Military wives are changing their Facebook photos, removing military magnets from their cars, even thinking of removing their veteran licence plates as they react in fear to the second terrorist act on Canadian soil this week.
“I know dozens and dozens of women who are angry and scared,” Oz Tilson, a member of several social military wives’ groups, said Wednesday.
“They’re changing their Facebook settings from open to secret, and taking off their ‘I support the military’ magnets from their cars. There is a lot of fear and hysteria.”
Tilson said she isn’t scared by the events in Ottawa.
“The point of a terrorist to is terrorize. So, once they’ve scared you, they’ve won.”
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As events continued to unfold in Ottawa on Wednesday, Marisol Simard stopped by the Pacific Activity Centre in Colwood holding her three-year-old son, Liam, by the hand.
“It’s scaring me a little bit to have my son in a public place,” said Simard, whose husband was on lockdown at the Royal Canadian Air Force base in Patricia Bay.
“I know they’re looking for the military right now, but it doesn’t mean they won’t decide to blow up a school or something like that. It’s just beginning, but it’s still scary that something bigger is coming from this. People are starting to be concerned.”
Another woman, who was afraid to have her name in the newspaper, had just picked up her son from the daycare at the activity centre, which was also under lockdown. She said her husband was in the military and had known Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, who was run down Monday by a suspected terrorist in Quebec.
“They were all in Afghanistan together. It’s very concerning, for sure,” she said. “You don’t think it happens in Canada, but it does.”
The woman said she was also upset last year when the RCMP arrested a B.C. man, John Nuttall, and his girlfriend, Amanda Korody, after three pressure-cooker bombs packed with rusty nails — similar to devices used in the deadly Boston Marathon attack — were placed outside the B.C. legislature.
“We didn’t attend the Canada Day celebrations this year because of it,” she said
Nuttall’s trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 26 in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver.
Debbie Preston, who was attending a bicycle rodeo with her grandson at Belmont Park preschool Wednesday afternoon, said she was concerned, but did not think people needed to overreact to what was probably an isolated incident.
“I know just listening around today, there have been a lot of people who have been extremely upset,” said Preston, who volunteers as deputy director of Langford emergency support services. “I was at [John Stubbs Memorial] school dropping off a forgotten backpack and they were getting a lot of phone calls from people wondering what was going on in the school and if the school was locked down.”
Principal Garry Manhas said efforts were made to talk with people as needs arose.
“What we’re trying to do is just be aware of it, be sensitive to it and in individual cases or where there’s been concerns with students and families or parents, we’ve spoken with them.
“I would certainly say there is a heightened sensitivity around that and rightly so.”
Sooke school district superintendent Jim Cambridge sent a letter to families in response to the situation.
The letter offered suggestions on how to help children and youth deal with a crisis like the one in Ottawa, such as limiting media exposure.
“Protect your children from the saturation that comes from social media and from watching graphic coverage on TV,” Cambridge said in the letter. “Talk through anything that they might feel is disturbing.”
Possible questions he suggested to ask children are: “What have you heard?” and “What will help you feel safe?”
The letter also said children react in different ways to such incidents.
“It’s unsettling for sure,” said reservist Tim Ballantyne, who was with his young family at the bicycle rodeo.
“I think it changes things going forward.”
Ballantyne said he would go about his normal routine.
“I still think it’s pretty safe, but I think I’m a little worried about Remembrance Day, when so many military people are gathered together. I’m not really worried about being attacked here at this time.”
Master Seaman Jeff Snook called the situation tragic and horrible.
“I don’t want to jump to conclusions. They’re not releasing any information yet. There aren’t many facts out there so it’s tough to think anything because you don’t really know what happened or why or how.”
