Medric Cousineau, who, it was announced Thursday, has received the Meritorious Service Medal from Rideau Hall, would like to forget the circumstances surrounding the first decoration he received from the office of the Governor General of Canada.
He just cannot.
The other day, when I asked him about the 1996 event, he paused and then directed me towards the GGs website which, he said, explains what happened with “typical Canadian understatement.”
The facts are these: in October 1986 Cousineau, then a Lieutenant, was serving as a navigator on a search and rescue helicopter flying off HMCS Nipigon, then patrolling the waters beyond Newfoundland in the midst of the Canada-Spain Turbot war.
That October 6, his helicopter took off to help two injured crewmen on an American long-liner about 800 km off the coast of Newfoundland.
The night was dark, the weather terrible — rain, strong winds and heavy seas — and the boat deck, which was covered with fishing apparatus, and machinery, “pitching and rolling continuously,” according to his citation for the Star of Courage, Canada’s second-highest award for bravery.
Nevertheless, Cousineau, who was born in Vancouver and had trained as a gunnery officer, before becoming a navigator for Sea King helicopters, volunteered to be lowered to the deck of the vessel.
On the first attempt, he was thrown overboard by the wildly pitching boat.
The second time, Cousineau scrambled aboard, where “despite the flying spray and the tremendous noise of the large helicopter hovering close overhead,” he evacuated the injured crewmen.
During the rescue, Cousineau was slammed against the fishing ship, but the emotional injuries he suffered lingered even longer.
Though he left the military in 1991, his post traumatic stress disorder seemed to worsen as time went on. Flashbacks and night terrors haunted him.
In 2006, right around the anniversary of the rescue, Cousineau had a full psychotic break and was institutionalized.
“I was gone,” he said when we spoke Wednesday.
Six years later, an old high school classmate, who knew of his struggles, contacted Cousineau. A service dog helped her special needs daughter, and it was her understanding that they could also help PTSD sufferers.
Which is how, thanks to the canine assistance and rehabilitation education and services program in Concordia, Kansas, a golden lab named Thai came into his life.
And why, in a roundabout way, Cousineau was among the latest recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal which, according to the Governor General’s office, honours individuals who have “performed a deed or an activity in a highly professional manner, or at a very high standard that brings benefit or honour to Canada.”
The list includes Todd McDonald and Ashley Ward, of Halifax, for founding GIVETOLIVE, which organizes and hosts challenging sports events to raise funds for charity, as well as Lunenburg’s William Brooks, one of the founders of Canadian Fallen Firefighters Foundation, which honours firefighters who have died in the line of duty and provides support for their families.
Cousineau and his wife Jocelyn are the drivers behind Paws Fur Thought, which brings together service dogs and veterans and first responders who afflicted by operational stress disorders.
Thai, it must be said, deserves some of the credit. The dog offers Cousineau security when the anxiety swirls. When he is about to blow, his wife and kids tell him to just take Thai for a walk, which calms him down.
Now, when night terrors are about to begin, Thai senses the impending attack and wakes him before it hits.
“How many times has a mental health pro ever spent time with me during night terrors,” Cousineau told me via email. “Hint: never. Thai has never missed.”
A year after the dog came into his life, Cousineau’s eldest daughter, with whom he had a fractious relationship, turned to him, and said, “I don’t know what has changed with you, but something sure has.”
Another the same time he and Jocelyn were out for a walk, when, apropos nothing he just blurted out, “what about the others?”
After decades of agony, Cousineau finally had relief from his demons, but he also intuitively understood that so many more like him were still suffering.
Support dogs like Thai are expensive — anywhere from $25,000 to $30,000 each depending upon the school where they are trained.
“Money is a really stupid reason to die,” said Cousineau, by which he meant that it was plain dumb that the price of a dog is all that stops someone from escaping the hell of PTSD.
In his case, the local Legion ponied up the money. When a veteran with the same disorder came to Cousineau he began to find ways to connect PTSD sufferers with service dogs.
His commitment to the cause is such that in 2013, Cousineau walked 1,065 kilometres in 50 days to raise money and awareness about PTSD. And he and his wife’s organization have found some 200 dogs for vets and first responders across the country.
Since 2019, he’s been pulling back from his duties — which he now describes as “patting puppies, taking pictures and signing cheques.” — at the organization, which has 15-or-so volunteers in Nova Scotia.
After Thursday, he can add receiving one of the country's greatest honours to that job description.
