Illness recovery gives Carr renewed strength

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This article was published 07/10/2020 (1824 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — Jim Carr says his bout with a blood cancer has given him a fresh perspective on life, and the purpose of politics.

“It was a tough road, but I’m on the other side of it, and I feel in every way that I’m stronger,” Carr told the Free Press in a video interview Wednesday from his home.

The MP for Winnipeg South Centre made his first appearance to the Commons in a year, via a video link Sept. 30. MPs in the chamber cheered his rebound from multiple myeloma, and some noticed his hair is much shorter than normal.

Carr went into last year’s election having served as trade and energy minister, two of the trickiest files for any federal government. He appeared set for another key role, but ended up going to the hospital on election night, due to persistent flu-like symptoms.

In November, after losing nearly all seats between Vancouver and Winnipeg, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made Carr his special adviser for the Prairies.

That month, Carr appeared in Ottawa sounding upbeat but with a softer voice, and looking slightly ashen.

Between chemotherapy and dialysis, Carr was working the phones, checking in on leaders in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

In May, doctors reset Carr’s immune system through a transplant of his own stem cells, a procedure delayed six weeks due to the COVID-19 lockdown. After a month in hospital, he was discharged, but a C. difficile bacterial infection a week later sent him back to Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre for three days.

Carr, who turns 69 this weekend, said he’s been back home and on the mend since early June.

“I’m much stronger and was very well-cared for by the excellent staff of nurses, doctors and support people at CancerCare Manitoba and the Health Sciences Centre.”

He grins while flashing a wristband step-monitor, part of his regimen of getting enough movement, even during a global pandemic, along with physiotherapy and gaining back weight.

Months before his cancer diagnosis, Carr was a cabinet minister who insisted on shaking hands. Now, he’s urging all Manitobans to wear a face mask, wash hands and avoid close contact. He has spent most of his recovery time indoors, listening to music, reading and keeping in touch with his grandchildren.

Carr said his job is about reflecting to Ottawa what politicians, industries and community groups are

talking about — which is often the agriculture and energy sectors, as well as reconciliation.

That’s unlike a full cabinet job where a minister oversees a department, and intervenes in high-profile issues relevant to their province.

“My job is to stay in close touch with decision-makers throughout the Prairie west, and make sure that those at the centre of government are well in touch with those sentiments,” Carr said. 

When it comes to COVID-19, Carr speaks to a Liberal cabinet dominated by MPs from Ontario and Quebec, where the majority of deaths and outbreaks have been concentrated.

While the Prairies have also benefitted from federal support for testing and contact tracing, Carr said a lot of his talks have surrounded the rapid rollout of programs meant to help businesses weather the pandemic.

“We understand that speed means that perfection is loosened, and we have, I believe, been humble enough to realize that we could improve on the administration of these programs,” he said.

Carr argued a pandemic, like a personal health crisis, puts into focus the importance of rallying together, instead of being consumed by hyper-partisanship.

“We have seen too many examples where there have been personal attacks; hard-edged, ideological rants among some politicians. Not particularly in this country or province, but we’ve seen it elsewhere, and people react to it,” said Carr, careful not to name the United States.

“I don’t have much time or patience for the distractions of bitter partisanship, and I don’t think most leaders in Canada do either.”

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca