Edmonton Journal from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada • 17

Zi fc 'a i v. Spring break camps at the Valley Zoo allow kids to learn more about animals. Family Five By Tips for choosing a safe yoga class. Fitness Tip B2 Obituaries B8 edmontonjournal.com I family or fitness SEC TION EDITOR: JANET VLIEG, 780-429-5578; hiii jvliegedmontonjournal.com MONDAY. ARCH 25, 2013 1 TSli 3x .1 I I I rd- 'ltM.

I lM fx rJ GREG SOU THAM KDMONTON JOLRNA1 Rock climbing requires upper body and core strength, says Thirza Carpenter, seen here training at Rock Jungle Fitness, 10247 184th venue for the National Bouldering Competition, April 6 7. Climbing takes med student to the top Skills ranked among the best of Canadian women climbers ON THE EDGE On the Edge is a monthly series about local athletes who take things to the max. Do you know of someone who physically pushes himself or herself in an extreme sport or fitness challenge? We would like to share their stories, perhaps inspiring others to choose the path less travelled. Email us at livingwell 2edmontonjournal.com with On the Edge in the subject line. Carpenter, 28, was 13 and only one of two girls on a junior high field trip to reach the top of the 15-metre climbing wall (the height of a five-storey building) at the University of Alberta Butterdome.

"I thought, 'Hey this is fun and I'm pretty good at she recalls. Soon she was a member of the climbing club at Vertically Inclined Rock Gym. Two CHRIS Edmonton Journal A lot of people are too afraid of heights and falling to try Thirza Carpenter's sport. In fact, she herself admits it's scary sometimes. But her love of rock climbing remains greater than her fear, even though she'll never again be as fearless as the day she discovered it.

PARENTING climbs boulders without a rope. Lose your grip and you fall to the ground, landing on thick cushy mats in an indoor gym, or crash pads when climbing outdoors. See CARPENTER page B2 years later, she was climbing competitively. Carpenter remembers she fell while scaling the of A climbing wall on that school trip, but she was tied to a rope to catch her "so I had no fear then. "Now, with me climbing outside, and lead climbing (climbing with ropes on a sheer rock face), there is a little more fear, not of heights exactly, but of falling." Part of that fear is rooted in a bad, albeit what she calls a "fluky" fall she had 10 years ago while bouldering (climbing boulders) outdoors in needed: four babies per 1,000 live births have hearing loss, and half of those babies have no known risk factors.

The initiative is long overdue in Alberta. Most other Canadian provinces have such a program in place. Fred Home, Alberta's health minister, acknowledged at a recent Edmonton Journal editorial board meeting that "people have been advocating for this for years." He didn't say why it's taken our government so long to make it happen, but he did acknowledge why the program is critical "We know that we can screen for a hearing disability very Kananaskis Country. Climbers don't wear ropes when bouldering, and she missed the crash pad she had laid out on the ground below, when she landed. A red scar on the outside of her left ankle is a reminder of the surgery required to mend her dislocated fibula.

Carpenter spent six weeks in a cast and then a few weeks on crutches. "It took me awhile to recover from a fear of falling after that," she admits. "I also had a lot of pain in that ankle. It was almost two years before I started climbing again." shortly after birth and we know we can deal with the ability for early intervention on hearing, but we also know the impact that has on learning and other aspects of being able to succeed in life," Home said. Audiologists are delighted about the funding.

Many have been advocating for a decade or more to get a UNHS program in place here. They're seen first-hand what happens when a child isn't diagnosed with hearing loss until the age of three, four, even five years old. Many kids never fully recover because their speech and language development has passed Newborn hearing tests win key support The of A medical student, who is close to graduating, enjoys lead climbing, scaling rock faces 15-35 metres high with a rope, and then lowering herself to the ground. For bouldering, however, she beyond the critical intervention stage. One of those advocates is Kathy Holinski, who manages the Connect Society's Early Interventions Program for children affected by hearing loss and their families.

"This is so big and we're cele-brating," Holinski told me. "This has been a very long time come and it's the right thing to do for kids, because of what it can accomplish. And what only early detection can accomplish." The Facebook page "hear-ingtest4aibertababies" is riddled with excited exclamation marks. Advocates cheering funding plans in the provincial budget finally "look SEE highlighted areas someone has posted along with the funding details. "We did it: Health Budget includes Universal Hearing At just $35 per test, it's a no-brainer that every newborn gets a hearing test.

The long-term costs to a child's communication skills, and to taxpayers in the form of therapies to (hopefully) help them catch up are far greater. "It takes far more money and intervention to facilitate their development later on," Holinski said. Deborah Robb knows how hard it is to play catch-up. See WITHEY page B2 finally finally! decided to go ahead with a Universal Newborn Hearing Screening program. According to the 2013 budget, unveiled March 7, the province will commit $8 million to early childhood development initiatives, including the implementation of a UNHS program.

That means all babies bom in Alberta will automatically have their hearing tested at birth. It's a non-invasive, inexpensive five-minute test and it's greatly ELIZABETH WITHEY Did you hear? The provincial budget actually contains a bit of good news, especially if you're thinking of becoming a parent. The Alberta government has Listen to up! 93.3FM for ttie Edmonton Journal story of the rrroming.