DND’s Mireil Kehler awarded the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers!

June 17, 2022 -  Defence Stories

The Canadian Forces Housing Agency (CFHA) is pleased to share that Mireil Kehler, Manager, Housing Services Centre (Winnipeg), has been awarded the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers by the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General of Canada. She was formally presented with this distinguished award in Winnipeg on June 8, 2022 by Beverly Watson, President of Dreams Take Flight, an organization with which Mireil has served for 24 years.

Once a year, each chapter of Dreams Take Flight gives children with medical, mental, physical, social or emotional needs an opportunity to have an adventure in a world-renowned theme park. All expenses are paid thanks to sponsors and volunteers.

Mireil got involved with the Winnipeg chapter in 1998. She worked at Air Canada and helped out with the early morning flight. Year to year, her role and involvement grew. When she first became a Group Leader in 2004, Mireil began exploring Disney’s Magic Kingdom with her assigned group of children. Her goal was to give them a meaningful experience and to get on as many rides as possible. In 2005, as a Dreams Take Flight Agency Representative, Mireil began bringing awareness to schools and youth mentoring agencies that would have children who could be good candidates for the program.

“The children of military families make many daily sacrifices such as experiencing their parents away on deployments and postings/moves across the country every other year. These children deserve a day to be kids and not worry about anything.” ~ Mireil Kehler

Mireil was also inspired to see how she could help the military community. In 2008, not long after she started working at CFHA in Winnipeg, Mireil approached the Winnipeg Military Family Resource Centre to discuss the potential for sponsoring children from Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) families for this exciting experience. That first year, they selected over 20 children from Manitoban CAF families whose serving parents were returning from long deployments.

Over the last 25 plus years, Mireil has volunteered with various organizations. Her work with Dreams Take Flight has made an incredible impact on the lives of many children in her community and in military families. She has been a passionate and dedicated volunteer, making dreams come true for so many children dealing with a variety of issues or special needs.

The Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers is an official Canadian honour. The medal recognizes the exceptional volunteer achievements of Canadians from across the country or abroad. It pays tribute to the dedication and commitment of volunteers.

DND would like to congratulate Mireil on being awarded this esteemed recognition for her outstanding achievement and contributions in Volunteerism.

Related Links

• Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers
• Dreams Take Flight (you are now leaving the Government of Canada website)