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GREG NESTEROFF

SOMETHING NEW!

An RCMP dive team is still trying to locate three New Denver area youths whose canoe overturned on Slocan Lake but police are now calling it “a recovery mission.” The mishap Saturday afternoon claimed the life of Lily Harmer-Taylor, 19, while Jule Wiltshire-Padfield, 15, Hayden Kyle, 21, and Skye Donnet, 18, Lily Harmer-Taylor remained missing as of Tuesday Deceased afternoon. “At this point due to the circumstances involved, cold water, distance from shore, the depth of the lake and length of time since they were last seen this [is] now being Jule Wiltshire-Padfield considered a recovery mission,” Missing RCMP Sgt. Darryl Little said. The lake temperature is 1.1 degrees Celsius. The spot where the canoe submerged was initially estimated to be 250 feet (76 meters) deep, but Little said they have since Hayden Kyle learned it is closMissing

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It has been two months since the Regional District of Central Kootenay rejected an offer from the City of Nelson to share space at City Hall, also known as the White Building. Since that time, both sides have gone their separate way. The Nelson Star takes a look at what has happened and why.

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Residents of New Denver as well as other concerned citizens held a vigil for the four young people who were involved in a tragic canoe mishap. One teen has been confirmed as dead while three others are still missing and presumed drowned. Isaac Carter, ICandyFilms photo

er to 480 feet (146 meters), “making any recovery more difficult.” The four youths were paddling north from New Denver to Rosebery. None had lifejackets on. The cause of the mishap is unknown — conditions were good when they set out. Searches by air and boat have not turned up any sign of them. An eight-member RCMP dive team joined the search Monday morning, using underwater cameras. Given the temperature, each diver can only spend limited time in the water. A police helicopter also scanned the lake and shoreline. Divers searched all day, concentrating on Bigelow Bay and working from the shore toward deeper water. They returned Tuesday as RCMP planned another aerial search.

Little dispelled rumours that the helicopter spotted three bodies in the water: “This is not the case. As one might guess this has caused a lot of anguish in the community.” Meanwhile, the man whose canoe the youths borrowed described them as “wonderful kids.” “They were really full of life and fun. Just marvellous people,” said Dan Nicholson, publisher of the Valley Voice. “It’s a huge loss.” All four lived in the Slocan Lake area although Kyle was originally from Gibsons. Kyle and Harmer-Taylor both lived with Nicholson’s family in Rosebery, while Donnet lived with them for a while when he was younger. Nicholson said he knew all of them except Kyle since infancy, as they were friends of his own kids. Each had one

parent living locally and another somewhere else and they “bounced back and forth.” Kyle had been staying with Nicholson’s family for a couple of months. He moved from the Sunshine Coast to Nelson where he worked on a demolition job with Donnet, and the two became close friends. Once the job ended, Kyle needed a place to live, and asked Nicholson and his wife agreed he could stay with them until he got back on his feet. Harmer-Taylor and Wiltshire-Padfield were a couple and planning to hitchhike to Regina to see her father. She was just finishing high school in New Denver. Last fall, Nicholson and his wife offered her a place to stay as well. Continued on Page 3

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A mystery photo in the Kootenay Lake Archives labelled “Three Forks, 1892” turns out to be a rare view of the boom town of Kuskonook in 1898. In time for BC Heritage Week, local history buff Greg Nesteroff takes a closer look at the discovery and what it tells us about the past.

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Woodward has always loved the outdoors

n ice axe is Mary Woodward’s favourite piece of outdoor gear. “I know if I’m taking my ice axe, it’s going to be a good day,” she laughs. “I know it’s not going to be a Sunday stroll. It’s going to be worth it. I like bagging peak and going as high as possible.” She loves the outdoors and being fit has been a by-product of her outdoor quests as is her healthy appetite and, seemly, her ready smile. The North Shore resident is approaching her 80th birthday on May 29. Born in Canterbury, England, she’s been travelling all of her life. When she was single, she moved to Kimberley as a nurse with the plan of learning to ski while she saved money to travel to Europe. Once she married her husband Bill, they moved to Arrowhead to follow his career in forestry. She has “always liked the outdoors and sports,” and her three boys were into ski racing when they lived in Prince George. She likes hiking because every time is different but Mt. Loki, Jumbo, and Kootenay and Valhalla Parks are on her quick list of favourites. Two falls ago she hiked through the Rockies visiting Yoho and explored Revelstoke trails on her return home. “Where ever we are, we seek out a mountain.” She joined the Kootenay Mountaineering Club when she and Bill moved to Nelson some 30 years ago. That led to many friendships and good days in the mountains. On a normal ski season, Mary skies 80 days, but this year due to health issues she only skied 32. Mary’s love for skiing led to her being featured in Sherpa Cinema’s Ski Bums Never Die in 2011, a short film about skiing at Whitewater with the local Backside Group. Things changed on the hill once the triple Glory Chair was installed but she likes the newer lift as there are fewer line ups. Continued on Page 2

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Mary Woodward’s love for the outdoors has lead to decades full of hiking and skiing adventures. Her family had a sign built showing the directions and distance to where people are most likely to find her. Tamara Hynd photo

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At the same time, Rev. Father John Althoff was disturbed at “the intoxication of praise and the glory of war” and warned of its “soberness and gravity.” Even those who listened to Althoff ’s admonitions wouldn’t have anticipated the horrors to come over the next four years. Many who departed that day didn’t return. In her new book, Names on a Cenotaph: Kootenay Lake Men in World War I, Sylvia Crooks takes a closer look at the local men who died on European battlefields in

what was supposed to be the war to end all wars. She previously wrote Homefront and Battlefront: Nelson BC in World War II and during her research on that book was intrigued by the fact that even though similar numbers enlisted locally in both wars — about 1,300 — nearly four times as many men from the earlier conflict appear on the Nelson cenotaph. “That was pretty overpowering,” Crooks says, attributing the difference partly to strategy. “They were using

Victorian military strategy with more modern weapons. These men were walking into wave after wave of machine gun fire.” It wasn’t unusual for 1,000 or more to die in a single battle, many from blood poisoning. Another stark statistic: one-third of the names on the Nelson cenotaph have no known resting place. As the battleground was repeatedly churned up, makeshift graves were blown apart. Crooks, a Nelson native and retired Continued on Page 5

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or as long as he can remember, Case Grypma has been obsessed with flying. “It’s absolute freedom. It’s kind of hard to put into words. You’re getting away from everything. It’s really an escape. You’re up in the sky, you don’t have to worry about ditches or oncoming traffic. There’s time for intense concentration—take offs and landings— but you really get a sense of wonder. You go back to your childhood where everything is new and perfect.” Grypma has been flying planes for the last 40 years. Licensed as a commercial pilot as a teenager, he ultimately went on to work as a bush pilot in the north and to fly commercial airliners,

mostly in and out of the Kootenays. But his favourite aviation experience isn’t even his own. “The most intense and exciting experience was standing on the ground watching my 16-year-old son fly solo for the first time. Being there, watching that, and that sense of ‘wow, he’s doing something that’s so amazing, that very few people will ever experience’,” he said. “It’s hard to describe.” Grympa now wants to replicate that experience for the Nelson community. As chairman of the upcoming aviation showcase on Saturday, August 2, he wants to install a passion for aviation in the future generations that will be lined up on the tarmac. “It’s a really fun, family grassroots aviation event. It’s not like a huge inter-

national show like Abbotsford. People come right out on the tarmac. They talk to the pilots, sit in the airplane. They’re literally meters from an old World War II training airplane,” he said. The show will feature aerial performances by eight pilots, including Bill Carter, John Mrazek and Peter Herzig. The aircrafts will begin arriving on Friday evening on August 1, and the event begins at 8 a.m. Saturday with a pancake breakfast. “The setting here is spectacular,” said Grypma. “Centre stage is right over the lake front, from Lakeside Park to the mall to the airport there’s no bad seat. You could be on your verandah on Mill street and have this beautiful aerial performance right in front of you, with the mountain right behind.”

Grypma said aviation is an integral part of the Nelson community. “Nelson has always been a very airminded community. As a matter of fact, the very first air show occurred in 1912 at the site of the aquatic centre parking lot. It was an American pilot by the name of Walter Edwards. He came in from Portland, Oregon and did a fantastic show here.” Ever since then, aviation has been closely linked with development in the area. “The airport was originally constructed by volunteers and the city of Nelson in 1946 and it’s been operating consistently since then. It’s become a gateway to Nelson” he said. Continued on Page 3

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This photo shows high school boys of Nelson serving with the 54th Kootenay Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Forces. It was taken in Vernon in 1915. Courtesy Sylvia Crooks/Granville Island Publishing

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Man killed in avalanche GREG NESTEROFF Nelson Star Reporter

Local search and rescue volunteers spent 7½ hours Sunday rescuing a local woman seriously injured in an avalanche on the Kootenay Pass that killed one of her ski companions. The victims were part of a party of four, all from around Nelson, who were backcountry skiing in the Lightning Strike area, southwest of the highways yard at the top of the pass. Nelson Search and Rescue’s Chris Armstrong said they were called out around 1 p.m. and dispatched a helicopter with two technicians to assess the avalanche risk. The class two to three slide pulled the man through a heavily treed area and down a cliff. “The man went right to the midslope and travelled a great distance through a lot of timber,” Armstrong said. “The woman was hung up on a tree near the top and it’s probably what saved her.” Although neither was buried in the slide, the 27-year-old man died at the scene. The woman, also 27, is recovering in hospital in Trail with unknown injuries that may include broken ribs. The other two skiers in their party were not hurt. Another party of six in the area witnessed the slide, and four joined in the rescue effort. One person went to the highways yard to call for help. The first search and rescue personnel arrived between 2:30 and 3 p.m. Armstrong said the weather, diminishing daylight, and difficult access prevented a helicopter rescue, but they didn’t think they could wait overnight to bring the woman out. “With her injuries, we decided if we hunkered down we may not be able to get her out if it snowed. So we deemed it best to get her out, and brought in all

A local man was killed and a woman seriously hurt after a large avalanche Sunday near the top of the Kootenay Pass (seen above). More than two dozen search and rescue volunteers responded to the call. File photo the manpower we could.” Teams from South Columbia, Rossland, and Castlegar were called and 26 volunteers ultimately flew or hiked into the area. The woman was packaged on a stretcher, dragged down a creek valley, and back up to the highway. It was between 10:30 and 11 p.m. when she was transferred to BC Ambulance personnel. “We basically did it by sheer manpower,” Armstrong said. “Hours of grueling slogging, pulling a stretcher through the snow.” Following the rescue, the operation was shut down until morning, when

technicians triggered controlled avalanches to make the area safe. Three search members then skied in to recover the man’s body. His name has not been released, but in a Facebook comment his aunt called him a “great young man.” “The family is devastated,” she wrote. “Our thanks to the crew and everyone who has helped in our time of need.” Armstrong also paid tribute to the volunteers: “Twenty-six people who had to go to work Monday morning went out and completely busted their humps. We have a great system of volunteers and they need to be appreciated

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Why are fewer kids on teams? See Page 19

The hit Steve Martin movie filmed in Nelson in the summer of 1986 turned out very different from how the screenwriter first envisioned it. Some scenes were improvised during production and others were left on the editing room floor.

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Steve Martin starred in the 1987 hit film Roxanne, which was filmed in Nelson. GREG NESTEROFF

W Nelson Star Reporter

hen Roxanne, the hit Steve Martin movie filmed in Nelson, was released on DVD in 2000, it contained no deleted scenes or bonus features apart from the theatrical trailer. This was a let down because we know some parts did end up on the editing room floor. (If you’ve never seen the film, or haven’t in a long time, best do so before reading further.) But in 1997, Martin published his original screenplay, giving us some idea of what didn’t make the finished movie. What’s striking isn’t only what was left out but what was added. When the film was released in 1987, Martin told the New York Times it was “almost depressing” how many big laughs came from improvised material. However, he considered “those

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spontaneous gags as much a part of the screenplay as anything I spent two and a half years creating.” For instance, a scene where Martin’s character buys a newspaper from a coin box, screams in horror at the front page, and then spends another quarter to put it back was added after producer Dan Melnick had the dispenser placed on the street as a set decoration. The finished movie is far better than the script and for the most part the deleted scenes don’t add much. Still, it’s interesting to learn what didn’t make the cut and imagine how it might have appeared in the film. TWENTY-FIVE DRAFTS Roxanne was Martin’s adaptation of Edmund Rostand’s 19th century play Cyrano de Bergerac, about a man whose gigantic nose comes between him and the woman he loves. Martin starred as C.D. Bales, fire chief of Nelson, Wash., and Daryl Hannah as the lovely Roxanne, an astronomer in town for the summer.

photo courtesy Columbia Pictures

One of the first things Martin had to figure out was where the movie would take place. “I needed a setting where people could run into each other on the street and be believable,” he told the Times. Martin lived in Aspen, Col. in the 1970s and decided a ski resort town “was the perfect size and everybody hung out in the same place.” The exact location was apparently chosen by the time the script was finalized, for Nelson is mentioned by name on the first page. Martin began thinking about a modern-day Cyrano in 1983 and wrote ten screenplay drafts before showing it to Columbia Pictures in 1985. He eventually wrote another 15 drafts, although some versions only had a few scenes altered. (In 1990, Martin donated his drafts, revisions, and final shooting script to the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Centre at the University of Texas.) “The secret was to have the courage to throw things away at any point when they didn’t seem to be working,” Martin

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said. “I’d get a better idea and it would affect everything else, so other things would go out of balance.” Martin had co-written most of his films to that point, but had never done a solo screenplay. Feeling insecure, he laboured at it 12 hours a day, and at one point asked Gore Vidal to write the movie, who declined. Martin did, however, receive suggestions from Melnick and directors Herb Ross and Mike Nichols. In one early version, Chris, C.D.’s rival for Roxanne’s affection, dies in a fire and several months later, Roxanne tells C.D. she’s pregnant and wants to raise the child with him. However, Martin decided killing Chris off was “arbitrary.” “My big breakthrough was when I asked myself, ‘If I keep Chris alive, what is he thinking?’ and I realized that after his one night of glory, he would be tremendously uncomfortable with Roxanne.” Story continues to Page 8

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Golf course condos get green light

Nelson Star

Nelson city council passed a zoning variance for the Granite Pointe condominium-style townhome project on Monday that will make the building more accessible to entry-level buyers. “The .32-metre variance basically allows us to change the building from eight units to ten,” said Patrick Laura Salmon 250.551.8877 Davis of West Creek Developments. Glen Darough The250.354.3343 development, called The Crossing on Granite Pointe, will Ali Watt 250.551.5235 ultimately be located on a piece of Dave Buss 250.354.9459 undeveloped land off Choquette Av-

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enue currently owned by the golf course. Council has publicly expressed their enthusiasm for incentivizing and encouraging affordable housing developments, and though the variance inspired a short debate on Monday evening, it passed. “Without the variance the two units facing north would be 1,800 square feet, but now with the height variance the units on the main ground level won’t have semi-finished basements,” Davis said. “Under those will be 900-square foot bedroom plus den condominium-

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Well maintained 3 bed/2.5bath home with 2-storey vaulted ceiling in the l.r., rock feature fireplace, tall view windows, open dining/kitchen with French doors to deck. Jacuzzi tub, loft upper floor with den. Level 0.47 acres with carport & sunny view location at 6-Mile on the North Shore. MLS 2399971

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style townhomes.” These two additional homes means the square footage of each unit will go down, also dropping the price overall. Davis acknowledged it may seem counterintuitive to build affordable housing in such prime real estate, but said their choice is also an acknowledgement of the dire housing shortage Nelson is currently experiencing. “We’re of the opinion that there are more buyers at the entry-level scale than there are at the higher Continued on Page 4

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Close to 1,000 attend tourney

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LEGAL SUITE Large timber frame home on 3.43 acres. Custom designs throughout. Open concept kitchen, dining and family room. 4 bdrm, 3 baths on upper levels, and a 1 bdrm, 1 bath walkout suite in the lower level. MLS #2399765

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Friday, December 5, 2014

Thieves get away with cash, cigarettes from Star Grocery

Vol. 7 • Issue 46

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This week’s feature:: …now rolling into

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The two people who robbed Star Grocery in Nelson on Friday night are still at large. Nelson Police Department is still investigating the incident that occurred just after 9 p.m. Store owners Jian and Julie Situ told the Nelson Star the robbery when two people walked into the establishment, located at 1516 Crease Avenue in Rosemont, and up to the counter. Jian said the man and woman were dressed in black, their faces and hair were covered and both wore gloves. “The man placed a black garbage bag on the counter and the woman stood in front of the cash register,” said Jian. “They didn’t say anything other than the man told me to give him the cigarettes and money.” That’s when the man pulled a canister of pepper spray from behind his back and sprayed Jian in the face. Jian said he backed away. He couldn’t see clearly anymore and feared they might have a gun. The woman took the money out of the cash register which Jian estimates was $300 to $400, while the man took approximately 50 to 60 packs of cigarettes from the shelves. Then the man and woman left the store. Jian’s wife Julie had left the store five minutes earlier and was upstairs when she heard a loud noise below. She heard her husband shout, “Call the police.” Julie came downstairs into the store to check on him but she had difficulty breathing because of the pepper spray still in the air. Jian described the female suspect as very heavy, shorter than 5’6” and he believes she is in her 30s. The man was a bit taller than Situ, who is approximately 5’9”. A witness to the event saw two “rotund” people walking down the street just uphill from the store who stopped underneath the street lamp and put hoods on their heads. It was spitting

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Jian Situ is the owner of the Star Grocery store in Nelson. On Friday night, his business was robbed and Situ was sprayed in the face with pepper spray. Tamara Hynd photo rain on and off at the time. One witness heard what sounded like a woman’s giggle. When the pair walked into the Star Grocery parking lot, a witness noticed their hoodies were pulled very tight around their faces and something didn’t feel right. Less than two minutes later the same people exited the store, sauntering faster up the street the way they came from; the taller person was holding a plastic garbage bag with something in it. “The size they were, they weren’t go-

ing anywhere fast, so in retrospect they may have had a vehicle parked further up the street,” said a witness. Witnesses heard Jian yelling, “Call the police, call the police,” and saw him come out of the store rubbing his eyes. The Nelson Police Department received several calls and witnesses said officers were on the scene very soon. Police blocked the road coming from the store and patrolled the area with a spot light. The fire department and ambulance responded as well. They flushed Jian’s eyes and firefighters set

up a very large fan for 45 minutes to air out the store. On Saturday, Jian said he was doing well other than he couldn’t sleep as his skin felt hot through the night. He is grateful that he is okay. Jian and his wife opened their store at 8:30 Saturday morning as per their regular hours. According to a Nelson Police Department press release, the investigation is ongoing. Anyone with any information about this crime is encouraged to contact the NPD at 250-354-3919 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

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for their hard work.” The Canadian Avalanche Centre issued a special warning for BC last week, as a result of an extended dry period in late January and early February. “That long drought left the surface of the snowpack in very bad shape,” said the centre’s Karl Klassen. “Now the new snow is sitting on one of the worst weak layers we’ve seen in a few years.” The weakness is one to two metres deep, resulting in very large avalanches when triggered, Klassen said.

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First in a series marking the centennial of the First World War n August 28, 1914, thousands of people converged on Nelson to send 175 volunteers — the first Kootenay contingent — off to war. Three-quarters were going to fight for their homelands. But others said they enlisted for “glory and satisfaction” and one man admitted his motives weren’t purely patriotic: “Part of it was the love of adventure, and a desire to see the world.”

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News Police briefs

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Nelson Star Staff

A six-vehicle collision on Cedar Street Saturday, opposite the indoor soccer facility, is being blamed on the weather. Cst. Sebastian Fazzino said the call came in at about 3:40 p.m. and the block between Vernon and Front streets was closed for two hours. However, no injuries were reported. Police attended along with fire crews, public works, and an auto wrecker to barricade the road. “It was all at very slow speeds, with minimal damage to vehicles,” Fazzino said. “But they needed to be pulled apart with tow trucks. Weather was a major factor.” Nelson received several centimeters of snow Saturday. Fazzino said there were other crashes around town, but all minor.

Salmo crash victim named

The BC Coroners Service has identified the Salmo man killed in a car accident near the village on December 19 as Rudolf Seeser. Seeser, 82, was the driver

and sole occupant of an eastbound van, which collided with a westbound SUV on Highway 3, about three kilometres west of Salmo. The lone occupant of the eastbound vehicle, a 50-yearold Salmo woman, was transported to hospital in Trail with what police described as “minor injuries.” However, family and friends disputed that characterization, saying she has a broken clavicle, broken vertebrae that will require three months rehabilitation, broken ribs, and extensive bruising. Road conditions were noted to be extremely poor at the time of the accident. Seeser died at the scene. The coroner and RCMP continue to investigate.

Pedestrian struck

On December 22, a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after being hit in the crosswalk at Vernon and Stanley streets. The pedestrian was taken to hospital. Police believe low light played a “significant role” in this incident.

Saturday’s pile-up on Cedar Street.

School, vehicle broken into

Overnight December 20, someone entered an unlocked vehicle and stole a jacket, wallet, and cash. That same night, someone broke into Trafalgar Middle School and caused approximately $500 damage. The Nelson Police Department asks anyone with information

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on either incident to contact them or Crime Stoppers.

Police respond to assaults

On December 16 at 7:20 p.m. the Nelson Police Department received multiple calls about a disturbance at the Youth Centre. Officers attended and found a young man

and older woman went into the centre and tried to entice another youth out to fight. Staff took the youth into the office and called 911. One assailant was arrested and charged with uttering threats and causing a disturbance. The woman is being sought to face similar charges. Police say the incident was apparently the result of a small debt. The next day at 11 p.m. a man was leaving work in the 700 block of Nelson Avenue when he was approached by a drunk man shouting at him. The victim tried to ignore him but the man continued to approach, so he called 911. The drunk 35-year-old local man punched the victim multiple times in the head while the victim was on the phone with police. Officers arrived and arrested the suspect. Police say his bizarre behaviour indicated he was drunk and also under the influence of drugs. The man was held until sober and charged with assault. He will appear in court in Nelson in March and is bound by numerous conditions until then.

2014: The year that was O

ur Year in Review coverage begins today with a list of the Top 10 news stories as reported by the Nelson Star, which you can find on pages 3-7, 10, 12, 14, and 15. On Friday, we’ll have some honourable mentions and reveal our pick for Newsmaker of the Year. We’ll also have roundups of the most interesting people of 2014, anniversaries we marked, heroic acts, strangest stories, locals who appeared on TV or movie screens, a look at how our region was portrayed by national and international media, and a list of noteworthy people we lost over the last 12 months.

A New The Nelson Star is highlighting the Nelson-born babies of 2014. If you are the parent or grandparent of a child born in 2014 in Nelson and would like for them to be included, please send in their photo with their name and date of birth.

We will publish the photos in the Friday, January 16 issue. Deadline to submit photos is Friday, January 9, 2014. publisher@nelsonstar.com | 250.352.1890

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Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Top Stories of 2014

Four young people drown

Tragedy on Slocan Lake

one

Year in Review compiled by Greg Nesteroff

n May 10, four local youths took advantage of a spectacular day to do some paddling on Slocan Lake. Hayden Kyle, 21, Jule Wiltshire-Padfield, 15, Skye Donnet, 18, and Lily Harmer-Taylor, 19, set out in a canoe from Rosebery to New Denver, about a six kilometer journey. Shortly after 5 p.m., they began their return trip when something went horribly wrong. A man walking along a trail near the beach spotted the canoe about 150 meters from shore, partially submerged, with one person holding on to each end. The man ran to a nearby home to call for help. Slocan Lake Search and Rescue responded along with the BC Ambulance Service and New Denver fire department. They found Harmer-Taylor in the canoe unconscious, but couldn’t locate her friends. Despite five hours of resuscitation attempts, she died overnight in hospital. While the water was calm, Slocan Lake is extremely cold and deep. The man whose canoe the youths borrowed described them as “wonderful kids.” “They were really full of life and fun. Just marvelous people,” said Dan Nicholson, publisher of the Valley Voice. “It’s a huge loss.” All four lived in the New Denver area, although Kyle was originally from Gibsons. Kyle and Harmer-Taylor both lived with Nicholson’s family in Rosebery, while Donnet lived with them for a while when he was younger. Nicholson said he knew all of them except Kyle since infancy, as they were friends of his own kids. Each had one parent living locally and another somewhere else and they “bounced back and forth.” Kyle had stayed with Nicholson’s family for a couple of months. He moved from the Sunshine Coast to Nelson where he worked on a demolition job with Donnet, and the two became close friends. Once the job ended, Kyle needed a place to live, and asked Nicholson if he could stay with them until he got himself back

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Lily Harmer-Taylor, 19, and Jule Wiltshire-Padfield, 15, above, died along with Hayden Kyle, 21 (inset), and Skye Donnet, 18 (not pictured), when their canoe overturned on Slocan Lake in May. on his feet. Harmer-Taylor and Wiltshire-Padfield were a couple and planning to hitchhike to Regina to see her father. She was just finishing high school in New Denver. The previous fall, Nicholson and his wife offered her a place to stay. On the day of the tragedy, the four took the canoe from Nicholson’s porch without telling him. That in itself was not a problem. However, they left the lifejackets sitting in the mud room. “They’re 15 to 21. They don’t tell me everything they’re doing. If they’d asked, of course I would have said ‘Yes — be sure to grab the lifejackets.’” He believes the three locals were experienced canoeists. “They grew up on this side of the lake. They weren’t perhaps the strongest swimmers, but I always felt they could handle themselves in the water.” In the wake of the tragedy, a large group met on the beach for a healing ceremony, where they lit a fire, put candles in the water, and threw wreathes. “It’s devastating. It’s incredibly tragic,” Nicholson said.

New Denver mayor Ann Bunka said her community and all others along the lake were “reeling” from the tragedy. “This is a small community and every accident and loss is personal. This is a close knit community that rallies together in times of need and never has this been more apparent,” she said. “The outpouring of assistance to do whatever is needed is a trademark of this community and in times of loss is a reminder of why we live here.” An RCMP dive team couldn’t locate the three missing young men. After the initial search was called off, their families hired a private company which used a remotely operated device to continue scouring the lake bottom. After 16 days of tireless searching, the bodies were found in about 500 feet (152 m) of water and recovered. RCMP Sgt. Darryl Little said we will never know exactly what went wrong. “We cannot presume what happened. Our best speculation is misadventure. It wasn’t a very big canoe. There wasn’t much space below the gunnels and we figure the wind came up and that was it.”

The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) is seeking bids from qualified contractors for upgrades and renovations to the North Shore Hall located at 675 Whitmore Road, Nelson BC.

Closing Location

Regional District of Central Kootenay Box 590, 202 Lakeside Drive Nelson, BC V1L 5R4

Closing Date and Time

Bids must be submitted in a SEALED envelope CLEARLY MARKED “North Shore Hall Renovation” and must be received at the above noted closing location no later than 4:00 pm on January 27, 2015.

Contact Person

Joe Chirico General Manager of Community Services Box 590 202 Lakeside Drive Nelson, BC V1L 5R4 250.352.8158 jchirico@rdck.bc.ca For more information, go to bcbid.gov.bc.ca BID#RDCK NSH RENO or visit our website at www.rdck.ca.ww

Credit unions, gas station, pharmacies robbed

Pair charged in crime spree

y Kootenay standards, it was a crime wave. It began November 13, 2013 when a man entered Shoppers Simply Pharmacy in Castlegar with what appeared to be a shotgun and made off with a large amount of prescription medication and cash. On February 24 of this year, just before closing time, a man robbed the Salmo branch of

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Kootenay Savings at gunpoint and ran off with an undisclosed amount of money. The situation repeated itself on March 7 when Johnny’s Groceries and Gas in Robson was held up, and on March 11 when the downtown branch of Kootenay Savings in Castlegar was robbed. Although no one was physically hurt in any of these crimes, things became even more dangerous on April 11, when a man entered Kootenay Currency Exchange in Nelson, threatened staff and fired one shot. He also got into an office and stole cash. This time police recovered

the getaway vehicle: a small road bike reportedly stolen from a home on Stanley Street. Descriptions of the suspect in most incidents were similar: 5'6" to 5'8" and wearing a baseball cap under a black hoodie. The spree culminated with a sixth robbery at the Nelson and District Credit Union on April 25. A witness who was just outside the building at the time told the Star he saw police following a speeding car driven by a young woman with a man in a hoodie in the passenger seat. According to the Nelson Police Department, they chased a suspect to a bridge in the Bon-

nington area. He didn’t follow their orders to stop and instead jumped off the bridge, landing 30 to 40 feet (9 to 12 m) below. He suffered “significant” injuries and after being taken into custody, was sent to hospital. A woman was also arrested. “I want the public to know they are safe — there is no one at large,” chief Wayne Holland said. “The RCMP and Nelson Police Department have been living and breathing this for the last two weeks so we’re tremendously pleased that a very dangerous duo has been put into custody. We hope it’s the end to Continued on Page 4

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Top Stories of 2014

Continued from Page 3 armed robberies in this vicinity.” The suspects were named as Andrew Zacharias Stevenson, now 34, and Krista Ann Kalmikoff, now 26. Initially, Stevenson faced 15 charges and Kalmikoff ten relating to the robberies of Kootenay Currency Exchange and Nelson and District Credit Union, as well as two break and enters at Pharmasave and Shoppers Simply in Castlegar on April 18. Both are accused of robbery, possession of stolen property over $5,000, firearms-related offenses, and fleeing police while Stevenson faces additional counts of disguising his face with intent to commit an offense, and pointing and discharging a firearm. Further charges were later laid against Stevenson in the hold-ups at Johnny’s Grocery and Kootenay Savings in Castlegar, bringing the total to 21. During Kalmikoff ’s two-hour bail hearing, she sobbed quietly in the prisoner’s box. A slim woman with long dyed-black hear, she stared at the floor through most of the proceedings, only occasionally looking at her family members sitting in the gallery. She was released on $40,000 bail and ordered to stay at a relative’s house in Salmo under strict conditions. Her lawyer Blair Suffredine indicated she would seek trial by jury. “My client is innocent of all the charges,” he told reporters. “A jury is capable of separating who is the bad guy.” As a result of the injuries Stevenson suffered, the Independent Investigations Office of BC got involved. The civilian-led organization that investigates police-related incidents that involve death or serious injury. Eight months later, they still haven’t decided whether to forward the case to Crown counsel. Stevenson has been on crutches at all his court appearances, most by video link from Kamloops. Initially he didn’t seek bail, but then changed his mind. His request was denied. On September 15, Stevenson was due to elect trial. According to the Ministry

TOP: Surveillance video footage showed a masked man entering Kootenay Savings Credit Union in Salmo, seconds before he robbed it. ABOVE LEFT: Police released this composite drawing of the man who robbed Shoppers Simply Pharmacy in Castlegar. ABOVE RIGHT: This sign was posted on the door of Nelson and District Credit Union after it was robbed in April. of Justice, a deputy sheriff was escorting preliminary inquiries January 28 and 29. him into the Nelson courthouse through a Assuming their cases proceed to trial, it will sheriff-access only door when he threw off likely be many more months before all the his crutches and fled. He wasn’t wearing evidence comes to light. leg irons. There has been one more robbery since The deputy sheriff caught him after a the pair were arrested: on May 23 a man and two-block chase. He was then taken back woman entered Star Grocery in Rosemont, to jail and charged with a further count of pepper sprayed the owner, and stole cash escaping custody, to which he pled guilty and cigarettes. Police later said the prime this month. He’ll be sentenced January 6. suspects were in custody on an unrelated Stevenson and Kalmikoff will have their matter, but couldn’t provide details.

WHAT’S HAPPENING? Your donation to this year’s Light Up the Hospital! campaign will help purchase Wireless Digital X-ray Equipment. Used on practically every part of the body, and on patients of all ages, this digital equipment will be used in the diagnosis of trauma injury, chest infection, cancer and more.

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Visit for more information or to make your secure donation online.

Kootenay Lake Hospital Foundation

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Above & Beyond The selection committee is looking for nominations for the monthly Above and Beyond volunteer to be featured in the Nelson Star. To be nominated the volunteer must be a long serving volunteer in a role that is not associated with their professional life Please send your nominee’s name, a description of their volunteer work and why you feel they should be nominated to:

jexley@cbal.org

Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Top Stories of 2014

Slocan man shot following five-day manhunt

The death of Peter de Groot three

he details remain hazy, but on October 9, West Slocan resident Peter de Groot, 45, was involved in an argument with someone, apparently over an eviction notice. RCMP went to the scene, where de Groot allegedly fired a shot at them before fleeing into the bush. The resulting manhunt and its tragic outcome grabbed national headlines and generated enormous controversy. David Badger, who lives two doors down, arrived home that day to find a police cruiser in front of his neighbour’s place with the driver’s side window smashed. He and fellow resident Roy Burge said the property where de Groot stayed was “a mess” and did not belong to him. “It had a shed for horses and cattle,” Burge said. “He drove his van in there and started piling up pallets around it. The place is an eyesore.” Badger said de Groot had five cows and 25 chickens and the SPCA had been called to the property on two occasions. Although no one was injured in the initial confrontation, the police response was massive. Using Gravel Pit Road as a staging area, they set up a command post with more than 25 members, some dressed in camouflage. Plainclothed officers wore bullet proof vests and an ambulance was on standby along with more than ten marked and marked vehicles. An RCMP helicopter was also in the area. Police prevented residents from entering the village by vehicle, although many parked north of town and walked through the woods to their homes. W.E. Graham school was locked down. Students were later evacuated to another site to be picked up by parents. Custodian Craig Roussain said he was asked to get preschool children ready when the bus arrived, but balked when he discovered a police officer with a gun on the front seat. “I said ‘That is not going to happen to daycare kids.’ Meanwhile, a plainclothes officer with a shotgun burst through the gate yelling ‘Move, move, move.’ I yelled ‘Stop, they’re only kids.’ It was very scary for everyone.” That night police set up a 10-by-10 hectare containment area on the west side of the river where they believed de Groot was and seized “a number” of guns from his home. Neighbours were evacuated, and both W.E.

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Emily Tucker and Megan Moore … Welcome your newest addition to NELSON! TOP: Camouflaged RCMP officers arrive in Slocan as part of the hunt for Peter de Groot (Becky St. Pierre photo). ABOVE LEFT: De Groot, 45, was shot and killed in a cabin. ABOVE RIGHT: About 100 Slocan-area residents attended a debriefing with senior RCMP officers in November. However, they didn’t get a lot of answers as BC’s Independent Investigations Office is looking into the matter. (Greg Nesteroff photo) Graham and Winlaw schools were closed the following day. Residents were asked to avoid the cordoned-off area and remain indoors. Additional police resources, including an emergency response team, crisis negotiator, dogs, and armored vehicle were deployed to Slocan, to the bewilderment of some residents who said the police presence caused them more anxiety than de Groot’s actions. As the search entered its third day, residents were allowed to return home but urged to stay indoors. On the fifth day of the search, two members of the emergency response team discovered de Groot in a cabin near Slocan. Following what they would only describe as an “interaction,” he was shot and killed. Police recovered a gun at the scene. The case was turned over to the Independent Investigations Office of BC, the civilian-led body that looks into police-related deaths. Afterward, de Groot’s cousin Teo explained that they grew up together in Orillia, Ont. Peter was an “intelligent, friendly, loyal person. He was funny, quick to laugh, and he always saw positive things in bad situations. This is not sentimentality, I’m describing the person we wish to remember. Peter was a normal, healthy young man

when we left high school.” However, in 1997 Peter suffered an aneurysm and his mental state began to deteriorate. “Peter began verbally lashing out against specific people. When he developed a paranoid obsession with me, I began receiving threats, and disturbing communications. I reported them to police. I hoped he would get help, but heard nothing further.” De Groot’s siblings were outraged at his death. At an emotional news conference, his sister Danna read a ten-page statement in which she said police overreacted and “executed” her brother. She and another brother were in Slocan the day Peter was found and killed. She said her repeated requests to be brought in to talk to him were ignored. “I went to the RCMP at their command central where I met the lead investigator and spoke at length with him. I reiterated my request to bring me to wherever they were so that if anything happened I could talk to my brother. I offered both times to walk into the bush to get him.” Danna said her family regarded any shots Peter might have fired as self-defence. She said they may file a civil suit, but will await the findings of the In-

dependent Investigations Office as well as a hoped-for coroner’s inquest. At a public meeting in Slocan in early November, many residents were sharply critical of the RCMP’s actions. During the calm two-hour debriefing, three senior Mounties also heard concerns about communication during the incident and trauma it may have caused children. Chief Supt. Frank Smart, commander of the RCMP in southeast BC, told the packed hall he recognized public frustration over the incident, but due to the IIO investigation, he couldn’t address specifics. He explained the reason for the huge police presence — 150 officers were involved at different times — was that they didn’t know where de Groot was until shortly before he was killed. He also said their intention was always to take de Groot safely into custody. Jamie Barber, a Silverton resident and longtime local teacher, was not impressed. “We had a disturbed man in our community who was trying to just get by. All of a sudden, we have nothing but guns around here … That to me seems like absolutely the worst way to deal with it. I think you guys way overblew this and as a result, a man is dead.”

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Wednesday, December 31, 2014 Nelson Star

Top Stories of 2014

New mayors in Nelson, Salmo, Slocan, Kaslo

Local elections bring change

hen the dust settled following November’s civic elections, Nelson, Salmo, Slocan, and Kaslo all had new mayors. Nelson’s race pitted three-time incumbent John Dooley against three-term councillor Deb Kozak and retired police officer Pat Severyn. The campaign was marked by rampant vandalism of Severyn’s distinctive mustache signs and intimations that Dooley didn’t always give others on council the chance to speak — something he denied. Marijuana reform group SensibleBC got involved. Their wanted Dooley replaced and their phone poll indicated Kozak had a better chance of success than Severyn, so they endorsed her. On election day, Kozak prevailed to become the first woman ever elected to the city’s highest office. Severyn ran a distant third, but may have played spoiler, as he arguably siphoned some of Dooley’s support. Kozak’s margin of victory was less than 300 votes. A jubilant Kozak told supporters: “I’ve had the privilege of working with so many good, good people who stand up in the community. I’ve talked to everyone in this room about their ideas and where we need to go. Yes, there are challenges, but we have so many things to be grateful for.” Dooley was dealt a severe blow shortly before the election by the sudden death of his brother Frank and said he’d had “an absolutely devastating week.” Although disappointed to lose, Dooley said he was comforted that his successor would be Kozak, not Severyn: “We’ve worked very closely together over the years. We’ve got a lot of planning in place. Pat Severyn had no experience and no knowledge of how the community works, so he probably would have set us back.” He later said he felt Severyn acted disrespectfully towards him. Severyn was glad Kozak was elected and said he didn’t regret running for mayor instead of council. “Not for a second. I don’t know if I could be on council the way opera-

five

Deb Kozak hugs a supporter on the evening of November 15 after learning she Will Johnson photo will be Nelson’s next mayor. tions are going. Now there’s a fresh mayor, she’s been on council, she has something to say and we have a whole bunch of new councillors. This city is going to be invigorated.” Incumbents Bob Adams and Robin Cherbo were re-elected, along with former councillor Janice Morrison and newcomers Anna Purcell (who topped the polls), Michael Dailly, and Valerie Warmington. Turnout was about 53 per cent. In Slocan, two-term mayor Madeleine Perriere and councillor Hillary Elliott arranged to trade places. However, on the last day of nominations — which was extended on account of the search for Peter De Groot, which virtually shut down the village for several days — councillor Jessica Lunn added her name to the mayor’s race. The outcome was among the closest in the region: Lunn beat Elliott by ten votes. Slocan’s turnout of just under 69 per cent was also second highest in West Kootenay/Boundary. In Salmo, voters had plenty of choice as there were three candidates for mayor and 12 for council. While incumbent mayor Ann Henderson didn’t seek re-election, three incumbent councillors did. All were defeated. Frequent council watcher and critic Stephen White was elected mayor.

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In Kaslo, Suzan Hewat became the village’s second female mayor, defeating both incumbent Greg Lay and former mayor Pat Mackle. In the Regional District of Central Kootenay, incumbents Ramona Faust (Rural Nelson) and Hans Cunningham (Rural Salmo) were reelected, Tom Newell was elected to replace the retiring Ron Mickel (Rural Nelson), and Aimee Watson was chosen to succeed Andy Shadrack (Rural Kaslo). Several other directors were acclaimed. Nakusp’s Karen Hamling was subsequently chosen the board’s first female chair. A referendum on funding a conservation service for Area A (East Shore), Area D (Rural Kaslo), and Area E (Rural Nelson) was narrowly approved, while another referendum on renovating the Riondel community centre was soundly defeated. The Kootenay Lake school district saw races in Nelson, where Curtis Bendig and incumbent Bill Maslechko were elected trustees, and for the North and East Shores of Kootenay Lake where incumbent Lenora Trenaman retained her seat. Bob Wright, Sharon Nazaroff, and incumbent Dawn Lang were acclaimed to represent Salmo, the Slocan Valley, and Kaslo respectively. Tremanan has since been elected board chair.

(L-R) Tamara Hynd, Will Johnson , Greg Nesteroff

Reporters

Kevin Mills Editor

Missing people

Lost and found

n unusually large number of people went missing in our area this year, although there didn’t appear to be any common factors between them. Some had happy endings, others tragic. None, at least, went unresolved. This is a chronological list. • Jade Giesen, 47, was last seen April 6 walking on the Burlington Northern rail bed toward Troup Beach. Five days later, search and rescue volunteers located her body between Svoboda Road and the beach. Foul play wasn’t suspected. • Elena Popoff, 64, of Slocan Park was last seen in the Trail area on April 15. RCMP said she had some appointments there but never returned home. Her body was found three days later in a shallow shore area of the Columbia River about one kilometer from the airport. A vehicle was located nearby. Foul play was ruled out. • Tyler Sherriff, 28, was reported missing April 16. He was last seen at the Playmor Junction, hitchhiking to Nelson. Police found him a couple of days later. • Andrea (Andromeda) Moore, 36, was reported missing by her husband on May 22 after her vehicle was found abandoned on Perry Ridge Road in the Slocan Valley. She was located the next day about four kilometers away, disoriented but unharmed. • Granite Road resident Daniel Sookero, 53, was reported missing on May 20. He was located the following afternoon after experiencing vehicle troubles on a logging road. Sookero walked out after spending the night in his vehicle and called for a ride. • Michael Mucha, 21, went missing early June 17 from his home in the 800 block of Highway 3A on the North Shore. Search and rescue searched the mountainside behind his home without luck. His body was found the next day in a wooded area near the north end of the orange bridge. Foul place was not suspected. • Jonathan Hartman, 14, of

Edward Perello of Ymir was found safe after a ski adventure gone awry.

Harrop left home on July 6 after an argument and didn’t return. He was safely located three days later. • The body of Dana Nicholas Mitchell of Cranbrook was discovered on July 23 by a tourist off the Burlington Northern trail near the Svoboda Road entrance. He was 22 when he was last seen in the fall of 2010 and is believed to have died at that time. Foul play was ruled out. • Paul Tayes, 56, of Surrey checked into the Kokanee Creek campground on September 2 for one night and was reported missing by park staff two days later after he failed to return to his truck. The search was aided by dozens of search and rescue personnel who were in the area for a previously-scheduled training exercise. However, it was a local kayaker who discovered his body in Kootenay Lake near Crescent Bay. There was no indication of foul play. • Edward Perello, 47, of Ymir was reported missing December 9 after he didn’t return home from a day of skiing at or near Whitewater. He was found in good condition two days later following a massive search. RCMP said he was located thanks to someone who provided the general area he was headed, otherwise “he may not have been located in time or at all.”

does not resolve your complaint about coverage or story treatment, you may contact the BC Press Council. Your written concern, with documentation, should be sent within 45 days to the BC Press Council, PO Box 1356, Ladysmith, V9G 1A9. For information, phone 1-888-687-2213 or go to bcpresscouncil.org Tara Langhorn Sales Associate

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Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Top Stories of 2014

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Schools closed due to strike

Teachers walk the picket lines All in Stock

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www.maglio.ca | 29 Government Rd, Nelson | (250) 352-6661 Maddy Reilly, then a Grade 7 student at Trafalgar Middle School, was among students who walked out of class in Will Johnson photo June in solidarity with striking teachers.

t wasn’t exclusively a local story, but it probably affected more people than any other event in 2014. On April 23, Kootenay Lake district teachers joined their colleagues around the province in withdrawing administrative and volunteer duties to put pressure on the government and BC Public School Employers Association during contract negotiations. That thrust administration staff into supervisory roles before and after school and during recess and lunch. The province was pushing for a 10-year contract agreement to replace one that expired in June 2013, but the BC Teachers’ Federation was having none of it. The union said its biggest issue was class size and composition, something the government would not discuss. On May 28 and June 5, local teachers participated in rotating strike action, closing schools for a day. “Teachers in our community, like teachers across BC, don’t take this job action lightly,” said Paul Boscariol, president of the Nelson District Teachers’ Association. “As teachers, we care deeply about our students and empathize with parents who have to re-work their schedules. Many of us are parents too. This job action is about more than a fair collective agreement. It is also about standing up for public education.” Trafalgar students walked out of class to show solidarity with their teachers. Grade 7 student Maddy Reilly was supposed to leave for a field trip to Alberta, but ended up standing on a sidewalk with a

homemade sign instead. “We’re sick and tired. All the students, including me, are sick of being in the middle of this,” she said. “[Teachers] are taking care of 20 to 29 students every day and they don’t get paid enough.” Meanwhile, a Nelson school psychologist who put in more than 70 hours of unpaid overtime to provide trauma support following the drownings of four young people on Slocan Lake (see story page 3) found himself docked 10 per cent — nearly $600 — along with other teachers for “job action” that hadn’t yet taken place. Todd Kettner wrote an open letter to the premier that was seen by thousands of people online and received provincial media attention. A few days later, the Ministry of Education said his overtime would be recognized and his pay restored. However, Kettner said that missed his point, which was about making sure children and community members receive the support they need. On June 17, with no agreement in sight, a full-scale walkout began. The Labour Relations Board deemed provincial exams for senior high school students an essential service, which were supervised and marked by administrators. Superintendent Jeff Jones said teachers and administrators worked together to “negotiate shifting boundaries and expectations and to maintain our emphasis on meeting students’ needs, even as the action escalated.” However, he acknowledged “tensions are rising.” Three weeks went by and the regular school year ended without an agreement. Pickets came down, which allowed CUPE support staff

to resume their normal schedules. The summer break ended and still no deal. On what should have been the first day of school, more than 500 parents, teachers, and children took to the streets in Nelson for a public education march after mediator Vince Ready walked away from talks, saying the sides were too far apart. Following marathon bargaining, a tentative deal was reached September 16, giving teachers raises totaling 7.25 per cent over six years, improved benefits, and a fund to hire hundreds of new teachers each year. A few days later, teachers voted 86 per cent in favour the agreement. The same week classes resumed, however, local teachers took a previously-scheduled professional development day. Although it may have been a bitter pill for some, Jones defended the decision. He conceded the district explored the idea of rescheduling but opted not to. “We decided it was highly appropriate, for the first time since April, to give teachers a chance to work together on the challenges and opportunities they’re facing,” he said. The settlement means an extra $754,000 in salary, benefits, and other increases for Kootenay Lake district teachers in 2014/15, which the province has agreed to cover. While that’s normal in provincially-bargained settlements, it wasn’t the case in 2013 when the government told districts to come up with a savings plan to pay for a wage increase for support staff. The Kootenay Lake district was the last holdout in the province, before it capitulated in the face of potential job action.

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Wednesday, December 31, 2014 Nelson Star

Calendar

Want your event advertised here? Please email event details to: reporter3@nelsonstar.com. Submissions must be sent by Friday prior to the week you want it printed. Your listing may be edited for length.

Dec 31st - Soup, Wallis, and Rhapsody

Happy New Year!

Jan 2rd - David Raitt and The Baja Boogie Band w/ guests Jan 3rd - Pink Mammoth Jan 9th - Meow Mix Jan 10th - Hoola w/ Leif Jan 16th - Adham Shaikh + Intersect Jan 17th - The Good Ol’ Goats w/ guests On Sale Soon! Jan 23rd - El Papa Chango w/ guests On Sale Soon! Jan 24th - Sweater Beats On Sale Soon! Jan 29th - YukYuks Comedy Jan 30th - The Boom Boom w/ guests On Sale Soon! Jan 31st - Funkanomics w/ guests Feb 6th - Bob Marley Birthday Bash Feb 7th - Funk Hunters w/ Smoothie - A/V set Feb 16th - Elliott Brood w/ guests Feb 20th - Randy & Mr Lahey - of the Trailer Park Boys Feb 26th - YukYuks Comedy Mar 7th - Libarian w/ guests Mar 14th - Delhi 2 Dublin w/ guests Feb 26th - YukYuks Comedy Apr 1st - Rave of Thrones - Kristian Nairn aka Hodor

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Community Events The Nelson Royal Canadian Legion Branch #51 is hosting a New Year’s Eve party at 8 p.m. tonight, at 402 Victoria Street, for their members and guests (membership available to the public). Live music with Earl and the Girl, a pot-luck dinner, and party favourites. Tickets are $20. For information, please email rclbr51@telus.net or phone 250-352-7727 or 250352-6464. The annual Polar Bear Dip hosted by the Nelson Rhythm Ropers will be on January 1 as their usual fundraiser. Register at the Rotary Lakeside Park at 11 a.m. and skip into the water at noon. Enjoy hot chocolate and chili to warm up afterwards. Participate or just get out to cheer on others and donate. WEEKly Meetings The Nelson Ultimate Frisbee Association hosts weekly drop in Ultimate Frisbee at Nelson’s indoor soccer facility, 308 Cedar Street, every Monday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The drop in fee is $10. Co-ed Ultimate is a great way to stay in shape and meet new people during the winter months. All levels welcome. Beginner basics and throwing clinics available. Check out nelsonultimate.ca or contact nelsonultimatefrisbee@gmail. com. Join community yoga at the youth centre every Wednesday. Afternoon practice for girls and women will be held at 4:15 to 5:30 p.m. All levels welcome. A fun evening practice at 6 to 7:15 p.m. for anyone to open up and stretch. For all ages: teens and 19-plus. Pay what you can. Contact Ursula at ursulatwiss@ gmail.com. The Nelson Knitting Co-op has an ongoing knitting group every Thursday from 12:30 to 3 p.m. at the Nelson and District Community Centre general purpose room ($2 drop-in). Savoy Lanes hosts Top Spin Thursday a weekly ping pong night every Thursday from 6 to 10 p.m. Drop-in fee is $5. All levels are welcome. Paddles and balls are provided.

For more information, email topspinthursday@gmail.com. Community Threads holds a fibre craft-themed project every Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Nelson and District Women’s Centre, 420 Mill Street. Knit a sock, crochet a cap, sew a hem, spin some yarn, knit a scarf, hook a rug, and make a friend. For more information call Tira at 250-505-0698 or email tirab@uniserve.com. Join the Ymir Hotel’s country and bluegrass jam every Friday night. Things get started around 5 p.m. and wrap up around 9. Nelson Chess Club Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nelson Seniors Association (next to the Civic Centre), 717 Vernon Street. All ages and levels welcome and it’s free. Nelson Trail Runners: dropin trail runs, Sundays at 7:30 a.m., and weekdays at 6:30 a.m. Meet at Mountain Station rail trail parking lot. Check them out on Facebook at Nelson Trailrunners or email nelsontrailrunnerz@gmail.com to confirm times. It’s an open, non-competitive, all abilities trail running group with over 100 members. Alcoholics Anonymous holds 14 one-hour meetings weekly in Nelson, at 717A Vernon Street (in the Cellar downstairs), including early morning, noon hour, and evening meetings on specific days. For a schedule please call 250-352-3391 or pick up a complete meeting list at the Cellar. Al-Anon Family Group meets twice weekly. Wednesday noon to 1 p.m. at The Cellar, 717 Vernon Street and Friday 8 to 9 p.m. at 601 Front Street at the side basement. The only requirement for membership is that there may be a problem of alcoholism in a relative or friend. For more information call Norma 250-352-3747 for Wednesday and Sharon 250352-7333 for Friday. monthly meetings All seniors welcome to the monthly meeting of the Senior

Citizens’ Association Branch No. 51, at 717 Vernon Street. The meeting commences at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, January 7. Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Activities enjoyed at the centre include bridge, crib, dominos, chess, euchre and snooker. For further information, call 250352-7078 weekday afternoons. Nelson People in Pain Support Group at the Shambhala Meditation Centre the first Wednesday of the month, beginning January 7 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Do you have persistent pain? Then this support group is for you. This peer-led support group will help you to self-manage your pain, provide education, reduce the isolation that so many people with persistent pain find themselves facing. For more details visit pipain. com/support-group-listing or call 1-844-747-7246. Balfour Senior Branch 120 will hold the first meeting of 2015 on Thursday, January 8 at 2 p.m., Balfour Seniors Hall. Tea, goodies and conversation to follow. All members and new comers welcome. Nelson group Dances of Universal Peace with live music, no experience necessary. We do dances and walks with singing, representing spiritual traditions from the world over. At the Old Church Hall, Friday, January 9, 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., and Sunday, January 25 from 3 to 5 p.m. At Victoria and Kootenay Street, 602 Kootenay. For information call Candace, 250-354-4288. Workshops Sound Sleep is the first in a four-part Parent Education Series in Winlaw. Cari Julien, an occupational therapist with Kootenay Kids Society, will lead a discussion on creating healthy sleep habits for little ones from birth to six years. This free session is on Thursday, January 8 at the Winlaw StrongStart Centre from 10 a.m.-noon. Childminding and snacks provided. The program is offered by the Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy and the Slocan Valley Early Childhood Community Advisory Council. Please call to register: Alison

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250-359-6887 or Penny 250226-7605. Nelson and District Seniors Coordinating Society is hosting a free tax seminar covering medical, disability and similar tax topics presented by Kris Witt, member of CMA and member of CPA. This seminar is directed at seniors and their support persons who are taxable (so pay income tax). The seminar will be held at the Seniors Center Branch 51, 717 Vernon Street, Nelson at 10:30 a.m. January 13. Space is limited. To reserve a space, call 250-352-6008. Announcements Nelson and District Seniors Coordinating Society is a seniors one-stop for information and referrals on community resources and services: income tax service, low income dental program, or for help with pension and subsidy forms. Open Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information call 250-352-6008. The free flow Djembe drum circle every Monday night at The Old Church, 602 Kootenay at Victoria from 7 p.m. will start again on Monday, January 12. Learn Taoist Tai Chi over three months starting with a free open house, January 15 at 9 a.m. Weekly classes are held Thursdays 9 to 11 a.m. at the Shambhala Meditation Centre, 812 Stanley Street. Open to all ages and abilities. The goal is to feel balanced, comfortable and have fun. Contact nelson.bc@ taoist.org, 250-509-2499 or visit taoist.org. FUndRaisers The Lions Club Variety Show is coming January 28. The show, suitable for children of all ages is at the Civic Theatre. This page is for community, charity or fundraising events that are free (or nearly free). Submissions will be run at the discretion of the editor. Dated events take priority. If you have previously posted an event and want it to run again, provide an up-to-date version with contact details to reporter3@nelsonstar.com.

Notice of Passing Allen Doris (Doedy) E Allen of Nelson passed away December 28th, 2014 at Mountain Lake Senior Community at the age of 89 years. A celebration of her life will be held Friday, January 2nd, 1:00 pm Bethel Christian Centre, 623 Gordon Road

Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

News

nelsonstar.com 9

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The city-owned Nelson and District Youth Centre could be redeveloped to add two storeys of residential housing, according to a study presented to council last week. Former councillor Paula Kiss, representing the Canadian Green Building Council, and Lukas Armstrong with Cover Architecture presented the feasibility study. The study — funded through grants from the Columbia Basin Trust and Canadian Green Building Council — indicates the cost of construction of the units is likely equal to the cost to build new units on an empty lot and that the required structural upgrade to the existing building should be equal to the costs of a foundation for a new building. The cost estimate is $2.4 million or $200 per square foot. Savings from land servicing costs are estimated at between $500,000 to $1 million. The current structure needs upgrades due to a leaking roof. The roof will need to be replaced within a year or two at the bare minimum, according to Mayor Deb Kozak. The 12,000 square foot proposal would hold 19 residential units — ranging from one-bedroom, 412 square-foot to two-bedroom 670-square-foot suites. An alternative is to create 33 units at a minimum of 322 square feet each. The proposed design included a

Courtesy Cover Architectural Collaboration

public roof garden, five balconies, laundry and elevator access. The preliminary study into the youth centre addition identified several challenges A sprinkler system does not exist and the existing stairwell would need to conform to fire protection codes. The state of the pillars as a foundation could also need upgrading to bear the weight of two additional stories. The study points out a soil density assessment would be needed to confirm it could support such a structure. Kozak said the report will be brought forward to the Nelson Housing Committee, adding that federal and provincial funding decreases in public housing has been “disappointing.” The information can also be

considered once city facilities manager Peter Sintad presents an inventory of the city’s assets to council in the coming months. “It’s an exciting option,” said Kozak. “It’s important that as a council to know what we have the capacity to do. It’s important to stay focused. As local government, we don’t provide housing but housing is a major concern so it’s great if we can facilitate.” Kozak said in the past the city has provided two lots for Habitat for Humanity, obtained grants for the redevelopment of the Selkirk College dormitories and advocated to have Anderson Gardens and Lake View Village built. She went on to say that the city won’t develop or manage housing but could look for expressions of interest from developers.

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Wednesday, December 31, 2014 Nelson Star

Top Stories of 2014

Housing and homelessness

Finding a place to live in Nelson still tough seven

elson’s homeless problem was highlighted when a squatter’s camp on CPR property west of the city was dismantled in June. Of five occupants evicted, three left voluntarily, while two others were reluctant to go.

The camp, informally known as Railtown, was reportedly active for eight years and had up to 40 people at its peak. District transportation manager Hugh Eberle said they had been aware of the site and a number of others for a while. This one was problematic because human waste and garbage that had accumulated. “Not only is it a wildlife attractant, it’s a public health issue,” he said. “It was a huge job

cleaning up this mess.” RCMP, the Nelson Police Department, Canadian Pacific Railway, Nelson Fire and Rescue, and other city workers attended. Various tents and other structures were taken down and disposed of. Adam Hutchison, 29, who had lived there since April, was among those told to leave. “I woke up to a number of officers asking me to exit what was my

friend’s wigwam,” he said. He had returned to the camp the night before after his dishwashing shift at the Adventure Hotel. He lived there with his dog Duke. A woman who asked to be identified only as Jade was heartbroken. “We were all staying on the side. We weren’t even on railroad property. There were some people making a mess, but lots weren’t. We just needed a place to stay.”

But another resident, who only gave his name as Trevor, said concerns about cleanliness were well founded. “There was a big effort to do a mass cleanup of garbage, and from what I’ve seen, [there] must’ve been years of trashing the place.” Ann Harvey of the Nelson Committee on Homelessness said the situation was the inevitable outcome of a housing shortage, as identified by the group’s annual report

THINK LOCAL FIRST LIVE. SHOP. PLAY NELSON AND AREA

Reasons to Think Local First 1. Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is Support your friends, neighbours and yourself. Invest in our community; help to create a stronger and healthier Nelson by keeping our money here. 2. What Goes Around Comes Around Two or three times as much money spent stays in the local economy when you buy goods and services from locally-owned businesses. 3. Community Sustainability Local stores help sustain vibrant, compact and walk-able downtown centres – which in turn are essential to reducing sprawl, vehicle use, habitat loss and pollution. 4. Keep Our Community Unique One-of-a-kind businesses are an integral part of the distinctive character of Nelson 5. Create Collective Prosperity Locally-owned businesses invest more in local labour, pay more local taxes, spend more time on community-based decisions and create local events. In doing so, they create more opportunity for all of us here in our community.

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card. It found Nelson is failing to adequately support the homeless, including youth, seniors, and people with mental illness. The number of food bank visits and meals served at Our Daily Bread increased since 2011, and the average length of stay at the local shelter has risen by nearly a week. Pastor Jim Reimer of Kootenay Christian Fellowship, who was concerned at the level of resources poured into removing the camp, proposed designating a piece of land as a campground where homeless people could sleep, eat, use washroom facilities, receive messages, and meet service providers. “The homelessness issue certainly isn’t going away,” he said. “A secure outdoor space would solve a whole host of problems.” He stressed his idea was to address the local homeless population, not the transient one, which would have to be dealt with separately. The alternative, he said, would be another squatters’ camp, minus the sanitation and security measures he envisioned. He asked city council to pitch in $5,000 toward a feasibility study. Council referred the request to the Nelson Housing Committee, a group with representation from non-profit housing providers, would-be providers, landlords, and the community-at-large. But then-councillor Donna Macdonald explained the committee wasn’t sure what group was sponsoring the project and felt it “seemed like moving to a solution before we understand the problem.” They recommended the city decline the funding request but ask the Nelson Committee on Homelessness if it or one of its member agencies could tackle a phased approach to the issue, starting with determining how great the need is. While disappointed, Reimer didn’t think the concept was dead. “We’re just going to revisit it and see how we can move forward,” he said. Affordable housing was a familiar refrain

Adam Hutchison was evicted from a homeless encampment on the outskirts of Nelson this year, highlighting the city’s lack of affordable units.

Will Johnson photo

during the election campaign. New mayor Deb Kozak said during council’s inauguration that while the city isn’t going to become a housing provider, it can work with groups like BC Housing to ensure there are more low-income units. A consultant who updated the city’s affordable housing strategy found the city could use 110 to 180 more units to meet the demands of various groups struggling to find places to live. It listed 20 things the city could do, including adopting an infill housing policy and a standards of maintenance bylaw. Meanwhile, Nelson CARES launched its Room to Live campaign, which aims to raise the final $690,000 needed to carry out the redevelopment of the apartments at Ward Street Place. CARES, which receives no public funding to operate the funding, had already raised $2.2 million to complete health and safety improvements and move Stepping Stones shelter to a new site, but is seeking enough to upgrade each room and common living spaces. The city gave $15,000 from its affordable housing fund, enough to fix up one apartment and provide for ongoing maintenance. “There are as many reasons that people come here as there are people,” said Sam, a tenant for ten years. “I thank God I found this place. It’s a safe haven.”

Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Community

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Wednesday, December 31, 2014 Nelson Star

Top Stories of 2014

Regional District of Central Kootenay

Furniture flap

hen the Regional District of Central Kootenay declined the City of Nelson’s offer to share space in the city-owned White Building in January, there was hardly a murmur from the public. But when the board opted a few months later to buy new office furniture from an out-of-town supplier rather than a local business whose bid was $20,000 lower, there was a huge outcry. Nelson’s Cowan Office Supply owners Andy and Paul Cowan said they were “shocked, disappointed and confused” to discover that the board awarded its contract to Graphic Office Interiors Ltd. of Vancouver Island at a cost of $182,000. Cowan’s bid was $162,000, but it was given a slightly lower evaluation score when analyzed by regional district staff. Graphic was the same company that redesigned the of-

Former RDCK administrator Brian Carruthers with a rendering of a controversial head office renovation. fice layout to improve vide those components, its efficiency, which the as a result of a corporate Cowans said resulted in agreement with the prova competitive advantage. ince that pre-qualifies “By writing the speci- government suppliers. fications for the project, Initially the regional Graphic could tailor all district was going to Create & assemble your step 1 work to favour themaward the contracts enGingerbread creation selves, and in some cas- tirely using that method, es lock out competitors but on hearing there was step Take a digital photo from bidding,” they said. local interest, they sent 2 While they acknowl- the furniture contract out Upload it to the Nelson Star edged price wasn’t the for proposals. step only criteria, they said Chief administrator 3 website under contests the ten-point difference Brian Carruthers said in scoring was a “vir- several factors convinced Start Date: December 1st, 2014. tual tie … As taxpayer them to go with the Photos uploaded by noon January 5th will be viewed by a panel of and business owners we higher bid, chiefly warhave to [ask] how is this ranty and specifications. judges. The project with the top vote count will win a prize package. justified?” Cowan’s workstation Winner will be announced in January 7th issue. They were further con- dividing panels weren’t cerned other parts of the tall enough and Graphic Get four project — such as a new Office offered a 12-year washes in the file storage system, recep- warranty, whereas Cowmonths of Jan, tion area, and copy room an’s offered five. The staff Feb & March — weren’t put to tender. team that evaluated the and receive a 250-352-0303 Graphic Office received a products also claimed fifth wash free! 801F Front Street Nelson BC $91,500 contract to pro- Graphic Office’s product was more user friendly than Cowan’s. A huge thanks to all the silent auction donors and Carruthers also said performers that came out and made The Nelson by law they can’t give & District Women’s Centre annual fundraiser, preferential treatment to local bidders without Womaginarium, such a great success! breaching an inter-provincial trade agreement. “The review commitAmbler Found Spa tee members indicated Oso Negro Vitality Massage 4 Cats Frog Peak Café the product associated Otter Books Shelley Adams - Whitewater with Graphic Office and Abacus Beads Halcyon Hotsprings Cooks Phat Angel in particular the perforAinsworth Hot springs Heritage Health Centre Whitewater Ski Resort Power By You mance of the adjustable Amy Bohigian – Watershed Ink Pink workstations was a sigProductions Rebalancing Shiatsu Massage by Performers: Jan Fombly Veronique nificant factor in staff Baldface Lodge Amy Bohigian Jane Byers Remedy’s RX usability and the extra Bambu Hot Yoga DJ Jenny costs associated with the Jane Merks Ridgeline Metal Works Bibo product is warranted,” DJ Morning Glory Jennifer Steed - Yoga Ecstatic Ripping Giraffe Blackbird Physiotherapy Resources they wrote. Erin & The Show Cats ROAM While Cowan’s reCantina del Centro Jim Lawerence – Kootenay Julie Kerr + Craig Korth Reflections Ananda Phoenix ceived top marks for its Capital Theatre Krista Lynch Kate Butt Acupuncture Ryan Oakley – Humans of Nelson price, it lost points for Civic Theater Lisel Forst specifications and perKathy Sagan Sanderella’s Boutique and Coles Books Starbird Tea House formance. Marjorie Jade Kim Horrocks Ceramics Cotton Creek Clothing Scout Board chair John KetMarya Folinsbee Kootenay Bakery Café tle said he trusted the staff Cottonwood Kitchens Cooperative Shoe La La Oxygen Orkestar recommendation: “We Cuddlewear Kootenay School of Herbal Skin Bliss Medi-Spa Poppy + Bri Medicine rely on our them to make David and Laurie Knox - Cranial Still Eagle sure the process is clear, Sadie Spins Sacral Therapy Kootenay Soap Tea Garden fair, and treats everybody Shanti Dear Pony La Mule Bleu the same way. I feel confiTara Davis Studio Skye Denise Maglio Maclean & Taylor Chiropractic dent they independently The Fairies Pyjamas Slava Doval Earth Lab Maplerose, Mountain Baby reviewed it. If we’re guilty The Prestige Hotels and Resorts Soniko of anything, it’s of supEl Taco Nelson and District Community Complex Touchstones porting our staff.” And anyone else we might have Elison’ s Market forgotten! Nelson Chocofeller Valhalla Pure Kettle said Nelson Floyd’s Electronics companies already reOff Leash Adventures Vallhalla Realty - Wayne Germaine ceive a great deal of re-

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gional district business because the board office is here and any equity purchasing policy would have to put Castlegar, Creston, and other areas on the same footing. Only Nelson mayor John Dooley voted against awarding the contract to Graphic Office. As some residents accused the board of basing its decision on biased and inaccurate information, the regional district said it would appoint an independent adjudicator to review its decision and hold off on approving the contract. Nelson accountant Am Naqvi volunteered to do the review for free, but his professional association advised him against it. The board did not seek a different adjudicator, and instead upheld its earlier decision. Rural Castlegar director Gord Zaitsoff asked that the decision be revisited, but his motion was defeated. Ramona Faust asked that the refurnishing of the board room be sent out for bids, but only found support from fellow rural Nelson rep Ron Mickel. The $36,000 cost of the new board table was criticized in particular, but the regional district said the large structure was designed so the room can be converted into an emergency operations centre. The new furniture was part of an overall renovation to the regional district’s Nelson office. Dan Maglio Contracting of Nelson beat out three other bidders to handle the renovations and other aspects of the project with the low bid of $302,000. The regional district also noted that in 2012, 41 per cent of its purchases over $25,000 went to businesses within the regional district, totaling $17.4 million, and 17 per cent to suppliers in the Nelson area, totaling $3 million. Most purchase under $25,000 are also made locally. The furniture flap didn’t have much impact on the election: Zaitsoff was the only incumbent rural director defeated. Two others were re-elected and five were acclaimed.

Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Top Stories of 2014

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n May, Nelson Hydro and Columbia Wireless teamed up to give the public a look at the daily life of an osprey family. They installed a live streaming web camera to peek on a nest perched atop a pole just off Highway 3A at Grohman Narrows. No one could have guessed the alternately tragic and heartwarming events that would follow. The osprey cam was a huge hit, as people from around the area and the world watched an adult pair protect three eggs, which hatched within a few days of each other. A passionate online community congregated to follow their progress. Then disaster struck. On June 19, after delivering fresh fish to his newborns, the devoted and attentive father went missing. Nelson Hydro monitored the nest closely, but he never returned. Employees wondered if there was a connection between his disappearance and a power outage. Online, people speculated he might have been shot, based on a loud bang they heard, but hydro staff quickly ruled this out. “Being power line people, we knew that 25 amp high voltage fuses blowing sounds very similar to a shotgun being fired,” said line manager Doug Pickard. They discovered the electrocuted osprey’s body a few days later, still clutching a rainbow trout. His collision with a high-voltage line had indeed caused the outage. Although some experts suggested letting nature take its course, Nelson Hydro, feeling responsible for the father’s death, decided to help the mother and chicks by providing them with fish until they were grown. A biologist confirmed the chicks would quickly become dehydrated unless fed, but their mother would be reluctant to leave the nest unprotected to hunt. Hydro staff first used a bucket truck to deliver fish, then rigged a less invasive pulley system. The mother accepted the offer, and the chicks gobbled it up. Unfortunately, one of them died on June 24, followed by a second one on July 3, and the mother stopped feeding the third. At that point, fearing for the remaining chick’s survival and the mother’s well-being, Nelson Hydro decided to send it to the Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society in Delta. There Nel, as she became known, flourished. Another osprey acted as her foster mother, teaching her to eat, and in August, Nel pounced on her first fish. Soon after, she was moved to another enclosure and before month’s end,

Nel the osprey

A story with wings

New 2015 Schedule Monday

nelsonstar.com 15

In 10 sessions you’ll feel the difference, in 20 sessions you’ll see the difference and in 30 sessions you’ll have a whole new body.

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

6:30 am – 7:30 am

Intermediate Reformer mona

7:35 am – 8:35 am

Int/Adv Mat mona Int/Adv Reformer mona Restorative Mat 8:50 – 9:50 am megan

Int/Adv Mat mona Int/Adv Reformer mona

8:45 am – 9:45 am

10:00 - 11:00 am

Reformer for Men kirsty

Essential Mat megan

11:15 - 12:15 pm

Intermediate Reformer kirsty

Intermediate Reformer mona

12:30 – 1:30 pm

Intermediate Reformer kirsty

4:05 – 5:05pm

Int/Adv Reformer mona

5:10 – 6:10 pm

Int/Adv Mat mona Beginner Reformer mary ann

6:15 – 7:15 pm

Beginner/ Intermediate Mat Mona

7:30 – 8:30 pm

Tai Chi for Health Advanced Sandra 8:30 – 9:30 am Tai Chi for Health Beg/Int sandra 9:30–10:30 am

Beginner/Int Ref kirsty Essential Mat mary ann Intermediate Reformer mona

**New Class! Beginner Reformer mary ann

Intermediate Reformer kirsty

Int/Adv Reformer megan 4:10– 5:10 pm

Int/Adv Reformer mona

Int/Adv Reformer megan 4:10 – 5:10 pm

Athletic Conditioning christy 6:15-7:15 pm Int Reformer mary ann 7:30 – 8:30 pm

Int/Adv Mat mona Beginner Reformer mary ann Intermediate Reformer mona Tai Chi for Health All Levels sandra 6:20-7:20 pm

Intermediate Reformer mona

Advanced Reformer mona

Friday Vinyasa Flow Yoga Beginner

Vinyasa Flow Yoga Intermediate valerie 7:30 -8:30 pm

valerie 7:00 – 8:00 pm

The Kootenai Pilates Centre 540 Baker Street Nelson, BC V1L 4H9 (250) 352-1600 kootenaipilates.com

NELSON READS “Post with the Most”

TOP: Nel flies free at Kokanee Creek Provincial Park on September 12, two months after being rescued from her nest at Grohman Narrows and sent to the Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society in Delta. ABOVE LEFT: Mindy Dyck and Karen Wheatley of OWL embrace after witnessing Nel return to the wild. (Will Johnson photos) ABOVE RIGHT: Nel and her mother in the nest, as seen in a screen grab from the webcam set up by Nelson Hydro and Columbia Wireless. (Courtesy Randy Glover) she took flight. On September 12, bird care specialists accompanied Nel to Kokanee Creek Provincial Park — where she could feast on spawning salmon — and released her back into the wild. About 25 of Nel’s fans, including representatives of Nelson Hydro, were on hand to witness her being set free. Her carrier was opened, the blanket covering her was raised, and she pointed her beak out to survey her surroundings. After hesitating for about 20 seconds, she surged into the sky and soared away, joined in mid-air by another fledgling osprey. She eventually settled in a nearby tree,

watching the humans below her. Karen Wheatley and Mindy Dyck of OWL embraced and wept. “She’s saying goodbye,” said Dyck. Nel was fitted with a tracking band so biologists can identify her if she returns. However, her flight south could take her as far as Chile, and she might not return for years, if ever. Tammy Swan, a falconer from Salmo who helped retrieve Nel from her nest, felt the effort was worth it. “I’ve done this a number of times and every time it’s still like ‘wow.’ She’s gone from this tiny fluff ball to this mature animal, and then to see [her] go? It’s still amazing.”

Share your favourite “must read” with us, have your pick included in our Nelson Reads list for 2015 and be entered to win one of our weekly door prizes. Adult and children categories

Go to www.nelsonstar.com to enter You can also stop by the Nelson Library or the Learning Place (lower level of City Hall) if you need assistance entering. For more information contact: Joan Exley 250-352-3218 Joanne Harris 250-505-5683

Watch the list grow on our Facebook pages: Nelson Star News Nelson Public Library Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy - Nelson

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Wednesday, December 31, 2014 Nelson Star

UPDATES FROM OUR CURRENT OUTBOUND ROTARY EXCHANGE STUDENTS

Greetings from Switzerland My exchange is going really well. I’ve been here three months already! It’s crazy how time is ﬂying. My German is coming along really nicely and I am now able to hold a basic conversation and tell a basic story in perfect German. I’m really excited about how quickly I’m catching on to the language! My host family is amazing. They are so sweet and they are always taking me hiking and sightseeing. I’m actually switching to my second host family in three weeks though!

It’s going to be sad to leave my current family, because of how well we get along, but I’m moving to a bigger city so that will be nice. School is a little bit difﬁcult because I don’t understand very much. The teachers speak very fast and sometimes in Swiss dialect. But I am sure that a better understanding of German/ Swiss German will come in time. Overall I am very happy in Switzerland! Maya Provencal

Greetings from Japan I came to Japan on August 24, and moved in with Saori and Kazuki Matsumura. I cannot truly express how kind, generous, and loving my host family has been. I love them very much. I will probably stay with them until June when I head back to Canada. They have taken me to multiple festivals, local cities and sightseeing. And soon they will take me to Kyoto and Kobe. (So generous!) School is a great place to be with my friends, also kind of boring. Everyone at school and in the community of Hagi are very kind, and welcoming. I have made true friendships that will last a lifetime!

The local Rotary club has taken me hiking multiple times. Such incredible, and sometimes scary hikes. Only scary if you don’t like one meter long snakes. I have also attended district meetings in Hiroshima and Fukuyama! Shinji San is a local Rotary member who has made my time here wonderful. He is a true Rotarian. The language is VERY difﬁcult to learn, however I’m slowly getting the hang of it. Sadly some days I do have a hard time, like everyone else does. It usually starts with comparing my progress against other exchange students, which in my opinion

is not fair to me. Everyone has a different experience and will learn their country’s language at different times. I am enjoying myself, everyday I am truly amazed by how breathtaking Japan is. Whether I’m biking to school with my host brother, hiking along a river full of massive koi ﬁsh, having tea with my Baba chan in a small cafe, or running along the seaside. Japan is, and always will be miraculous to me. I just want to thank you and everyone else who has supported me being here in Japan. Cheers Sabine Stroich

Bob and Elaine Henderson, Sheila Hart, Corey Viala & daughter Lauren were part of Rotary teams from both clubs that happily delivered Meals on Wheels in December. Meals are provided by the staff of Nelson Jubilee Manor.

Rotarians from both clubs joined Friends of the Library and CBAL to wrap books for the A Book Under Every Tree initiative. Pictured are: Pat Dooley and grandson, June Nuyens, Sheila Hart, Linda Moore and Ed Edmondson.

The ROTEX weekend in Zermatt had over 100 exchange students attend, including Maya Provencal, outbound student from the Nelson Rotary Club. They ate fondue, went to the disco, took a gondola to the top of the little Matterhorn and had a ton of fun.

NELSON DAYBREAK ROTARY PRESENTS

An Elegant Evening of Dining & Wine Pairing

FRIDAY JANUARY 16 AT 6 PM AT MARY HALL, SELKIRK COLLEGE Prepared by Selkirk’s Resort & Hotel Management Students Tickets call 250-505-1306 or email: hpringle@selkirk.ca or purchase from any Nelson Daybreak Rotary member

Tickets limited so reserve soon!

4 COURSES/ 4 PAIRED WINES:

$80

Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

www.nelsonstar.com A17

Black Press C O M M U N I T Y

N E W S

M E D I A

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Call Or Drop by our office at 514 Hall Street Nelson, BC 8:30-5:00 Monday - Friday

ClassiďŹ ed Deadline 4pm Monday & Wednesday

Announcements

Travel

Information

Travel

Nelson & Area Elder Abuse Prevention Resources Centre Drop in Wed. 12-2 pm at 719 Vernon St., Nelson For info: 250 352-6008; preventeldRabuse@sbdemail.com or visit www.nelsonelderabuseprevention.org

RV LOT Rentals $8.95 a day. 362 days of sunshine, pets, events, classes, entertainment. Reserve by 11/01/2014. Visit: www.hemetrvresort.com. Call: 1-800-926-5593

Personals MEET SINGLES right now! No paid operators, just real people like you. Browse greetings, exchange messages and connect live. Try it free. Call now: 1-800-712-9851

Lost & Found LOST DOG: Tex-Black & White Boston Terrier on Dec 13th from 1000 block of Josephine St. Very shy and skittish call 250 551-5774 LOST: in Nov ball pein Hammer & boat hook on 3â&#x20AC;&#x2122; pole in downtown Nelson 354-4819 LOST: Seal Point Persian Himalayan Cat, 11 months old, Furby call Eloise 352-6341

Travel

Timeshare CANCEL YOUR Timeshare. No risk program stop mortgage & maintenance payments today. 100% money back guarantee. Free consultation. Call us now. We can help! 1-888-356-5248

Employment Help Wanted SHIPPER/RECEIVER One of the largest building supply retailers in the Kootenay area is now accepting applications for the position of Shipper/ Receiver. This position is responsible for all aspects of shipping and receiving, including bin labeling and merchandising. Applicants must have the ability to work in an active and cooperative environment. Receiving & POS experience is required for this full time position. For confidential consideration, please forward your resume with relative references to : Attn: Skip Burgoyne By email: skip@maglio.ca Attn: Dominic Maglio By: email: dom@maglio.ca By mail: PO Box 70 Nelson, BC V1L 5P7

Help Wanted

REPORTER Black Press has an opening for a fulltime multimedia journalist/reporter in the West Kootenay. Candidates will have outstanding, diverse writing abilities, and can generate and write compelling stories for use in print and online. Photography prowess, social media best practices and creative layout skills are an asset. Candidates must be willing to work various shifts, including evenings and weekends.

Qualifications The successful applicant for this position will be a key contributor to the print and online product. â&#x20AC;˘ You should have a diploma / degree in journalism, and / or related experience. â&#x20AC;˘ Knowledge of basic Photoshop and InDesign are a must. A valid driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s licence and reliable car are required. Black Press is Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest private, independent newspaper company, with more than 1,500 community, daily and urban newspapers in B.C., Alberta, Washington State, Ohio and Hawaii. Those interested should submit a resume, writing and photography samples along with a cover letter to: Karen Bennett at publisher@nelsonstar.com

Employment

Business Opportunities

Career Opportunities

THE DISABILITY Tax Credit. $1,500 yearly tax credit.$15,000 lump sum refund (on avg). covers: Hip/knee replacements, arthritic joints, COPD. For help applying 1844-453-5372.

MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION is an in-demand career in Canada! Employers have work-at-home positions available. Get the online training you need from an employer-trusted program. Visit: CareerStep.ca/MT or 1-888528-0809 to start training for your work-at-home career today!

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Help Wanted

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY Millwright and Industrial Electrician Opportunities Canoe Forest Products Ltd. (part of the Gorman Group of Companies); located near Salmon Arm BC has a fulltime opening within the Maintenance Department for a Journeymen Millwright and a Journeymen Industrial Electrician for our weekend shift. Reporting directly to the Maintenance Supervisor, the successful candidates will be part of the maintenance team providing troubleshooting, predictive and preventative maintenance in our plywood plant manufacturing facility. As part of this team you will be responsible for all machinery and duties including: â&#x20AC;˘ Troubleshoot, analyze, diagnose and perform maintenance work on machinery, â&#x20AC;˘ Complete preventative and predictive maintenance, â&#x20AC;˘ Reading blueprints, diagrams and schematic drawings, â&#x20AC;˘ Utilize knowledge and skills to recognize opportunities for improvements and savings. Our ideal journeyman candidate possesses: Journeymen certification â&#x20AC;˘ Commitment to safe work guidelines, policies, and procedures â&#x20AC;˘ Strong troubleshooting experience with PLCs, hydraulics, and mechanical machinery â&#x20AC;˘ Ability to work individually with little or no supervision â&#x20AC;˘ Willingness to adapt to changing priorities in a dynamic environment â&#x20AC;˘ Previous experience with log processing/ handling equipment and veneer production equipment would also be an asset If you possess the skills and qualifications for this position, please submit your resume with cover letter, by Friday, January 2, 2015 to: Human Resources Department Canoe Forest Products Ltd. Box 70 Canoe BC V0E 1K0 E: hr@canoefp.com F: 866-514-8773 Canoe Forest Products thanks all applicants for their interest; however, only those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

We need carriers in Salmo! Call Liz for more info 250.352.1890

Regional Editor Black Press in the West Kootenay region is seeking a regional Editor to oversee both the Nelson Star and the Castlegar News. The successful candidate will have Editor experience in the community newspaper industry. They will have a keen eye for layout, have an extensive photography resume, be an aggressive user of social media, understand the latest trends in digital media and be able to lead two newsrooms both from a print and digital perspective. This successful candidate will also be part of the senior team for the West Kootenay and will be part of setting the overall vision and goals for these newspapers and websites. This position includes active news and community coverage, engaging editorial and opinion writing, as well as understanding and leading change in our print products and on our websites. This position will be based out of Nelson, B.C. The West Kootenay is often considered one of the best places in B.C. to live and this position would suit any outdoor enthusiast, with spectacular skiing, mountain biking and hiking just outside your door. It is truly a wonderful place to live and to be involved in the community newspaper industry. This position offers a better than average compensation package, that also includes a strong benefits package. If this sounds like the right position for you please send your resume, a cover letter, references and some examples of your work to Karen Bennett at publisher@nelsonstar.com. Please no phone calls.

A18 www.nelsonstar.com

Wednesday, December 31, 2014 Nelson Star

Employment

Merchandise for Sale

Medical/Dental

Musical Instruments

Ofﬁce/Retail

Guitars, Amp’s, Drums Keyboards, PA, Lessons Music books & Accessories Bay Avenue Music 1364 Bay Ave Trail, BC, 250-368-8878

Quiet ofﬁce with good natural light. Upstairs Mountain Waters Building, 205 Victoria St. Heritage features, hardwood floor. Easy client parking. $400/month + GST. Contact Richard 250-509-0553

Seeking full-time MOA/Practice Manager to join our team at a busy ophthalmology and retinal subspecialty practice in Vernon. We strive to provide high quality patient care in a friendly and team-oriented setting. Our office is paperless and uses the latest in eye care technology. We are looking for an experienced MOA who is highly organized, able to multi-task and communicates effectively. This position fulfills a leadership role in our clinic and will command a high wage. Please email cover letter and resume to hhollands.office@me.com

Services

Financial Services ARE YOU $10K or more in debt? DebtGo can help reduce a significant portion of your debt load. Call now and see if you qualify. 1-800-351-1783

Rentals

Rentals Apt/Condo for Rent W.TRAIL, 2Bdrm. in 4-plex., enclosed parking. $580./mo. 250-551-1106

Want to Rent Handyman, 50’s on modest pension, req low cost accom in the W. Kootenay region. Non Smoker, non partier, quiet, clean & reliable. Johnny Bryce 250 352-9876

Career Opportunities

CARE GIVER AVAILABLE kootenaycaregivers.ca 250-777-1169

Home Improvements FULL SERVICE plumbing from Parker Dean. Fast, reliable, 24/7 service. Take $50 off your next job if you present this ad. Vancouver area. 1800-573-2928

Misc Services

Want to Rent Single woman 30’s req housing in W Kootenay tri-cities, near bus route. Can afford $400/m all incl. Responsible, ambitious & clean. Good ref avail LM for Melanie 352-9916 Young man seeks shared accom in Nelson. Either rent room in your house, or rent with potential housemate looking for new opportunities. Clean, personable, animal lover. Up to $500/m. LM for Kenny 352-9876

CERTIFIED ELECTRICIAN

At Tolko people are our most valuable resource and our success is dependent on innovative individuals who are aligned with our organizational values. Our tradition of excellence is built on strong company values, a challenging work environment and continuous development. Tolko’s value for safety, the environment, and sustainable business practices are key to being an industry leader in the world market of today. We are currently seeking Certified Electricians to join our teams in the Okanagan Region of BC. If you are interested in exploring this opportunity and being part of our community, please apply via our website www.tolko.com by January 2, 2015. We thank all candidates for their interest; however only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

POSITION OVERVIEW: Reporting to the operation’s Maintenance Supervisor and working with tradesman, and other team members, the Certified Electrician carries out maintenance programs and projects at the division. This is a challenging position and an opportunity to work in an innovative environment.

QUALIFICATIONS: A good working knowledge of WorkSafe BC and OH&S Regulations A valid Interprovincial Journeyman ticket 3-5 years industrial maintenance experience PLC experience is a definite asset Willing to work any shift and have a desire to work in a team environment

Oops, sorry Piggy!

Merchandise for Sale

Firearms

FIREARMS: ALL types wanted, estates, collections, single items, military. We handle all paperwork and transportation. Licensed dealer 1-866-9600045. www.dollars4guns.com.

Free Items FREE: Packing Paper & Moving Boxes 250 359-5012

Heavy Duty Machinery A-STEEL SHIPPING DRY STORAGE CONTAINERS Used 20’40’45’53’ and insulated containers all sizes in stock. Trades are welcome. 40’Containers under $2500! DMG 40’ containers under $2,000 each. Also JD 544 & 644 wheel Loaders & 20,000 lb CAT forklift. Wanted to buy 300 size hydraulic excavator. Ph Toll free 1-866-528-7108 1-778-298-3192 8am-5pm Delivery BC and AB www.rtccontainer.com

Misc. for Sale

STEEL BUILDINGS/metal buildings 60% off! 20x28, 30x40, 40x62, 45x90, 50x120, 60x150, 80x100 sell for balance owed! Call 1-800-4572206 or visit us online at: www.crownsteelbuildings.ca.

WORDS WORDS

Career Opportunities

WWW.TOLKO.COM

Brown leather motorized lift chair/bed. Barley used. Paid $1300 asking $800 OBO 250 505-4709

C ROS S

We’re on the net at www.bcclassiﬁed.com

Superior communication, problem solving, and computer skills.

Verna J. Saliken vjsaliken.scentsy.ca (250)551-1443 Not familiar with Scentsy? Please give me a call and I will gladly host a party for you and your friends. Orders can be placed through my website or by calling me direct.

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BUILD YOUR CAREER WITH US! Do you thrive in a dynamic and challenging environment with opportunities for continuous growth and development?

Home Care

Rentals

CLUES ACROSS CLUES DOWN 1. Humbug 1. Besmear 4. Meaningless talk 2. Genus dasyprocta 10. Conceit 3. A male ferret 11. Not studied 4. Unit of volume (abbr.) 12. Megabyte 5. Italian hors d’oeuvres 14. When born (abbr.) 6. N.W. German city & port 15. Placed on a golf ball stand 7. Signal sounds 16. Melekeok is the capital 8. Adult females 18. Mischievous 9. -__, denotes past 21. Mason’s mortars 12. Gas usage measurement 23. Spain’s former monetary unit 13. Fishhook point 25. Small fries 17. Mauna __, Hawaiian volcano 27. Article 19. In a way, thrusts 28. Capital of Yemen 20. Grimm brothers birthplace 29. Type of Theater companies 22. Withered; dry 31. Plastic, paper or shopping 32. Electronic countermeasures 24. Genus salvia 35. Language along the lower Yenisei River 26. About senator 37. Institute legal proceedings against 30. Livestock enclosure 38. Beam 32. Work units 39. Old World buffalo 33. Hebrew name meaning dog 40. Latch onto 34. A tumor composed of muscle tissue 42. Physical therapy 36. Satisfy to excess 43. Conditions of balance 41. Third mast 48. Half pro 42. A horse’s strut 50. Resounded 44. Tree producing gum (Arabic) 52. Sales event 45. Armour carried on the arm 53. Separates seating areas 46. Winged goddess of the dawn 54. N.M. Pueblo people 47. Ego 55. Bridge building degree 49. Hesitancy 56. Fullback 51. Young woman of society 57. Peyote 55. Founder of Babism 59. Afflict 57. Mark (abbr.) 60. Rests on one’s knees 58. Jeans maker’s initials 61. Having negative qualities

ANSWERS

Paper routes available, call the Nelson Star at 250-352-1890

Nelson Star Wednesday, December 31, 2014

nelsonstar.com 19

ATTENTION BUSINESS OWNERS:

Don’t miss your opportunity to be a part of The Official 2015

N E L S O N AND KO O T E N2015 AY L A K E VACATION GUIDE Last year's guide was so popular that we are increasing the press run by 40% to meet demand of this well-sought after vacation must have!

Guide contains:

• comprehensive directory of all accommodations in the area • comprehensive directory of all restaurants in the area • area maps • calendar of events • what to see and do • and so much more

Deadline to reserve your space is Friday, January 9 Contact the Nelson Star to be part of the 2015 Nelson Kootenay Lake Vacation Guide

250-352-1890 Kiomi sales@nelsonstar.com Tara sales2@nelsonstar.com

20 nelsonstar.com

Wednesday, December 31, 2014 Nelson Star

KELOWNA

2153 Springfield Road (250) 860-2600

VERNON

200-3107 - 48th Ave. (250) 542-3000

PENTICTON

EX PE RT IS E

E IC R P

KAMLOOPS

745 Notre Dame Drive (250) 851-8700

WE WILL NOT BE BEAT!

CASTLEGAR

1881 Harvey Avenue (250) 860-1975

ANDRES WIRELESS

PENTICTON

VERNON

WEST KELOWNA

KAMLOOPS

101-2601 Skaha Lake Rd. 200-3107 - 48th Ave. (250) 493-3800 (250) 542-3000

#200 - 2180 Elk Rd. (250) 707-2600

KELOWNA

2153 Springfield Road (250) 860-2600

Villiage Green Mall (250) 542-1496

101-2601 Skaha Lake Rd. (250) 493-3800 YB IT UYI NG N U PO M W M ER CO

ANDRES CAR AUDIO WEST KELOWNA

ANDRES WIRELESS Cherry Lane Mall (250) 493-4566

KELOWNA

#200 - 2180 Elk Rd. (250) 707-2600

2153 Springfield Road (250) 860-2600

WEST KELOWNA #200 - 2180 Elk Rd. (250) 707-2600

745 Notre Dame Drive (250) 851-8700

VERNON

200-3107 - 48th Ave. (250) 542-3000

ANDRES WIRELESS ANDRES WIRELESS ANDRES B USINESS ANDRES CAR AUDIO Aberdeen Mall (250) 377-8880

CRANBROOK

215 - 450 Lansdowne Mall (250) 377-8007

200-1965 Columbia Ave. 101 Kootenay St. North (250) 365-6455 (250) 426-8927

TELUS KIOSK

NELSON

Chahko Mika Mall (250) 352-7258

300 St. Paul Str. (250) 377-3773

KELOWNA

2153 Springfield Road (250) 860-2600

154 Victoria Str (250) 314-9944

WEST KELOWNA #200 - 2180 Elk Rd. (250) 707-2600