Mark Twain once said, “The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated” and I’m delighted to say the same applies to ParticipACTION. Over 5 years ago the Federal Government ‘killed’ ParticipACTION by cutting its modest operating budget to unsustainable levels. Why they did this is a mystery, but it illustrates with remarkable clarity how oblivious the government was to the wellness needs of Canadians.
A few ParticipACTION facts:
- ParticipACTION developed the most copied social marketing approach to health and physical activity in the western world
- The cumulative value of media support during ParticipACTION’s life span is close to $300 million in donated time on TV and radio and space in the print media
- From 1981 to 1993 ParticipACTION annually involved over 500 cities and towns, more than 22,000 volunteer leaders and more than 4 million registered participants in the CrownLife ParticipACTION Challenge.
I could go on and on, ParticipACTION’s name recognition exceeded that of many Prime Ministers. (Maybe that was the problem.) Over 30 years after it first appeared, people of my generation still remember the unfavorable comparison of fitness between a 60-year-old Swede and a 30-year-old Canadian.
Godlike, the Federal Government moves in mysterious ways and, nearly six years after choking off funding to this remarkable organization, it has decided to fund it once more. I, for one, am looking forward to a new web site and infusion of programs, media spots, energy, imagination and simple wisdom that have literally made ParticipACTION a household word.
In honoring ParticipACTION’s long-time CEO, Russ Kisby, at an event last year I did a parody of the old Stones’ song.
I can’t get no ParticipACTION,
I can’t get no government action
But now I can and were I in a position to give out knighthoods for service to this country, we would be talking about Sir Russ Kisby.
retreat
