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Peace of mind

There isn’t much you can do to safeguard yourself against a missed putt or an errant shot into the rough, but there is something you can do to protect yourself against lost or stolen golf equipment and other golf-related incidents.

The Golf Canada Incident Protection (GCIP) plan is available through Golf Canada, the governing body for golf in Canada, and its provincial partner associations including Golf Manitoba. It was first introduced in 2018 and is available to anyone who is a member of Golf Canada and most of its provincial partner associations and their member clubs. Public or non-club golfers can sign up for the program by joining Golf Canada or Golf Manitoba for $59.95 for 12 months.

Jared Ladobruk, executive director of Golf Manitoba, says the incident protection plan was established to provide an additional value to anyone who is part of the provincial or national membership programs.

The GCIP plan provides golfers with up to $6,000 in annual coverage. That includes up to $2,500 for damaged, lost or stolen golf clubs as well items such as range finders and golf watches. It also provides up to $1,0000 in window protection coverage should a stray shot hit a home or automobile window. In addition, it offers up to $2,500 in coverage in the event of a golf cart-related accident.

Mental health resource nurses play pivotal role in COVID care

Incorporating mental wellness supports into the development of care plans for personal care home residents in Prairie Mountain Health (PMH) has been a significant focus throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

These supports are thanks to a specialized group of mental health resource nurses (MHRNs) whose expertise in psychiatric and mental health services for long-term care residents, including those with cognitive disorders, has made a marked difference to the isolation experienced by residents during periods of visitor restrictions and limits placed on group activities and interactions.

The team, made up of 15 nurses distributed throughout the region, works under the leadership of Christine Miner, manager of mental health for PMH.

“The team has stepped up in so many ways, supporting residents during isolation and offering assistance to staff adapting to new ways of working in the pandemic,” says Miner, who is also a registered psychiatric nurse. “In many cases, they have also stepped into direct care roles to assist when their help was needed.”

Well equipped

Over the past two summers – which is to say during the COVID-19 pandemic – the game of golf enjoyed a renaissance.

Because it’s played outdoors – and lends itself to social distancing – scores of people took up the game anew or returned to playing after drifting away for one reason or another.

Suddenly, new golfers were looking for equipment, and those who hadn’t played for years ventured into the dark recesses of their basements or garages to find – and then dust off – their old clubs.

Not long after, realizing their equipment – whether it was Uncle John’s old set of 1978-vintage Walter Hagen’s or the clubs that had performed well back in 1999 (was it really that long ago?) – left something to be desired, they went looking for something better.

Exploring the city

Winnipeg is full of vibrant neighbourhoods with no shortage of diversity, businesses and events.

Many people have been confined to their homes or neighbourhoods over the past few years but with warmer days, longer evenings and a great re-opening upon us, now is the perfect time to leave your burrow and explore the city.

The Exchange District BIZ and the West End BIZ are member-driven non-profits that provide a variety of services in their respective areas including business supports, community patrols, neighbourhood beautification, walking tours, outdoor concerts, festivals and markets — and both are excited about upcoming summer events and getting back to business.

Aurora Debreuil, marketing and communications co-ordinator for the West End BIZ, is thrilled about the growth she’s seen in the area over the past year. Some 55 new businesses have opened their doors in the West End. A great example of the variety the area offers is the breadth of businesses along Wall Street, ranging from industrial, manufacturing and warehousing to breweries, food producers, restaurants and more.

Providing a solid foundation

Throughout their life together, there were few things more important to Alex and Peggy Colonello than the sport of golf.

On any given weekend you could usually find them on the links or organizing events at Elmhurst Golf & Country Club, where they were members from 1948 until their passing. They also mentored many of the province’s top juniors over the years and spent countless hours giving back to the sport as volunteers. In fact, Peggy was inducted into both the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and the Manitoba Golf Hall of Fame for her efforts on the provincial golf scene.

Although Alex (2003) and Peggy (2020) are both gone, their dedication to advancing the sport lives on. The Alex & Peggy Colonello Foundation was created in 2018 to support junior golf programming in the province. The foundation has committed $3 million to an endowment fund administered by Golf Manitoba that will support the next generation of golfers through grassroots initiatives and high-performance training.

The idea for the foundation, not surprisingly, came from Peggy herself. A few years ago she learned that many of the top young golfers in the province were skipping inter-provincial competitions because they couldn’t afford to travel to take part.

Lessons in teamwork:

Ryan Mabon was just one year into his role as a home-care nurse educator in Southern Health-Santé Sud when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, bringing with it many new protocols and procedures that he, like all health-care workers, needed to quickly learn.

For Mabon, not only did the pandemic mean a pivot back to learning at a time when he was beginning to feel “at home” in his new position, it also required him to move quickly and efficiently to ensure that new information was shared regularly and clearly with staff supporting home care in Southern Health-Santé Sud.

As a nurse educator, Mabon oversees the educational needs of 450 home-care staff, supports transitional care needs of clients and families, and contributes to policy and procedure development for the region. COVID-19 required many changes to where and how the education needs of staff were supported but made the sharing of information even more important.

“Most of the work I do with staff is hands-on and usually happens in a room, learning together, or through a series of meetings during the course of a week,” Mabon says. “Shifting to a virtual environment felt like learning a completely new role. My work became centred around evolving COVID-19 information so that I could share it with staff — and support them through the changes.”

Success in collaboration:

While Manitobans were encouraged to keep apart in order to contain the spread of COVID-19, health-care teams across Manitoba were coming together, joining resources and communities to support the needs and protect the health of populations at greatest risk.

In Manitoba’s Interlake-Eastern region, mobile teams from Southeast Resource Development Council Corp., Interlake Reserves Tribal Council and Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority worked together in partnership with individual First Nations communities to curb the spread of COVID-19.

The mobile teams supported COVID-19 testing and worked with First Nations community pandemic teams. Together, they were deployed 22 times over the course of a pandemic response that has spanned two years.

Cindy Garson is a health director with a nursing background for Interlake Reserves Tribal Council (IRTC), an organization that represents six First Nations communities including Dauphin River, Kinonjeoshtegon, Lake Manitoba, Little Saskatchewan, Peguis and Pinaymootang. The organization’s purpose to unify, maintain and expand the interests, lives and identity of its members formed the core of a combined response to pandemic threats in IRTC communities and beyond.

Bedtime Bliss

Students are back in class after a school year filled with interruptions, unknowns and apprehension. For many, it’s been a while since they’ve needed to worry about that early-morning alarm, after summer break and remote learning.

Maybe they’re up late worrying about what school will be like. For others, it’s the lack of routine – and sleep-preventing habits they’ve picked up – making it tough to get that much-needed rest.

“A lot of the school-aged kids are persisting in their routines and habits that they've developed for a year and a half with staying up later and waking up later. They’re missing that natural routine that going to school provides,” says child psychiatrist Dr. Andrew Hall, Medical Director of the Manitoba Adolescent Treatment Centre. “The brain gets in that circadian rhythm and makes it difficult for kids to get up for school in the morning – but they have to get up, so a lot of kids are running on not enough sleep.”

Poor sleep can make students prone to frustration and irritability, and can affect their attention, focus, memory, behaviour, reaction time, thinking, athletic performance and even creativity, Dr. Hall says.

A balancing act

Life sometimes seems like a balancing act in an effort to juggle kids, careers, aging parents and endless other responsibilities. Throw in a global pandemic and we teeter even closer to tipping the scales.or Karen Duncan, associate professor in the University of Manitoba’s community health sciences department, paid work is important — but so, too, is leisure time.“People are experiencing a lack of balance among these activities in their lives and it can lead to a number of negative outcomes such as lower satisfaction with family, relationships and life in general,” she said.“It’s also been shown to have negative health effects such as stress, poor sleep, depression and poor coping mechanisms such as addictive behaviour. If I’m not paying attention to this, I could be on the road to some serious health difficulties.”For those in the 40-plus demographic, it’s often a life stage filled with many demands.“There may be children who need attention or older family members who need increasing levels of care. There may be financial stresses. Work itself can be demanding because it’s a time when people are looking to advance their careers,” Duncan said.“I think work-life balance has been much more difficult in the pandemic for people in this demographic. It’s phenomenally difficult trying to continue your paid work while you are taking care of your children, particularly for single parents.”Katherine Breward, associate professor in the University of Winnipeg’s business department, said persistently high stress will lead to burnout typified by diminished personal achievement, emotional exhaustion and depersonalization — and all of these things can negatively impact the work environment.Beyond that, Breward said a lack of work-life balance disrupts life in other undesirable ways that can lead to family conflicts, anxiety, guilt and a lack of availability to family members.“I think it is important that these personal emotional and social impacts on the broader family are recognized in addition to business impacts,” she said, adding that changes to expectations for parenting styles might also contribute to the problem.“There is a lot of research that suggests females are more negatively impacted by work-life issues than men (although both are affected), due primarily to ongoing gender-related imbalances in childcare and domestic work responsibilities.”For those sandwiched in the middle of competing demands, self-care is a good place to start — although Breward acknowledges it might not always be possible due to time constraints.“Really, though, the help needs to come more from employers. We need to have more realistic workplace expectations, paid sick and mental health days and paid days off for family care,” she said.“Offering flextime can really help since it gives people more flexibility to attend to family appointments and other needs. Work-from-home options can also help if people have a suitable space in which to work.”Although there’s a tendency to put responsibility on individuals, Duncan agrees employers have a role to play.“Research shows employers incur costs when their employees are experiencing work-life conflict. There’s a real bottom-line incentive for employers to have policies in place that are going to be helpful to their employees’ work-life balance,” she said.“It’s so tempting to think of this as an individual thing but, really, it’s societal. Work-life balance is not a luxury for those who can afford it — it is essential for everyone.”Karen Duncan, associate professor in the University of Manitoba’s health sciences department 

Life sometimes seems like a balancing act in an effort to juggle kids, careers, aging parents and endless other responsibilities. Throw in a global pandemic and we teeter even closer to tipping the scales.

or Karen Duncan, associate professor in the University of Manitoba’s community health sciences department, paid work is important — but so, too, is leisure time.

You don’t need much to get started on the Path to fitness

Once you make a commitment to yourself, you just need a dedicated space, a few key pieces of equipment and a little know-how.Just ask Joe Shay, personal trainer and owner of Acceleration Performance West.Joe wasn’t always an athlete; in fact, his fitness journey started with a concern that he was too scrawny for the 
Oak Park football team. He began studying human performance, lifting weights and strength training. His peers and teammates took notice of his progress and were soon coming to him for advice.After completing certification courses both locally and with the International Sports Sciences Association, Shay took on his first personal training clients in his parents’ basement and then garage. In those early days, Shay trained clients with limited equipment that he acquired over time: a barbell, a few sets of weight plates and some dumbbells.Speaking from experience, Shay has some great advice for those looking to set up a fitness space of their own.“If they are looking into strength training and are going to be utilizing barbell movements, I would suggest either the basement or the garage,” he says, explaining that weights can be hard on your floors, even if you place them down carefully. Shay suggests adding rubber mats or heavy-duty flooring as a base. He also recommends a weight rack, preferably one with a chin-up bar and safety pins, an adjustable bench, a barbell and a few sets of dumbbells that are heavy enough to challenge you.Once you’ve set up your space, perhaps even before investing in equipment, Shay recommends visiting a personal trainer to help establish your strength and endurance baselines, teach you basic movements and patterns to build off of and help you find the exercises and weight increments that will get you to your goal.“Learn the compound lifts,” he says. “There are three basic full-body lifts that you can do in the weight room: squat pattern movements, pressing movements and pulling from the floor, or otherwise known as deadlift movements. These are the foundations for all strength and fitness training programs.”Shay’s training credits include local CFL standout Nic Demski and CFL hopeful Zach Esau. When you’re ready to take your training to the next level or are simply looking to diversify your routine, check out Acceleration Performance West on YouTube. 

Once you make a commitment to yourself, you just need a dedicated space, a few key pieces of equipment and a little know-how.

Just ask Joe Shay, personal trainer and owner of Acceleration Performance West.

Get up and get moving

We may have to remain physically distanced for some time yet because of the pandemic, but we need to remember that being physically active is still an essential part of healthy living, says the head of Active Aging in Manitoba (AAIM).

“We want to encourage people to sit less and move more,” says AAIM executive director Karin Whalen.

Of course, being physically active in these socially distanced times is not as simple as it once was. That’s why AAIM, like many other organizations, has shifted to delivering many of the programs and services it normally offers in-person to online platforms.

It’s popular Steppin’ Up With Confidence (SUWC) peer-led exercise program for adults 55 years of age or older is now available virtually. Several of AAIM’s peer leaders have also recorded virtual exercise classes that are available on social media platforms such as YouTube.

Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Focuses on Community

Looking at this year’s signage for the Manitoba 55+ Games, you can’t miss the PlayNow logo just beneath it.

That’s because PlayNow.com, Manitoba’s only legal online gaming website, is owned and operated by Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries—a longtime sponsor of the Manitoba 55+ Games.

The corporation first sponsored the games in 2009, when it was known as the Manitoba Lotteries Corporation. It merged with the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission in 2013, becoming Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries.

That same year, Liquor & Lotteries launched PlayNow.com in the province, and a renewed partnership was born.

Selkirk Set to Host Manitoba 55+ Games

The Selkirk community is gearing up to host the Manitoba 55+ Games after a two-year pause due to the pandemic.

Selkirk was ready to host the 2020 Games, but plans were put on hold out of COVID-19 caution.

Now, plans are in place once again for Selkirk to host the in-person events from June 7 to 9, with plenty of fun in store for both participants and spectators alike.

“Selkirk was on board in 2020, but the 55+ Games had to be put on hold due to the pandemic. The community is excited to rekindle the spirit of the Games and move forward with hosting the event this summer,” says Karyn Heidrick, Active Aging in Manitoba’s event co-ordinator.

How to reduce stress

All year long, we live life at warp speed.

Then, the holiday season starts ramping up in November.

On cue, the pace of life increases to a higher warp factor as we shop for gifts, attend parties and family functions, and get together with friends.

And with COVID-19 having scuttled the holiday season last year, there’s the temptation to either go all out or play it safe, adding yet more decisions to an already challenging time of year.