By Kate Procter

As spring of 2019 follows what was one of the toughest falls in recent memory, farmers are becoming more and more anxious with each gloomy, rainy day. And it isn’t just Huron County farmers – completed corn and soybean planting is a fraction of what it “normally” is across the province, and even through the big U.S. corn belt. My dad reported that he read on the weather channel that on the 13th of May, there were nine days in January and February with higher temperatures than we were experiencing that day. We also read a report that as of May 7, not one kernel of corn had been planted in Ontario. It is as if someone turned off the sun on September 25 and forgot how to turn it back on. A lot of winter wheat is sketchy – and farmers are talking about switching crops and varieties as the wet weather drags on and on. Throw in a couple of trade wars and even more global political uncertainty than normal and the regular stress of spring on the farm ratchets up a few more notches. Mental health has been getting more attention in the past few years – and people are even putting some focus on farmers’ mental health in particular. The stress associated with the wet spring weather, market uncertainty, and just a general lack of sunlight has made a noticeable difference in even the most optimistic among us. So this year on Mother’s Day since we weren’t able to plant corn, I did something I haven’t been able to do for a few years. I ran the Dave Mounsey Memorial Run Around the Square in Goderich. It was good to get out of the farming head space, if only for a short while, and think about something completely different. The day was overcast and very windy – making 13 degrees Celsius feel very cold and damp. The run itself was beautiful – around the square, along the lake, through the residential areas, and back to the square. For the purposes of running a road race, there was ample evidence that spring was creeping across the land with the fresh green lawns and leaves tentatively opening. I just did the five kilometre run, but for the first time, they had a half marathon option as well as the 10 kilometre and kids’ run around the square. The Dave Mounsey Memorial fund was set up in October 2009 in memory of Dave Mounsey. “The creation of the Fund was to donate and promote the use of life-saving defibrillators; donated to public access buildings and placed in the name of fallen Law Enforcement, Fire EMS and Military members who were killed in the line of duty.  On October 25th 2009, the first defibrillator was donated by the Fund - to the Blyth Theatre in the name of Dave Mounsey himself,” (https://www.davemounsey.com/about.html). Although I didn’t know him, Dave Mounsey was quite an inspiring guy. He was a Royal Air Force veteran of 14 years before immigrating to Canada and becoming a corrections officer, then joining the ranks of the OPP as a crisis negotiator. An accident in 2004 inspired him to join the Blyth Fire Department as he learned of the dedication of those who supported his recovery. Unfortunately, Dave was killed on the way to a vehicle roll over in 2006 on snowy Huron County roads. His life and work inspired the formation of the Dave Mounsey Memorial Foundation. The vision statement reads: • “To continue the charity and community-based work that defined Dave Mounsey's life of uniformed service, • To build a long-lasting and successful organization of Law Enforcement, Fire, Paramedics, Military and civilian members, who are dedicated to the purpose and support of Dave’s vision and efforts, • To donate and to promote the use and widespread availability of life-saving defibrillators.” This was the tenth year of the Run Around the Square and the Foundation donated the 107th defibrillator in memory of Police Constable John Ferguson. PC Ferguson was killed on the job in 1949 and was a member of the Exeter Detachment. As of writing, the DMMF is still searching for a photo of PC Ferguson and has asked for the public’s help finding one. One of the things I love about running is that it is one of the most inclusive sports I know of. The run on Mother’s Day had people of all ages, abilities, and genders. There were short people, tall people, old people and young people. Everyone is welcome and everyone participates to the best of their ability on that particular day. There are many volunteers who come out and make the event happen, hours of planning ahead of time, and this year a full breakfast was supplied after the race by Pat and Kevin’s restaurant on the square in Goderich. As in all areas of life, some people are more competitive than others, and there are cash prizes for the winners as well as medals for winners in their age categories. For some, just finishing is all the victory they need. For me, I haven’t been training as I used to and I wasn’t out to set any records. I was running with a young friend of mine who had never run in a road race before. We had decided ahead of time that we would stick together and make sure that we both had a good run. We were well matched and crossed the finish line at the same time – just over 33 minutes. I was pretty happy with that – especially when I saw how we did relative to the rest of the pack. I was thrilled to discover that if I was a 17 year old male, I would’ve finished fourth in my age category! As it was, I finished 12th in my actual age category – which is another victory for me since I celebrated a milestone birthday this year and was happy to finish the run feeling good. And to realize that the aged 50 and older ladies were running rings around those young pups. In years like this, when farming is particularly challenging, getting away from hourly checking the weather forecasts and thinking about something inspiring is just what I needed. The spirit of Dave Mounsey was alive and well that day as a small community came together to be active and support a cause that is saving lives across the county. ◊