The Home Support Team

John Mowle 

Our Uncle John shared a passion for the water! He resided in our nation’s capital, with a wonderful view and access to the Ottawa River right at his footstep. During our adventures, John was in constant communication through e-mail as he provided updates for us by tracking our progress. John, along with his wife Marion followed our journey every step of the way through our GPS Tracking Device (SPOT). We always looked forward to his statistical reports and information as it showed us potential hazards and points of interest along the route. John played a very important part of the Home Team by providing encouragement and support as we paddled on!

It is with sadness that both Uncle John and his soul mate Aunt Marion passed away since our trip ended in 2019. We will always remember these two dear souls for their jest for life and the love and support they have given us over the years.

Rachel Vandertol 

Rachel, one of our adventurous children is the Content Manager for the website. She has a zest for living and passionately immerses herself in anything she takes on. She is a teacher and has taught abroad in Guatemala, Venezuela and South Korea. She loves finding and taking in the sights that only locals are privy to! Rachel has enjoyed everything from river paddling in Mongolia to climbing switchbacks up volcanoes in Latin America. She has accepted the role of compiling, writing, editing and inserting updates sent from us during the trip to the website blog. Together with DFC International, she ensures accuracy and professionalism when it comes to our website and social media updates. Rachel is also an emergency contact shared with Paul Vanden Engel.  What would we do without her!

Paul Vanden Engel

Paul is a steward for the environment and has a passion for trees and their extremely vital role. He has made a huge impact in Kingston by restoring, teaching, and working towards preserving its urban forest. Paul not only tracks us daily through our GPS Tracking Devise (SPOT), but we have the reassurance from him that if we are ever stranded, Paul will find a solution to bring us home. Nothing will hold him back from retrieving us off any river, lake, or swamp anytime or anywhere in Canada!  Paul has driven days to pick us up at the end of our route and is always ready with his wife Denise, to help us get to our next destination. We want to thank Paul for his ongoing commitment in this important role for our Home Team! What an awesome brother!