Caroline’s Reflections
It would appear that another summer season is quickly coming to an end. As I compose this message I am aware that many of our staff are feeling the effects of the massive wildfires across BC. The smoke was very apparent in Edmonton when I traveled in Alberta last week and I heard from Steve in Kenora that the smoke had reached them in Northwest Ontario. The effects of climate change continue to expand exponentially it seems. Each year, the floods, fires and other natural disasters appear to be not only more prolific but also more extreme. Not too many years ago, the thought of needing an air conditioner to live on the wet west coast was not common place, now many of us are lamenting that our fans just don’t do the job.
Summer is also a time for vacation, family time and a break from the regular routines. For many parents, the return to school probably can’t come quickly enough, for others the time went by too fast. I know for me it is hard to work the whole summer, as my brain seems to be wired to be off in July and August, even though it has been many decades since I experienced the academic schedule. However, I have soldiered on and look forward to a break in late August and early September.
The timing of my holiday this year has been affected by my somewhat crazy commitment to support cancer research by riding in the Ride to Conquer Cancer in the Lower Mainland on Aug 24 – 25. I will ride 100 km each day eventually ending up in Hope, where I am sure I will slide off my bicycle and probably not want to see if for a few days afterwards. It was good to have a goal to work towards and we know that volunteering in any form, helps not only the organization we support but research shows that we benefit from feeling good about what we do.
This past week, I had the pleasure of visiting the staff teams in High Prairie and Slave Lake and learned about the many different ways the team members contribute to their communities. Many serve on boards of not for profits, they started a challenge for businesses to support a food program for homeless people and the actively participate in community events, including most recently the annual summer parade. I suspect that many of our staff donate their time and energy for community initiatives. If you get a chance drop Dawn Yuen a line and let her know what you do, we can put together highlights of how our employees support communities across BC, Alberta and Ontario.
In the meantime, enjoy those last dog days of summer!
Caroline Bonesky
CEO, WJS Canada