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Happy 30th anniversary, alive!
by author Sandra Tonn, RHN

This month marks the beginning of alive magazine’s fourth decade. Over the years, millions of readers have benefited from the information, advocacy, and guidance provided through the pages of alive.

Thirty years ago Canadians didn’t have the choices or awareness regarding natural health alternatives we do today. Siegfried Gursche, although busy running a bookstore, began importing natural health products from his native Germany. Unfortunately, he and other pioneers of the natural health industry had no way of informing the public of their natural products and advice.

One Man’s Innovation and Vision

Siegfried, a Canadian Health Food Association member, attended an association meeting on April 1, 1975 to find out that a long-anticipated newsletter to raise awareness about natural health “was not possible.” Undeterred, Siegfried folded his paper placemat and began planning the first issue of the first natural health magazine in Canada. By the end of the meeting, the placemat-turned-magazine had been passed around the table, and he had sold eight pages of advertising - enough for a 16-page publication. Two weeks later, 30,000 copies of the first issue of alive were printed. These were delivered to health food manufacturers and retailers to be given out to the public for free. A tradition began.

“Everything I learned in my life was a stepping stone to what alive became,” Siegfried says. His parents had become vegetarians for health reasons before he was born. To defend his way of eating to his schoolmates, Siegfried had to read up on health and became passionately interested in the subject. As a boy, Siegfried gathered and dried medicinal herbs and learned about organic farming. He apprenticed in a health food store upon finishing school. Once in Canada, Siegfried was among the first people to import herbal teas and other natural products. The import business grew into Flora Distributors. Siegfried’s passion for photography developed into the high-quality magazine covers that alive became known for early on.

A Trusted Source

The public responded to alive with encouragement and interest. “From day one it was alive’s philosophy to help readers take responsibility for their own health and to show them how to get the most benefit from whole food as well as the herbs and food supplements sold in health food stores,” Siegfried says. Those contributing to the magazine were the best in the field, a tradition that continues today with the alive editorial advisory board; the magazine quickly became a trusted source of information. Siegfried’s vision and dedication not only helped others become healthy but opened the doors for many to succeed in the natural health industry - manufacturers, retailers, authors, and publishers alike.

“The magazine has helped build our business,” says Murray McMahon, of the Good Health Mart health-food-store chain in Ontario. “It’s the best source of information out there,” says McMahon, who gives out 5,400 copies of alive through nine stores each month. “In fact, customers get upset if we run out.”

Sam Graci, creator of Greens+ and a best-selling natural health book author, says, “The one steady, driving force that has propelled the Canadian health movement is, simply put, Siegfried Gursche. He has been an absolute pillar of strength, sacrifice, and encouragement to every consumer and manufacturer in Canada.” In 1997 the Canadian Health Food Association entered Siegfried into their Hall of Fame as “The father of the health movement in Canada.”

The magazine’s success developed in part because Siegfried’s intentions were not to make money but rather to help others. It’s routine to visit the publisher’s office with a question and leave with not only an answer but a fascinating summary of the latest health research and, if one is lucky, a sample of homemade pickles or sauerkraut. Each day over the past 30 years, Siegfried has asked himself, “How can I help readers find answers about what’s important to them?” His logic and innate sense of justice have served many well. He has a way of keeping things simple and focusing on the end result, or “glorious sunrise,” as he calls it, which is available to all who embrace true health.

Millions of Monthly Readers

Sandra Tonn, RHN, is a registered holistic nutritionist, freelance writer, and education advisor for the alive Academy of Natural Health. sandratonn.com.

Source: alive #270, April 2005