Reservist receives C-FAX Citation Rose
Mary Ellen Green
Staff writer
May 12, 2008
On a cold night in late February, A/SLt Natalia Lebedynsky awoke to the smell of smoke and the sound of sirens.
She ran to the window and saw smoke billowing out the door of her then 93-year-old neighbour’s house across the street.
The neighbour had reduced mobility due to her artificial hips and A/SLt Lebedysnky knew at that point she needed to do something to make sure her neighbour made it out alive.
“It was kind of traumatic,” she said, eyes welling up with tears as she recalled the day. “I didn’t want anything to happen to this lady.”
“I ran towards her door just as the fire department arrived. They got her out the door and I took her down the stairs and a minute later the whole house was engulfed in flames.”
A/SLt Lebedynsky told the assistant fire chief she would tend to her elderly neighbour and walked her into her house. “She was barefoot and it was cold outside, and she can’t really move that fast.”
Once inside the house, paramedics arrived to examine her and concerned neighbours showed up in droves to see if there was anything they could do to help.
“I told our neighbour to contact her daughter and tell her everything’s okay,” said A/SLt Lebedynsky, a member of HMCS Malahat.
It was for these neighbourly actions that A/SLt Lebedynsky was awarded a C-FAX Citation Rose. She was nominated by neighbours who saw the selfless dedication she demonstrated that night.
“I was kind of caught off guard, I wasn’t really expecting anything,” she said.
In fact, when the roses arrived at her office April 16, she assumed they were an apology from a colleague, not recognition of her willingness to help.
The citation read: “In times of crisis, Natalia is always ready to open her home and her heart to those in need. She provided aid and comfort in the middle of the night to a 93-year-old fire victim until family were able to collect her.”
The giving doesn’t stop there. A/Slt Lebedysnky and her husband still make sure their neighbour’s lawn is mowed every week.
She also donates her time and voice to another cause very close to her heart.
Her three-year-old son, born urologically underdeveloped, has had nine operations to correct the problem.
“We’re real advocates of the B.C. Children’s Hospital because we have no family here. From a military standpoint, if it wasn’t for the hospital support and them being empathetic towards family, we would be basket cases and would probably be in and out of hospitals still.”
She has also become a member of Partners In Care family advisory committee for the hospital, and when they asked for volunteers to lend their voices and stories for radio and TV spots, she decided it would be a good idea.
“If we can inspire people to give to the hospital by sharing our story and letting them know how it affected us positively, let’s do it.”
A/SLt Lebedynsky helped out the B.C. Children’s Hospital by participating in a radioathon on Ocean 98.5 at Hillside Centre May 1. She will also appear on A Channel May 31 to help raise funds and awareness for B.C. Children’s Hospital.
“If people keep contributing to the hospital, it’s going to be a stronger hospital and they will be able to accommodate the various needs of B.C. families,” she said.
“It’s nice for the recognition, but I just hope other people step up to the plate and be good citizens as well. That’s the moral of my story.”
