This Saturday, August 10, a fundraising event is being held at the A.N.A.F. Unit #318 on Saint-Francis Street for the La Vigile support centre for front-line workers.
“It offers therapy for uniformed people,” said Patrice Gregoire, the Sûreté du Québec officer turned catholic deacon who is organizing the event, explaining that while the mission of La Vigile has grown over its 25 years in existence, the space has always been focused on trying to ease what he called, “the weight of the uniform.”
As someone who turned in the latter years of a career that involved decades of service with municipal, national, and provincial police forces to a position focused on service at a more personal level, the deacon underlined the importance of the services that La Vigile provides. Among these services he listed addiction counseling as well as therapy for anxiety and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), all carried out in the context of a 30-day retreat centre near Quebec City.
