A group of southern Alberta first responders are teaming up Saturday to support veteran and first responder mental health. Hosted at the Calgary Police Service Headquarters on 47 Street N.E., Pulling Together for Mental Health 2025 features 15 teams from across Calgary and beyond who are competing in a seven-hour long rowing competition to raise funds that fund critical programs through Wounded Warriors Canada. “Wounded Warriors are a national organization who deliver services, programs and training directly to first responders, veterans and their families. They have a whole suite of programs that they offer, and they’re doing an amazing job across the country," said Rory Thompson, the co-founder of Pulling Together. Thompson’s co-founder Jade Wong said the goals and values of Wounded Warriors synch up with Pulling Together. “They support, essentially what we support,” Wong said, “which is veteran and first responder mental health -- so they’re very focused around that for what they do. “For example, the money that we raised last year, we worked with wounded warriors and B.C .Alberta guide dogs, and we provided an operational stress injury dog for CPS to have first on-site when those first responders get there.” The event raised $85,000 in 2024, including a fully-trained operational stress injury service dog to the Calgary Police Service. The goal for 2025 in a slowing economy, was $75,000 -- with every dollar staying in Calgary -- but by Friday, they had already surpassed that, hitting $82,000. Seven hours of rowing might sound a bit bleak, but Thompson said when you get 15 competing teams together in one room, including teams representing Calgary EMS, Calgary police, the Lethbridge police, the Tsuut’ina Nation police, military vets and various corporate and local community groups, it’s just the opposite. “The energy is electric,” he said. “What we have there is 15 teams all represent in different communities across the city and beyond, quite frankly, and they are battling it out for seven hours. “So the rules of the competition are simple: when you go on that oar, you have to give it your all for a minimum of five minutes. So you have people jumping on there, giving it their all for that period of time. And as a result, it’s fast switches which raises that energy (level in the room) even more.” Wong said that, at the end of the day, everyone is rowing for one singular purpose. “To really talk about mental health and say that it’s it’s okay to not be okay,” she said, “and to have those that money and that and those resources in place to actually help people that that really need it -- especially our first responders and our veterans who are there for us every single day.”\ With files from CTV’s Timm Bruch
