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Day of Mourning: A poignant and heartbreaking reminder
I have attended or participated in several National Day of Mourning ceremonies in the years since my son Micheal’s workplace fatality, and been fortunate enough to have been asked to speak at two of them. Ceremonies are held every year across Canada on April 28th, in...
Ten Ways to Make Your Workplace Safe for Everyone
Is your workplace safe for everyone, including police, fire and EMS who might have to attend during an emergency? Not sure? Here are ten simple ways to help you find out: Take a good look around your workplace. Right now. Close your eyes. Imagine you are a...
Day of Mourning: Ripples on the pond
I’m not the best at skipping flat stones across water, but I’ve had a few multiples – the stones that ricochet off the water several times before finally sinking into the depths. It’s absorbing to watch the ripples move out from each point where the stone...
Steps for Life: 4 top reasons to register today!
(And a bonus reason!) But here’s why you should wait no longer – today’s the day to go online and make it official! Steps for Life – Walking for Families of Workplace Tragedy is the top public, national health and safety event in the country.
And the Day Comes
The Hickman family today I have been dreading this day for a few years. Very strange you may say. What makes this day, April 2, 2017, different from any other? This is the day that Tim will have been dead longer than he lived. Very strange, I even say to myself. It’s...
Bruce and Wendy-Ellen Nittel
“On July 2, 2012, my husband, Bruce and I joined an exclusive group. I hope others don’t join this club as the cost of membership is too great” After their son Blaine died in a pump truck rollover, Wendy-Ellen and Bruce Nittel had a visit from Blaine’s employer, who...
How to tell when you are listening
If you are grieving the loss of a loved one or a dramatic life change due to injury or disease, chances are others around you are grieving too. Knowing how to listen makes you better able to support others. Listening is a vital skill for Threads of Life’s Volunteer...
Start a new Family Day tradition
But maybe it’s time to start a new Family Day tradition. Let’s spend some time thinking about the family members that Threads of Life supports. Families who may be grieving the death or injury of a loved one through a workplace tragedy, or who are dealing with occupational disease.
5 Tips for Dealing with Cultural Differences When Grieving
My husband, John, was Greek Canadian. He was born in Canada. His parents immigrated here from Greece in 1958. The family was Greek Orthodox and attended church regularly. John’s family were lovely people and warmly welcomed me – a born-in-Canada Anglican gal with...
How to talk to families after a tragedy
“This relationship [with the employer] was very important to our family. We felt that they sincerely cared about us and would do whatever they could to help us through the difficult times.” No one wants a work-related tragedy to happen. A fatality, serious injury, or...
Remembering Michael Bonvie and a preventable workplace tragedy
(Posted on January 17, 2017) On October 26, 2006, Town of New Glasgow Public Works employee Michael Bonvie died at the scene of a preventable workplace accident on Foxbrook Road, Westville, NS at 9:30 a.m. On that fateful day, Michael lost his life while working on a...
A friend along the way: being a Volunteer Family Guide
When you’re on a difficult journey, having a companion beside you makes the path seem a little smoother. That’s the role of Threads of Life’s volunteer family guides. Hundreds of people have experienced the healing benefit of being able to talk with someone who has been down a similar road already, and who knows how to listen. Your Volunteer Family Guide may not tell you which way to go, but he or she will be there with you.
