Kim Chappell, member of Bruce Power’s Off the Job Safety committee presents Dr. Hazel Lynn, Medical Officer of Health for the Grey Bruce Health Unit with a $10,000 donation for Childhood Injury Prevention on January 23.

Local safety initiatives are one of the key focuses of Bruce Power’s Community Investment Program.

Over the last three years, Bruce Power has donated $60,000 for childhood injury prevention initiatives in Huron, Grey and Bruce Counties including training for community professionals, car seat safety clinics, roadside car seat checks, bicycle safety clinics, and the purchase of car seats and bike helmets for families in need.

To see some of these initiatives first hand, a visit was organized to one of the car seat clinics offered in Clinton by the Huron County Health Unit on January 10.

Last year, Public Health in Grey Bruce organized six such community car seat clinics and roadside checks. “Of the 180 seats we inspected last year, 66 percent were found to be incorrectly installed,” said Linda Davies, Program Manager of Child and Reproductive Health at the Grey Bruce Health Unit. “These statistics are shocking, but unfortunately the reality on our roads is that too many of our children are not riding safely.”

Helen Ruttan of Fordwich believes the statistics. Up until she visited the car seat clinic in Clinton, she didn’t feel comfortable taking her grandson in her car. “I have been unsure about how to properly install the new seat that I bought,” Helen said while she observed the certified public health nurses checking her car at the clinic. “For now I’ve been switching cars with my daughter Andrea to make sure he’s safe.”

Helen Ruttan (left), of Fordwich confers with Public Health Nurse Laura Smith (right) about the installation of the convertible car seat for her grandson Carter. Helen was attending an appointment at the Huron County Car Seat Safety Clinic held at the Clinton Fire Hall on January 10.

Helen’s ten month old grandson Carter, had to move up from an infant seat to a convertible/3-stage seat in November because of his weight and height. Even with well-informed parents – Andrea is a high school athletics teacher and dad, Brian, a police officer – they felt it important to have their car seat and any other seat that Carter travels in inspected by a certified inspector.

Both Andrea and her mom left the clinic confident that should anything happen while traveling with Carter in the car, they have done everything possible to make sure he’s safe.

Professionals like Linda know that even though motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death and injury in young children, having a properly used child restraint can prevent up to 75% of these deaths and injuries.  She and her team at the Health Unit are working on the development of a multi-year strategy to address these and other ways to prevent childhood injuries.

“Many people don’t know that simply having a car seat isn’t good enough. In order to make an impact, reaching more families in our region about the importance of proper installation and correct harnessing is critical.”

To learn more about car seat safety and childhood injury prevention in our region, follow the below links:

Free Huron County car seat clinics

Tips about car seat safety

Grey Bruce injury prevention

Noah MacIsaac, a Grade 3 student at Paisley Central School accepts his contest prize - a T-shirt with his photo on it - from Jackie Ralph of the Canadian Mental Health Association, Grey Bruce Branch. Noah won for best photo as part of the Friends & Neighbours (FAN) Club Sunflower Fun project.

Bruce Power was on-hand at Paisley Central School on Jan. 25 to assist in presenting Grade 3 student Noah MacIsaac with the Sunflower Fun award at the school’s monthly celebration assembly.

Noah was part of an educational program sponsored by Bruce Power that is delivered to all 3,700 Grade 2 students in Grey and Bruce counties each year. His photo won top spot out of 70 submissions to the photo contest.

The Sunflower Fun program, run under the auspice of the Canadian Mental Health Association’s (CMHA) Friends and Neighbours (FAN) Club is designed to provide enjoyable and challenging learning activities about good mental health.

After the fun classroom activities are complete, each student is given a package of sunflower seeds and asked to take them home, grow them into flowers and once they are in full bloom, take a photograph and submit it to the contest.

“When you think of sunflowers, you think happy,” said Jackie Ralph, Youth Awareness Coordinator with the Grey Bruce Branch of the CMHA. “One of the messages of this program is that good mental health means feeling positive about yourself. Growing these seeds and watching them turn into beautiful, bright flowers is symbolic of taking care and nurturing yourself and believing your own potential.”

Aside from his determination, green thumb, and winning photograph, if Noah’s sunny disposition is any indication of the positivity at Paisley Central School, the community has a very bright future ahead.

Bruce Power has supported the Grey Bruce FAN Club since 2003 with an annual donation of $10,000. The club offers a puppeteering program designed to support, educate, prevent and increase awareness of mental health issues for children aged three through 11. The program uses child-like hand and rod puppets to engage children in lively and thought-provoking puppet shows, which children can relate to.

The Promoting Life-skills in Aboriginal Youth (PLAY) program is aimed at developing life skills through play-based activities, sport and recreation.

“We are extremely pleased to partner with Right To Play, the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs and the two local First Nations to bring this program to the communities,” said Duncan Hawthorne, Bruce Power’s President and CEO. “It will help foster new leaders and bring about more community engagement among youth. The lessons learned through the program will have lasting effects in the communities and reach at-risk youth.”

Bruce Power is contributing $60,000 to fund community mentor positions, while other portions will be funded by Right To Play, the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs and the two communities.

“We are very excited about the Right To Play initiative,” said Saugeen First Nation Chief Randall Kahgee. “It is an excellent opportunity to promote health and wellness in our community, especially among our young people. We are appreciative of both Ontario’s and Bruce Power’s support for the program.”

The community mentors will work with young people in the community and organize sport and recreation activities. A key component of this is the Youth Leadership Program, which promotes youth engagement through leadership activities, volunteer work and relationship building with other members of the community.

Yuma Hester, the community mentor for Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation, and April John, mentor for Saugeen First Nation, have recently completed the first intensive, three-day youth leadership workshop held in Brantford, and are focused on organizing their local project – an intergenerational hockey tournament in their communities on March 17.

About Right To Play

Right To Play is committed to every child’s right to play. It gives children a chance to become constructive participants in society, regardless of gender, disability, ethnicity, social background or religion. Through games and sports, Right To Play helps create social change in communities affected by war, poverty and disease. For more information, visit www.righttoplay.com.

Gordon Kaster, chairman of the North Huron Community Food Share, holds a copy of the family shopping list at their location on Josephine Street in Wingham. Gordon recently accepted a $500 donation from Bruce Power for the food bank.

The North Huron Community Food Share has been operating in Wingham for 16 years. The volunteer organization has quietly assisted hundreds of families locally and in the surrounding areas of Teeswater, Lucknow, Blyth, and Brussels who have needed help putting food on the table through hard times.

As its name implies, the approach to the organization is about sharing with others when they need it most.

“When the recession hit two to three years ago, we saw our numbers of registered users double,” said Gordon Kaster, chairman of the Food Share. “We are currently assisting approximately 134 families who can come to receive food once per month.”

Aimed at providing a more human experience to the typical food bank visit, families are given a shopping list provision based on the size of their family. On their monthly visit they then get to choose items from the Food Share shelves, similar to how they would shop at a grocery store. Local farmers donate fresh meat on a regular basis so recipients can have a rounded meal on the table.

Although food is their focus, the Food Share also stocks personal hygiene and baby items like diapers.

“People sometimes forget the number of non-food items that a family purchases at the grocery store. These things are expensive, yet important for the health of the family,” said Gordon.

In the words of a single mother with two young children that was referred to the program at the end of last year, no one ever thinks they will need a food bank. But, when the cupboards are bare and there is not enough  money for food, there is nowhere else to turn.

Gordon described that mother’s visit as an emotional one for both, as he happened to be volunteering the day she came in.

“She cried the entire time she was here. I tried to maintain composure providing assurances that things would get better for her, and that there was no shame in getting a little help from others,” Gordon recalled. “But when she turned around in the parking lot, came back in and asked if she could give me a hug, I completely broke down. It’s in these moments I know why the work we do here is so important to our community.”

Bruce Power recently provided a cash donation of $500 to help the program kickstart its year. The food bank is open Wednesdays from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. To make a monetary or food donation, contact Joyce Johnston, Operations Manager, at 519-357-2277 ext. 4 or pjfarms@hurontel.on.ca.

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) approved Bruce Power’s plans last year and has confirmed steam generator processing is an excellent example of responsible and safe nuclear waste management practices.

For a copy of the 2012 CNSC Update on steam generator recycling please visit

http://nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/mediacentre/updates/2012/January-13-2012-steam-generator-processing.cfm.

The company’s plan has also been strongly supported by our neighbouring communities in Bruce, Grey and Huron counties, and is being accepted internationally as best practice for steam generator recycling.

Bruce Power continues to believe recycling offers the best environmental solution for reducing our footprint and is something we remain entirely committed to. While a special arrangement licence issued by the CNSC will expire, there is no time limit on shipping the steam generators and, from our perspective, there is no urgency.

Since we have proven the sound science behind our plan, it’s not difficult to re-apply, and when it’s appropriate we will do so. Throughout this process, the company has been entirely transparent with the public about our plans and we are committed to providing updates when any next steps are progressed. The steam generators are safely stored in a building on the Bruce Power site.

On Feb. 4, 2011, the CNSC issued a transport licence and certificate to Bruce Power after considering information presented by 77 interveners during public hearings in September, 2010. In making its decision, the CNSC confirmed there was negligible risk to the health and safety of the public and the environment. Since Bruce Power’s application in April, 2010, more steam generators from around the world have been sent to Studsvik’s facility in Sweden for recycling, demonstrating that other companies share the view that recycling is the right thing to do.

Approximately 90 per cent of the metal in the steam generators can be decontaminated, melted down and safely reused. The rest would have been returned to the Bruce Power site for long-term storage. Each steam generator contains 100 tonnes of steel but less than four grams of radioactive substances.

The 'Disable the Label' group at Chesley District High School receives a $500 donation from Bruce Power to help put together their 'Student Stress Packages' to raise awareness and assist students at school with the facets of teen mental health issues.

A group of students at Chesley District High School have come together to help raise awareness about youth mental illness. The ‘Disable the Label’ group formed last fall and has been busy working on initiatives and raising money for their cause.

Grade 12 student Kathryn Loucks, who founded the group, knows first-hand the challenges young people deal with when faced with mental health issues. Diagnosed with severe clinical depression in September, 2010, she struggled through Grade 11.  Now healthier and a recent member of the Youth Action Committee at Children’s Mental Health Ontario, she has made it her mission to create awareness within her school about this important issue for teens.

Kathryn and her team are currently gearing up for Suicide Prevention Month in February where they will be running an art contest with the theme  of mental health and suicide prevention. They will have five levels of winners with the top prize of an iPad. The group will also be providing fellow students with stress buster kits that include books, resources, granola bars, pens, stress balls, and wristbands. The committee has gathered all the donations, is preparing the packages and will be distributing them in homeroom classes soon.

This group is a testament to what can be done when peers support each other. As they make great strides in breaking down barriers and removing the stigma that can surround mental illness, they are likely also saving the life of a classmate, a son, a sister or a friend.

If you or a youth you know is suffering from mental illness, there are resources to help.
www.thejackproject.org
www.kidsmentalhealth.ca
www.mindyourmind.ca
www.CMHA.ca
www.KidsHelpPhone.ca

Little Brothers Ronnie and Daniel skate with Toronto Maple Leaf forward Nikolai Kulemin during the Leafs Skate for Easters Seals, on Jan. 22. The event was sponsored by Bruce Power.

TIVERTON, ON – January 27, 2012 – Nine children involved in the Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of Kincardine and District program recently experienced the thrill of skating with members of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Little Sisters and Brothers took part in the Toronto Maple Leafs Skate for Easter Seals Kids, a Bruce Power-sponsored event, on Sunday, Jan. 22, in Toronto. The event raises money for Easter Seals, one of Bruce Power’s partner charities, which assists children with physical abilities in Ontario.

Jody Slesser, Community Coordinator with Kincardine BBBS and an Administrative Assistant at Restart Operations, accompanied the ‘Littles’ to Toronto.

“This was an experience of a lifetime,” Jody said. “Some of the kids were so excited they couldn’t sleep in the days leading up to our trip. All of the Littles who went are big Leafs fans and are hockey players themselves.

“We can’t thank Bruce Power enough for providing the opportunity for these kids to meet some of their heroes. I’m sure they will never forget this experience!”

Before lacing up their skates, the group had the chance to meet and have their picture taken with former Leaf Captain Wendel Clark. Then they hit the ice at to skate with members of the Leafs, had their photos taken, and received autographs from the players. After the skate was over, the kids played games and decorated Maple Leaf cookies.

Big Brothers Big Sisters is a non-profit organization, which provides mentoring relationships for children in need in a one-on-one match or a group program setting. Currently, the organization in Kincardine is in need of Big Brothers and male mentors for their Boys Bunch program, which runs from September until June. If you are interested in volunteering or require more information, call the office at 519-396-3565, ‘Friend’ them on Facebook at Big Brothers Big Sisters Kincardine, or visit www.bigbrothersbigsisters.ca/kincardine.

About Bruce Power
Bruce Power is a partnership among Cameco Corporation, TransCanada Corporation, BPC Generation Infrastructure Trust, a trust established by the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, the Power Workers’ Union and The Society of Energy Professionals.

For further information, please contact:

John Peevers - 519-361-6583 –  john.peevers@brucepower.com

24-hour Duty Media Officer – 519-361-6161