Shelby Smith, pictured in 2008 (left) at the 2008 Westerner Days parade and at the 2019 Calgary Stampede parade (right). Photo credit: Leah Cameron, the War Amps

By Justin Goulet

War Amps plays a huge part in Lethbridge teen’s life

Jul 15, 2019 | 12:31 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – Shelby Smith was born a right-hand amputee and she says the War Amps has made a significant impact on her life.

The 18-year-old from Lethbridge serves as a PLAYSAFE Ambassador for the organization, which assists amputees across the country. She said the War Amps contacted her parents before she was even born to see if she could be involved with their cause.

“Getting older, I went to the different seminars, which was fun and got involved in the parades at a pretty young age,” Smith told Lethbridge News Now, alluding to her experiences in a variety of parades, such as this year’s Calgary Stampede.

As for taking part in the Whoop-Up Days parade in Lethbridge, Smith said the War Amps doesn’t have a float in the parade, mainly due to the small size of the amputee community in the area, but she noted it’s something that could be possible come the parade in 2020.

She added that she also used to give educational presentations in school, to teach fellow students about what it means to be an amputee and show learners her prosthetics.

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“The younger kids (would) understand and I guess, not be scared about (seeing an amputee),” she said.

Around three years ago, Smith stopped with her presentations, but noted the reception was always warm and it felt good to pass along the message that amputees can function like anybody else.

“They can do anything they set their mind to. Your amputation does not stop you. You might have to work around a couple of things, but you can do anything in the whole world. Everything is possible,” Smith told LNN.

PLAYSAFE PROGRAM

Smith said the PLAYSAFE program focuses on teaching kids to be safe and aware of all the dangers of their environment, to avoid an accident that could result in an amputation.

“We’re trying to make sure other kids don’t get put in the same situation as we are. I know quite a few kids that lost their limbs due to an accident when they were younger, and they’re still traumatized by it,” she said.

“We just want to make sure that other kids are aware and educated on what kind of surroundings they’re in, especially with like lawnmowers, boats and farm equipment especially – that they’re just being safe around their neighborhoods and make sure they know what the ‘mean machines’ (heavy duty equipment) are capable of.”

She said the PLAYSAFE program has helped her meet friends that she considers family. She said everyone is ‘super accepting’ of others and offer a wealth of support.

“It’s such an amazing program to be involved with and I think I’ll be involved with it my entire life.”

LIFELONG BONDS

“Without the War Amps, I wouldn’t (have gotten) the prosthetics I needed as a kid and now, I’m actually a competitive archer and I compete on an international level. My insurance wouldn’t cover my archery prosthetic, but The War Amps covered it for me. Without them I wouldn’t be able to compete on the level I am, and I wouldn’t be meeting all these great people,” she said.

Smith said through her involvement with the War Amps, she’s met a seven-year-old named Zora, who she “instantly clicked with”, creating a lifelong bond.

“She’s so cute and I’ll see her at the seminar this summer. I’m actually a junior counsellor,” she added, referring to the War Amps educational seminars that take place across Canada throughout the year.

“We run little programs, hang out with the kids, talk to them about what they’re going to do in life and how they can adapt to different things…I love the seminars. I have some unbreakable bonds with kids my age, we all still talk year-round, even if they live (somewhere like) Manitoba,” she said.

WAR AMPS KEY TAGS

Another prominent War Amps campaign is the key tags that are sent out every year.

When someone has a key tag, they register it online and if they lose their home or car keys, they can be dropped off in any mailbox and will be returned to the owner.

“People have actually put the key tags on their cats and dogs before, and cats and dogs have been brought back to their house,” Smith said with a warm laugh.

She said the key tag program started off after the Second World War with a goal to offer work opportunities to amputees.

CHAMP PROGRAM

The War Amps also operates the Child Amputee Program, also known as CHAMP.

“We have a winner-circle philosophy that they really push on to us as kids. It encourages child amputees to accept their amputation and develop a positive approach to challenges,” she said.

“Honestly, (with) them telling me that as a kid, I have become way more positive about everything. I don’t see it as a disadvantage to life. I see it more as an advantage to different things. I would not be this determined if I did not have my amputation and I see a lot of kids (who are) the same way.”

She said since she began working as a junior counsellor at the annual seminars, she’s pushed the message that people may stare at others who have an amputation, but there’s no shame in being different and it’s about staying positive and true to who you are.

“We’re all still human. We get bullied when we’re kids, mainly because kids don’t understand it, but I actually forget that I have one hand all the time because all my friends are so accepting of it and my boss, too, I work full-time and he thinks it’s great,” she added.

“I don’t receive special treatments for anything, and I think it’s good people treat me like a regular person. I notice that sometimes, people are like, let me help you with this, let me help you with that but we don’t need help all the time. We got this.”

For more on the War Amps and the various programs offered through the organization for amputees, visit www.waramps.ca/home.