Chilliwack/Nanaimo – Monica Webb, from Chilliwack, is a burn survivor, a Burn Camp graduate, and the recipient of the Kris Biggs Leadership Bursary. She is also a nurse whose career path was inspired by her time at Burn Camp, where many local burn unit nurses volunteer as Camp Counsellors.
Monica has shared her inspiring medical story in support of the Hometown Heroes Lottery and the Burn Fund.
From Monica:
My name is Monica Webb and I am a burn survivor from Chilliwack, BC. My burn accident happened when I was one year old, so I don’t remember it at all. I just remember the stories I have heard from other people about that day. I was walking around the kitchen table and poured two bowls of hot soup down on myself burning my left hand, chin, and chest. I spent three weeks in BC Children’s Hospital getting skin grafts and I continued to wear pressure garments for the following year after that. I can still remember the stares and comments made to me about my scars when I was growing up.
I remember the Burn Fund calling my mom when I was little inviting me to go to Burn Camp. I was hesitant to go until I was 13 and when I finally went, I wished I would’ve said yes much sooner. Going to Burn Camp that first time and for the years after that changed my life.
The Burn Fund is such an amazing community that brings burn survivors together and fosters great relationships. There is something so special about being around a group of people that don’t stare at your scars and that also understand what you have been through. Burn Camp allows you to forget that you are a burn survivor for a week and just have tons of fun and build connections with some really great people. After being a camper for five years, I got the opportunity to go back as a junior counsellor for a few years. I really enjoyed my experience as a junior counsellor and being able to give back and help make the week special for the campers just like the counsellors did for me. I still remember my favourite moment as a counsellor when a little girl I had in my cabin found out that I was also a burn survivor, her face lit up and we shared and bonded over our stories. I feel so lucky to be a part of the burn fund community.
Being a burn survivor and attending Burn Camp with the many nurses and other first responders that help make it possible, has really influenced my decision to go into nursing. I will be graduating from Vancouver Island University as a registered nurse in June 2022. I can’t wait for a career in which I can give back and help people who need it the most just like I did when I spent those three weeks at BC Children’s Hospital. Graduating nursing school would not have been possible without the emotional and financial support from the Burn Fund throughout the last four years. Being the recipient of the 2021 Kris Biggs Leadership Bursary has really helped me be able to focus more on school and less on the financial demands of post-secondary education.
