the next three years to community-based

Tom Vilsack is U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

This essay is available to McClatchy-Tribune News Service subscribers. McClatchy-Tribune did not subsidize the writing of this column; the opinions are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of McClatchy-Tribune or its editors.
The province will put more money into tobacco-reduction activities, Healthy Living Minister Jim Rondeau announced Jan. 28.

Manitoba will provide $97,500 per year for the next three years to community-based tobacco-reduction activities.

"Smoking is one area that's been proven to be a challenge," Rondeau said. "We haven't gone as far as we need to go, so ... I'm pleased to announce an additional funding amount of $97,500 — for smoking cessation."

Some of the funds will go toward in-school anti-smoking initiatives, such as Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT).

SWAT Program

The SWAT program, which was first launched at West Kildonan Collegiate has high-school students present to middle-school students about the risk of tobacco use.

Grade 12 student Sara Castellano has been a part of SWAT for the past four years, and says it's been a great experience.

"My father was a smoker, and I hated the fact he smoked, and because I couldn't make him stop, I took it upon myself to go and make a change elsewhere and educate other students," she said. "We hear a lot of success stories."

This funding is in addition to the province's annual investment of $765,000 for chronic-disease prevention programs.

"The Province of Manitoba recognizes that prevention of chronic disease is an ongoing issue," Rondeau said. "It requires continued work and funding."

Across the province, 83 communities are participating in the Healthy Together Now chronic-disease prevention initiative, which targets physical inactivity, unhealthy eating and smoking.
The once thriving industry is just a shadow of itself, having seen jobs losses in the thousands in just five years.

“Basically what’s driving this is fact that we losing our industry,” Clement told the Star Wednesday.

He said in just three years employment in the heavy-duty truck manufacturing sector has gone from 4,200 Canadian workers in 2006 to 750 in 2009 while the number of vehicles has dropped from 74,000 to 11,000.

“It’s basically gone to the United States and Mexico,” the minister said, adding “that we don’t even have a profile yet on what the industry looks like.”

Clement said the study will analyze the sector, its suppliers and highlight the industry's strengths, weaknesses and capacity.

“I want to know how we compare with the U.S. and Mexico in terms of output and employment, what the skill sets of our workers are, what the supply chain looks like and what the parts companies look like,” he said.

Currently, there are two active plants in Canada. They are Hino Motors (Toyota), which is located in Woodstock, Ont., and PACCAR International (Kenworth), located in Ste. Therese, Que., and the Navistar International Corp. heavy-duty truck plant in Chatham, Ont., which received more than $60 million from the federal and Ontario governments, continues to limp along.

“I want to see what the opportunities are for a Canadian truck industry,” Clement said. “We need to see what a strategic plan would look like if we want to rebuild the industry a little bit.”

Mark Nantais, president of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association, said throughout the early and mid-1990s there was “considerable rationalization in the heavy truck industry on the manufacturing side.”

“We would like to keep what we have if not grow it,” he told the Star.

Nantais said the truck manufacturing sector is no different than the car industry, “which is why we are always out there saying we’ve to maintain a very competitive tax regime, a very competitive labour cost.”

“If we can get the right formula in Canada . . . and get the right policies in place then I think there is an opportunity there,” Nantais said.
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Moms Talk is a new feature on Sierra Madre Patch that is part of a new initiative on our Patch sites to reach out to local moms and families.

Sierra Madre Patch invites you and your circle of friends to help build a community of support for moms and their families right here in Sierra Madre.

Each week in the Moms Talk Q&A, our local Moms Council of experts and been-there-done-that moms take your questions, give advice and share solutions.

Moms, dads, grandparents and the diverse families who make up our community will now have a new resource for questions and ongoing discussion about local schools, the best pediatricians, pharmacies and the thousands of other issues that arise while raising children.

Moms Talk Q&A will also be the place to drop in for a talk about the latest parenting hot topic. Do you know of local moms raising their children in the Tiger Mother's way and is it the best way? Where can we get information on local flu shot clinics for children? How do we talk to our children about the Tucson shootings? How can we help our children's schools weather their budget cutbacks?

We're working with our new and still growing Moms Council to generate questions that we think will help local moms, but we also want to hear from you! If you've got an answer to the question of the week that you'd like to share, join the conversation in the comment box below. And if you've got a question you'd like to put out to our Moms Council and readers for a future installment of this series, send an email to john.stephens@patch.com and we'll get right on it!

This week's question is about school lunches:

It's tough enough to get your kids to eat healthy at home, so how do you pack as much punch as possible into a school lunch when you can't be there to force those fruits and vegetables down the hatch?
On the hit CBC-TV drama series Being Erica, the show's 30-something heroine, Erica Strange, can go back in time and fix her deepest regrets.

But Erin Karpluk -who plays the title character Erica -is trying to get her life right the first time around.

University of Victoria grad Karpluk, says getting it right for her means eating well, exercising regularly and getting a good night's sleep.

"If I'm healthy, that comes across on camera," she says.

The Calgary native says exercise has always been a part of her life, but now that she's starring in the successful show (which recently wrapped its third season) she's ramped up her workouts and taken a greater interest in nutrition.

As the central character, Karpluk is in most of the show's scenes, which can often mean putting in a 15-hour work day. She says she gravitates toward anything that can help increase her energy levels and stamina.

"It's a marathon," Karpluk says about a day on set.

Karpluk maintains a well-varied exercise regimen that includes gym time, yoga and running twice weekly. "I like to put on my nano, get some fresh air and see the world," she says about her outdoor runs.

Karpluk says she tries to get to the gym in the first half of the day. "Sometimes I really have to force myself to do it," she says.

The actor does strength training twice a week with weights, focusing on her chest and back, then smaller muscle groups. She says she alternates between her upper body and abdominals one day, her lower body the next to give her muscles time to rest and regenerate.

She says another key to feeling good is watching her diet. She has made small but significant changes that have helped her maintain her energy levels.

"I've learned to cut out sugars if I'm shooting, or else I go through massive energy crashes. And if I over-caffeinate, it makes me feel more tired."

But when she strays from her routine, Karpluk has learned not to be too self-critical.

"If you fall off the wagon, it's OK; be gentle on yourself," she says.