08/18/2026
COMMUNITY SUPPORT IN ACTION
Path to Rise Wellness for First Responders × Country Grocer × Victoria Veterans Food Bank of the Canadian Veterans Services Society
I’m incredibly proud to share another step forward for Path to Rise Wellness for First Responders.
We’ve teamed up with Country Grocer owners and operators Craig and Andrew Gavin and the entire Country Grocer team to support the Victoria Veterans Food Bank of the Canadian Veterans Services Society and the veterans and families it serves throughout our community.
But for us, this is about much more than a donation.
🤝 IT’S ABOUT TURNING SUPPORT INTO ACTION
Path to Rise Wellness for First Responders was created with a simple purpose: to support the people who spend their careers supporting everyone else.
Our work is focused on helping first responders, military members, veterans and their loved ones strengthen their overall health and well-being—both during their careers and through the challenges, transitions and identity changes that can come afterward.
Through practical wellness education, evidence-informed strategies, structured programs and real-world tools, we focus on areas that can have a major impact on everyday life:
🔹 Nervous-system regulation and recovery
🔹 Stress, resilience and emotional wellness
🔹 Identity and purpose beyond the uniform
🔹 Relationships, connection and family wellness
🔹 Healthy routines and sustainable daily habits
🔹 Transitioning from service into the next chapter of life
🔹 Building a meaningful life outside of the job
Our philosophy has always been that wellness can’t only be something we talk about. It has to become something we practice.
We believe the same thing about supporting our community.
🛒 LOCAL BUSINESS. LOCAL PEOPLE. LOCAL IMPACT.
Having Craig and Andrew Gavin of Country Grocer step forward alongside Path to Rise Wellness for First Responders represents exactly the kind of community partnership we want to continue building.
Local businesses have an incredible ability to create an impact far beyond their doors.
When businesses, wellness organizations and community services work together, we can reach more people, strengthen local support systems and remind those who served that their community has not forgotten them.
A huge thank you to Craig, Andrew and the entire Country Grocer team for supporting this initiative and demonstrating what genuine community leadership can look like.
🛒 A LOCAL LEGACY OF GIVING BACK
Country Grocer has been part of Vancouver Island communities since 1984. What began with its first store in Nanaimo has grown into a family-owned and operated Island business with 11 locations across Vancouver Island and Salt Spring Island.
Throughout more than four decades of growth, Country Grocer has remained committed to the values it started with—quality, friendly service, supporting local farmers and producers, and giving back to the communities its stores call home.
Supporting community groups, local charities, schools, sports teams and nonprofit organizations has been part of Country Grocer’s philosophy from the beginning.
That history of community involvement is exactly why having Craig and Andrew Gavin and Country Grocer support this initiative with Path to Rise Wellness for First Responders and the Victoria Veterans Food Bank of the Canadian Veterans Services Society means so much to us.
This isn’t simply a business helping with a donation—it is local people and local organizations coming together to support those who have served our communities and our country. 🇨🇦
That’s what community supporting community looks like. ❤️
🎖️ SUPPORTING THOSE WHO SERVED
The Victoria Veterans Food Bank of the Canadian Veterans Services Society provides essential support to veterans and their families right here in our community.
For some veterans, leaving service does not mean leaving the challenges of service behind.
Financial pressures, health challenges, isolation, loss of identity, relationship changes and adjusting to civilian life can all become part of that transition.
That is why organizations willing to stand beside veterans matter—and why this partnership matters to us.
Service deserves more than recognition. It deserves continued support.
ABOUT THE CANADIAN VETERANS SERVICES SOCIETY
The Canadian Veterans Services Society—CVSS—is committed to supporting veterans, serving Canadian Armed Forces members, first responders and their families with dignity, compassion and respect.
Through its veterans food banks in Victoria, Kelowna, Calgary, Red Deer and Edmonton, CVSS helps ensure that those who served do not have to face food insecurity alone.
These locations are about much more than groceries. Guests are welcomed into a respectful and confidential environment where they can freely select the food and essential supplies that best meet their household’s needs.
CVSS team members also provide compassionate listening, follow-up support, connections to other services and a safe place for guests who may be experiencing financial hardship, isolation, transition challenges or personal crisis.
Every person who walks through the door is treated with the dignity they have earned.
No one who served our country or protected our communities should ever feel forgotten.
🏔️ CLEARWATER RETREAT: A PLACE TO REST, RECONNECT AND HEAL
The work of CVSS also extends to Clearwater Retreat, a peaceful 148-acre property near Caroline, Alberta.
The Retreat welcomes veterans, serving Canadian Armed Forces members, first responders and their families at no charge, giving them a safe and supportive place to step away from the pressures of daily life.
With cabins, shared gathering spaces and the quiet of Alberta’s natural surroundings, Clearwater Retreat offers opportunities for rest, connection, reflection and time together as a family.
For people carrying the lasting weight of service—and for the families who often carry that weight beside them—having a place to breathe can be an important part of moving forward.
Whether someone needs food, practical assistance, compassionate support, connection or simply a peaceful place to regain their footing, CVSS is there to remind them:
You are not alone. Your service mattered. Your well-being still matters.
This work is possible because community partners, local businesses, volunteers and donors choose to stand alongside those who have served.
Because Service Never Ends.
🌱 THE BIGGER VISION FOR PATH TO RISE
This is the kind of work we want Path to Rise Wellness for First Responders to become increasingly known for.
Not simply creating wellness content.
Not simply talking about change.
But building something meaningful within our community.
We want to continue connecting with local businesses, first responder organizations, veteran services, community leaders and people who share the belief that stronger individuals, stronger families and stronger communities are all connected.
Our goal is to continue providing education, practical strategies, wellness resources, programs, community partnerships and opportunities for connection that help people move forward—one realistic step at a time.
Because supporting the people who served our communities and our country should not end when the uniform comes off.
❤️ FROM APPRECIATION TO ACTION
To Craig and Andrew Gavin and the Country Grocer team—thank you for stepping forward.
To the Victoria Veterans Food Bank and the Canadian Veterans Services Society—thank you for the work you continue to do.
And to our veterans, military members, first responders and their families:
Thank you for what you’ve given.
Our community sees you.
Our community appreciates you.
And our community should continue showing up for you.
Ronnie Birkland & Ryan Large
Founders—Path to Rise Wellness for First Responders
Reset • Regulate • Rise
Honouring Service. Supporting Wellness. Building Stronger Tomorrows.
