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Health Matters

Health MattersLife Stories

I’M A PARENT AND CANCER WON’T CHANGE THAT

My husband and I have two sons, Max and Jacob. It’s late. As I write this, we’ve just returned from a soccer tournament that was a 40-minute drive from home, in a blizzard, and finally they're both in bed. The thing is, being a parent doesn’t stop for anything. Not for blizzards, not for late nights, and not for cancer. (more…)
Bob Jones
February 14, 2020
Health MattersLife Formation

MR ROGERS WOULD BE PROUD: CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE

Fred Rogers’ is famous for the advice to look for the helpers. “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news,” Mr. Rogers said to his television neighbors, “my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” Cue China. Compassion knows no borders or ethnicities. Helpers are popping up everywhere following the early January Coronavirus outbreak in the Chinese province of Wuhan. Mr Rogers would be proud. On February 1st, ten or so trucks that were Wuhan-bound had been festooned with red banners that read, “Pull together in times of trouble, go Wuhan!” and “The people are united, fight the epidemic together.” Several said they had…
Bob Jones
February 2, 2020
Health Matters

MY NAME IS HASHIMOTO’S

  My name is Hashimoto's. I'm an invisible autoimmune disease that attacks your thyroid gland causing you to become hypothyroid. I am now velcroed to you for life. If you have hypothyroidism, you probably have me. I am the number one cause of it. (more…)
Bob Jones
December 18, 2019
Health MattersLife Stories

JUSTICE FOR SERENITY STARTS WITH ME

A four-year old Alberta girl named Serenity died on Sept. 27, 2014. When she arrived in hospital a few days earlier she was suffering from catastrophic injuries, including a fractured skull and starvation. She was hypothermic. There were signs of sexual abuse. A forensic pediatrician determined her injuries were inconsistent with a fall. There were repeated reports of abuse during Serenity’s care. (more…)
Bob Jones
August 15, 2019
Health MattersLife Formation

UP FROM THE BLUE: SUSAN HENDERSON

Beautiful and maddening, hopeful and condemning, simple, yet like a knot that takes a lifetime to untangle. A heartbreaking, rewarding story that still haunts me. That’s how author Jamie Ford describes Up From the Blue, the debut novel by Susan Henderson. Novels aren't usually a genre I do book reviews for but this one is an exception. And I think you would agree once you meet Tillie. (more…)
Bob Jones
June 22, 2019
Health MattersLife Formation

CHILD SEXUAL SLAVERY: IT ENDS WITH US

Saju Mathew is an American lawyer working in India to bring about change in the most vulnerable group in the world. I met him at the Matrix Hotel in Edmonton, Alberta - an aptly named venue to begin a journey into reality. A Shift In Identity Saju introduced his subject with the story of “The Ugly Duckling.” He said, “Change can only happen when there is a shift in identity.” Saju spoke matter-of-factly about a child prostitute in Chennai, India. She had been deceived into leaving home with the promise of a better future. Once settled into her new surroundings she was told to take off all her clothes and put on a mini-skirt and tight fitting top. When she…
Bob Jones
June 15, 2019