Jody Mitic, CD
Jody Mitic is a twenty-year Canadian Armed Forces veteran and was a Sniper Team Leader in Afghanistan when he stepped on a Taliban IED and lost both feet. A sought-after motivational speaker, he is a respected advocate for wounded veterans, people with disabilities, mental health and addictions. He openly discusses his past struggle with addictions secondary to his service having successfully completed rehab. Jody was awarded the sacrifice medal by the Governor General in 2009 one of the first to receive this award. One of Rick Hansen’s Difference Maker he received the General Sir Arthur Currie Award by Valour Canada in 2015. He received the Minister of Veterans Affairs Commendation from the Veterans Affairs in 2015. Heavily involved in the Invictus Games Jody was an Invictus ambassador and returned to Kabul, Afghanistan to light the Invictus flame in 2017.
He participated in season one of The Amazing Race Canada with his younger brother Cory and they battled their way to second place despite his disability. His memoir, Unflinching: The Making of a Canadian Sniper, was a national bestseller. His second book Everyday Heroes was an instant national best seller. He recently served on Ottawa City Council from 2014 to 2018. Jody still lives in Ottawa with his best friend and fiancé Kelley Shields and their service dog Athena. Jody developed a strong bond with Trevor while working on the book Everyday Heroes. If you ask Jody what his greatest achievement is, he will probably say “Being a father to two little girls.” Follow him on Twitter or Instagram.
Major Trevor Jain, OMM, MSM, CD, MD, MSc
Dr. Jain grew up in the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia. He joined the Canadian Armed Forces at the age of 17 and has served for 31 years. He received his medical training at Dalhousie University. During his last year of medical school he was seconded by the army as the pathology operations officer for the Swiss Air disaster in 1998. He was involved with the design and operations of the morgue as well as completing autopsies on the victims. He was decorated by the Governor General with the prestigious Meritorious Service Medal military division for this operation.
Major Jain completed both a family medicine residency and Emergency Medicine residency program after medical school and continued to serve in the Armed Forces. He completed a Masters of Science in Disaster medicine and currently is completing his PhD in the same area. He deployed multiple times for combat and humanitarian operations. He served as a trauma team leader and the military clinical director in Bosnia at a Role 3 NATO hospital. He has served in the Middle East as a flight surgeon supporting air operations in the fight against ISIS.
He returned from Iraq in the fall of 2018 serving as a trauma team leader and as the senior medical authority supporting Special Forces Coalition forces against ISIS at a Role 2 hospital. He continues to serve as the 36th Canadian Brigade Surgeon and was cross appointed as the Second in command of the Prince Edward Island Regiment from 2012-2017. He is involved in the veteran community providing support to local veterans. He is an emergency physician at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the Medical Director of Paramedicine Programs at Holland College and the Program Director of the Division of Paramedicine at UPEI.
An accomplished pilot when not working or spending time with family he enjoys flying. He was invested by the Governor General into the Order of Military Merit (Officer level) by the Canadian Army, one of five in 2018. He is featured in the best selling book Everyday Heroes edited by Jody Mitic. Jody and Trevor have been close friends since collaborating on Jody’s last book. Through their shared experiences they have developed a strong friendship and bond.
