The Citizen, 2003-08-27, Page 25THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2003. PAGE 25.
Youth inspire public service commercial
Talk to your son about sexual
assault is the main message of a 30-
second public service announcement
commercial that was filmed in a
rural location just north of Goderich
Sunday, Aug. 24.
“The idea came from the rural
girls we were working with on
Summer Safety Strategies. The girls
told us that they were tired of being
the targets of sexual assault
prevention information - after all,
Farm families living under stress
By Bette Jean Crews,
Ontario Federation of Agriculture
Executive Committee
Stress in the workplace is
something most people, including
farmers, have learned to live with.
This year has placed stress on
farmers and their families, and in
some cases that stress has reached an
almost intolerable level.
As the growing season, as it is
normally known, started, the fields
remained wet and the air was cold -
not ideal planting or growing
conditions. This was only the
introduction to a year of increasing
stress.
Then on May 20, a single cow was
diagnosed with BSE, or mad cow
disease, in Alberta and Canada’s
livestock industry was launched into
a tailspin. Prices for livestock have
plunged because the U.S./Canada
border remains closed to livestock
and most meat products.
Even dairy producers can’t escape
the crisis. They have breeding heifers
they can’t sell to farmers outside
Canada, and the demand for their
cull cows has been drastically
reduced.
Economic losses broaden out into
many areas of the rural community -
they weren’t the ones doing it,” said
Pam Hanington, executive director
of Women Today of Huron who is
producing the commercial. “They
also told us that, as girls, their
parents often spoke to them about
the dangers of sexual assault, and
that their brothers rarely, if ever, got
the same information.”
The commercial’s main message,
aimed at parents, encourages them
to talk to their sons about this issue,
grain producers, trucking companies,
sales bams, and the list goes on.
This all adds up to more and more
stress for farmers and their families.
Because the farm is also the home
for most farm families, everyone is
exposed to the stresses that develop
on the farm. When financial
difficulties are discussed on the
farm, many times the children are
there to hear what’s going on, and
witness the results of stress on their
parents.
Children quickly become victims
of stress on the farm, and when they
carry these stress symptoms in their
minds to school, being able to
concentrate on school work grows
increasingly difficult. While some
teachers are able to recognize these
symptoms and work with the
children, not all children experience
the benefits of having such
individuals as their teachers.
There are a variety of counselling
services available throughout the
province - some through government
offices, some through churches, and
some through municipal social
services agencies. These services are
there to help people caught by the
grip of stress and its many faces.
People who are in regular contact
primarily that “only yes means yes;
everything else means no”.
The video is being produced
through the generous donation of
James Buchanan and his Toronto
based film production company and
with some funding from the
Canadian Women’s Foundation. It
focuses on a typical rural party
situation and features local
volunteer actors from the ages of 16-
24 under the direction of Goderich
wide range of
MS Rs are not
counsellors, most
with farm families who can
recognize the symptoms of stress,
need to know where to get help for
these families if they can’t deal with
the situation themselves.
At the Ontario Federation of
Agriculture, we are anxious to
ensure all farmers and their families
get the help available to survive
these trying times. Across the
province OFA has member service
representatives (MSRs) who are
there to work with farmers and their
families on a
situations.
While these
qualified stress
will know where help can be found.
Ail farmers should keep a watchful
eye out for their family members and
their neighbouring farm families and
encourage the use of counsellors to
deal with stress-related problems.
As an executive member of OFA,
one of the most difficult aspects of
my work is listening to farmers relate
their personal situations - stories of
disappearing equity, nothing left to
show for decades of work, and the
question of what to do and where to
turn next.
These people deserve answers and
guidance. While the OFA is working
District Collegiate Institute English
media teacher Randall Lobb.
Vanessa Yeats, who is doing a
summer career placement at Women
Today, has been co-ordinating the
production, which is also being
supported by local businesses who
have donated supplies for the day of
the shoot.
Women Today of Huron aims to
show the commercial in as many
places as possible, with an emphasis
on the farm politics of government
programs and opening borders to
trade, rural Ontario needs everyone
to be aware and supportive of farm
families caught under the weight of
stress.
C.O.P.E. at C.H.S.S.
Are you between the ages of 16 and 21?
Have you been out of school for 3 months or more and are looking
for ways to improve your employability skills and/or earn credits
towards your high school diploma? You may be interested in the
COPE program.
Cope is a program for youth and young adults between the ages of
16 and 21 who have been out of high school for a period of 3
months or more and who are looking for a way to improve
employability skills and earn credits towards a high school
diploma. Cope is a 1 year program designed to help those students
currently not enrolled in school full-time, prepare to return to
school full-time or enter into the work world.
Cope students spend 2 days per week in the classroom studying
personal life management, doing group work or correspondence
courses. The remaining 3 days of the week are spent at a work
placement.
To regis ter for COPE this September,
call Student Services at 482-3471
for an application form.
on rural locations..
There will also be some follow-up
print and web-based resources
available for parents to assist them
with talking to their sons about
sexual assault.
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