HomeMy WebLinkAboutFarming '89, 1989-03-22, Page 31FARMING ‘89, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 1989. B7.
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Despite positive thinking
many in agriculture still face
too much pressure
BY BONNIE GROPP
The incidence of farm suicide in
Huron County is still a problem
while the rate at which they occur is
alarmingly significant. Why then
are we no longer hearing anything
about them? This disturbing situa
tion appears to have been pushed
into the background while too many
people seem to have chosen to
ignore it.
It is a problem that nobody wants
to talk about. Brian Ireland and
Brenda Mason are counsellors with
Queen’s Bush Rural Ministry and
according to them the public is
being kept in the dark about farm
suicide.
The ministry was established by
the United Church but since its
inception in December 1987 mem
bers from the Mennonite Fellow
ship, Evangelical Lutheran, Angli
can, Presbyterian, and Roman
Catholic Churches have joined the
Board of Directors. It has been
Brian and Brenda’s responsibility
as part of their job to provide
immediate counselling profession
ally and compassionately, to,
among others in distress, including
potential suicides, hopefully giving
them the strength to fight back.
Brian describes it as “battlefield
counselling,’’ doing the best that
they can, then hoping for the best.
So far it has proven fairly effective.
Brian stated that when he and
Brenda began, they were told by
the Board if they saved one life a
year they were doing their job and
Brian feels they have truly accom
plished that. But despite their
efforts and concern, there are too
many unnecessary deaths taking
place.
There are no Federal or Provin
cial Government statistics available
on farm suicide while one program
monitoring rural suicides in Alber
ta has been discontinued causing
many concerned individuals to ask
why. However the Thames Valley
Farm Suicide Task Force released a
survey in late January which
indicated a greater number of
suicides happening in the farming
community of Oxford and Middle
sex Counties than in the general
population. A spokesperson for the
report said that though the num
bers did not appear high, they were
misleading. Comparing the actual
number of cases with the expected
rate was significantly higher. In the
heart of the tobacco belt in south
western Ontario there was once
four suicides that occurred in 48
hours. Another tragic incident in
volved two brothers who took their
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