The Resilient Journey a success
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, April 29, 2015
By Sherrill-Lee Hyra
Health Promotion Coordinator
On April 11 The Resilient Journey conference at Rivers Collegiate was attended by 143 people from across Westman. “This wellness event far surpassed our expectations,” commented Esther Krahn, planning committee volunteer and member of Rivers and Area Palliative Care. “When I think back to the beginning of our planning and having many community partners around the table discussing wellness ideas, I wondered how and what would end up taking shape.”
With so many ideas being shared and many possibilities to act on, the theme of resiliency was chosen and the offering of a one-day wellness conference was the result.
Dick O’Brien shared a humourous approach on handling life`s challenges while providing the audience some practical ideas and suggestions for living life to the fullest. In times of adversity when we are challenged most in life, it is often our thoughts and attitudes during these times that can be the biggest stumbling block. O’Brien encouraged conference participants to “find a way through” these difficult times rather than feeling bitter, angry or resentful. His ideas for taking action and becoming more aware and conscious of negative thoughts were continually emphasized throughout the day. His messages were serious and purposeful, but his gift for keeping the audience laughing and engaged were evident throughout the day.
“I hope those who chose to spend their day with us felt energized and refreshed by Mr. O’Brien’s messages and found at least one thing that can help them in their lifes journey,” said Krahn.
A second presenter, Wendy Sutton, creator of Where Next? A Path for Caregivers, also took to the stage and shared her personal experience of caring for her mother while balancing the demands of life. One of her key messages to the audience was “We need to start talking!!” In society, we need to talk about aging and end of life care issues as openly as we discuss other life issues such as parenting. Wendy went on to say that caregiving is a partnership between adult children and their aging parents and both parties need to be informed and involved. Having conversations about the end stages of life are difficult within families, but denial is not a solution. The hard conversations are the responsibilities of family and the more people can do to educate themselves and be aware of the available supports and resources, the better equipped they are to handle the transitions and realities of being in a caregiving role.
The wellness day would not have been possible without the support of the Rivers community. Local businesses, Rivers & Area Community Foundation, palliative care, Rivers Healthy Together Now, staff from Prairie Mountain Health, Rivers/Rapid City Senior Services and both schools supported this event. The Women’s Institute and Riverdale District Health Auxiliary volunteers were also involved in planning as well as making the day extra special with a wonderful lunch and refreshment breaks. While there are no immediate plans for a future conference, the stage has been set to continue the wellness conversation in our community.
