The Hughes-Jones Centre - HJC

01/25/2023

For immediate release: January 25, 2023

CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. – WI’s “Taking Care of Women’s Business. Period” collection runs February 1-28.

The provincial board of PEI Women’s Institute and branches want to ensure there are enough feminine hygiene products for the increasing number of clients at foodbanks across Prince Edward Island – “the need is at an all-time high” says provincial President Miriam Lank.

The aim of the “Taking Care of Women’s Business. Period. 28-day campaign” is to collect product or monetary donations to address the need for menstruation products for P.E.I. food banks to ensure dignity for women is maintained.

The campaign began when founding organizer Tracey Comeau read about a homeless young woman who felt as if she lost her last bit of dignity because she couldn’t afford pads or tampons during her menstrual period. Comeau was inspired to ensure PEI women and teens do not suffer the same issue. Food banks want and need feminine hygiene products resulting in the now annual 28 Day Campaign for Taking Care of Women's Business. In 2017, the over century old PEI Women's Institute, whose core principle is to focus on women and children, accepted the challenge to increase the campaign.

Since its in inception, the Campaign raised well over $40,000 worth of product or donation. Each year, the entire inventory collected is distributed to food banks across the Island within weeks of the collection. The PEIWI issues collections challenges to all WI branches, organizations, businesses, families, and individuals across Prince Edward Island.

Hundreds of women, not including youth, are in monthly need of items like tampons, pads or menstruation cups for women’s monthly cycles. Bridgett MacCormac, provincial board member of the PEI Women’s Institute further indicated “the need is more important than ever given inflation, stress caused by natural disasters such as Hurricane Fiona and the pandemic”.

The campaign takes place this year from February 1st to the 28th. Starting Monday, February 1, drop-off locations include any Murphy’s Pharmacy across P.E.I. (Murphy’s Pharmacies will match donations with their house brand), Main Street Pharmasave in Souris, and the WI Office at 40 Enman Crescent, in Charlottetown. Online donations can also be made online to the Upper Room Hospitality Ministry: URHM.org.
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For further information:
Ellen MacPhail, Executive Director, PEIWI
40 Enman Crescent,
Charlottetown, PE C1E1E6 [email protected] 902-368-4860

12/19/2022

It might seem strange to think about but when you do, you realize that one of the biggest leaps forward in human history (right up there with the wheel and fire in my books) is the domestication of the horse.

One of humankind’s greatest innovations was the reimagining of a relationship. Taking an animal only seen as a good food source and finding a way to partner with it.

What relationships in your life could you reimagine? What new outcomes could that bring?

Over the last few decades, there has been a shift in thinking and a re-examination of human responsibilities within this unique inter-species relationship. Both inside and outside the equestrian community, questions are raised about the ethics of training techniques, equipment, and attitudes. The growing knowledge about the unique and complex horse-human dyad sees us on the frontier of a fundamental shift in our approach to the care and training of horses.

This is an excerpt from our book, Modern Horse Training: Equitation Science Principles & Practice, Volume 1, available for purchase from our online store: https://esi-education.com/shop/

12/13/2022

Response to the FVPS Christmas Wish Program has been lower than usual this year - if it is at all within your means, please give them a call!

12/11/2022

Rinee and I give our seal of approval!!!

Ashley’s guidance has been an amazing first step into Rinee becoming an active part in HJC. She has some maturing to do yet! But whatever she grows into Ashley and For the Love of Dog has played an important role.

Ring in the New Year with a well trained puppy!
Puppies have so much to learn and we need to learn how to communicate our needs effectively with them. Come and join Siren and me in the GoodPup! classes, facilitated by instructor Ashley Anderson starting Jan 14th.

12/08/2022

12/06/2022

UPDATE!

But first...

It has occurred to me while dealing with and just managing the fallout of Fiona at HJC - that although the best way out may in fact be "through" the situation you find yourself in - actually getting through can be an ugly soul sucking slog and we don't pay the slog enough due!

I don't mean for this to be a sad post - but an honest one. Celebrating forward steps is so rewarding but the backward slide, the "stuckness" of waiting and not feeling in control of your situation, the lack of a "dragon to slay" or a villain in your story is far harder to articulate and often times so much more important to talk about.

It's been so challenging for me on this end of things that it has been really hard to even articulate the feelings evoked and I wanted to actually acknowledge how hard setbacks are before I share positive news because life isn't a fairy tale and there is no guarantee that "things will all work out in the end". Sometimes it's really hard to see how anything could work out at all...

So the positive in this story (which is still not a guarantee of a happily ever after for HJC and comes at a cost) exists with all of the other ugly and really hard stuff we've been managing.

With all of that said, we are happy to announce that we have a tentative plan and hope to be able to show some barn progress before the New Year.

Knowing that we are likely to see more storms like Fiona and increasing winds with storms (along with our 25 year warranty not including a storm like Fiona) - we've made the decision to build with wooden trusses, lower our ceiling height and move away from fabric structures for the safety of our horses and the peace of mind. Our truss order has been placed and we have found a contractor willing and able.

We are hoping to be able to share happier stories in the coming weeks and can't wait to get dates on the calendar in the New Year. As soon as we have a better idea of timing we will announce relaunch dates and look at honouring your bookings disrupted by Fiona.

Thank-you all for your continued support and patience as we navigate our way through this experience.

E

11/23/2022

Since the issue of the racist slur being reported last year and Hockey PEI's "response", hockey and the handling of incidents has been a topic of many many conversations in my circles. It was spurred along by the Hockey Canada reporting recently regarding sexual assault and now we have another incident in the news.

My experiences and knowledge involve coaching kids, adults, leaders and even corporations - so I'm going to share what I know to be true regardless of the sport\activity you are in.

Behaviours come from somewhere. To be clear though, our behaviours are NOT who we are - they are how we act. We can change our behaviour by understanding why we are acting the way we are and that begins by increasing our awareness. Often behaviours are how we have learned or been conditioned to respond and we do so on auto-pilot.

What does any of this have to do with sport or hockey or any of the goings on in the organizations of late?

I think we are dealing with the consequences of misplaced or misguided values in organized sport (not just hockey, this exists everywhere). We sign up children for sport because we hope they learn things like; communication, team work, relationship building, problem solving, self confidence etc etc - but when the majority of sport focusses and rewards skill building and technical ability (an integral piece but still just a piece of sport) - valuing those things over the personal development of the athlete - what do you really end up teaching?

Did you know that: "...empirical research has failed to support the idea that sport participation builds character. If anything, the longer one participates in sport, the more likely it is that moral constraints such as fair play and honesty give way to the desire to win (see Miracle & Rees 1994)." http://sociology.iresearchnet.com/sociology-of-sport/deviance-in-sport/

If we are prioritizing "winning" and decide that technical ability and skill in sport rank above character - we produce and promote athletes accordingly, rewarding and often protecting even the poorly behaved so long as they preform.

This doesn't mean that there aren't wonderful well rounded athletes out there but it could mean that athletes get promoted regardless of their behaviour. Poorly behaved but scores a lot of goals? Well winning is our highest priority so...

Rule #1 in behaviour building? Reward the behaviour you want to encourage. In horse training we say: Make the right thing easy and the wrong thing hard.

If poor behaviour is rewarded or ignored, what are we encouraging?

I don't know of many sports that are immune to what is currently making the news in hockey - but I do think there's something to be said about sporting organizations figuring out HOW they want to win.

Do I want to win at any cost?
Is shouting a racial slur a reasonable cost to win? (and if it is, is this who you want on your team?)
Do I want to win knowing my teammate is sexually assaulting his girlfriend - but may give us the edge?
Is doping a reasonable cost for an edge?

If these things are ok, what does that say about who we are, what we value and what sport means to us? What does it say about how we are teaching sport and what we value most as coaches and organizations?

Actions and behaviour are the expression of:

1. Your personality
2. Your values
3. Your beliefs
4. Your opinions
5. Your attitudes
6. Your experiences
7. Your knowledge

What we are seeing expressed right now goes deep and to fix it we have to go deep too.

For the second year in a row, an incident at a Charlottetown hockey tournament is drawing negative attention and leaving Hockey P.E.I. officials frustrated and questioning how it can change the culture of the sport.