Take on the Chain of Life Challenge at Ski Saint-Bruno!

I'm Lieutenant Gabriel Bélanger, and have been with the Sûreté du Québec for over 16 years. I am currently an operations officer at the Centre de services MRC Saint-Hyacinthe.

I've been a volunteer for the Canadian Organ and Tissue Donors  Association (CODA) since 2014 and over the years, I have made more than 85 organ transports totaling several hundred volunteer hours. 

In October 2016, I was awarded the Good Samaritan Medal of Honour in recognition of my contribution and commitment to the cause of organ and tissue donation. Since September 2023, I have been coordinating the Sûreté du Québec's CODA unit in Montréal where I handle the requests for organ transports and assign a volunteer police officer to do the transport. I also continue to provide transports when the opportunity arises.

My involvement in organ donation transport means a lot to me. I'm proud to be part of the great chain of life that is organ donation. The closest I've ever come to the expression “saving a life” is transporting an organ. I remember transporting a heart on Valentine's Day—imagine that! It really touched my heart.

Organ transport gives meaning to my work as a police officer. Volunteering is good for the soul, and I'm proud to be able to help my community in this way.

Like many athletes, I started out doing marathons, then Ironmans and then, Triple-Ironmans. 

Serge Dessureault and I came from the same village, St-Michel-des-Saints. In 1998, we bumped into each other and he had no trouble convincing me to join him in participating in lots of sporting events every year: Raid Aventure, desert races, mountain biking, etc...

With time, we got a taste for the mountain and eventually, that mountain became Mount Everest, whose summit we reached by the north side in 2007.

In 2018, we aspired to carry the Chain of Life flag to the summit of K2, but fate decided otherwise. The flag fell out of the bag it was in and was lost on the mountain. However, it was finally found and given to Noël Hanna, an expert climber. And so, the flag got back into circulation, which just goes to show that the chain cannot be broken.

It is with pleasure that I join Chain of Life to encourage and raise awareness about organ and tissue donation. Who doesn't dream of saving a life?

Maurice Beauséjour

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The late Serge Dessureault

For many years, this exceptional and generous man was not only an ambassador and distinguished climber for Chain of Life, but he was also on the organizing committee of the Challenge in the Montérégie region.

Sadly, Serge passed away in July 2018 in a tragic accident while climbing K2. He had left for Pakistan with Nathalie Fortin and Maurice Beauséjour, both of whom are also involved in the Défi, with the intention of carrying the Chain of Life flag to the summit.

Since then, each year, in each region, a mention is made by the distinguished climber in tribute to Serge. 

Serge, you are, and will always be, in our hearts!