Passions, deadlines and dreams - Editorial October 12

Passion. It’s one thing I want for my life. I want to feel passionately about the one I love, to work passionately for something and to find my one true passion in life.

Being back in Williams Lake for the last few months it amazes me how many passionate people I meet, whether it is Mayor Cook who is passionate about this town, Dr. Ray Sanders who is passionate about TRU, or Denise Thompson who is passionate about her community out in Wildwood. 

I want to live my life full of passion and I want to live each day like there will be no more. With Steve Jobs passing away earlier this month, Facebook has been flooded with quotes from him. Many of the status updates referred to living each day, as it was your last and I like that mentality. I never want to get to a point in my life and look back and think why did I do that, why didn’t I do this and so on. I want to have no regrets. So far I am close to finding my passion in life, but I definitely don’t feel as if I have found it just yet. 

I think I need more life experience, maybe a spur of the moment trip to New York, maybe that dream of being a fashion designer isn’t dead, maybe I’ll write for a newspaper the rest of my life. I really don’t know, but I do know that I am 24 and I am not ready to settle on one thing just yet.

I love Williams Lake and it will forever be my home. I get goose bumps listening to Mayor Cook talk about the future, and the same when Dr Sanders speaks about where TRU will be in the next 10 years. I want to see Williams Lake grow, I even want to help, I am just not sure how I fit in just yet. And I really can’t wait to say ‘I am from that fantastic town that has grown beyond the point anyone could have imagined years ago.”

One thing I do know is that I love writing and working for this paper. The people I work with are passionate, the people I meet are passionate, and I do truly love this town.

Not to say that there aren’t a few more adventures still in store for me before I settle down. I’d still love to backpack Europe, work overseas, perhaps intern at a magazine in Toronto or New York and I still have plans for more school. 

Besides believing in living each day to its fullest, I also believe no experience is a waste of time and you can learn important skills all the time that can be useful in the future.

I had the pleasure of meeting with two ladies this past week who are truly passionate about what they are doing and I love interacting with people who are full of passion.

I am passionate right now about doing the very best I can in reporting and writing stories for this paper and every week I learn a little bit more. I can say without a doubt that the lesson last week was about proof reading and you better believe that I will never let another story go to press without a last look over.

Life is full of lessons and it is what you learn and how you move forward that is important. I am not done learning here at the Advisor and I plan on learning a whole heck of a lot more before my next learning experience starts.

JEPP Funding supports CRD Emergency Preparedness and Planning - October 12 Edition

The Cariboo Regional District (CRD) received Joint Emergency Preparedness (JEPP) funding to continue its emergency operations planning and preparedness activities throughout the region. The grants, totalling $7,682.00 were used to purchase equipment for the CRD primary Emergency Operation Centre (EOC), backup portable communication equipment and also partially funded a Spring Readiness Symposium that brought stakeholders in Emergency Planning and Response together to discuss possible events and share ideas and lessons learned from past events.

Whether it is used for training, the purchase of emergency response equipment, or emergency planning exercises, the JEPP investment is a pro-active method aimed to reduce the loss of human life, injuries, as well as property damage costs associated with an emergency. 

The Government of Canada, in consultation and co-operation with provincial and territorial governments, contributes to emergency preparedness and critical infrastructure protection projects and initiatives through the JEPP. 

Wildwood residents rally to save themselves - October 12 Edition

Courtney Taylor

Cariboo Advisor

The determination of a mother should never be underestimated, or in this story, a mother who is also a Wildwood resident.

“One way or another, even if I have to dig the dirt myself, that rink is going in this year,” said Denise Thompson, showcasing the community’s commitment to building an ice rink in the rural community for this coming winter.

Thompson has been a Wildwood resident on and off for the past 18 years and her two children went to the local elementary school to Grade 7. Thompson is now the Treasurer of the Wildwood Community Association and she is determined to get things done and revitalize the community in the process.

Residents were alerted to fragile state of small, rural communities last spring when the School Board considered closing the local elementary school. The school was partially saved; it lost Grades 4-7 due to declining enrollment and now functions as a K to Grade 3 school.

Spurred on by the Wildwood School being scaled back, Thompson and Wildwood residents have begun to fight back. 

“Children and families, that’s what keeps a community together,” said Thompson, who lives behind the Wildwood School and can’t imagine what the community would be like without the school.

And what better way to bring and hold the community together than with a good old-fashioned hockey rink.

The rink has been in the works for the past six or seven years, and it has been with Thompson’s drive and determination that it is finally coming to life.

CRD Area ‘D’ director, Deb Bishoff echoes Thompson’s feeling on having kids in the community. 

“Kids make a community,” she says. “If the school closes, the community will survive but it won’t be the same.’

“It’s phenomenal, what (Thompson) has done in less than a year, what the community has been working on for years,” said Bishoff.

The rink is being built on the Wildwood School field this year, and the project for next year is a disc golf course to be put beside the fire hall according to Thompson.

“We want to bring affordable, fun, and safe family activities to the community,” said Thompson.

According to Thompson, the school is the centre of the community and if it ever closes it would be devastating to the community.

She knows first-hand the difficulty of working in town, and having kids in school out in Wildwood, so she understands why a lot of kids are bussed into town.

“Next I think we need to encourage an after school program and daycare at the school,” said Thompson.

Bishoff agrees with Thompson saying that having daycare is one of the reasons the 150 Mile Elementary school is doing so well. 

Bishoff said Thompson and the rest of the people working with her have all worked hard to bring this rink to the community.

Cariboo Regional District Board Highlights – October 6, 2011

Health Recruitment and Retention Project Received

Nancy Wagner and Melanie Reed, Thompson Rivers University graduate students, and Catherine Whitman, Community Health Integrated Services Health Service Administrator, with Interior Health (IH) provided a presentation about the new Recruitment and Retention Project. The Cariboo Chilcotin Regional Hospital District (CCRHD) funded the project which focused on developing a strategy to recruit physicians and other health care providers to the region, and in particular the 100 Mile House and Williams Lake areas.  

Karen Brunoro, Residential Nurse Manager for Interior Health also provided the Board with an update about Deni House in Williams Lake. The renovations are almost complete and will see the opening of 28 news beds on November 28, and will be fully operational by December 15, 2011. Further information about IH and Deni House is available online at www.interiorhealth.ca 

Youth Parliament 2011

The British Columbia Youth Parliament’s 83rd Parliament will be held in Victoria at the Provincial Legislative Chambers from December 27 to 31, 2011.  This project is non-partisan and applicants should have a keen interest in learning about parliamentary proceedings and in serving their community. The Youth Parliament is a province–wide organization for young people ages 16 –21 and teaches citizenship skills through participation in the session and in community service activities throughout the year. The deadline for submissions is October 26, 2011. Further information about the program is available online at www.bcyp.org or by contacting the program registrar at 604-728-0446.

CRD Endorses Policies

The Cariboo Regional District endorsed a number of recommendations from the Cariboo Regional District Committee of the Whole meeting held on September 15, 2011. The policies include a code of conduct and ethics, director’s remuneration, election period communications, Regional Development Framework and a new process for appointing representatives to the North Central Local Government Association.  The policies are posted on the CRD website at www.cariboord.bc.ca 

Energy Efficiency Upgrades for Kersley

Up to $6,000 of Community Works Funding was approved for the Kersley Community Association to install a new furnace in the Kersley Arts Building. This building, along with the Kersley Arena and the Kersley Community Hall, is part of the Kersley Recreation Complex. The new furnace will have an efficiency of 90-95 percent, replacing the current furnace which has an efficiency rating of 50-60 percent.

Wildwood Disc Golf Course

The Cariboo Regional District gave approval in principle to the Wildwood Volunteer Fire Department Association to construct a disc golf course on CRD property adjacent to the Wildwood fire hall. The approval-in-principle is for a two-year agreement with the association, subject to confirmation that there are no operational conflicts with the fire department or safety issues with the location. Disc golf is a game in which individual players throw a disc into a basket or at a target.

Lac La Hache Fire Department Service Expansion

The Cariboo Regional District gave three readings to Bylaw No. 4723, which deals with the expansion of the Lac La Hache Fire Department Service Boundary. The Board ratified the Certificate of Sufficiency for the Lac La Hache Fire Protection Service Area Expansion to include one additional property on Dickie Road.

Opportunity Funds for 108 Mile Heritage Site

The Regional District Board approved a request from The 100 Mile & District Historical Society for emergency funding to replace the roof on the 108 Heritage Site Museum. The funds will be allocated equally from Electoral Areas, G, H and L for a total of up to $9,000 to complete the required repairs. The Society is concerned about major structural damage as well as damage to the valuable and irreplaceable artifacts as a result of the current roof leakage. Further information on the 108 Mile Ranch Heritage site is available online at www.historical.bc.ca/index-108.html                         

Upcoming Meetings

Thursday, October 27 – CRD Finance/Budget

Friday, October 28 – Board Meeting

Golden Moments for the CRD at UBCM - October 12 Edition

Regional District has banner year on the resolution floor

Vancouver, BC – Over the past few days, the Cariboo Regional District (CRD) was honoured with two prestigious awards at the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) Conference and AGM which took place in Vancouver from September 26 to 30, 2011. 

On Wednesday, September 28, the CRD received a 2011 Community Recognition Award presented byWoodWORKS!BC. Last year the CRD was honoured with this award for its post and beam style construction of the 100 Mile House Branch Library.

This award is presented annually to a community that has shown leadership in the advocacy of wood and wood products. This may be demonstrated through the specification of wood in a community project or through visionary initiatives that work toward building a community culture of wood. WoodWORKS! is a national industry-led initiative of the Canadian Wood Council, with a goal to support innovation and provide leadership on the use of wood and wood products.  

During the resolutions session on Thursday, the CRD learned it won an annual Gold Star Award for its successful resolution “Public Telephone Access”.  This marks the second consecutive year the CRD has earned a Gold Star Award after winning with aPalliative Care Feesresolution in 2010. The Regional District also earned Gold Star Awards in 2005, and 2008.  

The Gold Star and Honourable Mention resolution recognition initiative was launched at the 2003 UBCM convention, and is intended to encourage excellence in resolution drafting and to assist UBCM members in refining their resolutions in preparation for submission to the annual convention. Each year the UBCM executive presents Gold Star and Honourable Mention Awards to members for the best-crafted resolutions.

“It was truly a productive conference with excellent speakers and professional development opportunities,” stated CRD Chair Al Richmond. “I would like to commend the Board and staff for taking concepts and issues raised by our residents and turning them into successful resolutions such as the Public Telephone Access.”

In 2011, the Cariboo Regional District submitted a total of 17 resolutions which saw a majority of success; a total of 16 receiving endorsement by the UBCM membership. The results are as follows:

Resolutions Endorsed

-      Flood Mitigation Programs

-      911 Call Levy

-      Infrastructure Costs

-      Regulation of the Sale of Plants & Seeds

-      Agriculture Policy

-      Barriers to Small Scale Food Production &

Distribution

-      High Speed Internet/Cellular Phone Coverage

-  Authority to Control Weeds 

Remains eaten by a bear - October 12 Edition

Angie Mindus

Cariboo Advisor

It is highly unlikely that officials will ever be able to determine exactly how an old retired trapper and guide outfitter in the Black Creek Valley died recently, after his body was discovered Saturday mostly eaten by what was believed to be a bear.

The remains of Bill Zimmer, an elderly man living a remote lifestyle in the Black Creek Valley, were found in his apple orchard Saturday afternoon outside his home by someone who stopped in to check on him.

A portion of the man’s skull and the rifle he always carried with him were apparently all that remained of Zimmer.

Williams Lake RCMP were called to the scene and the B.C. Coroner’s Service has taken over the investigation. The Coroner’s Service did not return calls by press time.

Zimmer, known as being eccentric, lived approximately 23 kilometres down the Black Creek Road (about a half hours drive east of Horsefly) in a modest home alone, with a few horses and a large garden which sustained him throughout the winter months.

The investigation will attempt to determine whether Zimmer died of natural causes or due to a bear attack.

RODIER: Retires - October 5th Edition

Challenges await new school trustees

Angie Mindus

Cariboo Advisor

School District 27 is losing a top trustee this year, one with 34 years of teaching experience and three terms served as a trustee and Board chairman at a time when his expertise could be put to test the most.

“It has not been an easy decision,” said Williams Lake fringe area Trustee Wayne Rodier, who announced last week that he would not be seeking re-election this November. “But it’s time to step back and see what retirement is like.”

It has no doubt been a challenging time during the nine years Rodier has served, with the School Board running community input sessions such as ‘Our Kids, Our Futures’ and emotional public consultations on potential school closures. However, Rodier acknowledges the new board, to be elected November 19, may face the biggest challenges yet as student enrolment drops and budgets tighten.

“The biggest challenge is going to be the budget,” Rodier said, explaining that the current board essentially bought themselves a year’s reprieve last year when they used up rainy day funds to save what they saw as critical programs, such as Reading Recovery, the rural secondary program (In which teachers teach Grade 8 to 10 academic classes, online, to students throughout the rural reaches of the district), rural school staffing, as well as the Professional Learning Communities program which helps teachers become better teachers through professional peer support under the leadership of the district.  These programs may be in jeopardy because of a lack of funding for the upcoming year.

Also on the potential chopping block in the years to come will be schools, he admits.

“It may be that our schools will look very differently five years from now, or some of them may be closed,” he said.

“Right now we have more spaces than kids and having excess space is expensive.”

Rodier said the district’s budget is essentially based on the number of students in the district, which is projected to continue to drop in the coming years.

“I think we have to do something with the two high schools in Williams Lake - that may mean a middle school or that may mean something else.”

Running two high schools as the district does now, Rodier said, is a problem.  The district can’t offer the extent of programming now that they could if all the high school students were together. It is also inefficient in terms of busing students back and forth.

He said another major issue will be simply getting everyone up to speed on all the issues, and quickly.

“It’s going to be a massive undertaking,” Rodier said of educating newly-elected trustees, noting critical decisions on budgets and potential school closures are going to have to be made soon. 

Also on the list of challenges is the board’s commitment to developing a ten-year plan for the district, something the current board has been unable to do. 

Rodier said the trustees could not come to agreement on high school configurations in Williams Lake, combining the high schools in 100 Mile House, and closing, restructuring or maintaining rural schools. There was also debate around the degree to which a long term plan should focus on facilities and/or educational priorities.

So, it is realistic to expect the new board to plough through work which the current board couldn’t complete in three years, in just four months?

“Some of it has to be done whether it’s realistic or not,” Rodier said.

“The board has to come to a balanced budget by the end of June and because of the union climate they work in, it actually has to be done by March.”

Those challenges are on top of the current teacher job action, which has already affected work in School District 27. The trustees voted last week not to have committee meetings without teacher representation until the labour dispute is over.

Rodier agrees the upcoming election is a critical one for the public to get involved in.

According the district office staff about 20 per cent of eligible voters voted during the last School District Trustee elections.

Besides Rodier, Pete Penner (who represents 108 Mile and Lac la Hache) announced at last week’s board meeting that he would not be running in upcoming trustee elections. Current trustees Heather McKenzie, Richard Elliott, Will VanOsch and Pattie Baker announced that they would seek re-election.  Williams Lake trustee, Bruce Mack announced he will also step down.

Sheila Boehm was the first trustee to officially file her papers for candidacy for the Williams Lake Fringe zone yesterday, while 150 Mile House mother Jackie Austin says she plans to make her candidacy for Zone 4 official next week.