Zoomer Week in Review

November 17 2024-Charities Making the Biggest Impact & A History of Big Concerts that Took Over Toronto

In this season of giving, it can be overwhelming deciding which charity deserves your donation. Most charities claim to make a difference in the lives of those they work with. But just how difficult is it for donors to tell if their donation really is making a difference? Charity Intelligence has just released this year’s top 10 impact charities to help Canadians find charities making the greatest impact. We reached Greg Thomson, Director of Research at the non profit organization.

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Taylor Swift fans are converging on Toronto for a series of sold out concerts, over two weekends, drawing a crowd of 50 for each night. It’s considered the most commercially successful concert series the city has ever seen. We reached music publicist Eric Alper to get his take on the concert and how it compares with some other big Toronto concerts of the past that many Zoomers attended.

November 10 2024-HOW TRUMP MAY SHAPE CANADA'S TIES WITH THE U.S. & THE 2024 SILVER CROSS MOTHER ON REMEMBRANCE DAY

The consensus is that Donald Trump's resounding victory will have a huge impact on everything from the price of groceries to the Western alliance. I talked with Conservative strategist Will Stewart about how Canada’s place in the world may shift with the new US administration.

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Maureen Anderson lost both her sons because of their military service although they died years later. Sgt Ron Anderson took his own life and Sgt. Ryan Anderson died of an overdose after suffering from PTSD. I talked with Maureen, this year’s Silver Cross Mother, as she prepared for Remembrance Day.

November 3 2024-The Only Canadian Hostage Still Being Held by Hamas & Continuing the Dialogue About Women's Rights

Judih Weinstein, a 70 year old Canadian-born Senior and her 72-year-old husband Gadi were murdered by Hamas terrorists while on their morning walk on Oct. 7, 2023, in Southern Israel. Their bodies are still being held in Gaza. Judih is the only Canadian hostage still being held by Hamas. Their daughter, Iris, lived a nightmare not knowing if her parents were alive or dead for an agonizing 83 days. Now, she wants answers from the Canadian government to act and secure justice for Canadians targeted by Hamas and is suing a number of terrorist organizations including Hamas and Samidoun. We reached Iris Weinstein Haggai in Ottawa.

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For two decades, journalist and author Elizabeth Renzetti has written about women’s rights and has just penned a new book on the subject called "What She Said: Conversations About ­Equality".

She writes about women’s rights being rolled back around the world and the continuing injustices like violence, loss of reproductive rights and misogyny but urges us all to keep the faith and continue the dialogue.

October 27 2024-Dr. Jane Philpott Wants to Fix Primary Care in Ontario & Exploring the Origin Story of Poutine

Former federal health minister Dr. Jane Philpott will head a new provincial health team with the goal of connecting every person in Ontario with a primary care provider in the next five years. She’ll step down as dean of Queen’s University Health Sciences to begin her new role December 1st. Some estimate there were more than 2.5 million without a family doctor, and other studies peg that number even higher at over 6 million. Up to now, reforms haven’t fixed the crisis in healthcare and we reached Dr. Philpott to find out why she claims to have the answer.

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It’s french fries smothered in gravy and cheese curds but where did this food combination originate and why is the world now becoming obsessed with this Canadian cuisine? Journalist and author Justin Giovannetti Lamothe explores all these questions in his new book Poutine: A Deep-Fried Road Trip of Discovery that takes the reader on a Québécois culinary journey to find the roots of this popular food.

October 20 2024-Challenge for Older Canadians Accessing Primary Care & A New Catalogue on Painter Jack Bush

Many older Canadians are struggling to get the healthcare they need. And a new report by the National Institute on Ageing is sounding the alarm, finding access to a primary care physician may be even worse than previously understood. The NIA finds that nearly 5 million Canadians 50 and older are without primary healthcare and, with an aging population, it will only get worse unless the problem is remedied. We reached Natalie Iciaszczyk, a research program manager at the National Institute on Ageing.

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He was Canada’s most internationally acclaimed artist of the 20th century. And now, a new catalogue on abstract painter and founding member of the Painters 11 Jack Bush has been produced. Written by Sarah Stanners, who has published widely on modern and contemporary art, this four box set is the first full biography of the artist, tracing his life from birth to death. We reached art historian Sarah Stanners who is an Adjunct Professor of Art History at the University of Toronto.

October 13 2024-Marc Garneau's "A Most Extraordinary Ride" & Preventing Pain After Breast Cancer Surgery

He made history as the first Canadian to fly in outer space. Then he notched another first - becoming the first astronaut to be elected as a Member of Parliament. Marc Garneau went on to serve in cabinet through some of the biggest events of the past decade. He came to our Liberty Village studio to talk about his memoir, “A Most Extraordinary Ride.”

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It is a common but debilitating complication after breast cancer surgery. Persistent pain prevents patients from getting back to work and resuming normal life. And it is becoming a larger problem, as more and more people survive breast cancer. Local researcher and pain specialist Dr. James Khan is launching a world-wide study to test the best ways to prevent and treat it.

October 6 2024-Amir Tibon Recounts the October 7th Massacre and his Rescue

Tomorrow marks the one-year anniversary of the October 7 Hamas massacre. For the most part, we have been dealing with the fallout from that terrible event, the war, the fate of the hostages, the displacement and destruction and the worldwide rise in anti-Semitism. I talked with journalist Amir Tibon, author of The Gates of Gaza: A Story of Betrayal, Survival, and Hope, who spent that terrible and terrifying day with his family in his border kibbutz safe room - here is his story.

September 29 2024-Donating the Brain for Research & Cooking for the Holidays

Ontario’s Minister of Sport, Neil Lumsden, has made a commitment to donate his brain to research after he dies. The 10-year CFL veteran and four-time Grey Cup champion is one of several former football players making that legacy through the Concussion Legacy Foundation. I talked with about what he hopes this will accomplish.

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How do famous chefs cook at home and can we do the same as we prepare special meals for Thanksgiving or the Jewish new year? The answer is yes and there are tips, tricks, and recipes in Zahav Home: Cooking for Friends & Family -the book celebrity chef Michael Solomonov cooked when he had to cook at home during the pandemic.

September 22 2024-Exploding Pagers in Lebanon & AI Saving Lives in Hospitals

The use of pagers and walkie talkies may seem like a relic from the 1990’s but in Lebanon, this week, they were the targets of an entirely new level of electronic sabotage. Over two days, thousands of devices carried by Hezbollah terrorists exploded. Israel is presumed to be behind the attack. We spoke with Dr. Amos Guiora, a Law Professor at the University of Utah and former legal advisor to the IDF in Gaza.

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It’s an AI early-warning system that can save lives in hospital. The technology called Chartwatch, predicts which patients are at risk of deteriorating while in hospital and a new study from St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto found it was associated with a 26% decrease in unexpected deaths. We talked with lead author and internist Dr. Amol Verma.

September 15 2024- Athletic Fundraising Events vs. Traditional Galas & When Is It The Right Time To Take Your CPP?

This morning the annual Terry Fox Run is underway with 15,000 participants here in Toronto and many more across the country. Last weekend, The Princess Margaret's Walk to End Cancer raised a record 3.5M with 1500 walkers. As fundraisers recover from Covid, athletic participation events are eclipsing traditional galas more than ever. I talked with Steve Merker, Vice President Corporate and Community Partnerships, PMCF, and co-founder of Ride to Conquer Cancer.

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It’s one of the most critical financial decisions Zoomers face, and most of us don’t give it the attention it deserves. The decision about when to take CPP will affect your finances for decades and you can collect a great deal more if you defer it from the age of 65 to the age of 70. Dr. Bonnie-Jeanne MacDonald, is the Director of Financial Security Research of the National institute on Ageing and she looked at the reason why more people don’t do that.