INSIDE
COMMUNITY
EVENTS B2

WHA =
CHARLYNN TOEW.

I'm just
warning you

LRIGHT, I HAVE had it, Iam
putting the following persons on
notice here and now that I am

really really mad at them. _

First, tailgaters. To those of you who want"
to drive a few inches behind me on the;
highway going nincty kilometers an hour,
cut it out, Back off.

If I have to stop suddenly because a gosh-
darn bear is on the road, you will certainly
smash into my car and may possibly muti-
late its occupants, including the small one
in his little car seat in the back. So, at
90km, leave at least five carlengths be-
tween my back bumper and your small
brain. Got it?

You all know who I mean. For example,
one time last winter driving down from the
airport, three cars passed me illegally so
that they could tailgate a snow-plowing
snow plow all the way to the four-way stop.
My passenger and J watched this blizzardy

idiot parade from atop the airport hill and

all ihe way down and around into town.

Secondly, the good folks down at Inter-
pol, the International Police, who warn me
repeatedly in my own home in both official
languages not to illegally copy the video I

. have just rented for one dollar. I promise
right now not to ever learn how to operate
my VCR, so stop threatening me. Geez.

I do not need these severe ominous capital
lettters scrolling slowly up my little TV
screen every single time for such a long
time. Must you be so stern? Perhaps we
sensitive viewers should be warned that
there’s a Big Mean Long Warning coming
up, so we could shield our eyes while we
fast forward through it. Enough already.

I have ripped at a tag so violently I
tore the armpit seam wide open while
the tag rernained steadfast.

Third and most thoroughly are the people

who put tags in clothes. I know, I know, '

you just want to tell me ‘‘Wash warm’’ and
“‘Medium’’ each and every time I wear the

garment, in case I think the size of the shirt
has changed or J forget how to do laundry.
That must be why the tags are sewn on so
rigorously and are made out of such strong
material,

These tags must be sewn on in a different
factory, some kind of super-obsessive sub-
contractor, from where the rest of the gar-
ment is maufactured. I have ripped at a tag
so violently ] tore the armpit seam wide
open while the tag remained steadfast.

And if 1] try to cut off the tag, trim it off
with scissors, the knife-sharp edge of the
plastic/cardboard/titanium material it is
made of will slash repeatedly at the back of
my neck. This includes tags on flannelette
nighties, post-partum . underwear, and
newborn-sized sleepers. Stop this torture at
once, .

Finally (and it makes me feel exhausted
just to think about it), a note to some certain
people in the packaging industry. I under-
stand you want to stop tampering and theft,
but a hermetically vacuum packed Safety
Seal followed by stapled cardboard fol-
lowed by shrink wrap followed by twist ties
is too much for mini crackers or micro toys.

Sometimes I get the feeling you want
your pudding to survive until centuries after
a nuclear holocaust —— perhaps the mutants
will have stronger fingernails by then.

So now you know who you are. This is
just to say back off, please, and don’t say |
didn’t warn you,

‘

to talk to

By CRIS LEYKAUF

LISA JOHANSEN’S five-year-old daughter can’t walk or talk,

and likely never will,

Lisa dresses Ciara each morning as she would a baby ~ lying her -
down on a blanket, putting on her diaper, then pulling clothes on

over sametimes uncooperative limbs.

_ Mealtime presents its own challenges — Ciara is usua
through a tube which leads into het stomach. She can eat nor
mally, but usually she’s toa. stubborn to, explains Lisa. It’s a

trait Ciara gets from her mother.

Lisa’s love for her daughter is evident, as she carefully
brushes Ciara’s long, full hair, but being the parent of a severe-

ly disabled daughter can be very frustraling.

- “Sometimes you just want to. phone another parent and say,
“My daughter is driving me nuts. J feel like pushing her
wheelchair down the hill.’ If sounds awful, but it’s not uncom- ‘

mon,” says Lisa.

That’s why she wants to set up a branch of the Family
Support Institute here in Terrace. The institute helps put parents
of disabled children in touch with other parents. -

lly fed ;

Other parents are the only ones who understand the complex Ni
emotions of self-doubt, anger and frustration, says Lisa,

She first started to reach out to other parents in similar situations
when Ciara was one-year-old. ae
Lisa and her husband Martin were

time,

Their lives were a non-stop series of meetings with the pub-
lic health nurse, speech pathologist, physiotherapist, occupa-

tion therapist and mare.

“Life is like a revolving door of secing professional people

in the first year,” says Lisa.

Lisa had many complications with Ciara’s birth after she
suffered from a Group B Strep infection when she was
pregnant. Ciara was born with extensive brain injurics.

After thal first year Lisa got in.touch with the BC
Association for Community Living. It's the umbrella |
organization for the Family Support Institute.

“If you don’t find out about support organiza-
tions, you are on your own,” says Lisa, “Your cir-
cle of friends become the professional

communily.”

But that’s not enough for parents in her situation.
“The professionals can only support you so much.
There’s nothing like talking to someone who’s been there

and done that.

“And sometimes you just need (o vent about
the professional people,” she says, laughing.
The Family Support Institute publishes. names

living in Penticton at the

LISA JOHANSEN cuddles her five-year-old

daughter Ciara. Lisa just moved to Terrace this
summer and she’s trying to set up a branch of the Family Support Institute here, The insti-
tute isa support network for parents with disabled children. Just being able to talk to other

SECTION B
CRIS LEYKAUF
638-7283

of B.C. parents with disabled children — with their

permission of course. A parent in New Aiyansh |

whose child has Downs Syndrome can look
through the book for another parent in a similar
‘ situation. -
It’s not uncommon for parenis to become very
good friends, without ever meeting face to face.
“No parent should have to sit-al home. crying,
feeling like they have no one to talk to or turn
to.” mo,
Relying on family members all the time is

parents can be an immense help, says Lisa. The institute also organizes workshops for

parents and professionals.

' The Family Institule isn’t a lobby group, she
explains. Politics and retigion don’t play a role.

- Lisa estimates there are hundreds of parents
of disabled children in Terrace who could benefit
from this support network. :

She’s one of them. Lisa just moved here to
join her husband in June, She misses the network
of friends she’d made through the institute, back
in the Okanagan. a

parents and professionals.

The Terrace Child Development Centre has
agreed to provide space for meetings and wotk-
shops for the institute.

The first meeting is planned for Wednesday,
Oct. 15 at 7:30 p.m. al the Child Development .
Centre.

If you'd like to find out more, call Lisa at
638-8761, Ramona at 635-1184 or Lorraine at

impossible, she explains.

The instilute also offers workshops for both

635-9498,

Cody’s family overwhelme

THE FIRST HINT Kelly
Mooney had of the auction
for her stepson Cody, came
as she watched’a video of ,
the eventlast week.
Sharalyn Palagian and
Cheryl Parkes had
organized the auction Sept,
27 to raise money for.

_ Cady’s family. The 10-year-
old boy was badly bumt in ‘

an accident early in August

Palagian and Parks flew |
down to Vancouver last
week, hoping to surprise
Kelly and Cody with a tape «
of the auction,

‘We just said we brought —
a tape from home,’’ said
Palagian.

Kelly didn’t catch onto
anything unusual until she '
saw someone wearing a t-!
shirt saying ‘‘Cody's Day."

“'She was absolutely over-
whelmed,’’ said Palagian.
And there were more than a
few tears.

The community and local
businesses were very sup-
portive of the auctlon —
over $15,000 was raised. to
help Cody’s family.

“She couldn't believe that
many people came and —
donated. stuff and helped
out,’’ said Palagian.

Cody watched the video
from the lounge in the hos-'

‘pital,

Palagian said he had tears
in his eyes as he tumed to
Kelly and said, ‘‘Mom, all
these people care about
me,”’

Friends from school said
“Hi’? to him on the video
and all the bikers from the
Toy Run rode by the camera
and waved to him.

“He thought thal was
pretty cool,’’ said Palagian.
“This really perked up his
spirits.’’

Cody is making good
progress at the hospital. He
recently walked five feet on
his own.

Soon the hospital will let
him be transferred to Prince
George. That's where the
family will have to live for
the next few years as Cody
gocs through more opera-
tions and extensive
physiotherapy.

The bulk of the money
raised from the auction will

“buy Cody a special close--

filting suit for bum victims.
He’ll have to wear the suit
23 hours a day for years.
That’s because the skin on,
the bunted areas of his body |
is very thin. Without the

suit, blood would come to.
“the surface of lis skin right

away, causing © permanent
discolouration. _
Cody will need a number

CODY MOONEY and his family were overwhelmed when they found out that

people in Terrace had raised over $15,000 to help them out. That's Cody in the
* middle, holding the cheque. On the right is his step-mother Kelly Mooney, and
behind her are his grandparents — Eilean and Ed Mooney, On his other side ere
the organizers of the auction, Sharalyn Palaglan in the front and Cheryl Parkes

behind her,

of these suits as he grows
and at $1500 each it will get
quite expensive for the fam-
ily. Be
The family will also spend
part of the cheque flying

Cody to Prince George.
He's not well enough to
handle the drive.

Cody isn’t happy about
not being able to return to
Terrace, particularly - after

learning how supportive the
community is,

But he’s hoping to visit
here before Christmas, so he
can thank people in person,
and say hi to friends,

we