Bowen Island Undercurrent August 31 2023

Islands Trust declines approving BIM park bylaws

MUCH OF CAPE PARK PLAN RUNS CONTRARY TO POLICY STATEMENT, SAYS TRUST

ALEX KURIAL Editor

Islands Trust will be holding a meeting with Bowen Island Municipality after deciding not to approve a pair of bylaws regarding the proposed Cape Roger Curtis park.

The government organization’s executive committee held a meeting Friday, August 25 where they discussed the two bylaw amendments - one to Bowen’s Official Community Plan (OCP) and one to their Land Use Bylaw (LUB) - necessary for allowing an overnight campground at the park, which is part of Metro Vancouver’s plans for their recently purchased space

Specifically, the group had requested answers from the municipality (BIM) on a pair of issues related to their Islands Trust Policy Statement (ITPS) - the social impact of the potential park, and whether recreation activities included within it, such as the campground component, would be considered high or low-impact to the community

GO(AT)-KARTING:

Both the two and four-legged members of the Bowen Island Horse Owners & Riders Association (BIHORA) understood the assignment of this year’s Bowfest Parade theme, Go-Karts. Like many they opted to don outfits from the Mario universe, famous for its connection to the Go-Karting realm through the many Mario Kart video games To see the other karting-related parade floats, and many other photos from last Saturday’s festival, turn over to Page 6. / Alex

Kurial

photo

Regarding social impacts, such as ferry use, traffic numbers, and fire response, BIM staff submitted technical reports conducted this summer including a Transportation Impact Assessment, Emergency Response Plan, and Visitor Use Management Framework Islands Trust staff accepted this showed BIM are aware of and working on these concerns, which is the ITPS requirement, even if the issues are not necessarily solved yet

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

BowenIslandMunicipalityisconsideringExpressionsofInterest(EOI) fromeligiblecommunityorganizationsforuseofaportionoftheBlue Cottagespacelocatedat431CardenaRd

Thespaceisapproximately30m2,hasadedicatedaccessdoorfrom therearofthebuildingandhasaccesstoawashroomandsinkfacility thatissharedwithTourismBowen.

ThespaceisexpectedtobeavailablebytheendofOctober,however thetimingisnotguaranteedandapplicantsshouldhavesomeflexibility regardingpossessiondate.

Eligibleapplicantsshouldsubmitaproposalnomorethantwopagesin length,outliningtheplanneduseofthespace Preferencewillbegiven toproposalsfromorganizationsthatbroadlyserveademonstrated communityneedandifpossible,includeoptionsastohowthespace couldpotentiallybesharedwithothereligibleorganizations.

wwwbowenislandmunicipalityca/eoi-blue-cottage/

Seeking Public Comment

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RegularCouncilMeeting

September11,2023at1:00pm

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TheGolfCourseisconstructingtheTimTKKerrPerformanceCentre. Theapplicationwouldseektoincludethisareawithintheirexisting liquorlicence,withaproposedcapacityof25personsandoperating hoursunchangedfromtheexistingliquorlicence(10AM-11PM) The LiquorandCannabisRegulationsBranchhasreferredtheapplication totheBowenIslandMunicipality,andCouncilisseekingtohearfrom youbeforepreparingaresponse

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Monday,September11,2023

ISLAND NEWS

Executive committee raises questions over social impacts of CRC park plan

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

When assessing high or low-impact activity, BIM staff pointed out neither they or Islands Trust had a definition of either term They instead used wording from Policy 185 of the OCP to interpret low-impact activities as those that “enhance a visitor’s enjoyment of the island’s natural amenities, without detracting from those amenities”

The Islands Trust executive committee, made up of the organization’s chair and three vice-chairs, disagreed with BIM’s assessment that the bylaw amendments lined up with the ITPS, not just on the social impact and activity level fronts, but in many other regards as well. By the end of the meeting the four members identified 10 sections of their policy statement where they felt more work was necessary.

Vice-chair David Maude (Mayne Island) voiced many of the group ’ s concerns, including those related to the two original points. On whether adding 100 campsites, the amount currently sought by Metro Vancouver, would qualify as high or low-impact, he felt the hundreds of extra visitors this would bring to the island fell under the former “Talking to people from Bowen Island, and interestingly the people from BC Ferries that reached out to me this week, they see this as being substantial and significant,” said Maude

He also disagreed with BIM’s assessment

that potential social impacts of the park had been thoroughly investigated. “Based on the feedback that we have seen… perhaps it has not been properly addressed,” said Maude, referencing more than 100 letters received by Islands Trust opposed to camping, and a Bowen no-camping petition with more than 1,600 signatures.

Fellow vice-chair Tobi Elliott (Gabriola Island) agreed the feedback from locals was unlike most she’s used to “The demonstrated opposition from long-term residents; this is not a typical letter writing campaign that I have seen before,” she said.

“There are very specific concerns from long-term residents that range from water to ferry capacity to safety to roads to the overburdening of all the amenities on the island that I don’t believe have been sufficiently addressed in the public engagement to date That to me fails the test,” said Elliott

Additional concerns over the bylaws included whether the Multi-Use Path would run to the Cape by the park’s planned opening date “To suggest people are going to walk 12 km or bicycle along a single road that hasn’t been expanded to accommodate that traffic, to me that hasn’t been thought through yet,” said Elliott on the path pedestrians or cyclists would currently have to travel to the Cape

The ITPS does not mention consultation with Indigenous groups specifically, but

Helping out displaced Pets

Elliott suggested the cultural heritage portion of the document should take this into account “It’s really tricky to assess how the protection of cultural and natural heritage is being addressed if they haven’t actually moved ahead and gained evidenced support from Squamish Nation,” she said.

Executive committee chair Peter Luckham agreed with his colleagues. “I’m afraid everything that I’ve heard from my vicechairs are definitely concerns that I have,” he said, adding he could only remember one or two other times Islands Trust has taken such action during bylaw review

“I’m not against camping, I think actually camping on that location is a fantastic opportunity for all of us We’re taking 24 lots out of a very large development - which has been controversial (the development)

- and creating a recreational opportunity for everyone which is a good thing But it is the number of campsites in what is essentially a residential neighbourhood… as all those campers (visit) on bicycles or a few in cars or group campsites… there are significant impacts,” says Luckham.

The next step will be for the Islands Trust Executive Committee and Bowen Island Council to hold a meeting with each other within 60 days of last Friday’s decision, where the committee will explain in further detail how they feel the bylaws contradict the ITPS BIM will then have a chance to assess next steps

Officially, the executive committee found the bylaws were contrary to ITPS policies 4.4.2, 5.2.3, 5.2.4, 5.2.5, 5.5.4, 5.5.6, 5.5.7, 5.6.2, 5.6.3, and 5.7.2.

These four island junior entrepreneurs and friends looked upon the Bowfest Parade as more than a community get-together. (L-R) Zach, Hugo, Quinntin, and Winston set up a lemonade and fruit juice stand along the parade route and served thirsty parade-watchers As their sign says, 20 per cent of their sales will go to help animals who lost their homes in the recent B.C. wildfires. / Marcus Hondro photo

VIEWPOINTS

Another fun Bowfest is in the books, my second here on the island. This year included the added element of being a judge in the parade, after being recruited by Rob Wynen who plays a pivotal role in making the festival come to life It was very hard to separate many of the floats, especially knowing how much work went into them. It was high marks all around in the ‘effort’ category, with the ‘theme’ portion of the contest really all that separated them at the end of the day. Congrats to our ribbon winners who embraced the Go-Karting to the fullest, and know that every float’s interpretation of the theme was very entertaining to see. And thank you to fellow judges Michael and Keith for joining me with your clipboards.

The festival grounds were lively once again, and featured good fun and food all over. The music stood out to me this year, and it was great to see so much local talent take the stage. Queer as Funk were a wonderful headliner, and created a very lively dance floor The tunes continued after the festival too with the after-party at the Pub, where Rear View Mirror played classic rock covers It was a bit humbling to hear one of the bands I grew up with, Jimmy Eat World, being played in the ‘classic rock’ category, but I suppose that’s a reality we all have to come to terms with one day.

While rocking out at the Pub our local RCMP officer Cpl. Adam Koehle dropped in for a visit Adam is a routine sight at the venue on weekends, making his friendly checks and seeing if anybody needs a ride home This one was different though, as it was his last day in uniform on the island as he gets set to transfer to a new position off-island. Anyone who ever comes into the Cove has likely seen Adam out and about smiling and waving to passersby, and chatting with the many people coming up to him on the street I was often that person, and Adam was always there to listen and offer help and advice no matter how long I talked about anything, personal or professional. I know that many of us have been lucky to get to know Adam over the past several years, and I count myself among them To me Cpl. Koehle is the embodiment of what policing can and should be, and he will be missed greatly on the island. Thankfully he assures us he’ll be back for visits, so Adam we look forward to seeing your smile and wave again. Until then, good luck in your new post!

- Alex Kurial, Editor

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Festivals and Farewells Making Bowfest happen

We hope you all had a wonderful day at Bowfest, our annual community end-ofsummer celebration! It’s always a joyful and fun-filled day with rides and games for the kids, food, drink, fun and games for adults, and fantastic live music! This year ’ s line-up included Tumbleweeds, Natascha Borromeo and the Xtras, Black Molly, and Queer as Funk. Many thanks to Wayne Swingle for making the musicians sound great. Bowfest is always such a wonderful day to celebrate and connect with friends

and neighbours

The Bowfest Board and organizing committee extends their thanks for the generous support from all the sponsors Bowfest received a grant from the Province of BC Fairs, Festivals and Events Fund which allowed us to bring in Queer as Funk!

Par-t-Perfect supplies all the large inflatable rides and games and we would like to thank Jim Gibson for his extra work this year to ensure that everything was powered up and ready for the kids to enjoy.

Volunteers are the backbone of this community event and they give tirelessly of their time, skills and expertise to ensure that Bowfest is always memorable. Please consider volunteering for the board/ organizing committee next year! Thank you to everyone who attended, volunteered and contributed to this year ’ s successful Bowfest!

- Joan Vyner Chair Bowfest 2023

THE WRITE STUFF. The Undercurrent encourages reader participation in your community newspaper You must include your full name and a daytime phone number (for verification only) The editor reserves the right to edit for clarity, legality, brevity and taste Please limit to under 500 words HERE’S HOW: To submit a letter to the editor, fax 604-947-0148 or mail it to #102, 495 Bowen Island Trunk Road, PO Box 130, Bowen Island, BC V0N 1G0 or email editor@bowenislandundercurrent.com

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CARTOONIST

Ron Woodall

A successful fundraiser for both B.C. & Lahaina

Dear Editor,

What an evening! With heartfelt appreciation we would like to thank all who came out to support the Kelowna/Lahaina Wildfire Relief Benefit last Friday at Bowen Cider House!

The event was sold out and we are grateful for the generosity of the individuals and businesses that contributed to both the dinner and the silent auction. The food was incredible thanks to the direction of Chef Erik Miller, the Johnstone and Langmann families, and all of the volunteers who kept things rolling smoothly and with cool heads throughout the event!

The Silent Auction had a wonderful and varied selection from local merchants and artists, a massive thank you to all who donated! The whole event will bring immediate funds straight to people under strain in B.C and Maui. Lorraine Ashdown read a poignant letter from Gemma Rose in Lahaina about the impact of the fires there, and how much this help means to those directly affected. And we were entertained by the

Flying Friends

soothing tones under a starlit sky of a Bowen favourite the Chillbillies!

There are so many we wish to thank: Bowen Cider House including Jeanette, Ali, Ben and Nicki, Chef Erik Miller and his team, the Rose Family Team, emcee Liz Watson, Beth Turner, the Chillbillies and Bob Doucet, Marianne Schedler, The Pub, The Cold Beer and Wine Store, Bowen Sushi, Cates Pharmacy, Phoenix Gifts, Catherine Epps Pottery, Out of the Blue, Tuscany, Squirrel, Doc Morgans, Tell Your Friends Café, Bowen Building Centre, Bowen Island Flower Shop, The Snug, Cocoa West, Lulu Fiedler Jewellery, Sue Rickett, Kristen Hotchkiss Jewellery, Gemma Rose Photography, Ray Watson Condos, Riley’s Cidery, Artisan Eats, and those that stayed to help clean up!

The funds will be distributed soon and again we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for participating in the spirit of Aloha Bowen Island style!

On Sunday of this last week, I had to say goodbye to a new best friend His name was originally Tyger but as soon as I met him, he seemed more like a Nigel to me. Sir Nigel Peabody III was what I settled on... It’s all a bit of fun when we give our new friends names, but his new family (ultimately) had the choice to name him whatever they wanted. Quite honestly, I think he would respond to anything

If you know me, or of me, then you have probably figured out that Sir Nigel is an animal. A three-legged cat to be precise, and one of the nicest cats I have ever known. I can honestly say that I have known/fostered or adopted at least 200 cats in my time From being at the SPCA and now from working with CAWES Without bragging, I think it is true to say that I have been fostering animals until they find their own homes since around 1991.

And not just cats and dogs, but birds and other creatures too It gives me so much pleasure to be able to care for an animal and send it on its way to a new loving home

It’s not always easy. Stuff happens sometimes, and then, of course, comes the day to hand them over to another human being who you hope will love and care for them as much as you do. They usually do and all the angst is for nought.

My reason for writing this little piece is to find out if there are similar people on Bowen that would like to help with fostering As CAWES goes into the next few years you will see us with more and more dogs and cats

for adoption. Our ultimate goal is to have a small sanctuary and have them stay there with us until they find their forever home. But in the meantime, we would like to be able to rely on our good friends on Bowen to help us out All costs are undertaken by CAWES (unless you prefer to donate) for medications, food and necessities

If you could lend a helping hand with our process, please send an email to me at info@ cawes.org or give me a call at 604-947-2555. Let’s save lives together

- Kim Sinclair

Furry Fosters needed Maximum Storytelling

I met Jem Rolls back in 2003 when we were touring our play “La Vita Grande” across Canada with the Fringe tour, and when I first saw him perform his relentlessly delivered blend of spoken word/story telling, I was astounded at what one man flapping his gums could do He was, and is, a uniquely satisfying performer.

Mara Brenner was our stage manager and she was so impressed with Jem that she produced several of his shows on Bowen in the years after that Mara has since left us and so I decided to take on the task myself this year, (purely selfish intent mind you, I can’t wait to see it).

A couple of winged creatures stopped by Haig Farris’neighbourhood for snacks recently. As usual, he was ready and waiting to snap some up-close shots of his visitors

Editor’s Note* Last week’s letter from Pauline Le Bel was mistakenly edited to reference a separate park proposal. It was originally intended to refer solely to the ‘Nexwlélexwm Ecological Learning Reserve’ , proposed by Sheree Johnson and Edward Wachtman in the August 10 issue. We regret any confusion this caused.

This show is called “Maximum Crusoe” and lays out Jem’s two years pandemically stranded on a paradisiacal beach in India Billed as “ a comedy and not” it is coming to us direct from the Edmonton International Fringe Festival where he received a five star review.

One show only! Friday, September

8 at Tir-na-nOg, shows starts at 7:30 pm Tickets are available on Eventbrite

- Katrina and Kevin Rose

- David Cameron

The Bowfest Country Fair

SARAH HAXBY Country Fair Tent / Slug Race Officiant

This year ’ s Bowfest Country Fair was a big hit with monstrous zucchinis, slug artworks made out of clay, fabric, wood and lego, as well as a display of slug t-shirts and information about the three types of slugs that live on Bowen Island (two of which are invasive/ introduced species).

There was a new jumbo-sized tabletop game of Slugs and Ladders (you go up the slugs and fall down the ladders) and the ever-popular slug races We’ve been racing slugs on Bowen Island since 1977 (or possibly even longer, if more historical evidence is unearthed). Note: if you have any historical photos, stories, or records of the early days of the Bowfest community festivals, please share them!

Bo the Banana Slug is the original mascot of Bowfest who invites people to slow down to island-time and have fun at the community festival which is created by community volunteers for the community! Perhaps Bo the Banana slug inspired young Ayrton O to design a wheeled slug-bus out of lego, which received an hounourable mention ribbon for its beauty and celebration of the slug as Bofest’s mascot The other honourable mention of the day went to Home Farm for ‘Biggest Onion entered into a Biggest Zucchini Contest’ with an almost 3 lbs monster onion!

Being a warm summer day, even in the shade of the tent and the trees in the upper field, the slugs were a bit more sluggish than in past years, and no slugs crossed the finish line this year, but the races went on! The slugs raced down the track ( a few of them made it almost half way!) and the individual slug-jockeys, slug race teams and throngs of slug-race fans cheered on the Pacific Banana slugs (in green with black spots, and pale yellow-greens and yellows) as well as the Black slugs (ranging in colour from black to a lovely nut-brown Black slug

For the second year in a row, no Leopard slugs showed up at the races The length of each slug race mirrors the length of a ferry ride to Bowen - roughly twenty minutes - and as the slug races are much better at

maintaining a schedule, three races went roughly as scheduled.

Biggest (heaviest) Zucchini Contest

Nine zucchinis were weighed in between 2 5 to 12 5 pounds, grown by all ages

1st Place: Liam E grew a 12.5 lbs monster squash possibly the heaviest zucchini to ever go on the scales at Bowfest!

Youth

1st Place: Martin & Georgie

Slug Race #1

1st place: Selena the slug raced by Cali

2nd place: BlueJay raced by Miles

3rd place: Sluggie raced by Freja

Of note: Heinous the slug was disqualified for crossing lanes and crashing into another slug

Slug Race #2

1st place: Sabastian the slug raced by Amelia

2nd place: Mike the slug raced by Fiona

3rd place: Sophia the slug raced by Samuel

Of note: Sally the slug pulled the same stunt that Heinous the slug did, and was also disqualified! There was also an alleged slug-napping of a winning racing slug (but it appeared it was just a case of mistaken identity as the missing slug was returned shortly after the alarm was raised).

Slug Race #3

It was basically a tie between Turbo, raced by Cayden, Tiny Hero the slug raced by Freya and Salt the Slug, a plastic slug toy that moved the same amount as the actual slugs in this last race of the day.

Honorable mention to Baby Slug, Dobby, Banana, Sonic, Comet, Spinaut, Baricuda, Dug the Slug, and all the other slugs that raced! Please note, as always: all of the slugs at the slug races were carefully returned to the wilds of Bowen after the races which are all held in fun.

Thank you to all the participants in this year ’ s Country Fair Contests This Bowfest tradition was made possible this year thanks to Bowfest’s sponsors, the dedicated Bowfest organizers, volunteers, and the mother-daughter duo Sarah Haxby and Helen Wallwork who helped to keep the Country Fair Tent running again this year

There was no mistaking who was in charge of the Slug Races on Saturday, folks just had to look for Sarah Haxby and her one-of-a-kind slug hat (above) The race course attracted many slugs and jockeys, with three of them capturing the glory. There were some gardening winners on the day too, including a zucchini grown by Liam E which weighed in at 125 pounds (bottom left), a potentialislandrecord./Photos:SarahHaxby(bottomleft),AlexKurial(bottomright), Submitted (above)

The Bowfest parade brought out many colourful floats revolving around this year’s theme: Go Karts Spotted amongst theTrunk Road procession on Saturday were some well known Bowen locals, including (clockwise from top left) Dog of the Year Linus with owners Bayley Faragher and Josh Skuce, Jessie Perry with the Bowen Island Fire Department, Citizen of theYear Rondy Dike, and the Undercurrent’s own Ron Woodall in unmissable attire / Alex Kurial photos (more photos on Page 12)

Changes to Green Waste Pick-up

Effective September 1, 2023 households will be allowed to put out 1 container of kitchen/food waste and a maximum of 3 bags of yard waste. (If you do not put out your kitchen/food waste container, you will still be limited to a maximum of 3 bags of yard waste)

UPDATED GARBAGE COLLECTION GUIDELINES

ALL CONTAINERS:

must be curbside by 8am must display your civic address, either by sticker or written on the can must be secured with a bungee cord or weight on lid must have lids/no inner rims on green waste cans as waste sticks to inside must weigh no more than a maximum of 40lbs, as per WCB regulations must display second can decals or single use decals if more than 1 can must have garbage bagged and secured must be removed from curbside by end of service day, as per municipal regulations

You can help keep the staff stay healthy by: Keeping bags and bins below 40lbs. No sod, rocks or soil. Keep lids on bins, to prevent rain water accumulation. No branches sticking out of bins or bags.

Questions? Call Bowen Waste Solutions at 604-947-2255

ACCEPTABLE GARBAGE AND GREEN WASTE CONTAINERS

NO over-sized wheeled roll-aways

UNACCEPTABLE GREEN WASTE CONTAINERS

Community Choir starting up a new season

LORRAINE ASHDOWN

Bowen Island Community Choir

It seems I was just writing a short article for our beloved Undercurrent to let you all know about Bowen Island Community Choir’s spring concert Well, that was early May and this is late August The summer flew by- as always

So please join us as the BICC starts up again with registration on both Wednesday, September 13 and Wednesday, September 20 at Cates Hill Chapel. Please note that for the two nights of registration, our start time is 7 pm. Ordinarily, we begin our practices at 7:15.

BICC is a 45 voice choir, made up of soprano, alto, tenor and base singers There are no auditions and reading music is not a pre-requisite but it helps The choir has been directed by the fabulous Ellen Macintosh for over 20 years And Sheilagh Sparks has been our steadfast accompanist for almost as long

If you are new to the choir there are many folks around to support you, along with Ellen, and help you get used to how things flow within this group of islanders who love to gather and sing

We practice Wednesday nights from 7:15 to 9:15 pm with a short break for refreshments and visiting The cost for membership in this hearty group of singers is a very reasonable $150. You can pay on registration night, or e-transfer this amount to Janet LeRoy at jmlrbowen10@gmail.com

We do hope you will consider joining us We work hard, due to the fact that Ellen is an excellent teacher, and we sing and laugh with much heart Our Christmas concert is scheduled for December 9 at 2 and 7 pm at Cates Hill Chapel. The line up of songs includes those of a jazzy nature, swing, sacred and more Come and check us out We’d love to have you with us. And you will have fun. That’s my personal guarantee as a choir member for over 20 years.

Bowen RCMP stats for July

CPL. ADAM KOEHLE

Bowen Island RCMP

The Bowen Island RCMP responded to 49 calls for service in July of 2023;

- 2 of those files were related to traffic complaints or enforcement;

- 2 of those files were vessel collisions in Snug Cove;

- 4 of those files were false house alarms;

- 3 of those files were disturbances;

- 6 of those files were reports of suspicious persons or occurrences;

- 1 of those files was assisting the Coast

Guard with a search; - 1 of those files was assisting the Department of Fisheries with illegal fishing

In 2023, the RCMP reimplemented the long standing Auxiliary Program The Auxiliary Program provides volunteers with training, equipment and opportunities to participate in community policing, public safety and crime prevention initiatives such as public education, and non-enforcement support to operations. Anyone interested in the program should contact the detachment to obtain a volunteer application.

Cpl Adam Koehle worked his final shift as a member of the Bowen Island RCMP on Saturday, having reached the term limit for an officer on the island’s force Part of his duties made sure children safely navigated the busy Bowfest Field. Bowen’s new RCMP officer will start his job later in September / Marcus Hondro photo

BICC members (L-R) Christine Fedina (tenor), John Lunn (tenor), Wendy Beattie (alto), Tracey Lee Hurst (soprano), Jackie Minns (soprano), Lorraine Ashdown (tenor), Sheilagh Sparks (accompanist extraordinaire), Susan Leithhead (soprano), Daphne Shaw (alto) Submitted photo

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

Saturday, September 2

Handloggers Half Marathon

Annual race following the Handloggers Trail on Mount Gardner, benefitting the Bowen Island Trail Society. Starts at 9 am from the Government Dock, wraps up around 1 pm

Monday, September 4

Nature Refuge Celebration

Come celebrate the volunteers and achievements of the Wild Coast Nature Refuge. 3 to 5 pm, everyone is welcome. Enter at the Welcome sign on Huszar Creek Lane, off of Cape Drive. Hosted by the Bowen Island Conservancy.

Tuesday, September 5

The Art of Acrylics

Join Marie to explore & have fun in these Open Classes Small class size! 9:30 to 11:30 am, or 1:30 to 3:30 pm For more details - MarieNeys.com (classes) or Marie@marieneys.com Classes also Sept 12, 19, & 26.

Thursday, September 7

Thursday Art Group (TAG) begins!

Join like minded creatives who meet every Thursday at Collins Hall from 9 am to 12 pm We draw, sketch, paint and crest Drop-in Thursday the 7th for free to check us out! For more details contact shannonrondeau@shaw.ca

Friday, September 8

Maximum Crusoe at Tir-na-nOg

Jem Rolls in his one-person show about being stranded in India during the pandemic 7:30 pm, tickets available on Eventbrite More info on Page 5.

Saturday, September 9 (rescheduled from Aug 19)

Year End Celebration

11:30 am to 12:30 pm at the Bowen Island Library All ages Celebrate the end of the summer reading club! If you ’ ve finished all 50 days of the challenge, come to claim your medal at the medal ceremony! This year we have special guest Mayor

Andrew Leonard to hand our awards If you haven’t finished, come for fun art activities! Register: bipl link/SRC-celebration

Sunday, September 10 (rescheduled from Aug. 20)

Dog Days Resurgence

One of Bowen’s most popular festivals is returning thanks to the efforts of CAWES, USSC Marina, and Doc Morgan’s. Don’t miss Dog of the Year - Linus!

Sunday, September 10

Book Donation Day

Bring your books to the Library Annex for the Friends of the Library book sale later this year 10 am to Noon.

Monday, September 11

Regular Council Meeting

Please note time change, 1 pm at Muni Hall and online

Tuesday, September 12

Eat, Drink, Paint with Janet Esseiva

A Here’s Bowen Arts! Tour 2024 Fundraiser Register online and enjoy an evening of painting Takes place from 6 to 9 pm at the lower level of Doc Morgan’s Learn more at bowenartstour.com

Wednesday, September 13

Community Choir sign-up

Registration for the Bowen Island Community Choir beings at Cates Hill Chapel. Second registration session on September 20, both at 7 pm More info to the left on Page 8.

Saturday, September 16/Sunday, September 17

Write on Bowen Festival

Festival of Readers and Writers, sponsored by the Bowen Island Public Library and the Hearth Gallery. Eight workshops taking place over the two-day event, including a Luncheon Discussion on Saturday afternoon, and Night Festival Gala with Wade Davis on Saturday night Find more information about the Write on Bowen Festival at www. writeonbowen.com

Monday, September 25

Regular Council Meeting

Please note time change, 1 pm at Muni Hall and online.

Thursday, September 28

Watercolour Workshop

Join this fun event and explore Watercolour painting Free for TAG members, $10 for non-members (supplies will be provided unless you have your own) At Collins Hall.

TUESDAYS

Chair Yoga

Starts Sept 5 at Collins Hall. Drop-in from 1 to 2:15 pm Classes are $20 or by donation. Contact Jackie Minns for more info, 604-220-9092, or jackie.minns@gmail.com

WEDNESDAYS

Bowen Bridge

We meet from 1:30 to 4:30 pm at Bowen Court on Wednesdays Fee is $6 per person per session. Your place at the table must be arranged - by email - no later than 6 pm on the Monday before To make your booking or to seek more information, please email bowcates04@gmail.com

WEEKENDS

Saturday Farmers Market at BICS

Annual market at Bowen Island Community School

Browse food, crafts, snacks, and more! 10 am to Noon

Yoga on the Pier

Saturday & Sunday from 10:15 to 11:15 am Join the Nectar Yoga team for a relaxing yoga session at the Snug Cove North Dock (left of the ferry ramp) Bring a yoga mat, water, and sunscreen Sessions are weather permitting. Pre-registration is recommended, but dropping in can be accomodated if space allows. Find more details and sign up at nectaryoga.ca

BOWFEST

There was lots of great musical talent on display at the Bowfest Field, including Black Molly (above left), Natascha Borromeo and the Xtras (above right), and Queer as Funk (below). Elsewhere, Jason Jacquet managed to squeeze into the Fire Department’s smallest service car, the Ruddy had a fresh take on the GoKartingparadetheme,andbothkidsandadultswere all smiles during the day’s festivities We’ve got more festivalphotosonline,whichyoucanfindbyscanningthe nearby QR code / Alex Kurial photos