Submitted by: Connie Beaudry Community Resource Coordinator, Services to Seniors Swan River

Spring weather brings on thoughts of fire and personal safety here at Services to Seniors. April 23 at Birch River, Dave Forbes District Fire Chief at the RM of Mountain Municipality talked about the need for fire extinguishers and the need to know how to use one. All fire extinguishers must have an annual inspection and an in-depth one every 7 years. Eclipse Fire and Safety in Swan River is a reputable business that can help with purchasing, annual and 7 year inspection of a unit. The Municipality may have a training session for how to use a fire extinguisher in the fall. Watch for posters. The RM of Mountain is committed to fire safety with an incentive for everyone to have a working smoke alarm. Every household can ask at the municipal office (204-236-4222) or the fire chief for two smoke alarm units to be installed in their home, at no cost to the homeowner.

Katie Kroeker, RD Health Promotion Community Development PMH, states there is no reason to cut out all meat (unless requested by your MD), but we can supplement our protein needs with grains, beans-including lentils, nuts and seeds. Try cooked lentils in your ground meat meals: chili, meatloaf, shephards pie or taco’s to name just a few. Try adding pumpkin seeds to cooked oatmeal or salads, pumpkin seeds have a whopping 24g of protein per ½ cup serving. Katie explained B12 is for nerve and red blood cells, if you are low in B12 you may feel tired or weak. As a person ages their bodies will have a harder time to absorb vitamin B12. There is no excess limit for B12, you can take a supplement of 1,000 mcg’s per day, or obtain it naturally from meat and dairy products.

Dave Lowry from the Swan Valley Ambulance Service (911) spoke on the E.R.I.K. kit (Emergency Response Information Kit). This kit has a background conception from within the Swan Valley. It provides the necessary information for emergency personnel to respond quickly to a medical situation where you may not be able to communicate with emergency personnel. Once completed you will place a red tag on your exterior door that lets emergency personnel know that you have a kit filled out and it will always be on your refrigerator. It will have your full name, address and birth date, your Manitoba Health Registration #, Your Primary Care Provider and an emergency contact, a list of medications and a medical history and allergies. It may also include a Health Care Directive, a donor card or a Living Will. Ambulance Attendants and Medical Personnel find that this E.R.I.K. kit is a valuable tool to give you the best medical care you wish to receive.

Ida Theodore, a long time member of the Services to Seniors volunteer “Board” and lifetime volunteer has shared her view on how the act of volunteering can have wonderful benefits for the volunteers as well as the recipients. Ida has been volunteering since she was 15 years old, as an adult there were many opportunities at the rink, the church, school, a quilting group. All the men in town belonged to the Lions Club. All the women in town organized themselves into groups of 4 that provided their suppers at weekly meetings. Those that didn’t cook that night had a free night out. Ida is always grateful for the help she received from volunteers, she learned to crochet, how to pain Ukrainian Easter eggs, to make perogies, how to throw a curling rock properly, how to ski and golf. There was no golf pro at the time so a local good golfer volunteered to give golf lessons every spring to women and juniors. She signed up and has been golfing ever since. 3 years after her lessons- She married the instructor! What a great volunteer that turned into a Love Story. Ida says “ I always felt I got more out of the volunteer experience than the recipient did. I wasn’t sure why”. Volunteers do not necessarily have the time, they just have the heart! Volunteering helps counteract the effects of stress, anger and anxiety. It is a way to make new friends, it can teach us new skills, it can and will show our children how to give back to the community. Children watch everything we do! We can all volunteer, it does not matter what our health, mobility or financial background is. We can read to vision impaired, we can teach crafts, we can telephone to a shut in for a wellness check. The opportunities within the Swan River Valley are endless. If you or someone you know needs a boost of energy that volunteering can give, let us know at 204-734-5707. We will help you find somewhere to use your talents or find someone to volunteer for your needs.

We look forward to having New Horizon’s for Seniors Program cover the costs for some of our future presentations. May 28th to May 30th we will talk with professionals about Diabetes-New Devices and Options, Active Wellness-A Circle of Health, Mind, Body and Soul, how to care for house and patio plants and as always, we will have self-testing blood pressure machines available.