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JPMF Pub Night on May 23rd, 2024!

It’s been awhile…so the JPMF is having a pub night in Calgary!

Here are the deets:

When: Thursday May 23rd, 2024

Time: 5:30pm to 9:30pm

Where: Limericks Pub (7304 Macleod Trail South, Calgary, AB)

Cost: $25 per ticket (includes *meal & beverage)

*meal choice will be steak sandwich, cheeseburger or veggie burger

No silent auction this time 🙂 but we’ll have door prizes & a 50/50 draw!

Hope you can join us!!

Please order your tickets here.

Ticket sales close May 20th.

P.S. If you have an item you’d like to donate for our door prizes, just let us know! Thanks 🙂

About the JPMF

The JPMF was started after the death of Calgary Police Constable John Petropoulos on Sept 29th, 2000. John was investigating a break-and-enter complaint when he stepped through a false ceiling, fell nine feet into the lunchroom below, and died of a brain injury. There was no safety railing to warn him of the danger; the complaint turned out to be a false alarm.

John was 32.

The JPMF is a registered Canadian charity that raises public awareness about workplace safety issues and educates people about why and how to ensure their workplaces and the roads are safer for everyone, including emergency responders. For further information, please visit jpmf.ca.

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Not Enough Time – The Tragedy of Tim DesGrosseilliers

“Tim was 12 years older than me, but we were very close. We talked
almost every day, and I would absolutely say he was my best friend.
His loss is still devastating to me and I miss his support.”
 
– Michelle Fitch, Tim’s sister
 

On Sept. 8, 2017, Tim DesGrosseilliers, an elevator mechanic, was killed after being crushed by a piece of falling equipment while working in an elevator shaft at the University of Toronto. He was 52.

Michelle Fitch with her daughter and a photo of Tim at a Steps for Life Walk

Let us tell you about Tim…

Tim DesGrosseilliers had a lifelong love of cars. At any given time, he owned many classic cars. He especially loved Pontiacs and Dodges.

In the winter, Tim loved snowmobiling and spent as much time as possible riding the trails.

Kind and generous with his time and support, Tim would drive hours, in the middle of the night, to lend a supportive hand if someone needed him.

At the time of his death, he was sharing a house with his aging father, helping him financially and with household and yard tasks, so his dad could maintain his independence.

Tim had a wonderful sense of humour that many around him enjoyed. Although he never had any children of his own, Tim loved kids and spent much time with his nieces and nephews. One of his endearing qualities was he seemed like a kid who had never fully grown up. He embraced life like he did in his youth and even had a drawer in his bedroom filled with nothing but candy.

Tim entertaining his niece and nephew

What Happened?

On the day Tim was killed, he was rushed in the job he was doing. He had a fast-approaching deadline and in haste, he made a decision to use nylon straps to rig and hoist a load, rather than chains, which were not readily available.

A catastrophic oversight on his part was that the load had multiple sharp “pinch points”, which ultimately cut through the nylon straps. The load fell onto Tim, who was standing underneath it in the elevator shaft.

Tim died on the scene and his apprentice was injured. In a cruel irony, he wasn’t even supposed to go to work that day but the company needed him.

What Went Wrong?

#1. Tim had been given a very small window of time to do a dangerous hoist. Being hurried affected his decision-making. 

#2. Opting to use nylon straps rather than chains was a tragic decision, but the chains weren’t readily available.

#3. He was operating blind with the crane, acting as a rigger, and with no signal operator.

All of these factors contributed to a workplace fatality…the end of Tim’s life.

However, leading up to this last day of Tim’s life, he had made multiple complaints regarding safety issues on the job site. His concerns were ignored.

Tim’s death, and the resulting inquest, led to 15 recommendations for changes or improvements in the industry.

Tim and his sister, Michelle, share a laugh

Hope for Safer Workplaces

Tim’s family was deeply affected by his preventable death. His sister, Michelle Fitch has a message for all workers:

“Never do a job if you question its safety. It is your right to a safe work environment.
There are laws to protect workers, and if you ever doubt that those laws will save your job, the alternative is so much worse. The people left behind never stop looking for you, never stop hoping it was just a terrible dream.”

Please watch this powerful short video about Tim’s death.

 

Since 2000, more than 20,000 Canadians have died as a result of their work – either from an occupational illness or injuries sustained on the job.

 

Is this the legacy we want to be building?

Please watch this short video (3 min) about some of the faces behind the stats.

About the JPMF

The JPMF was started after the death of Calgary Police Constable John Petropoulos on Sept 29th, 2000. John was investigating a break-and-enter complaint when he stepped through a false ceiling, fell nine feet into the lunchroom below, and died of a brain injury. There was no safety railing to warn him of the danger; the complaint turned out to be a false alarm.

John was 32.

The JPMF is a registered Canadian charity that raises public awareness about workplace safety issues and educates people about why and how to ensure their workplaces and the roads are safer for everyone, including emergency responders. For further information, please visit jpmf.ca.

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Electricity Kills

“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”

– Jane Goodall

Electricity kills.

But younger workers may not always be aware of the dangers of working around electricity. And their employers may not care enough to train them properly & make their safety a top priority.

Please take 2 minutes and watch this powerful new safety video about the tragic — and easily preventable — deaths of Tim Hamilton, 19, and Jeremy Bowley, 21. They died fourteen years apart while working at their respective summer jobs…due to the EXACT same circumstances.

This is unacceptable. And yet it happened.

If you are on social media, or have a young worker in your life, please share this video. Thank you.

To view more workplace safety videos, please visit/subscribe to the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund YouTube channel.

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New JPMF Website!

Welcome to the brand spankin’ new JPMF website!

Hope you’ll take a look around

A huge thank you to Neil Gilbert of ElbowRoom Design for creating our new site.

About the JPMF

The John Petropoulos Memorial Fund was started in 2000, after the on-duty death of Calgary Police Const. John Petropoulos. Learn more.

What we do

We raise public awareness about why & how people can make their workplaces – and the roads – safer for all workers, including first responders. Learn more.

View & share our safety resources

If you are on the lookout for workplace safety educational resources, we have plenty!

We have over 40 safety videos on our YouTube channel.

We have dozens of shareable safety images/graphics for you to choose from.

Thank you

Take care, stay safe & thanks for viewing & sharing our resources. You just never know who might need to see an important safety reminder right about…now.

Because workplace safety matters…very much.

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A Few of the Faces Behind Workplace Fatality Stats

Second Animated “Casket” Video Ready to View

“Safety isn’t expensive, it’s priceless.”

– Jerry Smith

April 28th is the Day of Mourning.

This is a day set aside to remember workers who have died as a result of their work – either from an injury or an occupational illness.

Since Cst John Petropoulos died on the job in 2000 (he stepped through an unmarked false ceiling while clearing a building and succumbed to a brain injury, as there was no safety railing in place to warn him of the danger), more than 20,000 Canadians have died from their work.

To raise awareness about this fact, in September 2020, the JPMF released the first animated “Casket” video (30-second PSA).

You can view that PSA here.

On April 28th, 2022, we are releasing the second animated “Casket” video (2.5 minutes). This powerful video highlights a few of the fallen workers – and their loved ones left behind.

Because 20,0000 fatalities isn’t just a stat…that’s 20,000 people whose lives were cut short because of a workplace injury or illness. We cannot bring those people back…nor can we remove the horrific impact their death had on their loved ones.

But by raising awareness about their deaths, perhaps we can help prevent future workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities.

Here is the link to view the second animated Casket video (2.5 minutes).

If you can share these videos on social media, please do.

A special thank you to the families who are participating in this ongoing campaign

On behalf of all of us at the JPMF, a sincere thank you to all the families who contributed photos of your loved ones for this special project. We are very honoured to be able to, hopefully, help transform your devastating personal loss into positive change. From our hearts to yours, thank you…and take care.

About the JPMF

The JPMF was started after the death of Calgary Police Constable John Petropoulos on Sept 29th, 2000. John was investigating a break and enter complaint when he stepped through a false ceiling, fell nine feet into the lunchroom below and died of a brain injury. There was no safety railing to warn him of the danger; the complaint turned out to be a false alarm.

John was 32.

The JPMF is a registered Canadian charity that raises public awareness about workplace safety issues and educates people about why and how to ensure their workplaces and the roads are safer for everyone, including emergency responders. For further information, please visit jpmf.ca.