or worse still ego or greed.

 

For everyone who has died, been wounded or disabled or who have been affected by the devastation of war… I hope you find peace.

 

For all who are bereaved… I hope you find comfort;

 

For those who are faced with mental, emotional or spiritual suffering because of the things they have endured… I pray you’ll find wholeness.

 

For all who caring for the sick and working for peace… I wish you all the power of the universe and for all who lead our world in this new millennium, I pray that you will guide your actions and decisions by wisdom and compassion.

 

During our time of memorial today, may we be stirred in our sentiments and sympathies. May our gratitude for our freedom be rekindled. May we seek peaceful resolutions to strife around the world. May we accept each others cultures, customs and uniqueness and learn to appreciate each others differences, instead of hating them. May we learn to relinquish our fear, vanity, pride, greed and stubbornness so that we may never again inflict the pain of war on another human being.

 

A few years ago I was at the memorial service at Toronto General Hospital. I would like to share with you the poem that was read that morning. Thank you Derek S.

 

“They shall not grow old, as we that are left to grow old;

Age shall not weary them nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning,

We will remember them. Lest we ever forget.”

 

Namaste,

Chad

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A call for help

Aug 8

Posted by Chad in Time For Change | 1 Comment

I am sending out a call to you to ask for your help. This summer I am working on organizing the inagural year of a charity fundraising relay run to end kids cancer. We are very much in need of volunteers to help us with running these events, so I am calling out to everyone I can reach to jump in and help us, help those who are fighting to end kids cancer.

We have a number of teams in Whistler, Toronto and Ottawa that have been fundraising and training for the last few months and this fall each of them will run between 4-10km each along our 100km routes in their respective cities. The Squamish to Whistler run is on the 27th of August, the Toronto to Collingwood run is on Spetember 24th and the Ottawa to Montabello run will be on Oct 15th.

We really need your help, so wether it’s assembling participant packets, patching up folks on the medical crew, pre event setup, helping with parking, maning an exchange point along the route, being part of the set up and tear down crew, or blowing up balloons, we need your heart and your hands!

Please follow the links below and sign up to lend a hand for this great cause.

Vancouver – http://thesearsgreatcanadianrun.ca/?id=10
Toronto – http://thesearsgreatcanadianrun.ca/?id=26
Ottawa – http://thesearsgreatcanadianrun.ca/?id=27

If you are unable to come out, well that’s life and I understand, but please pass this along to everyone in your network by emailing, sharing, tweeting, linking…. do what ever and however you can and with your help, we’ll be able to find enough people to help us run these events.

If you would like to sign up to participate (i.e. fundraise and run), then click here: http://therun.ca pick your location and sign up.

Thank you!

Chad Weir | Whistler Event Logistics Manager & National Series Volunteer Manager
InField Marketing Group | The Great Canadian Event Series

Two letters… two sides. The truth, our city is not happy with the actions of a small few.

Jul 11

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts | No Comments

Following is a letter of apology from Tim Kwong, a rioter, who turned himself in to the Police.

A Letter of Appoligy to Vancouver and Family and Friends
Hey Everyone! The status is : I Turned myself in to the VPD today at 12pm I am now being charged on 4 counts. I am Truly Sorry for what i have done !!! I have no excuse for my actions during the Riot. To my Friends, Family, Coworkers, and of course all of Vancouver and BC i am SORRY for what i have done. I would like to say on my behalf that I LOVE VANCOUVER ! I’ve been Born n Raised here all my life !! and that This Town means everything to me !!! again i understand that my actions caused did not show any of that ! But i hope you one day see that i do care about this town and my friends n family and this is NOT like me !! I am ashamed at what i have done, I know i may never gain the respect of this town again. But I PROMISE that i will do whatever i can to make this up !! I am a big believer in Cleaning up your mess !! I WILL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES to make things right ! I hope this will insite some of the other rioters to do the right thing and turn themselves in !!!! I will do whatever it takes to help out and clean this town up and do what i can to prevent actions like this from ever happening in our town again. I know I deserve all the hate ! but please be respectful and don’t hate on any of my friends or family or co workers since these actions are only caused by ME and ME only !!!! Again SORRY VANCOUVER ! SORRY BC !!

Below, letter that was written in response to Tim Kwong’s apology from a nurse working the E.R. at St. Paul’s Hospital here in Vancouver:

Tim,

Just because you can string an apologetic sentence together does not mean you are sorry. Perhaps I should make you aware of the consequences of your action. To you, it’s just an overturned car that you set on fire. To me, it’s walking into an overflowing ER and helping treat a girl with a severe asthma attack because she was exposed to the noxious, acrid smoke of a burning vehicle.. To her, it was just a chance to be a part of a group cheering for her team. Little did she know that later on, we were thinking of sticking a breathing tube down her throat if her condition did not improve.

To you (yes, I am lumping you with all the douche bag rioters in the ER that night) it’s a chance to congregate in the ER waiting room, pounding on the triage window demanding to be seen for teargas exposure and cuts from looting and fighting, while posturing and bragging about how you kicked the crap out of somebody and smashed shit up. To me, it’s taking my time away from the little old quiet lady having chest pain or taking time away from the person you “shit-kicked” for trying to stop the looting.

To you, it’s just a fight. To me, it’s the ER social worker looking for a teddy bear to console a 4 year old girl because she just witnessed her dad get a broken nose as he was trying to get his daughter out of the hot zone.

To you, it’s writing a letter saying “you will do whatever it takes to help clean the city.” To me, it’s walking home after a long shift and seeing all these people at 7:30 in the morning armed with garbage bags cleaning up YOUR mess and realizing that these people have more class in their pinky finger than you could ever muster in your whole life.

To me, it’s getting home to shower, only to have my elderly neighbour knock on my door and ask me if he should make an appointment with his doctor because he was experiencing shortness of breath which later turned to chest pain in the morning. He did not think about leaving his window open as he went to bed at 9 o’clock. The smoke from all the burning cars made it to our building, into his room and triggered his asthma, which then raised his heart rate, which then became a small heart attack. I asked him why he didn’t go to the ER, and he answered, “I turned on the tv this morning and saw the rioting, I did not want to be a burden.” To you, it’s just an overturned car that you set on fire.

Why am I blaming you for all this? Because you are the instigator. You ask people to leave your family, friends and co-workers alone?! I think they need to know how much of a colossal douche you are. Remember that your parents worked themselves to the bone so they can move to this country and give you your god-given right to flip cars over and set them on fire.

You, Tim Kwong, are a douchtard. Apology not accepted.

— from a E.R. nurse

Question?

Oct 26

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts | No Comments

Is this really the kind of world we want to live in?

I don’t, help us change our future  by changing ourselves first.

Join us to create change.  Click here

Some good advice.

Oct 24

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts, Thoughts & Observations | No Comments

Read this…I mean REALLY read this.

“If the universe brings you to it, it will bring you through it.”

There’s some mighty fine advice in these words, even if you’re not superstitious. Please make sure to pass this on.

ONE.  Give people more than they expect and do it happily.

TWO. Marry someone you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.

THREE.  Don’t believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.

FOUR. When you say, ‘I love you ,’ freak’n mean it.

FIVE.  When you say, ‘I’m sorry,’ look the person in the eye.

SIX. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.

SEVEN.  Believe in love at first sight.

EIGHT.  Never laugh at anyone’s dream. People who don’t have dreams don’t have much.

NINE. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it’s the only way to live life completely.

TEN. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.

ELEVEN. Don’t judge people by their relatives.

TWELVE. Talk slowly but think quickly.

THIRTEEN. When someone asks you a question you don’t want to answer, smile and ask, ‘Why do you want to know?’

FOURTEEN. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

FIFTEEN. Say ‘bless you’ when you hear someone sneeze, not because your religious, but because it’s polite.

SIXTEEN. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson!

SEVENTEEN. Remember the three R’s: Respect for self; Respect for others; and Responsibility for all your actions.

EIGHTEEN. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great friendship..

NINETEEN.  When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

TWENTY.   Smile when picking up the phone… The caller will hear it in your voice.

TWENTY-ONE.  Spend some time alone.

Do we…

Sep 17

Posted by Chad in Thoughts & Observations, Time For Change | No Comments

…still believe? It was an awesome time in our City’s and Nation’s history! Where do we go next? How else can we come together for something big. Why wait till London?

Oh Canada

Sep 1

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts | No Comments

I am Canadian.

Please donate…

Jul 14

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts, Time For Change | 1 Comment

In 2008-2009 my Mom contracted a rare condition simply called organizing pneumonia while overseas. After a month in a drug induced coma, almost 3 years of living on supplemental oxygen not being able to care for her self (and coming VERY close to loosing her battle) on June 26th 2009 my Mom received a double lung transplant thanks to some one we will never know. Someone who gave the greatest gift someone could ever give, life to another human being.

My Mom is alive today because of not only her donor, but the amazing doctors, nurses and staff of St. Mary’s Hospital in Kitchener and Toronto General Hospital in Toronto. I could not possibly thank you enough. You gave me my Mom back. With out you I would have lost her two years ago and I cannot imagine my life these past two years with out her. God damn it thank you!

With out you, she would have never had memories like these.

Read the article here.

She’d never have met or spend time with her four grandkids. Help ensure that someone else gets to have these memories.

Please sign up online at:

www.beadonor.ca (Ontario)
www.transplant.bc.ca (BC)
www.organdonor.gov (In the US)

Print off a donor card for your wallet

OR sign the back of your health card, drivers licence and let your family know your wishes.

I know that there are many other people who are still waiting for someone to give them the gift of life. Please be that person! Waiting and knowing you might not make it unless someone else takes action is a horrible feeling.

Only 16% of eligible donors have registered to actually donate their organs. 16%! that’s it!

ACT RIGHT NOW!

Need more info? Check out these sites:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organ_donation

www.organ-donation-works.org

http://www.organdonor.gov/why.asp

 

http://www.besthealthmag.ca/organ

 

 

 

 

It’s a matter of perception.

May 22

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts, Time For Change | No Comments

In Washington , DC , at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After about 3 minutes, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, and then he hurried on to meet his schedule.

About 4 minutes later:

The violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

At 6 minutes:

A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

At 10 minutes:

A 3-year old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head the whole time. This action was repeated by several other children, but every parent – without exception – forced their children to move on quickly.

At 45 minutes:

The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

After 1 hour:

He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed and no one applauded. There was no recognition at all.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the D.C. Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people’s priorities.

This experiment raised several questions:

In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?

If so, do we stop to appreciate it?

Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made . . .

How many other things are we missing as we rush through life?


a different way of putting it…

Apr 29

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts | No Comments

I figured since I can’t play the guitar, I would let a fellow rider say it for me. Thanks Michael

To support me on my ride and donate Click Here

I need your help.

Apr 22

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts, Ride To Conquer Cancer | No Comments

If you know me well, you know of my passion for cycling. You know how often I bike and how important this has become in my life. But now it has become even more significant. Last year I discovered that riding my bike could not only be my way of staying healthy and happy, but now it can help fight against cancer in The Ride to Conquer Cancer benefiting BC Cancer Foundation. This is my opportunity to challenge myself and to begin to make a the difference in our world. Someone who leaves the world a better place. Someone who faces their fears and acts for others. That’s me. And this is your chance to support me!

I have officially signed on to ride from Vancouver to Seattle in June, and raise $6,000 to support the brilliant work that goes on right here at the BC Cancer Foundation.

All proceeds go to the Foundation, who uses the money for world-class research, as well as cancer treatment and education. And they use it as soon as they receive it, not when the bike ride happens. So, yes, this is a request for your financial support. A dollar for every kilometre that I’ll be riding would be absolutely awesome!

You can donate over a period of time too, if you aren’t able to give all at one time.

I thank you in advance for whatever you can give. Just click on the link below to go to my webpage and make an online donation.

Any amount will count. $1,000, $500, $100, $50, even $5 would help make a crucial difference in this fight against the worlds greatest killer.

Please Donate Now.

What would help even more is for my plea to go viral, you would help me even more by linking this page on your site, blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Click on any of the logos below to link this article. I need your help not only in donating but in getting the word out even further.

Don’t wait, I DO need your help today, I’ve got less than a month to go before the deadline of May 29, 2010 to reach my goal.

This ride is going to be an unforgettable adventure, and I hope you’ll be a part of it with me.

Sincerely… with thanks,

Chad

http://www.conquercancer.ca/site/TR/Events/Vancouver2010?px=1864680&pg=personal&fr_id=1331


You’ve Got Two Choices

Mar 31

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts | No Comments

WHILE YOU READ THIS LET IT REALLY SINK IN…

…THEN CHOOSE .

John is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply,
‘If I were any better, I would be twins!’

He was a natural motivator.

If an employee was having a bad day, John was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up and asked him, ‘I don’t get it!You can’t be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?’
He replied, ‘Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or…you can choose to be in a bad mood. I choose to be in a good mood.’
‘Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or…I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or…I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.’

‘Yeah, right, it’s not that easy,’ I protested.

‘Yes, it is,’ he said. ‘Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood.
The bottom line: It’s your choice how you live your life.’
I reflected on what he said. Soon hereafter, I left the Tower Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.

Several years later, I heard that he was involved in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back.

I  saw him about six months after the accident.

When I asked him how he was, he replied, ‘If I were any better, I’d be twins…Wanna see my scars?’

I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.

‘The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter,’ he replied. ‘Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or…I could choose to die. I chose to live.’

‘Weren’t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?’ I asked.

He continued, ‘…the paramedics were great.They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read ‘He’s a dead man’. I knew I needed to take action.’

‘What  did you do?’ I asked.

‘Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me,’ said John. ‘She asked if I was allergic to anything. ‘Yes, I replied.’ The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, ‘Gravity.’

Over their laughter, I told them, ‘I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.’

He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude…I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything.

Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.
You  have two choices now:

1.  Pass this on to EVERYONE you know and love.

2. Do nothing.

You  know the choice I made.

The girl who silenced the world for 5 minutes

Feb 10

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts, Time For Change | No Comments

This was another “hint” that I had that led me to the realization of my new project. It is a perfect example of the kind of affect youth can have if properly fostered.

My only question is why was the world silenced? Why was it not a call to action!

It’s time to stand up, be heard, and shine our light….

Feb 4

Posted by Chad in Thoughts & Observations, Time For Change | No Comments

When I was fourteen years old I spent a considerable amount of time contemplating all of those immense questions that philosophers have debated for thousands of years.

What is the point of life?

Why are we here?

Who am I?

What do I want?

What makes it all worth it?

Where are we going?

Now some of you who know me are not very surprised, but those are some heavy thoughts for a 14 year old yes?

The frightening thing is, I answered those questions with a knowingness and a conviction that gives me shivers even to this day when I remember it.

The sad thing is, I have been ignoring these answers for many years because they were either too grandiose to come true or to simple so I thought they could not have been right.

While at a workshop called Your Sacred Gifts this past weekend I discovered something inside myself. Something remnant of those contemplations many years ago. I found again the answers and the knowingness to those questions and the conviction to LIVE them. I found a purpose to my life. A purpose that will set me down a path that is bigger than anything I have done before. A purpose that will help me achieve one of my biggest dreams.

“To fundamentally change the way we as humans live our lives so that we can live a more positive, engaged and enlightened life. A life of purpose, contribution, and love for our human sisters and brothers.”

I believe I have come up with a way to make this dream a reality. I will share it with you soon, but first I want to share with you a few of the “hints” that I have been getting over the past few years as to what that purpose might look like. Unfortunately I was not open enough to see those hints when I first saw them.

Now I am.

This video is one of those hints.

This is the beginning of something….

Feb 1

Posted by Chad in Regular Posts, Time For Change | 3 Comments

I have a new project that I am creating which I will share more about when the time is right. However I would like to share one of my inspirations for creating this project. After you’ve watched this, please comment. I would very much like to know your thoughts.

‘The Lost Generation’ was created by Jonathan Reed (a twenty-something film studies major at Georgia State University). It won second place in the AARP U@50 video competition last year – in which filmmakers under 30 were to describe their life at 50 (the age when you’re eligable for membership in AARP).