The co-founder of GiveSendGo says the 2022 trucker convoy taught her the virtues of Canadians.Heather Wilson and her brother Jacob Wells founded the crowdfunding platform in 2014. According to Wikipedia, the original purpose was for missionary trips, medical expenses for needy families, and other charitable causes.In 2022, the website became a favorite destination to support the trucker convoy. Wilson told an audience at We Unify’s Reclaiming Canada Conference that the experience revealed much about Canadians.“Canadians are some of the most generous people in the world. And number two, you really love your truckers, and that generosity told you something bigger than living status quo. You gave and you stood because you believed in something, you believed in truth, and you believed in freedom, and you inspired the whole world,’ Wilson said.Wilson said she and her brother pray before allowing a cause to go online. They found themselves at the center of intense controversy after allowing a fundraising page for Kyle Rittenhouse's legal defense..Rittenhouse gained national attention at age 17 for shooting three men in Kenosha, Wisconsin, two fatally, in August 2020, amid protests following the police shooting of Jacob Blake. He joined a group of armed people who said they were there to protect businesses. Rittenhouse fatally shot two men who had tried to grab his gun, and injured another who had pointed a handgun at him.The decision to host fundraising for Rittenhouse’s legal defense brought unwanted attention to the platform."One morning I woke up and there were…thousands of hate mail and my phone was blowing up," she recounts. The criticism was brutal. Wilson was labeled a "white supremacist" and a "terrorist.”"Look me up, don't believe everything you read," she said.The personal toll was significant. Wilson describes a moment when her children confronted her about the accusations. When her daughter was called "stupid," Wilson used it as a teaching moment. "Are you stupid?" she asked her daughter. "No," came the reply.Wilson recalled, "God whispered to me, ‘Yeah, you're not a white supremacist. You don't have to defend yourself.’"Wilson said the backlash she experienced reinforced her belief in the importance of giving voice to the voiceless. "We were supposed to stand here and give people a voice," she explains, "and that wasn't always the most popular thing to do.".The mother of six said faith grounds her in an ever-shifting world."Leaders rise, they fall, laws change, cultural opinions swing like a pendulum back and forth. And if we try to build our faith and our freedom on these shifting sands, it will not last,” she said.Quoting John 8:32, Wilson emphasized, "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." Wilson said, "Freedom comes from truth," and added that many Canadians understand that."Canadians are incredibly generous, and you really love your truckers. But I learned a third thing since then - you also love the truth."On the other hand, not everyone can handle the truth. Wilson insisted this should not stop people from speaking. "The Bible says when we speak, the words we say will either be an aroma of life to some and an aroma of death to others," she explained. "But that doesn't mean we stop speaking. We're not in charge of the outcome.""We do not need to fear culture, people. We do not need to fear our government,” Wilson declared. "Truth has a name, and his name is Jesus, and that truth is the ultimate hope for Canada and for the world.""Our social media accounts can be shut down, our campaigns can be cancelled. But the truth cannot be silenced,” Wilson added.
