1 H fc U A K V I L L f c b t A V f c K weanesuay, lviarcn zv, zuuu rm /v u rr m m u m over 10,000 customers...ancl growing BUY IN GIANT CU. YD BULK BAG AND SAVE!!! DELIVERY Get a $5 refund on returned bag 6s + taxes ^ INCLUDES 2376 Royal Windsor Drive, Oakville, ON L6J 4Z2 ONTARIO SOD TRY OUR NEW REEN THUMB PREMIUM Photo by Barrie Erskine Seven-year-old Joshua Brown gets an autograph from Ron MacLean in front of the TD Bank, 283 Lakeshore Rd. E., in downtown Oakville Friday afternoon. The Hockey Night in Canada host, along with area TD Bank managers, financial advi sors and the district vice-president, was on hand to raise money for the TD Miracle Save for Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children. Besides an autograph session with Maclean, the event included a raffle for Maple leaf hockey tickets and a Curtis Joseph jersey and other items. TD MIRACLE SAVE SESSION: Round-the-clock assistance provides peace of mind for ConnectCARE clients By Alex Fuller BARK \ 2 & ' SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER lor many of us, good health is something we take for granted. How many times have we walked in the park on a sunny day or played catch with our children or grand children and never thought twice about it? We do these things not just because we if $ siflipltf; youcali«m d#tiv#r W W W .tP* fW i 849*1915 <> <y a \ $1 4 9 F HE. w. M \ c u rc not hcau;. m nxtm tti enjoy them, but rather because these are the things we can do. Now imagine losing the use of your legs. Legs that supported you for years as you grew up and ran, played sport$or danced. Now imagine losing strength in your arms from enduring years of needles to fight yet another bout of disease. Now imagine being alone, and vulnerable. Starting in March, 2000, you w ill have the pow er to choose yo u r electricity from a num ber of companies. This im p o rta n t change will lead to greater c o m p e titio n and choice fo r you, th e consumer. Naturally, if you're happy w ith y o u r c u rre n t supplier, you d o n 't have to sw itch. ' Either way, w hat w o n 't change is th e safety and reliability o f Ontario's electricity system. And to p ro te c t you, all e le c tric ity suppliers w ill be licensed by th e independent Ontario Energy Board. In th e near fu tu re , yo u 'll probably be hearing fro m a n u m b e r o f new energy retailers o ffe rin g a variety o f price o p tio n s fo r delivery o f services beginning in November, 2000. So, if you have questions, o r w ant m ore in fo rm a tio n , sim ply call o u r to ll fre e num ber: 1- 8 8 8 - 6 6 8 - 4 6 3 6 Visit our website at www.est.gov.on.ca or e-mail: fyi@est.gov.on.ca It's Your Electricity Now It's Your Choice Ontario These are the sort of challenges that many clients of the hospital's ConnectCARE Program deal with on a daily basis. These people have obsta cles in their day-to-day living that are unimaginable to those of us with full use of all our limbs, or glowing good health. Anne is a ConnectCARE client who deals with her challenges with a mix ture of strength and determination and a healthy dose of humour that gets her through the blue periods. She lives in a supportive housing facility in a cozy little apartm ent built especially to accommodate her disabilities. At first glance, there is nothing to distinguish her apartment from anyone else's. The living room is furnished with a com fortable, floral love seat and chair. Pictures dorn the walls and there are many plants flourishing under her lov ing care. The kitchen, however, has been customized to suit wheelchair bound people. The counters are low, the sink has a special tap, the oven door opens sideways and directly under neath it, a shelf pulls out to accommo date hot dishes. It is all very functional and very tidy and designed so that Anne can maintain as much of her independence as possible, with dignity and assistance as required from the support-care staff. Anne did not always have to rely on a motorized scooter or wheelchair to get around. Her first hint of the prob lems to come started when she was still a child and began to have seizures from Grade 4 on. As a teenager, she began to have migraines also, and the seizures became more severe shortly after she was married. As a child, Anne's parents were told she had epilepsy. Then in the mid-80's, she was diagnosed as having seizure disorder. Anne just knows that by whatever name it's called, she has to live with this condition and overcome the obstacles it presents to daily living. Anne is in her early 40's. Her legs began to betray her at age 32 and she started to depend on canes for support. She moved from canes to a walker until finally, a few years ago, she began using a w heelchair and motorized scooter when she wanted to go out. Unfortunately, her lack of mobility has led to deterioration in some of her muscles. Anne goes for rehabilitation but, meanwhile, she uses a seat belt to keep from falling out of her wheel chair. Anne's perseverance and insistence on doing things on her own are quali ties shared by many clients who use a personal response service. Anne began using such a service in 1997. Since moving to Oakville, Anne is one of O'TMH's ConnectCARE clients. This service offers access to help at the press of a button, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, from anywhere in her home. For Anne, who wears her little help button on her wrist, much like a watch, quick help is essential in times of emer gency when a seizure comes on unex pectedly; Anne cannot always contact her building's support care staff through the telephone system, so a press of her button connects her almost immediately with the hospital's moni toring centre staff who page them to go to her assistance. Once Anne had a seizure while exercising in the pool. She summoned assistance using her button and the ConnectCARE staff sent help. She remembers one of the local firemen who came to her aid telling her she was lucky to have the service. For Anne, ConnectCARE "re-establishes the sense of security you have lost due to your condition." If you or someone you love could benefit from using the hospital's ConnectCARE service, call 338-4357. ConnectCARE is a not-for-profit program o f Halton Healthcare Services, located at the OTMH site, serving the residents of Halton since 1990.