35 GEORGIANVIEW 2024 PRINT EDITION
FRONTLINE SUPPORT
Giving back is a proud family tradition
Deb DeCaire fondly recalls many family gatherings with
photocopies of charity event flyers spread around the
living room with her sibling collecting and collating them
together to help a deserving cause. It was fun, it brought
them all together, and was always to help others.
"I suppose my mom and dad have always done that,"
she says. "They've consistently given back in some way.
We were always doing something for others and that just
got ingrained in us."
Her partner, Steve Blanchet, also remembers having a
strong give-back ethic instilled into him as a child. As a
physician, his father was often out of the house taking
care of patients and he spent a lot of time giving back
to the community. "That became a lifestyle and was
impressed upon us when we were very young," he says.
Giving back to the community is an integral part of who
they are.
Deb also gives her time as a volunteer including
numerous committees at Georgian College and has
done so for years. This has included serving as an
advisor to the Frontline Support: Health-care Heroes
Closer to Home campaign designed to raise funds
to upgrade classrooms and equipment inside the Dr.
MaryLynn West Moynes Nursing and Wellness Wing at
Georgian's Barrie Campus as part of introducing a new
four-year Honours Bachelor of Science – Nursing degree
program that started in the fall of 2022.
Visit GeorgianCollege.ca/frontlinesupport to read Deb
and Steve's full story and more about the donors and
volunteers who made the Frontline Support: Health-care
Heroes Closer to Home campaign a success.
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Steve Blanchet and Deb
DeCaire (Skipwith) stand in
the pediatric lab named after
their families, inside the new
Dr. MaryLynn West-Moynes
Nursing and Wellness Wing.
