The FEED

In response to the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces, leading Canadian aid agencies – through the Humanitarian Coalition – are launching an appeal to raise funds and rush emergency assistance to people in need. Ann Rohmer has the details.

Ann Rohmer speaks with Ukrainian Canadian Varvara Shmygalova who will provide an update on her family in Kiev (father is fighting, grandparents were hiding in an underground garage) and what's happening in that city

Tina Cortese is with leadership coach Tina Collins discuss advancements by women; are they excelling in leadership roles? Are they included at the executive level?

Tina Cortese is also with Ginger Sloan; she knows a thing or two about being a female founder. She is a serial entrepreneur (with multiple successful businesses) on a mission to empower and inspire other women in business; why investors are pivoting toward female-founded start-ups, and the outlook for women-led and women-owned businesses in 2022 and beyond.

Jim Lang looks into how beginning in 2023-2024, all students in York Region District School Board will take Understanding Contemporary First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Voices as their required Grade 11 English credit.

Ann Rohmer speaks with University of Toronto bioethicist Kerry Bowman who discusses: • What was (and should have been) behind the decision to scrap the vaccine proof program. • Science based or politically motivated? • Dr. Moore says it has served its purpose • The good and the bad when it comes to this (dramatic) move. • Increased risk of transmission? • Comfort level of employees and patrons not knowing who is vaccinated. • The message this sends to anti-vaxxers and those who have never taken Covid seriously.

Tina Cortese is with CanadaHelps and the results of a new Ipsos poll that reveals Canadians’ concerns on rising inflation as well as the impact on charitable giving. We first saw a convergence between declining charitable giving and the emergence of higher inflation rates towards the end of 2021, placing Canada’s most vulnerable communities at risk. With poll insights revealing that 26% of Canadians may soon need the support of charitable services to meet basic needs, up from 11% due to the pandemic and increased inflation, this is a concerning issue.

Kevin Frankish speaks with Teresa Di Felice, Assistant Vice President, Government and Community Relations for CAA SCO (South Central Ontario) as they discuss the CAA Speed Campaign that looks into the following:

• WHO: Young male drivers are more likely to admit to, or have been charged with speeding and stunt driving.

• WHAT: Speeding is one of the leading causes of collisions in Ontario.

• WHEN: While speeding is a road safety concern year-round, the warmer months see an increase in speeding related fatal collisions.

• WHY: Drivers who speed put themselves and other road users at risk and it';s vital that drivers curb their impulse to speed or drive dangerously.

• HOW: CAA is reminding motorist to be considerate of their speed and drive according to speed limits, especially when in community safety zones and residential areas, these are the neighbourhoods where our families live and play.

Ann Rohmer has her February update with the City of Vaughan Mayor Bevilacqua.

Jim Lang speaks with a participant in next week’s overnight fundraiser for 360Kids.

He has been front and centre throughout the pandemic; Dr. Isaac Bogoch joins Ann Rohmer to talk about the further lifting of restrictions and discusses if it is too soon or great news? Will this increase our risk of contracting the virus. How do we continue to protect ourselves when left to our own devices. Will this (hopefully) encourage vaccinations and possibly the green light for kids under 5? How should we the public transition to a more open society? Especially those who are still fearful.

Tina Cortese speaks with Dr. Jen Rouse, Clinical Psychologist with Canadian Mental Health Association York South Simcoe - for those with or without anxiety issues, the Province's announcement earlier this week about moving to the next phase of the reopening plan, the adjustment to capacity limits and the proof of vaccination requirements also lifted, some may feel uncertain and anxious about the "return to normal" The discussion continues to address the following: do you have advice to cope with these feelings? "...are there regular exercise/routines that we can practice every day to help with anxiety and panic attacks?" The Premier of Ontario himself admitted that the pandemic has been divisive within his own family; how do we begin to heal those wounds?

Ann Rohmer returns with Kevin Forget from Destination Ontario looking into what to do here at home this family day long weekend.

Kevin Frankish speaks with Martin Firestone – President of Travel Secure Inc. who is thrilled with the Government decision to remove PCR testing for vaccinated travelers and what is the expectation that travel industry will bounce back in a big way?

Jim Lang is with Minor Hockey Coach Beau Moyer about the challenges of coaching a U12 hockey team that has played only 7 regular season games in the past 23 months because of the pandemic

Ann Rohmer speaks with Dr. Raywat Deonandan, an Epidemiologist and Science Communicator specializing in Global Health from the Faculty of Health Sciences at Ottawa University about learning to live with COVID 19 and the shift in public health messaging

Tina Cortese is with Dr. Cristina Popa - Emergency Department physician and lead at the Covid Assessment and Vaccination Centre. They discuss the availability of PAXLOVID and how the COVID at home program works.

Ann Rohmer speaks with Demiesha Dennis, the founder & CEO of Brown Girl Outdoor World, a group committed to changing the narratives assigned to the Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPoC) community and to begin the business of reminding BIPoC communities that they too belong in the great outdoors.

Kevin Frankish has details about the Black Moms Connection Financial Literacy Summit that helps educate and promote dialogue about financial growth. From navigating financial systems and increasing confidence around money to seeking financial support, the summit provides relevant tools and resources to empower and educate Black women and families and strengthen the community's relationship with money.

Jim Lang speaks with Hamilton 2030 Bid Chair – Louis Frapporti. With the awarding of the 2030 Commonwealth Games is less than a year away, and as that date nears, the team behind the bid has unveiled new details about the plans to include many of the communities across the 905.

Ann Rohmer is with Laurie Campbell – (Former CEO of Credit Canada Debt Solutions) Director of Client Financial Wellness Bromwich and Smith (debt relief solutions). They discuss how to save money on groceries and gas (grocery supply chain issues, prices rising for both food and fuel).

Ann Rohmer continues with Dr.Akwatu Khenti (PhD) Scientist, CAMH and Assistant Professor Dalla Lana, Chair of the Black Scientists' Task Force on Vaccine Equality as they look into Vaccine Equality; supply issues, quality of vaccines depending on the neighbourhood, hesitancy because of race, ethnicity, trust issues, fear (within the Black community in particular), parental reluctance to have kids vaccinated, the lack of supply and little sharing when it comes to poor countries as well as a quick word on the new BA.2 Omicron subvariant.

Kevin Frankish speaks with Chris Campbell Equity Diversity & Inclusion Representative with the Carpenters' District Council of Ontario. The union marks Black History month and celebrates the diversity of their membership

Tina Cortese is with York University’s newly-appointed Deputy Provost of the Markham Campus with an update on construction, applications opening in September 2022 with the campus set to open in September of 2023, get to know the York University community at the Markham Civic Centre with a rink/skating party on Saturday February 19th, 2022 from 10am to noon – family day weekend.

Jim Lang speaks with men’s singles skater Roman Sadovsky from Vaughan who is set to compete at the Olympics in Beijing.

Anne Rohmer is with Ryan Mallough (Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses) discussing how businesses are preparing for the gradual reopening on Jan 31st as well as the current “financial” health of many small/medium businesses.

Kevin Frankish looks into how the hospitality industry has been particularly hard hit by the pandemic restrictions

February is Black History Month and Tina Cortese speaks with Jerisha Grant-Hall – chair of the Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association on what events are being planned to celebrate.

Anne Rohmer returns with her monthly check-in with Vaughan Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua where they discuss the city’s response to severe weather, the support for businesses reopening on Jan 31st and the Black History Month events.

Jim Lang is with Art Hindle – the Canadian actor and King City resident who is set to receive the 2022 ACTRA Toronto Award of Excellence in March.

Ann Rohmer is with Dr. Katharine Smart – President of the Canadian Medical Association discussing National Kids & Vaccines Day as well as other COVID news.

Kevin Frankish looks into new research shows that more than one-third (35 per cent) of all working Canadians are feeling burned out.

The COVID 19 Pandemic has caused social isolation, financial insecurity, substance abuse concerns and racial inequality. Tina Cortese speaks introduces us to WELLNESS TOGETHER CANADA, a collaborative project that is brining a wide network of specialists and organizations together.

Ann Rohmer returns with Dave Howard, the CEO of Homes for Heroes. An initiative that is building affordable housing nationwide for ex-military – to avoid homelessness

Jim Lang talks with Newmarket resident Amanda Robar who has raised all the money she needs to train her service dog, Cable. In total, she needed to raise $36,000 to have the golden retriever specially trained to be an epilepsy response service dog, a life-saving support for her.

Ann Rohmer speaks with Colin Furness, an infection-control epidemiologist and an assistant professor at the University of Toronto. He discusses his take on back to in-person learning, confusion surrounding vaccinations and the line-ups for rapid tests.

Tina Cortese is with Dr. Sarah Barrett from York University’s faculty of education. Is it safe to be back in the classroom, how to ease student anxiety and how to support students who have fallen behind

Ann Rohmer and Dan Kelly from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business discuss the supports available for small businesses and can companies survive the latest restrictions?

Kevin Frankish looks into Alzheimer's month with Loren Fried – CEO Alzheimer’s York Region. They discuss where to go for support and what to do after diagnosis?

Jim Lang introduces us to a young environmental activist. Eighteen-year-old blogger, author, changemaker, and environmental activist Hannah Alper joins Jim to chat about the importance of people of all ages getting involved to impact climate change. She is lending her voice in support of CanadaHelps Protect the Environment Fund, which supports registered charities that are working to protect the environment and conserve Canada’s parks and forests. The Fund has raised almost $33,000 to date and Hannah wants to see that grow.

Ann Rohmer opens this week's show with Ontario Medical Association President Dr. Adam Kassam who discusses Omicron, the hospital situation, surgery delays, new quarantine rules, the lack of testing and the need for N95 masks.

Now that the province has moved into a “modified step two”, online learning is back, there is no indoor dining, gyms are closed, there are capacity limits and the list goes on. How do we stay positive when it seems like we are back to the beginning? Kevin Frankish explains.

Ann Rohmer speaks with Erin Skye Kelly, author of "Get The Hell Out of Debt", learn how to budget and change your relationship with money.

Tina Cortese looks into healthy eating and how to achieve those weight loss goals; create healthy eating habits that we can actually achieve with the founder and CEO of hockeysnacks.com, Seanna Thomas.

Have you made your New Years' Resolution? Tina Cortese discusses making permanent changes and avoiding the failure rate associated with resolutions with Peak Performance Coach, Hina Khan.

When our listeners and followers email us, we respond! meet Anushka (she’s from the Greater Toronto Area) and 8 year old author of the fantasy chapter book MY MAGIC MIRROR Book Blurb: A Magic Mirror slurps Ara and Felice into the story of “The Three Little Pigs”. Can the kids rescue the pigs? Or twist the plot entirely!? Jim Lang has the scoop.

• Ann Rohmer is with Dr. Anthony LaDelpha, an Infectious Diseases Specialist at Oak Valley Health (this is the new overarching name of the Markham Stouffville Hospital and Uxbridge Hospital sites).

• Kevin Frankish looks at the top weather stories of 2021 with Environment Canada's Senior Climatologist, David Philips, who also shares a look ahead to the official start of winter.

• Jim Lang speaks with York University professor Ellen Bialystok – co author of a new study conducted by researchers at York University and Baycrest published in Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition which suggests learning a second language is an effective and enjoyable way to improve brain health. This study is among the first to examine whether the process of learning a language can benefit brain health in similar ways as bilingualism.

• Pink Cars is an amazing group of York Region volunteers that are back to help seniors with the booster. Ann Rohmer has details.

• Cristina Lavecchia discusses UNZIPPED; an immersive exhibit with more than 300 pieces of Rolling Stones memorabilia that are on display at The Museum in Kitchener.