Alexandra May Jones CTVNews.ca writer

Todd Battis Director of CTV National News Atlantic

TORONTO-As Memorial Day approaches, a Nova Scotia artist created a charity work to commemorate the most recent loss of the Canadian Armed Forces.

Every year, the True Patriot Love Foundation auctions helmets painted or otherwise modified by artists to raise funds for charities.

This year is the second year that metal artist Al Hattie has contributed to this cause. He chose as his focus to present the six members of the Canadian Armed Forces who were killed when a cyclone helicopter crashed into the Ionian Sea in April 2020. Members pay tribute.

"The work I created this year is to commemorate the lives lost in the hurricane tragedy last year," he told CTV Atlantic News.

He said that he chose that car accident as the inspiration for this year's work, to "pay tribute to all the people of Nova Scotia and the tragedy we experienced last year."

Captain Brendon Ian Macdonald, Captain Kevin Hagen, Captain Maxim Millon-Morrin, Deputy Lieutenant. Matthew Parker, Master Cpl. Matthew Cousins ​​and deputy lieutenant. Abbigail Cowbrough was killed in the crash. Three of them-MacDonald, Pyke and Cowbrough-originally came from Nova Scotia.

Heidi is an "upgraded metal artist", which means that his sculptures are made from recycled scrap metal.

His art work this year turned a basic military helmet into a miniature helicopter with a metal tail, landing gear, metal rods that outline the position of the windows, and a mobile rotor on the top.

The tail of the helicopter is made of an "old sander" that Heidi has sat on the shelf for many years.

"I really want to find some major details so that when people see it, they will know that it is a Cyclone helicopter," he said.

He deliberately added only six windows on the helmet helicopter to pay tribute to the six victims.

"The whole process of creating it, all I can do is think about the six souls on that helicopter," he said.

Heidi's art works, along with other helmets, turned into canvases and were auctioned to raise funds to support the charity of veterans.

"This is my way of trying to give back," he said.  

This helmet was designed by artist Al Hattie to look like a helicopter in memory of the people who lost their lives in the Cyclone helicopter crash last year.

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