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Well, I have the feeling that spring is fast approaching - at least I hope it is, as I have been
working on my Harley getting it ready to ride as things seem to be getting better in the province since the vaccine seems to be working as planned. I hope you all are taking advantage of the nice weather and get back to doing whatever you enjoy doing. I think it's important to not let our ostomy hold us back or hinder us from living life to the fullest. Obviously if we still have restrictions then please follow what the rules say and be safe
Our January meeting featured Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator Jemma Besson, who will be speaking again at next month's March meeting. I really appreciate and enjoy her presentations, which cover many general and basic health benefits, as well as ostomy related health habits.
Our next meeting is March 23th at 7:30 pm (details below)
We have a new exciting initiative coming up. It will consist of monthly challenges
starting in March. The March Monthly Challenge is called #healthyswapsOT. Essentially,
we swap unhealthy habits or food with something healthier. This will promote healthy eating
and living which is crucial for a good life. The best part is that there will be prizes! Use the
hashtag #healthyswapsOT and upload a picture of your healthy swap (and make sure to tag
@OstomyToronto). Be sure to check out the Ostomy Toronto social media platforms for more details.
Ostomy Toronto has a new collaboration with Hollister. Together, we have agreed to a new
working partnership, keep a look out for different ads from Hollister in the next year as we plan to do some events in the future as per COVID-19 restriction rules.
Saturday, October 2, 2021 is World Ostomy Day! After everything everyone's been through this past year, we would like to do something special. If you have any ideas to share, please send an email with your suggestions to info@ostomytoronto.com, or directly to me at jimfitzgerald40@gmail.com.
Thanks for your continued support,
Jim Fitzgerald
Ostomy Toronto President
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Meeting ID: 416 733 2040
Passcode: OTzoom
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Meet the Ostomy Toronto Team: Glenn |
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Every month, we will be introducing a member of the Ostomy Toronto. This month, we'd like to introduce you to Glenn D'Silva, who's been part of the team since 2014.
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Hi, my name is Glenn D’Silva. My parents immigrated to Canada in 1958 from India and I am the youngest child of four children, two brothers and one sister. I was born and raised in Toronto, Scarborough really, and except for a couple of years away at grad school in Windsor, I have lived in Toronto all of my life. |
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I am happily married to my lovely wife of 24 years (25 in October), Marlene and I have two
lovely daughters, Olivia and Julia, and two cats, Smudge and Spacey. In the fall of 2017, both of my daughters headed off to university in Ottawa, one at Carleton and one at Ottawa U, so it has been very quiet around the house. My oldest daughter is now doing her Masters in Epidemiology and my youngest daughter is finishing her undergrad and preparing to go to law school.
Currently I work for a Canadian insurance company in their investment division. I am a portfolio manager for a real estate fund that invests monies on behalf on pension funds in commercial real estate, office, industrial and retail, across Canada. Through my job I have been afforded the opportunity to travel across the country from Victoria, BC to Saint John, NB and places in between. My job also allows me to meet people from all walks of life and I meet a lot of characters, some interesting and some not so interesting.
So how did I get involved with Ostomy Toronto? I suffered from ulcerative colitis from the time I was 18 years old. Although I had been in remission for a few years, a routine colonoscopy discovered cellular dysplasia and my doctor recommended surgery. After I had a total colectomy in 2014, I was having some difficulty adapting to my ostomy bag and struggling with this. My wife had found the Ostomy Toronto website and suggested that maybe I contact them to discuss
the issues that I was having. At first I was reluctant but then I decided that I did need to get out and talk to people about it so I went to a peer to peer meeting. It was the best thing that I did as I discovered that I was not alone in the issues that I was facing and that there were various solutions for some of these challenges. So when I was asked to join the board in October 2014 I did not hesitate in saying yes.
I believe that Ostomy Toronto has a lot to offer to anyone going through the uncertainly and challenges of having to deal with ostomy issues on a daily basis. I encourage you to get involved with Ostomy Toronto. You’re not alone. I became involved because I want to ensure that the support that was available to me is available for others in our community.
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International Women's Day 2021 |
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This year's International Women's Day is March 8, and the campaign theme is Choose to Challenge.
"International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. Significant activity is witnessed worldwide as groups come together to celebrate women's achievements or rally for women's equality.
Marked annually on March 8th, International Women's Day (IWD) is one of the most important days of the year to:
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celebrate women's achievements
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raise awareness about women's equality
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lobby for accelerated gender parity
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fundraise for female-focused charities
Three central beliefs underpin and guide the purpose and provisions of the International Women's Day website:
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identifying, celebrating and increasing visibility of women's achievements can help forge equality
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strategic collaborations based on a foundation of shared purpose, trust and appreciation can impact positive change for women
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worldwide awareness raising via meaningful narratives, resources and activity can help combat gender bias and discrimination to accelerate gender parity
To support worldwide activity, the International Women's Day website provides:
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free guidance and resources
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a searchable IWD events database
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a platform for collaborative purpose-driven missions
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a hub showcasing the work of women creatives
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a speakers register for IWD event managers
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a women-owned business IWD supplier directory
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a fundraising channel for female-focused charities (100% direct to charity)
"A challenged world is an alert world. Individually, we're all responsible for our own thoughts and actions - all day, every day.
We can all choose to challenge and call out gender bias and inequality. We can all choose to seek out and celebrate women's achievements. Collectively, we can all help create an inclusive world.
From challenge comes change, so let's all choose to challenge.
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Individuals and organizations are invited to send in their #ChooseToChallenge images as we share images from around the world in the lead up to International Women's Day 2021.
So strike the #ChooseToChallenge pose with your hand high to show your commitment to choose to challenge inequality, call out bias, question stereotypes, and help forge an inclusive world.
Submissions are photographs of individual or group compositions striking the #ChooseToChallenge hand up pose to potentially be shared on the IWD website and social media feeds - and are ideally 16:9 aspect ratio (landscape composition; max 3000 pixels width). All gender identities welcome."
If you would like to participate in any IWD 2021 events (virtually, depending on your local restrictions), you can search here: https://www.internationalwomensday.com/Events
To participate and submit your #ChooseToChallenge photo, click here: https://www.internationalwomensday.com/Gallery
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Jim Fitzgerald, President
OPEN POSITION, Vice President
Aaron Wolkoff, Financial Treasurer
Urooba Ahad, Director
Kaitlyn O’Brien, Director
Glen Dasilva, Director
Michele Smith, Director
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Amanda Caristo, Social Media/Web Manager
Antonio Pergola, Bingo Volunteer
Linda Hurren, Bingo Volunteer
Jennifer Burnett, Bingo Volunteer
Melissa Aman, Bingo Volunteer
Cindy Zuccaro, Bingo Volunteer
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DISCLAIMER
The information contained in this Newsletter is presented for informational purposes only. None of the information is a substitute for professional medical care, attention by a qualified practitioner, or product information that can be gained from an ostomy product distributor, manufacturer or management professional, and under no circumstances may it be relied upon as such. Always check with your doctor or Enterostomal Nurse if you have any questions or concerns about your condition or if you are about to start a new program of treatment or management. Ostomy Toronto and the editors of this Newsletter are not responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any form of damages whatsoever resulting from the use (or misuse) of information contained in or implied by this Newsletter.
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