The women of my past I


was indeed a very lucky person to be the first born grandchild in my mother’s family. I was surrounded by women from a very early age and, as I grew and


matured, I began to see the benefit of having them in my life.


They were a complex group, my mother and her sisters. There were so many facets to them that it left the mind dizzy trying to sort it all out. There were six of them, from Chryse,


the eldest, to Becky, the youngest. In be- tween were Sophie, Evelyn, Mother and Mary. You might think that having the same parental connections would have caused a great deal more symmetry in their thinking but, no, they were as different as you can believe.


The commonality that they had was that they all loved to dress up and they loved good things. Perhaps the strict work ethic that their father imposed led them all to love the other side of life. One common trait was that they all loved shoes and the fancier the shoe the higher the praise from the assembly. Christmas was a perfect excuse for them to parade their


spent every Saturday together downtown shopping or at the movies and always concluding with lunch at Picardy’s, the Honey Dew or Moore’s restaurant. I learned how to use cutlery properly in a restaurant and how to truly behave as a mature young man. Chryse introduced me to vaudeville, the symphony and bought us some of the first subscription seats for John Hirsch’s Theatre 77 on Portage East. We would go shopping and she would instruct me on the quality of things and tell me that owning one or two good things is much preferable to having several mediocre pieces. Books and reading were a high plus with her, and she imparted that love to me as well. Sophie was the most jovial and had the


Jim Pappas


best sense of humor. She was beloved by many for her wonderful ways with people. She liked to go out with me as she loved that people often mistook me for her son. She had a signature scent called White Shoulders; many years after she passed


away I stepped onto an elevator on Fifth Avenue in New York and a lady was wearing it. I was overcome with sad- ness at my loss.


finery and they did it in spades. When Barbra celebrat- ed her first Christmas with us, she was absolutely over- whelmed at how dressed up they were for the holidays. I explained that they worked so hard that celebrations were paramount and needed to be at a high level and so they did it up in the best way possible.


Chryse, as the oldest, took me under her wing and we Evelyn was a no-nonsense person and a very hard work-


er. She was devoted to her husband and children and had the most amazing memory of all of them. Once, when I was working with her, a fellow came into the restaurant and said to her, “I bet you do not remember me,” and she quickly responded with a rapid-fire volley of questions about his sisters and parents. He was dumbfounded as he


had not been in Winnipeg for about 20 years. Mary was a sports fanatic, a Bomber supporter for over 50 years. She loved to take all the nephews and nieces to games and sometimes she was the loudest voice in the stands. She was always a dedicated volunteer for the community and made many friends over the years at Folklorama, the Pan Am games and other things. She was sometimes sharp and bristly and feisty.


Becky was the baby of the lot and always pleasant and happy-go-lucky. She inherited my grandmother’s skills in the kitchen and taught me many wonderful Greek recipes that I still prepare today. She was always a funny one and loved to play jokes on her sisters and brother and nephews and nieces


Isabel, my mother, had an almost prickly exterior but


was a pushover underneath. She had a passion for white gardenias and often wore them in her hair when she had a chignon. When she was mad, her eyes would flash and you knew not to cross her in any way. She loved her music and often, when cleaning house, she would put on her Glenn Miller records and make me come and dance in the living room. She loved to bake and truly hated cooking. She was adamant that her two sons would leave home be- ing able to fend for themselves. She taught us everything we needed for survival.


How lucky I was to have them all in so many aspects


of my life. They shared parents, but they all learned to be individuals and women who could stand on their own. The learning curve I shared with all of them was greatly beneficial for me; the women in my past helped me to be a better person. Jim Pappas is on the CJNU board.


Foundation’s annual lottery calendar, which goes on sale this month. “We’re giving away more than $15,000 in daily cash prizes in 2018,” says Gordon Fardoe, the Foundation’s ex- ecutive director, “including two big $1,500 prizes on Jan. 1 and Dec. 31.” That, plus $25 daily prizes from Monday to Saturday each week, and a $100 prize every Sunday, adds up to a whole lot of chances for everyone who buys a calendar to win something – especially when you factor in that only 2,500 calendars are being printed. Apart from a nice windfall, winning offers another ben-


efit: proceeds from the sale of each calendar, which costs $20, go straight to supporting Deer Lodge patients and residents. “You are enhancing quality of life — tangibly improv- ing those days, weeks and months — for the thousands of Manitobans who require our services each year,” explains Fardoe. The need, he adds, is urgent.


Deer Lodge launches annual lottery calendar W


Ryan McBride


inning cash feels great. It feels even better when it helps others in need. That’s the bright idea be- hind the 2018 edition of the Deer Lodge Centre


“Manitoba’s Baby Boomers are all entering their senior


years, and the demands they place on the healthcare system are rising steadily. As their needs grow, so do ours. Deer Lodge Centre can rise to the challenge only if we act now.” Funds raised by the lottery calendar will help purchase


state-of-the-art equipment and enhance facilities. The money will also support innovative research, educational and training programs that help keep Deer Lodge at the forefront of geriatric care. Adds Fardoe, “It will strengthen our ability to provide the highest quality of life for you and your family when you need us most.” If those aren’t enough reasons to purchase a calendar,


this year’s edition features the spectacular photography of Bryan Scott, which captures the timeless moods of Win- nipeg through the changing seasons. Scott has been shoot- ing Winnipeg’s buildings and streets for over a decade. His work can be seen at Winnipeglovehate.com, as well as in his book Stuck in the Middle: Dissenting Views of Winnipeg, a collaboration with journalist Bartley Kives. “We’ve created a real work of art this year,” says Far- doe, who says the calendar would make the perfect gift or stocking-stuffer. Fardoe has worked at Deer Lodge Centre Foundation


for 12 years – a fraction of Deer Lodge Centre’s 101-year history, but more than enough time to see first-hand the enormous impact the generosity of Winnipeggers has on the people who call Deer Lodge Centre home. “These people are happy and thriving, in part because


they are more than just patients or residents. They are fam- ily. Everyone here – from our staff to our patients to our residents – truly knows and cares about one another. I’ve seen nothing like it anywhere else. Family is what makes Deer Lodge Centre such a special place – which is why it’s so important that we do what we can to strengthen it for the next 100 years.” To purchase your Deer Lodge Centre Foundation lottery cal-


endar, call 204-831-2113 or visit deerlodgefoundation.ca for details.


u A health-care provider can suggest exercise that works Continued from page 1


Canada, treatment of chronic disease con- sumes 67 per cent of all direct health-care costs in Canada. New research studies have shown that


exercise can help alleviate chronic disease symptoms, guard against developing a secondary condition and even improve quality of life, leading


some health-care


providers to actually pre- scribe exercise. An article published by the Arthritis Society asserts that, “exer- cise is considered the most effective non-drug treat- ment for reducing pain and improving movement in os- teoarthritis.” A systematic research re-


view from the University of Western


Ontario’s school


of physical therapy found that physical activity can indeed help manage chronic conditions. Specifically, aerobic and re- sistance training done two or three times per week is beneficial for individuals with chronic disease. However, the study cau-


November 2017


Krystal Simpson Healthy Living


tioned that exercise programs need to be monitored by a health-care provider and tailored to an individual’s specific needs based on their condition. For example, if you have heart disease, your cardiologist can advise on what type of exercise you can safely do and what ac- tivities to avoid. If you are


living a chronic condition,


with the


thought of incorporating physical activity into your daily routine may be over- whelming to say the least. But it’s important to re- member that every little bit counts and small amounts of exercise can make a dif- ference.


Even individuals


who have limited mobility can benefit from an exercise program.


Candace Swick, a special- ized older adult rehabilita-


tion therapist and owner of Bee Wellness in Winnipeg, emphasizes the importance of functional fitness for her clients. Func- tional fitness refers to exercises that can


help you with activities of daily living. For example, Candace may work with a client to improve their leg strength so they are able to get up from a couch on their own without any assistance. Candace helps cli- ents living with multiple sclerosis, Parkin- son’s disease and osteoporosis, along with individuals who have had a stroke and those who have undergone hip, knee or shoulder surgery. Candace recalled a client’s success story


where functional rehabilitation and fitness helped a beloved grandmother recover from a stroke. “This was a strong, inde- pendent woman who helped everyone else around her and didn’t like the fact that she now had to let everyone help her,” Candace said. “We started out with the basic range of motion, small leg and arm movements and eventually graduated to a more aggressive program. By work- ing on her body four times a week, we managed to get her from a wheelchair to a walker, and now to walking with a cane.” Adaptive programs that are tailored to each individual are very important for people with chronic conditions. So is starting off slow at a low intensity and


gradually building endurance. Candace recommends about 30 minutes of activ- ity a day, with a reminder to incorporate strength and balance training along with stretching into any program. So if you are ready to get started, con-


sider working with a health-care provider, physical therapist or certified fitness pro- fessional to help design an exercise pro- gram that is right for you. It’s never too late to reap the tremendous benefits of exercise! For additional information, please read


through the Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines for adults aged 65 and older: https://www.gov.mb.ca/healthyliving/ hlp/pag/pa_infosheet_olderadults.pdf. Krystal Simpson is a communications of- ficer with Victoria Lifeline. This article is informational only and not meant to replace the advice of a health-care professional and/ or physician.


Answers CJNU Music Trivia


A. 4, 8 B. 2, 5, 6 C. 3, 9


D. 7 E. 1


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