The recent spring-like weather a week or so ago opened the tap on our snow-melt season… kicking sump pumps into high gear and temporarily knocking out my second telephone line (527-1201). It self-corrected, as it does most years, but not in time for me to retrieve some key messages from members of the Kenyon Presbyterian Church in Dunvegan. Consequently, I missed telling you about the Dunvegan church’s World Day of Prayer last Friday. And I apologize to you and the congregation.
While the best way to contact me with notices for the column is by e-mail, not everyone has access to a computer. So, from now on, if you’re more comfortable using the telephone, please call my home number: 613-527-3413. It’s in the phone book under Maxville (and, henceforth, in the column’s masthead). It uses a different cable from the road and is rarely affected by dampness.
Soccer season kick-off
Forget Wiarton Willie. Here in Dunvegan, the surest sign that spring is just around the corner is the annual call to register with the Glengarry Soccer League (GSL). The 2017 soccer season’s kick off starts this coming weekend.
If you prefer the human touch, an in-person registration session will be held the DRA Hall on Saturday, March 11th from 1:00 – 3:00 PM. Or you can register on-line by going to the GSL’s web site: www.glengarrysoccerleague.ca. But remember, the virtual registration door closes on March 31st. Naturally, the League prefers players to register before the deadline; it makes working on the team rosters and game schedules easier. However, late registrations are accepted for an additional fee of $40… per player, I assume.
I’ve also been asked to mention that the Dunvegan Soccer Program needs a few replacement coaches. If you’re interested in investing a few hours in the young people of this region, please call Ben Williams at 613-525-4006.
Pre-Paddy’s Concert
If you want to get in a Celtic frame-of-mind 24 hours ahead of St. Patrick’s Day, the Dunvegan Recreation Association is hosting a Pre-Paddy’s Day Warm-up concert on March 16th featuring “Ben Miller and Anita MacDonald”, a Celtic band from Cape Breton. The concert gets under way at 8:00 PM and tickets will be sold at the door on a first-come, first-served basis for $15 per head.
If you’re leery of buying a pig in a poke (and who isn’t, aside from our governments), do what I did and go to the group’s web site: www.benandanita.com. There you’ll find a video recorded live at Barnone Brewery, PEI of the group performing “Yestreen” from their 2015 album, A Day at the Lake. Assuming you like Celtic music, course. If it doesn’t get your toes a-tapping, you should seriously consider calling Munro & Morris.
Ben Miller and Anita MacDonald blend the traditional sound of the Cape Breton fiddle, with the haunting strains of the Scottish Border pipes (a perfect type of bagpipe for a hall the size of Dunvegan’s). Supported by friends playing piano and an acoustic guitar, they create a musical experience that I know many in Glengarry will love. As Alex Monaghan wrote in Piping Today Magazine, “… Fiery, fresh, yet totally traditional.”
PS: You’ll find the “Yestreen” video by clicking on the Electronic Press Kit link.
1812 Fundraiser Sold Out
I’ll be honest, the Tilkers and I hit last Friday’s 1812 Steak Fundraiser Dinner at the Windsor Tavern in VKH early in a semi-successful attempt to beat the rush. So I wasn’t sure how the event fared until I received an e-note from Jim Mullin on Sunday. Jim reported that the War of 1812 Reenactment fundraising event was a roaring success. I’m told folks showed up from all four corners of Glengarry, not to mention Vankleek Hill, Cornwall and the Ottawa area. The net result? The Windsor sold every last steak they had in their icebox.
At this point, Jim doesn’t have the grand total raised from the sale of steak-based meals. However, thanks to the tireless efforts of Mona Andre and James Prevost (who sold door prize and 50/50 tickets all evening), the group raised $402 from raffle tickets alone. By the way, the lucky winner of the 50/50 draw was Maggie Dean.
Jim wanted me to express his gratitude to the people, organizations and businesses who contributed their support to the evening’s success: The Review, The Glengarry Pioneer Museum, The Vankleek Hill Farmers Market, The Chocolate Box of Vankleek Hill, Two Hammers, Atlantic Braids Limited, Bob Garner, Linda Rutgers, Windancer Farms, Karen Davison-Wood, James Prevost and Sandra MacPherson. “We’d also like to express a huge thank you to the Windsor Tavern,” said Jim, “for supporting the Glengarry Pioneer Museum’s 1812 Reenactment once again.”
Better late than never?
I received a very strange letter the other day… from the Quebec government. In it, Nancy Dumas, the head of the Centre de relations clientele from the Regie de l’assurance maladie wrote that it had come to their attention I might “no longer reside in Quebec.” And If so, there will be “important consequences regarding my eligibility and, if applicable, that of my spouse and dependents for the Quebec Health Insurance Plan.”
According to the letter, persons leaving Quebec to settle in another province cease to be considered a Quebec resident on the first day of the third month following their arrival in that province. As for persons leaving to settle in another country, they cease to be a Quebec resident on the date of their departure. The only wrinkle is that I left “La belle province” 37 years ago. Whoever said the wheels of government turn slowly wasn’t kidding.
MAiD… for or against?
In a world full of acronyms, I encountered a couple more this past weekend when speaking with Robin Flockton, a member of Glengarry Memorial Hospital’s Board of Directors. The first was MAiD, which stands for “Medical Assistance in Dying,” a hot button topic that will be up for discussion at a public meeting on March 27th at 7:30 PM in the hospital’s Courtyard Conference Room. Regardless of where you stand on the topic, this public forum will be your opportunity to tell the HGMH’s board whether you think the hospital should, or should not, support this initiative.
Personally, I am in favour of MAiD. As it is now, we afford our pets more dignity in death than we do our human loved ones. My only complaint is that the approval process may not be designed for real life situations. Take my mother, for example. I know that at 96, after suffering a major stroke on top of her heart attack, she was ready to go. But there was no way she could satisfy the MAiD criteria. While I could have filled out the form for her, she was completely incapable of signing and dating it. Although in full possession of her mental faculties, she could no longer write or speak.
I also think provision must be made to incorporate one’s MAiD request in one’s End of Life plan. As it stands, one cannot give consent for medical assistance in dying in advance. I disagree. There would need to be safeguards, including a last minute confirmation (verbal or non-verbal) that the patient is still in agreement with the plan. But the time to weigh the pros and cons of whether one would want medical assistance in dying is before one needs it.
EOL… the missing piece
The second acronym Robin and I discussed was EOL or End of Life planning. While the date of a public meeting at the hospital on this issue has yet to be set, it’s also a very important, yet rarely discussed, topic. Many of us have investment plans… retirement plans… and even funeral plans. But it’s a rare individual who has an “end of life” plan. It’s the missing piece of the puzzle.
I’ll explore this in more detail in a future column, but I’ll leave you with a possible fact that shocked me. If you, like Terry and I, have a living will with a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) clause, it may not be worth the paper it’s printed on. Although, no doubt, a lawyer was enriched by its creation. Apparently, the only DNR document that has any real legal standing is the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Tem Care’s official “Do Not Resuscitate Confirmation Form.”
Until we meet again around this topic, you might want to wander about End of Life Planning Canada’s web site: elplanning.ca.
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