“Times like this bring out the best in people, and we are seeing that every day at Bruce Power and in our communities. We will get through this pandemic by working together and supporting each other.”
Those words, spoken by our President and CEO Mike Rencheck and repeated by others since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, are so true. At a time when most of us have never experienced so much uncertainty in our lives, we see people from all walks of life perform, every day, extraordinary acts of kindness, generosity and compassion. They are too many to mention, but they certainly start with the front-line workers in health care, emergency response, food supply, environmental services and other essential services.
We’re also living in different times when it comes to connecting with family members, friends, neighbours and co-workers. Hand shaking is no longer, and hand washing may now be the two most important words in our vocabulary. Meetings in a room or around a table have been replaced by videoconferences using Lync, WebEx, Skype, FaceTime, Facebook Live and Zoom. Respecting a person’s space is now the Two-Metre (Six-Foot) Rule.
This pandemic has created physical separation, but it doesn’t mean we must live in complete social isolation. We want people across Grey, Bruce and Huron counties to stay connected, which is why we teamed last month with the Nuclear Innovation Institute and NPX to create the Grey•Bruce•Huron Strong app and www.gbhstrong.com website. These two digital destinations have been established to help you stay in touch and be properly informed by providing trusted information, including:
- the latest local information on Covid-19 from our public health officials;
- resources for people and businesses in need;
- a way for citizens to offer help to others; and
- a list of events/activities still available in our communities.
Families and individuals living in our communities need to know what local businesses are open, where food banks can be found, how to apply for, and receive, social assistance under new or existing government programs, and who to reach out to if they need mental health support (which will take on greater importance the longer this pandemic forces us to remain physically apart from each other).
Grey•Bruce•Huron Strong is the result of the continued cooperation we’re seeing from our public health officials, our municipal and county leaders, and our supply chain partners. The three Virtual Town Halls hosted in March and April by Bruce Power and featuring the public health leaders from Grey, Bruce and Huron counties played a pivotal role in getting out necessary information to more than 75,000 residents in our region. We’re grateful to Dr. Ian Arra and Dr. Miriam Klassen from the Grey Bruce and Huron public health units respectively for answering questions from residents during these town halls, to the media and telecommunications companies for promoting and broadcasting them, and to our elected leaders for showing their support by joining them.
These are difficult times, and they are bringing out the very best in the people who live in our corner of rural Ontario. Thank you.
