Have You Been Impacted by Workplace Tragedy?

Have You Been Impacted by a Workplace Fatality in Canada?

Julie Hamilton and her son, Tim

 If so, we would like to hear from you.

The John Petropoulos Memorial Fund is reaching out to family members who have lost a loved one due to a workplace fatality in Canada, either through injury or occupational illness.

We are in the early phases of creating a new public awareness campaign and are looking for people who would like to submit photographs of their loved ones.

Here are the details:

“Casket” Video Project – Public Awareness Campaign

Snapshot: Calgary police officer Const John Petropoulos died in the line of duty on Sept 29^th, 2000. John was investigating a break and enter complaint when he stepped through an unmarked false ceiling and fell to his death. There was no safety railing in place to warn him – or anyone else – of the danger.

Since John’s death, nearly 20,000 Canadians have died as the result of a workplace injury or illness. Although this number is staggering, many people are likely unaware of the cumulative – and steadily growing – death toll.

In reality, however, that number is likely 10 to 13 times higher.

This project will be comprised of four videos that will share a similar look, feel and tone: one or two PSAs, a short video and a full-length documentary. These videos will be produced and distributed in phases over the next few years.

Phase 1: The first PSA (30-sec) will show the sheer volume of 20,000 deaths through the imagery of a growing tower of caskets (animated). This PSA will be aired on TV, shown on the JPMF website, You Tube channel and partner websites, as well as shared on social media.

Phase 2: The second PSA (30-sec) will show both the mounting death toll of deceased workers and the exponential number of loved ones left behind to pick up the pieces. This PSA will be animated but may include a real-life photo/s component. This PSA will be aired on TV, shown on the JPMF website, You Tube channel and partner websites, as well as shared on social media.

Phase 3: Through *photos, this short video (90-sec to 2-min) will highlight some of the real people behind the numbers (deceased workers and their loved ones) – to reflect the human loss associated with workplace fatalities. This video will be shown on the JPMF website, You Tube channel and partner websites as well as shared on social media.

Phase 4: Through multiple interviews reflecting a broad spectrum of workplace safety perspectives, the full-length documentary (approx. 90 min) will explore how we got to where we are (in terms of the unacceptable number of workplace fatalities) and what is being done – and not done – to help bring about a stronger culture of workplace safety for all Canadians.

Ultimately, we aim to continue partnering with like-minded individuals and organizations to help bring these numbers DOWN. As far as we’re concerned, one workplace fatality is one too many.

Background: The John Petropoulos Memorial Fund (JPMF) is a registered Canadian charity. The JPMF was started shortly after John’s death for the purpose of raising public awareness about why and how people can make their workplaces – including the roads – safer for everyone, including first responders.

The JPMF has produced a 10-min safety video, as well as eight 30-second PSAs that have aired on TV over 2 million times. For further info or to view the videos please visit jpmf.ca.

*Call to family members who have been impacted by workplace fatality: if you have lost a family member to a workplace fatality (due to injury or occupational illness) and are interested in participating in this project, we would like to hear from you.

We are looking for people who would be interested in sending us a photograph of your loved one, as well as a photo of you holding that same photo. These photos will be used in the public awareness campaign.

Please note, we will need to receive the photos by August 1^st, 2020.

To find out how to participate (i.e. what we need from you in terms of photo parameters, resolution, etc), please contact our Casket Video Project Family Liaison, Rebecca Orr at rebecca@jpmf.ca.

For further information about the Casket video project, please contact Maryanne Pope (JPMF Director at Large & John’s widow) at maryanne@jpmf.ca or (778) 678-4496. Detailed treatments of all videos are available upon request.

Thank you for considering participating in this important project. We sincerely appreciate your willingness to share your story for the purpose of raising awareness about the unacceptable number of workplace fatalities caused by injury and illness in Canada…and ultimately, to help bring about a safer, healthier future for all Canadians.

About Threads of Life: If you have been impacted by a workplace tragedy in Canada and are not yet familiar with the organization, Threads of Life; The Association for Workplace Tragedy Family Support, please visit their website. They are a Canadian registered charity dedicated to supporting families after a workplace fatality, life-altering injury or occupational disease.

New PSA Project is a GO!

New PSA is a GO – “Casket” Video Project Underway

“Safety isn’t expensive. It’s priceless.”

- Unknown

If you are familiar with the recent efforts of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund, you may recall we were embarking on a new project: the production of a new (our ninth) 30-second PSA (public service announcement) for TV broadcast.

The working title of the PSA was “A New Legacy.”

For a variety of reasons (a downturn in the Alberta economy, not receiving a government grant, the pandemic) we had little success in securing the necessary funds to have that PSA produced.

So back to the drawing board we went.

After some tweaks to the creative concept and a bit of brainstorming, we are pleased to announce the project is ON again!

We are currently working with an animator to have this new PSA produced at a very reasonable production cost. The working title of the PSA is “Casket.” Grim, yes…but so is the reason for creating it in the first place. More on that in a moment.

The PSA will likely be aired around the time of the 20^th anniversary of John’s death on September 29^th, 2000.

This first PSA will be part of the larger “Casket” video project.

Here is a brief overview of the overall project:

Snapshot: Calgary police officer Const John Petropoulos died in the line of duty on Sept 29^th, 2000. John was investigating a break and enter complaint when he stepped through an unmarked false ceiling and fell to his death. There was no safety railing in place to warn him – or anyone else – of the danger.

Since John’s death, nearly 20,000 Canadians have died as the result of a workplace injury or illness. Although this number is staggering, many people are likely unaware of the cumulative – and steadily growing – death toll.

In reality, however, that number is likely 10 to 13 times higher. 

The Casket project will be comprised of four videos that will share a similar look, feel and tone: one or two PSAs, a short video and a full-length documentary. These videos will be produced and distributed in phases over the next few years.

Phase 1: The first PSA (30-sec) will show the sheer volume of 20,000 deaths through the imagery of a growing tower of caskets (animated). This PSA will be aired on TV, shown on the JPMF website, You Tube channel and partner websites, as well as shared on social media.

Phase 2: The second PSA (30-sec) will show both the mounting death toll of deceased workers and the exponential number of loved ones left behind to pick up the pieces. This PSA will be animated but may include a real-life photo/s component. This PSA will be aired on TV, shown on the JPMF website, You Tube channel and partner websites, as well as shared on social media.

Phase 3: Through *photos, this short video (90-sec to 2-min) will highlight some of the actual people behind the numbers (deceased workers and their loved ones) – to reflect the human loss associated with workplace fatalities. This video will be shown on the JPMF website, You Tube channel and partner websites as well as shared on social media.

Phase 4: Through multiple interviews reflecting a broad spectrum of workplace safety perspectives, the full-length documentary (approx. 90 min) will explore how we got to where we are, in terms of the unacceptable number of workplace fatalities, and what is being done – and not done – to help bring about a stronger culture of workplace safety for all Canadians.

Goal: Ultimately, we aim to continue partnering with like-minded individuals and organizations to help bring these numbers DOWN. As far as we’re concerned, one workplace fatality is one too many.

*Call to family members who have been impacted by workplace fatality: if you have lost a family member to a workplace fatality (due to injury or occupational illness) and are interested in participating in this project, we would like to hear from you.

We are looking for people who would be interested in sending us a photograph of your loved one, as well as a photo of you holding that same photo. For further information (photo parameters, etc), please contact our Casket Video Project Family Liaison, Rebecca Orr at rebecca@jpmf.ca.

Please note we will need the photos by August 1^st, 2020.

For further information about the Casket video project, please contact Maryanne Pope (JPMF Director at Large & John’s widow) at maryanne@jpmf.ca or (778) 678-4496. Detailed treatments of all videos are available upon request.

Background: The John Petropoulos Memorial Fund (JPMF) is a registered Canadian charity. The JPMF was started shortly after John’s death (by John’s police recruit classmates) for the purpose of raising public awareness about why and how people can make their workplaces – including the roads – safer for everyone, including first responders.

The JPMF has produced a 10-min safety video, as well as eight 30-second PSAs that have aired on TV over 2 million times. For further info or to view the videos please visit jpmf.ca.

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

– Martin Luther King