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The heart-wrenching legacy of brain injury
Brain injury can be devastating but I see my role as an advocate for people affected by brain injury whether it be the survivor or the family members.
Family Forum sponsors help make healing happen
For many people attending a Threads of Life family forum, it may be the first time they’ve met anyone who’s been through a similar experience of workplace tragedy. Many say it’s the first time they’ve felt free to cry; some say it’s the first...
Book review: Option B
Option B (by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant, Knopf 2017) grew out of Sheryl Sandberg’s experience with grief following the tragic death of her husband in 2015. (The end of her Option A). For we who have been thrust into grief following a workplace tragedy the details of her story will be familiar. She describes “overcoming grief” as moving from being in a fog or void (a time of incapacity) to functioning in a more predictable way.
Making our sunshine: Steps for Life 2018
Of all the dozens – maybe hundreds – of images I saw from 2018’s Steps for Life walks, these are a couple of my favourites. Our Facebook page and Instagram feed are filled with bright sunny photos. Almost all of our 27 community walks were blessed with lovely weather this year. Not Calgary though! Cold, wet, gloomy – it looked downright miserable.
Volunteer Profile: Lissa Gaudet
Lissa Gaudet volunteers as the co-chair of the Halifax Steps for Life walk. Lissa’s position as QHSE Advisor at McNally Construction Inc. in Halifax brings the importance of workplace safety to Lissa’s mind every day.
A life-altering summer job
Each year hundreds of high school students from all across Canada begin working for the summer, and for many this will be their first “real” job. Fifteen years ago, I was beginning my summer job at a golf resort on Prince Edward Island; I did not realize at the time it would change my life forever.
Day of Mourning: Carrying the weight
April 28th once again brings us the National Day of Mourning; a day marked to reflect on the lives lost or forever changed by workplace injury and illness, and re-commit to the actions required for prevention. There’s an extra layer of heaviness for those who feel this particular loss in their bones — for those who know this pain up close and personally.
Siblings Day: Honouring life’s longest relationship
Each year on April 10th, my Facebook newsfeed floods with pictures and posts of friends and family members tagging siblings in photos new and old under the #NationalSiblingsDay hashtag. Do they know the origins of the day?
The impact of a Threads of Life speaker
We know our Threads of Life volunteer speakers have impact. By sharing their personal experience of work-related fatality, life-altering injury or occupational disease, they are changing Canada’s workplace safety culture. And we often hear about the unforgettable message a speaker has left with an audience. This spring, after a presentation by one of our speakers, an audience member wrote a moving and poignant testimonial to the effect her story had on him. The writer agreed to share his words here, on the condition that it remain anonymous.
The ripples of a tribute donation
What is in the meaning behind the word ‘tribute’? Look it up and your will find a variety of meanings, often in reference to showing respect for someone you admire. We hear about paying tribute to actors during the academy awards. (Actually, I don’t watch the academy awards – perhaps that is one reason. I don’t know much about which actor played in what tv show or movie.)
When the worst happens: How to help families
We all live and strive for a day when work-related deaths, injuries and illnesses are gone; when everyone returns home from work just as healthy and whole as they were when they left. But until that day comes, tragedies continue to occur. It’s the worst thing most managers or health and safety professionals can imagine. If the worst does happen, the way the employer responds can play a surprisingly important role in the impact that tragedy has.
Bringing safety into focus on the farm
There are lots of honorary days and weeks to promote health and safety, but Farm Safety Week (March 11 – 17 this year) is the one closest to my heart. I’ve lived in farming areas since the age of four, and for the past 21 years my husband and I...
