Trio Magazine

10 QUESTIONS
WITH 19 WING COMOX COL. CHRIS SHAPKA

In 2009, Shapka was promoted to major and posted to the Maritime Directorate of DGAEPM where he was the deputy weapon system manager for the CH-124 Sea King. While in this position he served as a member of the Joint Task Force Games for the 2010 Olympics as a liaison officer to the Washington National Guard in Camp Murray, Washington. Shapka has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Royal Military College of Canada, a master’s degree in leadership from Royal Roads University, and a master’s degree in defence studies from the Canadian Forces College. Away from the forces, Shapka has been a Canadian Football League official for a decade, officiating games which include the Grey Cup and most recently Touchdown Pacific in Victoria.

What is a random fact about you that few people might know?
I own a beautiful Harley motorcycle that I never ride. Shortly after my kids were born, I stopped riding – it just seemed too risky. I could sell it, but I still love the bike and I know I’d never be able to replace it if it were sold.

If you could have a conversation over dinner with one person - living or dead - who would it be?
That’s a hard question, there are so many options in many different categories. Since the theme of this article is the Comox Valley, I’m going to go with ‘Stocky’ Edwards. During my last two postings in 19 Wing, I enjoyed each interaction that I had with Stocky. His stories were incredible, and I had the feeling that what he told me was only the tip of the iceberg

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A LIFETIME OF HELPING OTHERS

Glen Greenhill meticulously recalls the first birth he assisted with, and conversely, some of the more tragic moments of his 40-year career. There have been many more incidents in between - too many to count - but he provides detailed examples as though they all happened within the past few days. Greenhill is the Comox-Strathcona district manager for clinical operations for BC Emergency Health Services and celebrated the milestone anniversary - July 20, 1984 - in parallel with BC Ambulance Service’s 50th anniversary, which began in British Columbia in 1974. His desire for a career as a paramedic began after he took a first aid course suggested by a friend. The course was taught in Courtenay by a woman whose two sons were original members of BCEHS.

“I remember that very first night I went home and did five hours of homework and I was just lapping up everything that I was taking in and I just got bitten by the bug…and then in March I started the process to get hired and I got hired in July of 1984.” When Greenhill began his career, paramedics were not paid for their shift unless a call came in, however, it took up until the early 2000s for that to change. “You didn’t really get any money for carrying the pager but you committed to the shift. It wasn’t until 2001 that it started at about a dollar an hour, then a $1.50 an hour, and then $2 per hour for carrying the pager. Sometimes back in the day when I started, it wasn’t as busy, and there were many times you would go buy a coffee and you’re already in the hole for the shift.” Throughout the decades, he reflects on how the service has changed. The goal has always remained the same: to provide the very best pre-hospital care without judgment, but other factors have changed dramatically throughout his time with the emergency service.

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BUILDING A FAMILY
30 years of working at Vancouver Island MusicFest

Mo Nordstrom and Mike McNamee have been friends for 30 years, but they only see each other for two weeks per year every summer. The two are some of the longest-running volunteers with the Vancouver Island MusicFest, the annual in July event that brings thousands of music fans to the community. They are also part of a well-oiled machine, one that essentially builds and dismantles an entire community throughout the course of two weeks. The volunteers at the festival handle everything from first aid to making sure the plumbing works, to checking ticket stubs and cleaning up garbage. And the results are evident, simply by looking around during the festival it is shocking to see that not a scrap of garbage is left out.

Nordstrom runs the screw crew, which assembles most of the stages, ticket booths, tents and more, but she has run the gamut of working everything from feeding the volunteers and performers to working backstage before getting brought on to the carpentry crew. “I worked my way up into co-ordinator. Not that I wanted to but I was organized and a good communicator and the lady said come on we want you to be with us on the co-ordination,” Nordstrom says. “So now it’s called the screw crew and we put together all of the stages … we start Monday morning at 7 a.m. and then we do the takedown which is Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday next week. So it’s a 10-day commitment.” McNamee’s job is to keep all of the water flowing in and out of the event. He and a crew of 25 lay pipes for the commercial kitchens, and anywhere else water is needed on site. It’s a job he’s had for the last three decades, and started when a friend of his, who was one of the early carpentry co-ordinators, asked him for a hand.
musicfest

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