Thrive Week, November 4-9,  is a time to focus on the importance of balance and self-care in developing positive mental health that supports success in learning and working.

We invite you to take a moment to do something that gets you active, creative, connected or relaxed – whatever it is you need for balance. All events are free and open to students and staff.

For information on activities at the Exchange District Campus, click here.

Notre Dame Campus

Adult Colouring and Jigsaw Puzzle Station
All Day | Everyday
Library

Monday, November 4

Massage Therapy
9am – 2pm
Library Hall
Enjoy a 10 minute massage from a registered massage therapist.
The sign-up sheet to book your massage time opens at 8:30 am.

Yoga
4:15-5:15 pm in the South Gym
Stretch, breathe and move your way to balance.

Tuesday, November 5

Therapy Dogs
11:30am – 1pm in the Cave Lounge
Come relax and pet a sweet, calm therapy dog.

Paint Party with Painting on the Prairies
4 – 6:30pm in the Cave Lounge
Follow step-by-step instructions and add a creative touch to your very own canvas.
Email blsawatzky@rrc.ca to save a prime seat, or just show up. Spaces limited. Snacks provided.

Wednesday, November 6

Comedy Show with Big Daddy Taz
noon – 1pm in the Cave Lounge. Snacks provided.
Share some laughs over lunch.

Board Game Night
4 – 6pm in the Cave Lounge. Snacks provided.
Thursday
Come alone or with friends to play a favorite board game or learn a new one.

Thursday, November 7

Smoothies and Resource Table
8 – 10am in the Library Hall
Use the bike blender to make yourself a healthy snack.

Zen Zone
9am – 2pm in the Cave Lounge
Enjoy calm music and relaxing activities while the Cave is transformed into a spa-like space.

Braid and Manicure Bar
9am – 2pm in the Library Hallway
MC College students will help you relax as they pamper your hair and nails. First come, first served.

Friday, November 8

Mindfulness Workshop
noon – 1pm in the North Gym
Join Mario DeNegri to explore mental strategies for focus and peace.

Saturday, November 9

Nature Walk Through Birds Hill Park
10am – 2pm
Meet at the NDC bus loop to catch our chartered bus. Family members are welcome. Please email blsawatzky@rrc.ca to register.

We’re looking for a student who attends either the Notre Dame Campus or the Exchange District Campus to participate in a panel discussion at our upcoming Movies for Mental Health event. Click here for details about the event. You will be given a $40 honorarium for your time.

By volunteering your time and expertise, you play a crucial role in creating an event that will reduce the stigma around mental illness and encourage others to seek the help they need.

Being a Student Panelist

As a student panelist, your role is to share a real, lived-experience story to show the power that live storytelling can have in reducing mental health stigmas. Your generosity in talking about your experiences – the good parts and the bad – is actively helping your peers to overcome their own inhibitions that might prevent them from getting help. You are living, breathing proof that recovery and healing are possible and that mental wellness is real and attainable!

As you begin to put together your five-minute story, we invite you to reflect on what your main message is – what you’d like the audience to take away from your story. That can help guide you as you decide what you’d like to share. It can also be helpful to decide what pieces of your story, if any, you’d prefer not to share. You are in charge of what you share, and there is no pressure to go beyond what is comfortable for you.

If you’re interested in this opportunity, please contact Breanna today.

On October 8 and 9 RRC is hosting Movies for Mental Health, an interactive workshop that uses the emotional power of short film to initiate dialogue with students on the topic of mental health. This FREE event is delivered by a non-profit called Art With Impact and will be hosted at both the Notre Dame and Exchange District campuses.

This peer-to-peer learning event is two hours long and features:

• free pizza lunch for all who attend the workshop,
• facilitated discussion,
• three short films from Art With Impact’s library, and
• a resource panel with campus and community services.

Join us in creating a healthy environment at RRC through dialogue and growth!

Last year, students who attended found the workshop helped increase awareness of mental health, reduce stigma, and improve knowledge about where to go for help.

Wednesday, October 9, 11am – 1pm in room P107 The Roblin Centre at Exchange District Campus

Tuesday, October 8, 1-3pm in the White Lecture Theatre at Notre Dame Campus.

For any questions or accessibility needs, please contact Breanna Sawatzky.

This event is sponsored by the Healthy Minds Healthy College Initiative and RRC Students’ Association as we observe Mental Illness Awareness Week. All students and staff are welcome.

RRC’s 2019 Ride Don’t Hide Team, post-ride at The Forks

On Sunday, June 23 a team of RRC staff and students, along with some family members, supported Canadian Mental Health Association by participating in Ride Don’t Hide – Canada’s largest mental health bike ride.

The team enjoyed a beautiful 20 km ride, beginning at The Forks and continuing through St. Boniface, Assiniboine Ave., Wolseley, River Heights, Tuxedo, Crescentwood and back along the river path to The Forks.

Sponsored by RRC’s Healthy Minds, Healthy College Initiative, the team raised funds and awareness, bringing mental health out into the open.

Three cheers for your RRC team members:

• Angela Tessier (and partner Tom)
• Michelle Lodewyks (and partner Josh)
• Tom Liu
• Leslie Ternowetsky
• Breanna Sawatzky (with family Joel, Vincent and Nevica)
• Sherry Seymour
• Tanya Cole
• Lori Cutrone (not pictured)
• Nicki Albus (not pictured)

Across Canada, over 10 000 riders participated, raising over $2 million dollars for community based mental health supports. Go team!

She Wore Flowers in Her Hair is an event in support of mental health awareness in memory of Jaedra Winter who died by suicide in June 2015. The aim is to raise awareness, spread love & create a community where people feel safe talking about mental health. All proceeds go to Mood Disorders Association of Manitoba.

The event takes place at Kelburn Estate and starts at noon on Saturday, June 8th. Pre activities such as Bootcamp by Johana Seier and a Volleyball tournament will commence at 11:00 am. Pre registration for these events is 10:30 AM – 11:00 am.

Bring a lawn chair, cash, Picnic blanket, yoga mat, sunscreen, etc.

Activities include:
Live Bands
Inspirational Speakers
Flower Crown Workshop ($5)
Craft Table
Self Care Booth – come make your own self care bag with goodies! (FREE)
Therapy Puppies
Pony Rides
Silent Auction
Makers Market
SWF Merch, Pop, Chips, Cotton Candy on sale!
Lunch by Pony Corral (1:00 PM – 3:00 PM, FREE)
Laughter Yoga
Yoga by Modo Yoga
Meditation
Closest to the Pin Gold Competition with prize
Axe Throwing by Lumberjax
Card Readings
Photobooth by Photomonkey
AND MUCH MORE!

Tickets are on sale now
http://weblink.donorperfect.com/sheworeflowers2019

Follow She Wore Flowers in Her Hair on Instagram @officialsheworeflowers
& Facebook, for more information.

RRC’s 2018 Ride Don’t Hide Team

You’re invited to participate in CMHA’s ‘Ride Don’t Hide’ – Canada’s largest bike ride for mental health.  The event is held on Sunday June 23^rd in 25 communities across the country with 4 and 20 kilometer route options. CMHA’s Manitoba and Winnipeg division is starting recruit bike riders for the event and RRC is excited to participate.

According to CMHA, Ride Don’t Hide is a nationwide fundraising bike ride that brings mental health out into the open. With almost 10,000 riders and hundreds more family members, friends and volunteers across Canada taking part, the ride raises more than $2 million each year for the Canadian Mental Health Association. Get on your bike and join the movement. Ride. Don’t hide.

CMHA is a community partner, helping RRC with our Healthy Minds Healthy College Initiative. This makes participating in Ride Don’t Hide an ideal opportunity for us to show support in return.

In 2018, our team had a wonderful time participating in this meaningful and well organized event.

If you’d like to be part of the RRC team for Ride Don’t Hide, please contact Breanna Sawatzky or 204-632-2061. Participants can chose to raise funds, or just ride. Students, staff and faculty are welcome.

The end of term can be a very stressful period, with students experiencing added pressure to complete projects and perform well on exams. Taking a break to relax can help students cope with this stress so we’re welcoming the St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog Program to campus. Students will be encouraged to sit with, feel, touch and pet a trained dog, enjoying the relaxing effect this can have on their mind, body, and emotions.

According to St. John Ambulance, the nation-wide program boasts 3,354 volunteer teams who assisted more than 120,000 clients throughout 2015. Therapy dog teams visit hospitals, retirement residences, care facilities, schools and universities.

Therapy dogs have been on campus in the past, and many students have genuinely enjoyed the visits.

Please join us at the following times/locations:

Tuesday, April 23 in the Cave Lounge at NDC, 11:30am-1:00pm

Thursday, April 25 in the Atrium of Roblin Centre, 11:30am-1:00pm

For more information, please contact Breanna Sawatzky at 204-632-2061 or blsawatzky@rrc.ca

On April 16 we hosted the first of two dialogues to help the Mental Health Commission of Canada develop a National Post-Secondary Mental Health Standard.

Students and Employees shared their thoughts about what works well to support student mental health and what institutions can do better. All of our ideas will be forwarded to the technical committee who writes the Standard.

The standard will act as a voluntary process guideline to help Canada’s academic institutions promote and support students’ psychological health and safety, and support students’ success.

Do you want to have your say? A second dialogue will be held Thursday the 18^th from 2-4pm in room A137 of the Notre Dame Campus. Contact Breanna for more information and to register.

On Tuesday, March 26 RRC welcomed Waneek Horn Miller – Mohawk woman, activist, and Olympian – to speak about turning trauma into motivation and reclaiming well-being.

Waneek captivated the audience with stories of her strong mother, embracing her identity, introduction to sport, and resilience in the face of obstacles. She shared lessons learned on her path to becoming captain of the Canadian Olympic water polo team and finding her sense of inner strength.

Her talk was fantastic and is a “must watch” for all students, staff and faculty members interested in resilience, well-being, and truth and reconciliation.

Thanks to the folks at eTV, the recording of her presentation can be found here.

Read more about Waneek here.

You’re invited to attend a lunch and talk featuring Waneek Horn-Miller – Mohawk woman, activist, and Olympian. She’ll be speaking about turning trauma into motivation and reclaiming well-being. All students, staff and faculty are invited to attend.

Date: March 26

Time: Noon – 1:30pm

Location: South Gym

Come early for a free pizza lunch. If you have accessibility needs, please contact Breanna.

ASL interpretation will be provided. If you can’t make it in person, catch the livestream at rrc.ca/streaming.

Throughout her life, Waneek Horn-Miller has always stood up for what was right—as a mother, an activist, an athlete, and an entrepreneur. This has entailed hard choices, pain, and sacrifice. But this commitment has also made her one of Canada’s most inspiring figures.

Horn-Miller’s public life began in 1990 at the age of 14. During the Oka Crisis, she protested the planned development of condos and a golf course on traditional Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) lands and burial grounds near Montreal. After nearly 80 days of stand-off with the RCMP and armed forces, she was stabbed in the chest by a Canadian soldier wielding a bayonet.

This near-death experience marked a turning point in her life. Instead of succumbing to very real traumas, including PTSD, she found the strength to pursue, and achieve, incredible things. “I come from people who have gone through horrific things in history,” she says. “War, death, famine, genocide. How many times did my ancestors want to give up, lay down, and die? But they didn’t. They fought to continue. You have to keep going forward.”

One of Horn-Miller’s greatest achievements has been in athletics. “Sport in the Native world is more than just something to be physically active,” she says. “It’s a suicide preventer. It’s a self-esteem creator. It’s a leadership developer.” She was the first woman to be named Carleton University’s Athlete of the Year, which she won four years in a row. After winning gold with her water polo team at the Pan Am Games in 1999, she became the first Mohawk woman from this country to ever compete in the Olympic games, co-captaining Team Canada in Sydney in 2000. That same year, she appeared on the cover of TIME magazine.

As one of Canada’s few Aboriginal Olympians, Waneek has used her passion and experiences in sport to influence Aboriginal and non-aboriginal leadership towards making Sport and Wellness a community building priority.

RRC’s Healthy Minds Healthy College Initiative, along with the Students’ Association and School of Indigenous Education are so pleased to welcome Waneek.