A former reservist in Newmarket is using his business to help support and mentor veterans and active military service members.
Paul Barker, who served with the Queen’s York Rangers in Aurora, has owned Automatic Rain Ltd. in Newmarket since 2008.
His business is included in the Buy Veteran campaign, an online database of veteran-owned businesses to encourage Canadians to support them.
However, that’s not what motivated Barker to add his name to the campaign, as the former reservist doesn’t consider himself to be a veteran.
“I have a friend that died in Afghanistan. I have friends that have served in Afghanistan, that have served in the military for many, many years. I was a reservist,” he said. “I know people who have done more, to me they’re veterans.”
Instead, Barker said he hopes the Buy Veteran campaign will help spread the word about his business to veterans and military members who are looking for jobs.
“I know there are people getting out and trying to think what’s next. So I feel that there’s huge demand for people to come into the trades,” Barker said.
Automatic Rain Ltd., a member of Landscape Ontario, specializes in irrigation services, but Barker said he can offer training and opportunities in other areas of the landscape industry as well.
“My whole purpose with being a part of the Buy Veteran campaign is to try and give back to veterans through mentorship and opportunity and training,” he said.
He said he is willing to help out active members of the military, too.
“I would be happy to have anybody from the military come work for me whether it's one day or five days a week. If it’s a couple of months out of the season, whichever,” Barker said.
He said it’s a personal, emotional connection that encourages him to support veterans.
Barker’s grandfather was a member of the Navy and Barker himself was very involved in Cadets and the Rangers.
“I served with people in the reserves that went into the ranked forces. One of the ones that died was a local boy from Keswick. You know, there’s some heartstrings there,” he said. “There’s the sacrifice of the men and women that gave everything and I couldn’t imagine me doing it myself. It’s appreciation, it’s the sadness of lives lost, sacrifices made, families torn apart.”
The Buy Veteran campaign offers a way for others to support veterans in a tangible way, too.
The awareness campaign, which is run by Prince’s Trust Canada, has grown since 2016 to include more than 630 business listings across the country.
Along with Automatic Rain Ltd., there are four other veteran-owned York Region businesses.
In Richmond Hill, the Expedia CruiseShipCentres travel agency owned by Barry Foot is in the directory.
Another Richmond Hill business, Humber Honey, is also on the list. It is owned by Brian Burgener and offer locally sourced honey.
DLC LumiSheet, which is located in Markham and is owned by Avinash D'Souza, is also included in the directory. It provides custom lighting solutions.
Last Straw Distillery, a Vaughan distillery owned by Mike Hook, offers spirits like whisky, vodka, gin and rum.
