How do labor organizations in Canada support the efforts of Threads of Life?
Labor groups are extremely supportive of the program. The Ontario Federation of Labor sits on our Partner Advisory Committee and has provided us with special project funding. We have also received key project funding from the Canadian Automotive Workers (CAW). What do you believe is the greatest success of Threads of Life since its launch in April 2003? Our greatest success was training eight family members in 2005 to become VFGs. The Volunteer Family Guides provide our families affected by a workplace tragedy with our unique one-on-one peer support services. What new projects or initiatives does Threads of Life have planned for 2006? We have begun to develop the “Speakers’ Bureau,” component of our Community Action Program. This program will be launched at the beginning of next year, and we plan to expand the Threads of Life concept to another province in the spring where we will train more VFGs. Biography In 1996, Shirley Hickman’s and her family’s lives were forever changed with the
