Annual Report

Message from the President
As President of the Board of Directors of the Brain Injury Association of Canada I am just one of many volunteers working across our country to raise awareness about acquired brain injury and promote its prevention through legislation and education. Our volunteers give their time and energy to eliminate this invisible epidemic and help those whose lives have been touched by brain injury. As volunteers, we work to raise money in our own cities, provinces and nationally to help us spread our message. We take our responsibility as stewards of donors’ dollars very seriously. We work diligently to ensure donated money is directed to where it will make the most difference towards our vision – improving the lives of Canadians affected by acquired brain injury.

Like many Canadians, I choose to volunteer because brain injury has touched my family deeply. I have recently lost my son as a result of a brain injury – we worked together for twenty years to provide him with an acceptable quality of life but ultimately it was not to be. Today many people live long and fulfi lling lives after an injury but there are still many who require support that is not yet available.

Each year our Hawaiian Oyster Odyssey events across Canada create opportunities for networking amongst survivors, families and friends, professionals and politicians. They have been very successful in introducing others to the issues we face.

This past year our community partners, including Insurance Bureau of Canada, TD Bank Foundation, RBC, Tri-the-World venture lead by Heather Thomson on behalf of BIAC which raised over $3,300 and Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation have made it possible for us to hire an Executive Director. This has allowed us to open more doors and has made a tremendous difference in the effectiveness of our efforts. It is important to recognize the many volunteer hours that the members of the Board of Directors, both past and present, contributed to get us to this new threshold.

We have made great strides this past year in raising the profi le of acquired brain injury and are pleased to have partnered with the Canadian Standards Association in the creation of helmet standards for alpine and snowboarding. The fi nal step required to make this effective is the passing of Bill C-289 that will include them in the Hazardous Materials Act. Information about this and our other endeavours can be found on our website www.biac-aclc.ca.

Acquired brain injury does not discriminate between race, gender or income. Across the country, on family farms and in major cities, anyone can be injured and it will affect lives forever. We’re all in this together! Let’s work together to make a difference.

Respectfully submitted,
Shirley Johnson
President

Read the complete 2009 BIAC Annual Report (pdf-1.6mb)

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