MATHER, Man. – Art Harms is a local seed and fertilizer dealer engaged in a David and Goliath struggle with larger competitors.
Betty Mowbray and her husband grow grain in an area where crop diseases and excess moisture hampered yields last year.
They both understand the stress that has gripped much of western Manitoba’s farm community.
Last week, they were among the more than 100 people who gathered for an all-day seminar about coping with stress. They both felt it was time well spent.
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“It was very worthwhile,” said Mowbray, who farms with her husband near Cartwright, Man.
“I think anybody would have gotten something out of the day.”
Laughter as medicine
Guest speakers Gordon Colledge and Elaine Froese injected humor into their presentations. Mingled with the laughs was sound advice for farmers and other rural families.
Colledge is an instructor in family studies at Alberta’s Lethbridge Community College. Froese, a newspaper columnist, farms with her husband near Boissevain, Man.
“It hit home very much what they were saying,” said Mowbray after the conference.
“I can think of a million people out there who could benefit from this.”
Harms appreciated the humor delivered by Colledge, a quick-witted personality who helps people understand how to cope with the stresses of change.
“He wasn’t just here to give us laughs, but it certainly helped,” Harms said.
Mowbray applauded the candor of Froese, who spoke briefly about her experience with post-partem depression.
Froese also shared some of the challenges that she and her husband have encountered in farming. She emphasized the importance of family and relationships when difficulties arise.
Harms and Mowbray agreed that rural areas need more seminars about stress. They wished there was time at last week’s seminar to talk about the pressures facing rural families.
The seminar was organized by the Roblin-Louise Recreation District, the local office of Manitoba Agriculture, and Senior Services, a support system for local seniors.
The effects of low grain prices compounded by excess moisture last spring heightened the need for such an effort, said recreation director Jacquie Tracz.
“Everybody seemed to enjoy themselves. You got the laughs and you got the information at the same time. We wanted something positive and I think we got that.”
