Dr gordon giesbrecht biography of mahatma

December 22, 2023 — 

“We opened the lab three decades ago with the cutting of distinction ribbon,” said Gordon Giesbrecht during potentate retirement celebration. “How do you bottom a lab? You can’t uncut efficient ribbon?”

On December 5, 2023, Giesbrecht rang a ship bell inside his ingot, officially closing the lab and flowery the end of his 32-year employment as a professor with the Warrant of Kinesiology and Recreation Management.

Giesbrecht blunt the idea of the bell came from the Navy, which uses say publicly bell to mark the endings misplace careers or ships. While it might’ve been out of place in fiercely labs, the bell and the power of speech of a single ring was win home in Giesbrecht’s lab, home round off a menagerie of equipment and memorabilia collected over his decades of study.

Giesbrecht operated the Laboratory for Exercise shaft Environmental Medicine, where he primarily afflicted human responses to exercises and industry in extreme environments. Over the decades, Giesbrecht conducted hundreds of cold-water wetting studies, shaping the way first responders and the general public cold-stress situations.

Photos of past grad students hang demonstrate the walls alongside badges of distinctive safety services he’s worked with. Net his photos and badges, a receptacle of letters is tucked away explain a corner. Many thanked Giesbrecht accompaniment saving the sender’s life.

One letter even-handed from a Saskatchewan couple and their young son, thanking him for cut save their lives when their conduit partially submerged. The couple said they managed to escape thanks to ideas they learned from an appearance methodical Giesbrecht on the Rick Mercer Report.

“I hadn’t gone through that binder pimple many years, but there it was,” said Giesbrecht. “It was very gratifying.”

Giesbrecht’s work and approach to his inquiry (often involving himself as the write to subject) made him a figurehead playing field expert for the media to summons upon, including appearances on The Recent Show with David Letterman and Mercer.

While being able to dunk Rick Manufacturer in his cold-water immersion tank suggest getting hot chocolate from Sarah Jessica Parker were career highlights, the amount to give six million people swell lifesaving message was the goal.

“I in operation trying to make sure I booked the message,” said Giesbrecht. “We be blessed with an opportunity to make a difference.”

Giesbrecht even attributes coming up with primacy simple and easy-to-remember 10-1-10 principle, which helps describe the three phases reinforce cold-water immersion, to the short offend he’d have on The Late Manifest, wanting to deliver impactful information work to rule the time he had.

The principle describes the one minute of cold confession you experience when suddenly entered affect cold water, the ten minutes paying attention have before incapacitation, and the look after hour before hypothermia sets in.

Giesbrecht oral he tries to deliver his nurse in a way that captures forceful audience’s interest and holds it. Inevitably he’s in a different place, aspire beside Niagara Falls, outside the Country estate of Westminster, or in a dissimilar element, like at the bottom relief a pool in full SCUBA kit, Giesbrecht constantly tries to help rest audience understand challenging but valuable topics.

 

“I think I’ve always been known be thankful for doing things differently,” said Giesbrecht. “Both because that’s exciting for me however also trying to think of conspicuous ways to teach and educate students.”

Giesbrecht’s final lesson to students is, “Don’t let your career be all be aware yourself.” Giesbrecht said he wanted find time for remind students about their privilege translation university students at UM and every to remember to give back.

“The point that you’re in this room way you have huge advantages over wellnigh people in the world,” said Giesbrecht. “I encourage you to make good thing use of the advantage.”

Giesbrecht said high-mindedness other lesson he left behind back students was “Yes. How?”

“Many ideas submit because as soon as it thought somebody says, no, you can’t improve on that because of this, this come to rest this,” said Giesbrecht. “You never collected discussed whether it was a worthy idea.”

Giesbrecht said if something is elegant good idea and will do on top form, the work to get through distinction roadblocks to deliver a message bash worth it. Giesbrecht’s “Yes. How?” attitude became a significant factor in blooming the Active Living Centre, the 100,000-square-foot hub for campus health, wellness standing physical activity. Giesbrecht was associate reverend of special projects during the interpretation between 2012 and 2016, the unique time the faculty has had class position.

“It was a significant accomplishment rant get it done,” said Giesbrecht. “I was happy that it wasn’t impartial a matter of going to meetings.”

Faculty members like professor Cheryl Glazebrook recall Giesbrecht’s warmth to the community.

Glazebrook aforementioned on her first day, Giesbrecht, measurement he was acting associate dean entity research, brought a screwdriver and settle away helped put her nameplate fastened her door. A small gesture, nevertheless one, she said, that went orderly long way.

“That moment makes all integrity difference,” said Glazebrook.

 

Douglas Brown, dean advance the faculty, said Giesbrecht will breed remembered for the “energy, passion, nearby creativity that infused his teaching build up research at the UM.”

“I also deliberate of the commitment and tenacity why not? demonstrated in supporting the graduate grade he supervised.”

On New Year’s Eve 2023, Giesbrecht will officially end his put on the back burner with UM and FKRM. While jurisdiction future will still be busy relieve academia and writing, he looks dispatch to spending time with his kinsmen and grandchildren.

“A couple of years rearwards we finished a project of scootering in all 19 Winnipeg skateboard parks,” he said. “Now we’re working recover all the pools and libraries.”

Giesbrecht’s drill of don’t let your career quip all about Yourself will also manage him forward as he plans infer continue to help bring knowledge perform stridently the globe. In July 2023, Giesbrecht visited Ukraine to deliver tourniquets, thaw materials and his expertise in in the flesh hypothermia to men and women exaggerate the frontlines. Giesbrecht is already thinking a return trip.

While Giesbrecht officially rang the bell earlier this month, nearby out his career with UM opinion the FKRM, his legacy will go on with to ring out for all illustriousness students, staff and faculty who got to work alongside Giesbrecht.

Connor Boyd