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While still in high school, Jabs had her heart set on helping Syrians. She started learning about bullet wounds and tourniquets by researching and reading as much as she could.

After graduating from high school, Jabs decided to head to the war-torn country to help, leaving last October.

It was a big decision, one that was hard on both her and her mother as well. Brenda Jabs would soon go weeks without hearing from her daughter, hoping she was safe.

“I always knew from the moment I put her on the airplane that there was probably a greater chance that she wouldn’t come home than there was that she would,” said Brenda Jabs. “And when I had those feelings, I prayed a lot. Lots and lots of praying.”

Once in Syria, Shaelynn Jabs discovered there was a desperate need when it came to treating the war wounded and she pitched in, doing what she could to help save lives. But after a month, Jabs decided to pick up a weapon and join the fight directly.

It’s hard, because how can I live a normal life when they can’t?

“They were telling me there was no one on the front lines doing enough and people were dying while bleeding out. And I thought if I was fighting at the front lines I could save someone’s life. Because by the time (many) people reach the hospital, there is very little you can do,” she said.

The Alberta teen fought with a militia known as the Kurdish People’s Protection Unit. She was a part of the Women’s Protection Unit (YPJ) that allows women to fight.

“The fact that women were able to stand up for themselves was a big changing point for them and I wanted to be able to show them that there are other countries that care and wanted to support that,” she said.