NHPPA’s President Shawn Buckley, with National Campaign Director Julia Rickert, Designer Sarah Ramsden and Writer Carolyn Steele
MORE ENGAGEMENT YEAR AFTER YEAR
Our booth was busier than ever at the 2013 show, with friends from the industry and VIP guests visiting to chat. We signed up record numbers of new subscribers, collected hundreds of petition signatures and expanded the platform we need to build awareness of the issues and heighten public concern.
The message will stay the same until we win the freedom to choose natural health, but plenty was new at the 2013 NHPPA stand. Under a dramatic banner, seen for the first time this year, we had the conversations, collected signatures, donations and subscribers and tested some emerging ideas.
Shawn was on hand with us between lectures, meetings and interviews to chat with our visitors. Many people stopped by to tell us they’d heard Shawn speak before, or has seen his interviews and lectures online. They were delighted to have the opportunity to chat with him in person.
We had a constant stream of visitors, many of whom already had us on their list of must-visit booths. Everybody left armed with much to read and plenty to share.
The new T-shirts were a great hit, the Guilty Until Proved Innocent design was the favourite. It prompted numerous discussions on the legal concepts of innocence and guilt, and the criminalizing of products.
As ever, our petition sheets filled up fast. People who had signed in previous years brought their friends and relatives to add their names.
Many people who spoke with us about the issues came back later with new connections they’d made at the show, just to be sure they signed too.
We were excited to try out a new idea this year. Some MPs think the problem has gone away. But products continue to be lost, and citizens are finding it harder to take care of their health naturally, so we want every MP to hear about the issues over and over again.
We supplied printed copies of several new opinion pieces, articles and letters which have come out this year. We also added the most effective visual aids and articles from previous years into a ‘build your own information pack’ selection of reading matter.
We asked everyone who wanted to write to their MP to select items which were most meaningful to them and enclose them in our new NHPPA ‘MP Information Wrapper’. Already addressed, and with space to add notes, this system made it easy for people to send personalized packs to their elected representatives. Everybody loved this idea, we left the show with lots of packs ready to mail. Many more people took these action tools away to complete at home.
Meanwhile, we keep hearing more stories of lost products, preventable ill health and hardship from our visitors. The losses have touched almost everyone now. Most people know of someone who has been affected, even if they have not personally lost access to product yet.
One of our team manages to escape the camera on every occasion, so we’ve added a photo of Genevieve Eliany, NHPPA’s legal researcher who will be called to the Bar next month. Congratulations Genevieve!
Julia explains why we have the Warm Buddy Bear on display. The Warm Buddy story is one that Shawn uses in his lectures and refers to in his Discussion Paper on Bill C-36, which has now passed. It is an excellent demonstration of why the Rule of Law should matter to every Canadian and the potential results of allowing Health Canada to bypass our legal safeguards. We love to have Canada’s Most Dangerous Bear with us to help us discuss the issues.
We broke our show record with over 100 new subscribers, and many more following us on Facebook. If you haven’t subscribed yet, it’s the best way to be sure of getting all our updated news.
Unfortunately times have been tough for all of us, and the 2013 Total Health Show funding fell short. This meant we had to take money from our campaigns budget. We are hoping not to have to cut back on campaigning in 2014, please consider a one-off donation to the research and tools you need to make a difference.
One of the advantages of having Shawn stay in Toronto a little longer this time was that several media sources were able to record interviews. A reporter from Natural Healthcare Canada recorded a piece for NHCTV, ready for when it launches.
Vijay Sarma, of Toronto Truth Seekers produced a must-see interview, cut together with sections of Shawn’s lecture, which is beautifully produced and ideal to send to anyone who needs an introduction to the issues we are all fighting. Photo bomb courtesy of Sarah Ramsden.
Our visitors included Dr. Zoltan Rona. We were able to show him the back of our new ‘Innocent Until Proven Guilty’ T-shirt, containing one of his own quotes. This T shirt has now found a home in his office. Dr. Rona had recently entered the ongoing debate in Alive Magazine which was sparked off by the NHPD’s response to Shawn’s December article, Safe or Unsafe? Read his letter and Shawn’s overview of the full exchange between key figures in the NHP industry and the NHPD.
We also spent time catching up with the news from Shiv Chopra, who gave two lectures at the show, Health Risks Caused by Factory Farming and Agribusiness: E. coli and Other Food Borne Hazards and The Truth about Vaccines. He also participated in a panel session with other speakers, Your Best Medicine: Food, Herbs & Spices.
Always busy at her Kos Publishing booth, Helke Ferrie, made time to sign some copies of her new book Creative Outrage . Subtitled, A medical journalist reports on the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly in modern medicine, this book surveys the current sickness industry and invites us to “have the courage to use your own reason”.
The highlight of NHPPA’s Total Health Show weekend is Shawn’s keynote lecture. This year he analyzed the Omnibus Bill and its implications for our food safety. This information is vital for you to understand. You can view the talk in its entirely here.
We have attended the Total Health Show several times now. We always learn so much when we meet you and hear your stories, ideas and opinions. Thank you for taking the time to share your ideas and concerns with us and for taking so much information away to educate your networks.
