Aqua
COMFOR T FOOD Marcia
Jansen's popular column inside
Gulf Islands sept/oct 2017
Living
Volume 12, Issue 5
OF
Farming values thrive on the islands
RESTING PLACE Galiano Island Cemetery welcomes everyone
SSNAP RETURNS National exhibit on Salt Spring among fall arts activities
Arts | food
| people
| history
| community
ALWAYS READY, ALWAYS UP FOR ANYTHING. 2018 Crosstrek TOURING AUTOMATIC WELL-EQUIPPED FROM
28,840
*
$
BI-WEEKLY PAYMENT
OR
188
*
$
PLUS TAX
DOWN PAYMENT
0
$
48 MOS LEASE AT 3.99%*
LEV $14,256 PLUS TAXES | ARRIVING AUGUST 2017 | MODEL # JX2TP *Pricing applies to a 2018 Crosstrek Touring Automatic with price of $28,840 including Freight & PDI ($1,675), Documentation Fee ($395), Tire Levy ($25), and Air Conditioning Fee ($100). Taxes, license, registration, and insurance are extra. Leasing and financing programs available through Subaru Financial Services by TCCI on approved credit. Offers available until August 31, 2017. Offers are subject to change or cancellation at any time without notice. Vehicle shown solely for purpose of illustration and may not be equipped as shown. See Jim Pattison Subaru Victoria for complete program details. Dealer #40319.
JPSubaruVictoria.com | 1784 Island Highway, Victoria, BC | 1-888-619-0809 Page 2 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Seasons change, and so do we... The SeniorCare Group has been taking care of seniors in Sidney, Oak Bay and Victoria for 15 years. Now that we’re servicing the Gulf Islands, we look forward to bringing that same level of quality care to you, with customized services to fit every lifestyle and situation.
Suite 201– 2400 Bevan Avenue 250-656-7176 or 250-589-0010
info@SaltSpringIslandSeniorCare.com 250-538-7411 or 1-855-252-5641 (toll free)
Oak Bay Community September/October – AQUA – Page 3 778-433-4784 or2017 250-589-0010
FARMING
Hardscrabble Farm a family affair on Mayne Island, PAGE 8
contents 36
TANTALIZERS! PAGE 6
PEOPLE
Flo and George Laundry of Salt Spring Island, PAGE 12
COMMUNITY
Galiano Island Cemetery takes care of its memories in style, PAGE 16
ARTS
Salt Spring Basketry Guild marks 20 years of art and community, PAGE 25 • hastingshouse.com • 1-800-661-9255 • 250-537-2362
Painter Judith Walker shares abstract secrets, PAGE 33 SSNAP hosts Canada's best and brightest artists this fall, PAGE 36
COMFORT FOOD
Guy Morgan brings flavours of Israel to Salt Spring, PAGE 30
Q&A
Tony Threlfall of Willowcrest Farm, PAGE 38
160 Upper Ganges Rd, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 2S2 Page 4 – AQUA –September/October 2017
38
25
sept/ oct 2017
michael murray photo
Editor’s Message
Fresh from the farm
F
or a variety of reasons, I don’t get to the Tuesday Farmers’ Market in Centennial Park on Salt Spring too often. But last month my own tomatoes weren’t yet ripe and the carrots and beans were behind schedule after our soggy spring, so I made a point of foraging at the market after finishing work one day. I was reminded of how impressive the Tuesday market really is, with farmers and food producers of all kinds selling their goods in a festive and social atmosphere. All of the other Gulf Islands have Saturday summer markets too, and Pender Island also has an indoor version in winter months. Galiano’s last event of the year (on Oct. 14) is appropriately called the “Stock Up!” market. This summer I went to Mayne Island on a Saturday and got to see that island’s market in action, including the line-up for Hardscrabble Farm flowers and produce. You can read about the Hardscrabble folks, representing a younger generation of farmers, in this issue of Aqua.
Marcia Jansen’s Comfort Food column is also about the entrepreneurial spirit and fresh food, while our Laundry family story and Tony Threlfall as the Q&A person have multi-generational farming connections. Another cool “cycle of life” story in this issue was brought to me by Karen Moe, a writer, photographer and performance artist who now splits her time between Vancouver and Mexico. Karen researched and photographed Galiano Island Cemetery, a unique spot for the living and their departed loved ones. This fall promises to be rich with arts activities. We’ve highlighted a few of those with stories about the Salt Spring Basketry Guild’s 20th-anniversary celebrations and the second biennial Salt Spring National Art Prize event. SSNAP opens Sept. 22 with a month-long exhibit and related activities. Our story about Pender Island painter Judith Walker reminds us that along with stocking up on Gulf Islands produce for the winter, fall is a great time to take creative workshops and lessons. — Gail Sjuberg
Aqua Gulf Islands
Living
This issue published Sept. 6, 2017 Publisher: Amber Ogilvie Editor: Gail Sjuberg Art Director & Production: Lorraine Sullivan Advertising: Fiona Foster, Drew Underwood Aqua Writers: Cherie Thiessen, Roger Brunt, Elizabeth Nolan, Karen Moe, Marcia Jansen, Gail Sjuberg Aqua Photographers: Sean Hitrec, Jen MacLellan, Cherie Thiessen, Karen Moe, Gail Sjuberg, Marcia Jansen Cover photo of young Heritage Day visitor on Salt Spring Aqua is published by Driftwood Publishing Ltd., 328 Lower Ganges Road, Salt Spring Island, B.C. V8K 2V3 Phone: 250-537-9933 / Email: news@driftwoodgimedia.com Websites: www.driftwoodgimedia.com; www.gulfislandstourism.com; www.gulfislandsdriftwood.com Publications Mail Reg. #08149 Printed in Canada
Soapstone
Phone: (250)650-1213
e-mail: info@islandsoapstone.com
It’s like blue jeans for your countertops
www.IslandSoapstone.com
Vancouver Island’s only dedicated soapstone shop, located in beautiful Maple Bay, BC!
Now fabricating a line of Quartz starting at $85/sq.ft. September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 5
Charlotte Gill, Pauline Holdstock, Kevin Patterson, Guy Vanderhaeghe • For people who want to put food by for winter months, Galiano and several more. See sidneyliteraryfestival.ca for all the details. Island is holding its fifth annual Stock Up! Market at the South • Another regional festival is the Sept. 8 to 10 Koksilah Music Galiano Community Hall. On Saturday, Oct. 14, the last farmers’ Festival at Tl’ulpalus (Cowichan Bay). The lineup includes market of the season, islanders and visitors can load up on local amazing Indigenous musicians, artists and speakers from the fish, lamb, beef, root veggies, greens, garlic, tomatillos, peppers, resurgence movement as well as supportive performers from around squash, tomatoes, cabbage, apples, preserves and pickles. For the Pacific Northwest. Information is at koksilahfestival.com. information about vending, contact galianofoodprograms@gmail. • The Galiano Island Library is one of the island’s venues com or phone 250-539-2175. for art exhibitions. From Sept. 6 through Oct. 27, Victoria• Salt Spring Apple Festival organizers have some sweet news based painter Barbara Wilson will present abstract work to share. They are selling the entire collection of organic apples titled Coming From Nowhere: Thoughts Beyond Reality. from the Oct. 1 festival to the highest bidder. Last Wilson says that her practice is to meditate until no year’s event saw 430 labelled apple varieties preconceived forms remain in her mind, and only amassed. Event coordinator Harry Burton suggests then to touch the canvas. “Going into the canvas is buyers could create an “apple show” in like practising a martial art,” she says. “Painting is their community, set up an apple sampling a connection to the breath. We can, through art, party and/or an educational exhibit. He connect with the sense of rhythms of the body. can be reached for more information at Painting can be holotropic, a shamanic harryburton@shaw.ca. dance, precipitating an altered state.” • Authors and readers who love the written Wilson will be in the library on Thursday, word are converging this month in Sidney. From Sept. 14 between 1 and 4 p.m. to chat with Sept. 22-24, the Sidney & Peninsula Literary visitors about her work. Festival will run at the Mary Winspear Centre. Mob Bounce performs at Participating writers include M.A.C. Farrant, Koksilah Music Festival.
Ask our residents:
Life is beautiful here. Connie is a prolific artist who shares her passion by inspiring fellow residents.
IN SIDNE Y BY THE SEA
Page 6 – AQUA –September/October 2017
LOCALLY OWNED & OPERATED by THE TIDMAN GROUP
2300 Henry Ave. Sidney l 250.656.8822 l welcometonorgarden.ca AQUA 63
Shot on location in Connie’s studio in Peninsula at Norgarden
Independent and assisted living choices for today’s senior
Joni’s local Investment Advisory Service has an emphasis on the highest quality professional advice and service along with integrated wealth management.
COVERI NG THE ISLANDS
Protecting and growing your wealth.
Meet with Joni Ganderton
R. Joni Ganderton mba cfp
S EA F I R ST I N S U RA NC E B ROK E R S
Investment Advisor and Financial Planner
Suite 1103 - 115 Fulford-Ganges Rd., SSI, BC V8K 2T9
537-1654 Questions? e-mail Joni.Ganderton@nbpcd.com www.joniganderton.com
Ph: 250-537-5527 • Fax: 250-537-9700 Website: seafirstinsurance.com
® “BMO (M-bar roundel symbol)” is a registered trade-mark of Bank of Montreal, used under licence. “Nesbitt Burns” and “BMO Nesbitt Burns Advance Program” are registered trade-marks of BMO Nesbitt Burns Corporation Limited, used under licence.
HENRI PROC + ER personal real estate corporation
101-170 FulFord-GAnGes roAd, sAlT sprinG islAnd, BriTish ColumBiA V8K 2T8 Ph 250.537.1201 • henriprocter@gmail.com • www.realtysaltspringisland.com
The Birds And The Bees
$1,499,000
A timeless custom country estate, completely enchanting on 18 sun soaked acres of mainly wetlands, with some growing areas. An ideal situation for bird watchers and lovers of the natural world, with wide open views from all angles. With extensive tasteful upgrades, this home is lovingly cared for and impeccably maintained. A romantic wrap around and covered deck, provides a welcoming entry to the quality built residence. Flowing floor plan designed with oversized living spaces for both formal and informal living; spacious and luminous. A true gourmet kitchen with custom cabinetry, high end appliances and gleaming granite countertops. An attached greenhouse provides fresh lemons, limes and other tropical fruits, and is ideal for year round growing. A very special place. AWArd oF eXCellenCe 2016
Gold 2016
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 7
Farms
★★★
Mayne Island’s Hards crabble Farm By Cherie Thiessen | Photos by cherie thiessen except as noted
Amber Albrecht and Michael Berger live in a former blacksmith’s shop with their daughter Frances (Frankie), a lively and lucky
toddler who gets to play outside way more than most children and who loves her yard — all 75 acres of it — and her red wagon. The small family lives and works on a Mayne Island heritage farm west of Bennett Bay, a 10-minute drive from the ferry, where they produce organic fruit, flowers and vegetables as well as free-range eggs. Page 8 – AQUA –September/October 2017
The property stretches almost as far as the eye can see: rife with wildflowers, grasses, heritage trees, gardens and a large pond. Originally the acreage was bought by Mayne Island pioneers John and Margaret Deacon, who came from England in 1879 and purchased the land three years later from Rutherford Hope. One of their subsequent six children, Dalton Deacon, later took over the land and built a successful farm and business. Four years ago Albrecht and Berger arrived to carry on the tradition, managing the farm as caretakers. Later, Andy Blackburn arrived and you could say they now form a co-op of three. (Three and a quarter if we count little Frankie.) “I was WWOOFing for over three years,” says Blackburn, “and Mayne was my first season on a farm. Then in between that I did a few jobs in the U.K. where I’m originally from. I went back there for a year and did an organic apprenticeship but I missed out here too much so was thinking of coming back. Then Amber sent an email saying they were having a baby and were going to need some help and would I be interested in coming back and joining the little team here.” (WWOOFing, stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms.) “We work around each other’s schedule and I’ve been lucky enough to get some part-time work at the local brewery as well.” He has a visa to stay for a year but hopes to make that more permanent if he can. “I love it here — we’ll see.” The old blacksmith shop, built in the early 20th century, has long since been converted into a spacious, light-filled home. The Deacon farmhouse goes back far earlier than that and today we sit chatting around its large table, with considerable input from the co-op’s tiniest member.
Above: Amber Albrecht feeds chickens at Hardscrabble Farm. Previous page: At top, from left, Michael Berger, Albrecht and Andy Blackburn, with Frankie in the wagon. At bottom, kale crops.
T WO SPECIAL PROPERTIES ON A SPECIAL ISLAND!
Superb lowbank oceanfront! English country charming home, feature fireplace, country kitchen, family room, 2 bed, 1 bath, sunny decking, sep guest studio. In premier area of fine homes. Just move in! MLS# R2162325 $2,328,000
Beachfront cottage with lowbank oceanfront. Sunny 3.44 acres. Crushed shell and sand beach. Heirloom orchard. Sunny & private property. MLS# R2182838 $998,000
See Li for Successful Solutions! Platinum Collection Visit Li Read at her office at #4 -105 Rainbow Rd. across from Ganges Marina Contact Li Read today at 250-537-7647 or LiRead33@Gmail.com Visit www.LiRead.ca for a showcase of fine properties for sale! MLS Medallion Award, 2016 and MLS President’s Award, 2016 September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 9
“I stopped drawing plants and began just growing them.” — AMBER ALBRECHT
How did they wind up here, I’m wondering? Berger, who grew up in Saskatchewan, tells me he happened to know the owner of Hardscrabble Farm’s daughter, “So when she found out we were planning on moving out west, she suggested we come here as caretakers. We always said we wanted a large farm and then we got the opportunity to come here. We had intended to head to Vancouver to find jobs but we couldn’t pass this up.” Although Albrecht was originally from Surrey, neither had ever been to the Gulf Islands before. The new mom, who gently reaches across to remove a pen from Frankie’s grasp, nods: “Yes, we’re keeping things small, efficient and flexible while producing a wide range of food and flowers to serve Mayne Island. This approach to small market gardening will allow us to apply what we are doing in whatever situation we find ourselves in. The farm has fairly good loamy soil, though in spots it has a tendency towards clay. We add a great deal of compost, especially for the heavy feeders (garlic, tomatoes, etc.). We fertilize with our own granular organic mix as well as liquid fish and kelp fertilizer, and do periodic soil tests and then lime, fertilize and amend as required. We’re trying to utilize cover crops more, at least for breaking new garden ground.” Albrecht, who always loved gardening, had to settle for a “balPage 10 – AQUA –September/October 2017
cony garden” of herbs and flowers during the 12 years she lived in a Montreal apartment. But then she did a small farm internship. “Six weeks in the U.S. with bees, dairy cows, chickens, and ducks,” she says. “I was also learning early vegetable gardening and that got me interested.” The Concordia University graduate, who has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a major in studio arts, had always been an artist, mainly focusing on plants and flowers. “Eventually I got a job landscaping and did that for a few years and then we moved here. I stopped drawing plants and began just growing them.” Let’s hope that situation is only temporary. This modest organic farmer has had over two dozen solo and group exhibitions and when I look at her impressive artwork on her website I can see why. The couple, who have been together for seven years, consider themselves very lucky. “There are many reasons why we keep going with the farming,” says Albrecht. “These include having that compulsion to grow things and having the infrastructure to do that here, wanting to be self-employed and to be on the farm as much as possible while raising our daughter, and being able to eat amazing food
GAIL SJUBERG photo
and to offer it to everyone around us. We are also constantly learning new skills of all types. We’re keeping fit and healthy and we know that organic farming is so important for the planet. In addition, we know that every year we are getting better at this.” “We look after the farm for the owner, that’s the main thing, and the market farming part is our thing,” adds Berger. “We sell eggs and produce at the gate, at the farmers market and also at the Farm Gate store.” Their harvest, thriving in four garden plots (the largest measuring 12’x100’), consists of peppers, cucamelons, melons, spinach, basil, lettuce, garlic, fennel, green beans, onions, scallions, celeriac, eggplants, cucumbers, tomatoes, peas, lettuce, strawberries and copious greens that grow happily in the 30’x50’ greenhouse. Their two dozen chickens and nine ducks produce
a variety of eggs, and they especially love growing their plethora of flowers. “Unlike vegetables, flowers don’t have to taste good,” smiles Berger. “It’s enough that they look good.” Frankie loves the flowers too and can often be seen these days in their company, possibly contemplating how it is that something that looks so good can’t be eaten. “There aren’t many opportunities like this,” Berger adds. “The owner is very generous. We would like to buy land on Mayne one day but could never get anything remotely like this so it’s really nice to be here. We’re very privileged.” Albrecht’s work can be seen at www. amberalbrecht.com or on instagram: www. instagram.com/aalbrechtt. Photos and information on Hardscrabble Farm are constantly updated on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HardscrabbleFarmMayne/
GAIL SJUBERG photo
Above: Albrecht serves customers at the Mayne Island Farmers' Market. Below: Flowers at the Hardscrabble market table. Previous page: Part of the Hardscrabble Farm property.
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 11
Islanders
Once a farmer, always a farmer The extraordinary life of George and Flo Laundry BY ROGER BRUNT Photos by SEAN HITREC
Page 12 – AQUA –September/October 2017
T
he first time I met George Laundry, he told me that his Burgoyne Valley farm was like Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony, the Pastorale. “First of all,” he said, “there’s cheerful music depicting arrival in the country. The second movement depicts a thunder storm, which I see as drifting away to the east over the San Juan Islands. And finally, the fifth movement, which is the Shepherd’s Song, leaving everyone happy and cheerful after the storm.” As George is telling me this, it occurs to me that I am talking to a very interesting man. As it turns out, that is a considerable understatement. George Laundry and his wife Florence have had a truly extraordinary life. George’s father was one of Salt Spring’s original pioneers, arriving here in 1910. “He paid the homestead fee of $500 for the property on Mount Bruce,” says George. “He was neighbours with a man named Muldoon — they had fought on opposite sides in the Boer War (1899-1902). When Muldoon moved away, Dad bought his property too.
“Dad married his wife Elizabeth in 1926. They must have had high hopes for their life together.” Raising sheep in the high country above Musgrave Landing could be lucrative. Most of the wool was sold to the Cowichan Tribe, used for their famous knitted Cowichan sweaters. George has one of his dad’s receipts with Cowichan Chief Louis George. It says: “Received the sum of five dollars for wool to be taken on or before June 15th 1937.” “I also have some of Dad’s old account books and they show 36 different customers for his lambs,” George said. “The dock at Musgrave Landing was the centre of things in those days, long before Ganges or Fulford Harbour became well established. The supply boat came Tuesdays and Thursdays, stopping at Chemainus with its big sawmill, and Nanaimo, then back to Victoria. Dad’s homestead was up the mountain about two miles from Musgrave. There is an old lake on his property. I still own 40 acres there. It’s remarkable that Dad was able to keep the land for his children.” George says that some of his father’s wealthy neighbours owned 5,000 to 6,000 sheep, but their operations were bound to fail as the Depression took George Laundry holds a picture of himself receiving a track award its toll.
PaulZolob
from Salt Spring Consolidated School principal John Foubister.
PAUL ZOLOB
250-526-2626
email: paul@paulzolob.com
Looking for a real estate agent on Salt Spring Island?
Call Paul “Let’s get you moving” Duncan Realty
Salt Spring Office
INDEPENDENTLY OWNED AND OPERATED
342 Lower Ganges Rd. Salt Spring Island September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 13
Above: Flo Laundry with trophies won for bridge playing. Page 12: Flo and George Laundry on the deck of their Burgoyne Valley home. Page 15: George points to an apple tree planted by his grandfather more than 100 years ago.
In 1938, the Laundry family moved down to property they owned in the Burgoyne Valley. “The house where we lived, and where my mom lived for many years after the kids left home, is still there, now just a pile of old timbers in the brambles. There were four of us kids, my brother and I, and two sisters. They went to school opposite the little white church on Fulford-Ganges Road. The building is still there and you can tell by the roofline that it was a school. I was the youngest by six years and went to the new school in Ganges in 1942. “Running sheep on the mountain contributed to my athleticism,” George says. “In high school in Ganges at that time it was said there were only four runners in Canada who could do the 100-yard dash in 10 seconds. I was one of them and I continued to coach track right up until the late 1970s, as well as soccer and badminton.” Aside from his athletic skills, George was what you would call a precocious child. He was intelligent, curious and disciplined, later becoming a highly regarded physics department head in Ontario. Among his many achievements was an appearance on a Science TV show with his classes, and he even became an amateur stand-up comedian. When George says, “I was five years old before I realized my name wasn’t ‘Get Wood,’ you’re never quite sure whether he is telling you the truth.” There’s one thing I do know is true. In his youth, George designed and built a straight snake fence. It is still standing beside his driveway. A model of the fence is displayed in the Canadian Museum of Fences in Ontario. George built the fence because farmers in the valley were always teasing the kids to be “useful.” George proved that he was! It was in his early university days that George met Flo. “As soon as we met, we both saw something eternal,” says George.
10,000 SQUARE FEET of planet-friendly shopping – with heart!
Organic and Non-GMO: produce, bulk food, dairy, cheese, meat, herbs, spices, oils, supplements, medicinals, superfoods, pet food and more! Lots of vegan and gluten-free options.
Serving the Cowichan Valley since 1993
Page 14 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Even a trip to visit Salt Spring, with Flo in three-inch heels, in a sea of mud, did not deter her. They have now been married for 56 years, and have four children. The two sons were born in Kimberley, where George taught physics as head of the science department at Selkirk High School. Every Friday, the Canadian Olympic Ski Team (some of whom should have been in his class) would practise right across the valley from the school. George and his students would watch them, and it was then that one of George’s jokes backfired. “Word got out that, as a physicist, I was teaching the skiers aerodynamics. It was a joke, but it stuck, and has been widely reported ever since.” After three years, the family left Kimberley for Ontario, where Flo had lived. “Our two daughters were born in Ontario, shortly after we moved east in 1967 and 1968,” says Flo. “We moved into my grandmother’s old home, which was empty as she had just been moved into a nursing home. We stayed in that home until coming back to B.C. in 1995." George did his graduate work in 1972-1974 when he won an international fellowship to New York State University, where he earned his masters degree, with his research done on a linear accelerator. During his long teaching career, one of his proudest achievements was developing a series of texts designed to help teach students physics. The program won an international award for excellence in science education. He also wrote support material for a number of series for TV Ontario. “I worked 20 hours a day, and wrote the first one, Dimensions in Science, in 12 days and turned it in a day early. The staff could not believe a TV project coming in early. No one had ever done that before. It seemed like I was always doing things that nobody had done before and, over the years, was fortunate to receive all kinds of awards.” Flo and George loved playing bridge and were very good at it. “One of my proudest achievements,” Flo told me, “was when we beat the world champion bridge team at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto, with hundreds of teams playing.” Another activity that George takes pride in is having taken many students to other countries during March break. On one trip to Greece, a student challenged him to race on the track that had been part of the original Olympics. George won the race and a bottle of ouzo. In 1993, George and Flo began planning their retirement alongside Fulford Creek on the property next to where George’s mother Elizabeth had lived. In 1995, George flew into Ganges, knowing he was home for good. Flo followed a few months later when the house they designed was being built. “It was like I had never left,” George says. “My heart was always in agriculture. A friend had one said, ‘Once a farmer, always a farmer,’ and I guess I’m still nothing but a farmer.” But not quite an ordinary farmer. Since his return to the island, George has been an active member of the Salt Spring Farmers’ Institute, the Islands Trust’s
Agricultural Advisory Planning Commission and the Salt Spring Farmers’ Heritage Foundation, which supports Bittancourt House Museum, and several other groups. Touring the gardens on the Laundry’s farm, the love of the land is obvious. “I was taught that there are two things that are important on a farm,” George says. “One was to preserve and protect your family. The other was to leave the land in better shape than you found it.” George maintains seven different garden plots, including The Garden of Forever, based on the Temple of Hera at Delphi, with its geometric brick design and pathways that meander through the meadows and never intersect. “Can you see the evidence of science throughout the farm?” George asks. In the Garden of Forever, George grows many different roses, each one for an important person in his life. There is also a famous orchard on the property, which is about 120 years old. “The old timers knew their stuff,” George says. “They knew which trees were best for pollination, which were sweetest, which were best for cooking, and which fruit kept the best.” He adds: “There’s something very exciting happening now in agriculture on Salt Spring Island. Fifty per cent of the land I grew up on is no longer agricultural. It has been out of production for years. That’s a shame, but when I grew up in the Burgoyne Valley, there were no farm stands. Now there are many, along with the Burgoyne Valley Community Gardens. There is now a serious recognition and concern about sustainability and shopping locally for what we eat.” The Laundrys couldn't be happier to be part of the valley. “We believe that Pastorale is the most comfortable place in the universe and we have so many happy memories here. We live in the best country in the world, and Salt Spring is the best part of that. It gives us hope for our future and that of our children and grandchildren onward.”
“My heart was always in agriculture.” — GEORGE LAUNDRY
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 15
Community
Cemetery
Life
The eternal swirl and lap of Active Pass, the huff of seals, a salmon-skin
sea and the deepest forest green; wind moves perceptively within arbutus and fir, and all peek into a soulful tempest to subside, rest, until again: always again. This is the view from the Galiano Island Cemetery.
Page 16 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Unique remembrances at the Galiano Island Cemetery Story by Karen Moe photos by karen moe, except as noted
Set in conglomerate cliffs lies one of the most personalized and celebratory cemeteries I have ever been in. Every plot in the Galiano Cemetery is its own island, each still living the lives of the deceased. The land that is home to Galiano’s cemetery has been a site of burial since time immemorial. Historian Mary Ellen Harding tells us that before the European settlers came, the Indigenous buried their dead high up in the trees. In 1860, Henry (Scotty) Georgeson purchased the land and, accord-
ing to Harding, it was used for a time as a private cemetery. In 1928, George Georgeson gave the traditional lands of burial to the island community. The bequeathment letter designated the land “for the purposes of a place of burial for residents of Galiano Island … without charge.” It would be given “wide interpretation so as to include ties by marriage as well as blood relations.” Georgeson descendant Lorne Silvi told me how Galiano’s cemetery is an Indigenous and European mix; it traces the legacy of the inter-marriages of the island where, according to Silvi, no one is quite Indigenous and no one is quite European. Unlike urban cemeteries that are often segregated based on race, culture and economic status, a levelling of difference gives all residents the same freedom to be buried there and, at the same time, divine a memorial that best represents their loved one. Groundskeeper Jack Garton explains how “rural cemeteries are left to their own devices with no government support” and, as such, are free of provincial regulations. Because there is no charge for plots, the cemetery is also not affected by business interests. Like the reclusive nature of Gulf Islanders, the cemetery exists off the grid, so to
speak, and there are no restrictions as to the kinds of monuments permitted and the modalities of mourning practised. Jeannine Georgeson (George’s great granddaughter) describes the cemetery as being “eclectic like Galiano [and how] no one has to conform.” She views urban cemeteries as “flat and manicured” and told me how “ours is the way Galiano is. We are all different and express ourselves differently and honour our dead differently. It’s not all just the same.” The peripheral location of the cemetery on the Gulf Islands results in gravesite memorials that are liberated from constraint. They are playful, unique and intimate. Wally Eugene Schah (also known as “Wally the Meat Man”) and his wife Beverly both have a Bowen Island Reef Break Blond Ale at their disposal, a ceramic shoe knick-knack stands guard and their driveway name sign continues its greeting. Some are modest mounds that merge with the sea mists and fecund green, decorated with local oyster shells and sandstone that compose their beloved eulogy. Sweet Dreams, one says, corroding sandstone at its head. Garton told me how
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 17
Coastal
Getaways
B
Open year-round with daily ferry service.
B
Beacon Inn AT
RESORT
LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND
Fall Rates starting at $149
premier cottage rentals close to town and amenities
9 HOUSEKEEPING COTTAGES
info@lakeshoreonsaltspring.com Lakeshoreonsaltspring.com • 1-888-537-4854
www.bluevistaresort.com bluevista@bluevistaresort.com
Come on over the fish are biting
1-877-535-2424
SIDNEY
5 Star Luxury in the Heart of Sidney
250-539-2463
Complimentary • Gourmét breakfasts • Parking & WiFi
9724 3rd St., Sidney BC | 1.877.420.5499 | www.thebeaconinn.com
vacation ON THE GULF ISLANDS
Come and enjoy our island paradise! Salt Spring, Pender, Mayne, Gabriola, Galiano and Saturna are the most popular Gulf Islands and offer daily ferries from both Vancouver and Victoria. Offering a variety of activities and services to the visitor these islands are all well
known for their unique character, natural beauty and tranquility. Bring your friends and family to explore the rocky shores of these islands, kayaking the waters between them, or simply browsing through the local craft markets.
For details on accommodations, restaurants, things to do, attractions, events information and maps
gulfislandstourism.com
Page 18 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Above: Memorial for Gerry Hopson created by Michael Maclean of Monuments of Love & Life. (Photo by Michael Maclean) At left: Bronze and basalt stone monument by Michael Maclean. (Photo by Michael Maclean) Below: Maclean, left, and groundskeeper Jack Garton in the Galiano Cemetery.
The personalities of the dearly departed dance in the shifting light of the deep forest. two young men who died in the Cap Rouge II fishing boat accident in 2002 — Roddy Wilson and Tony Head — are honoured annually with a Galiano softball tournament. Their gravesites include tourney T-shirts and softballs that are replaced after each year's event, symbolically keeping a passion of the men alive within the hearts of the families and the Galiano community. The personalities of the dearly departed dance in the shifting light of the deep forest. A cultural space that we in the West typically imbue with stoicism and sorrow is light-hearted along with, and perhaps because of, the strains of epic one feels through the detail and personal touches that vitalize each site. In addition to the quaint and personalized grave markers, over the last seven years, sculptor Michael Maclean of Monuments of Love & Life has been contributing another layer to the poetry of the Galiano Island Cemetery. The artist does not call the stone and bronze markers he creates “tombstones.” He calls them “monuments.” Maclean explains how, for him, the “formality of tombstones can inhibit communicating in a full way the person that they claim to be speaking about.” The September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 19
No bars, no springs, no sagging. the comfort Sleeper™ is in a category by itself. It’s not only a gorgeous piece of furniture. Solid platforms provide even support for the full-length, high-density foam or gel mattress. and, the patented mechanism opens and closes almost effortlessly. No other sleeper is as comfortable, because no other sleeper compares. available in 13 styles in Fabric or Leather.
ON Sale NOw
The New Breckin Queen Size Only 68” wide Complimentary Design serviCe
1802 Government Street 250.386.3841 | SaGerS.ca mon-Sat 9:30-5:30 Page 20 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Above: Bev and Wally Schah's spot in the cemetery. Top right: A beautiful Monuments of Love & Life memorial. (Michael Maclean photo) Below: Alan McEwan Buttery's memorial.
sculptor describes his creative process as opportunities “to continue living within their joy and the joy of having known them” and not as fixed in a tombstone’s restrictive emulation of loss but, rather, residing in “the joy of remembering.” Maclean made his first monument and contribution to the life of the Galiano Cemetery for a dear friend and local writer, Gerry Hopson. Seated within the hollow of a mossy stump is a badger made of B.C. marble that Maclean says hearkens back to the generous and wise badger of The Wind in the Willows. The artist shared a childhood love for the book with Gerry and says his friend really was like Badger. The badger holds the writer’s pen with which he inscribes the writer’s signature onto a marble book. Hopson was an avid collector of beach stones and often wore a vest. In keeping with his process of incorporating personal artifacts into the monuments, Maclean dons the badger in the deceased’s characteristic vest that is meticulously inlaid with beach stones from this longtime Galiano resident’s collection.
This monument sits, encapsulating the watchful essence of a writer and, as a lover of this land, on the periphery, looking over the cemetery’s lush slope towards the sea. In Maclean’s words, in keeping with the wisdom of his friend, “looking beyond what is visible to us … looking over it all.” Jeannine Georgeson says that when she feels stressed, she goes to the Galiano Cemetery to be consoled and rejuvenated by the presence of her ancestors. Indeed, instead of the cemetery being a place where one ruminates on the loss of loved ones, for Georgeson, the so-called deceased give her strength to overcome the struggles of everyday life. Set amidst century-old fir and cedar and in the company of the eternal vitalization of the Active Pass, the cemetery is a regenerative place. There is no closure here in a nullifying sense; rather, the mourning that the Galiano Cemetery provides its community is fully alive with remembrance. The deceased continue to be an integral part of the community and are still present within the lives of their living. September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 21
Sidney, The Shortest Distance to Far Away
Sidney, The Shortest Distance to Far Away
“Nice Rooms, Great People” Vic toria airport/Sidney
• Complimentary Shuttle to & from Airport & Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal • Kitchenette Rooms • Pet Friendly • Complimentary Continental Breakfast
Managing the World’s Most Managing the World’s Most Important Investments … Important Investments …
Sidney by the
Sea
Sidney is alive with chatter — friends meet for lunch, patrons stroll down the high-street with treasures stowed in their bags. Seagulls glide over rooftops, and the sweet, salty smell of ocean air fills the town. This is Sidney, a place to rest your mind, stimulate your senses, enjoy some retail therapy and remind yourself that “vacation” can be as close as the town next door. It’s a place where shop owners know their customers by name, where the barista remembers your favourite drink, and where you’re just as likely to run into a neighbour as you are to share a laugh with a new acquaintance. It’s a place surrounded by forests, farm fields and ocean; where you can cycle in on the Lochside Regional Trail, or arrive by bus or car in minutes. Here, the sidewalks are decorated with flowers, sculptures and people, and the vibe is relaxed.
Sidney
by the Sea
Sidney is alive with chatter — friends meet for lunch, patrons stroll down the high-street with treasures Feeling alone, scared, 2280 Beacon ave., Sidney, B.c. or confused with Feeling alone, scared, stowed in their bags. Seagulls glide over rooftops, and Forwith reservations call toll free: 1-866 656-1176 or confused your investments? . oryour email: info@airporttravelodge.com www.travelodgevictoriaairport.ca investments? Call us for coffee the sweet, salty smell of ocean air fills the town. and a chat. Call us for coffee and a chat. This is Sidney, a place Sto! rest your mind, stimulate Managing the World’s Most PRICE E L B EDI CRsenses, Important Investments... IN your enjoy some retail ! s r u o Y Looking for a second therapy and remind yourself that “vacation” can be as opinion or have questions ruO yrT emoC about Socially close as the town next door. Responsible sdeB lbatsujdA Investing? It’s a place where shop owners!know theirecustomers • Mattresses • Sleep Chests Call us for coffee by name, where the barista • Adjustable Beds and a chat. • Bed Frames • Upholstered Beds remembers your favourite drink, and where you’re ,daPVISIT i rutoDAY! oyOUR esu :flesruoy taerT Visit our showroom Annette Quan Viola Van de Ruyt VT has ctalikely w ro to darun er ,rinto etupam oc Investment Advisor Investment Advisor Senior Investment Associate just neighbour as you are to Showroom Today! Annette Quan Viola Van de Ruyt l o r t n o c e t o m e R . y r u x u l e r u p ni • Mattresses Investment Advisor Investment Advisor from the highway, 250.657.2222 250.657.2220 .tnMinutes em sMcDonald ujda Park oiRdtisop ysae rof • Sleep Chests viola.vanderuyt@nbc.ca just offta share laughncentre) with a new acquaintance. It’s a place annette.quan@nbc.ca 250.657.2222 250.657.2220 (exit by information • Adjustable Beds www.annettequan.com www.violavanderuyt.ca annette.quan@nbc.ca viola.vanderuyt@nbc.ca dulocean; cnI stwhere fieneByou htlaeH 205-2537 Beacon Avenue Sidney, BC surrounded by forests, farm fields:eand www.annettequan.com • Bed Frames www.violavanderuyt.ca www.violavanderuyt.ca n o i t a l u c r i C d e v orpmI • Locally owned & operated by the owners of Murphy Wall-Beds • Upholstered Beds can cycle in on the Lochside Regional Trail, niaP or kcarrive aB deby saerceD • Annette Annette Quan Quan ViolaViola Van Van de Ruyt de Ruyt 3-2062 HENRY AVE. WEST SIDNEY Investment Investment AdvisorAdvisor Investment Investment Advisor Advisor yrujnI ro yreg ruS morf yrevoceR • 778-351-2113 busWeorarecarhere!in minutes. Here, the sidewalks are decorated 250.657.2222 250.657.2222 250.657.2220 250.657.2220 www.sidneymattress.com annette.quan@nbc.ca annette.quan@nbc.caviola.vanderuyt@nbc.ca viola.vanderuyt@nbc.ca ywith end iS W esculptures vA yrneand H 26 02-3#and|the 3 1vibe 1 2 .is1 5 3 . 8 7 7 flowers, people, www.annettequan.com www.annettequan.comwww.violavanderuyt.ca www.violavanderuyt.ca Page 22 – AQUA –September/October 2017 moc.sserttamyendis.www relaxed.
Yours! Yours!
E iBL rED iNC iCEs Pr
rici
Pat
wy
ay H
aB
778-351-2113 | 3 - 2062 Henry Ave., Sidney | SidneyMAttreSS.CoM
National Bank Financial is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of National Bank of Canada. The National Bank of Canada is a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (NA:TSX). National Bank Financial is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of National Bank of Canada. The National Bank of Canada is a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (NA:TSX).
CALL TODAY
2062 Henry Ave. West
With a population of just 11,600, Sidney has an unparalleled number of boutique shops and eateries for its size. It has garnered international acclaim for the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea, the Mary Winspear Centre, the Sidney Sculpture Walk and the legendary Thursday night street market that stretches along four blocks of Beacon Avenue. It’s also Canada’s first and only Booktown, featuring six independent bookstores. Now home to Victoria Distillers, guests can tour the facility and sample innovative cocktail creations, with the ocean as the perfect backdrop. With expansive views of the Salish Sea, the chance to uncover local artisans, shop for unique goods, find that perfect read, enjoy a handcrafted crepe, sip a cocktail, or sample dozens of fine restaurants, Sidney is truly a town of experiences.
With a population of just 11,600, Sidney has an unparalleled number of boutique shops and eateries for its size. It has garnered international acclaim for the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea, the MaryPLAN Winspear YOUR TRIP Centre, the Sidney Sidney SculptureDestination Walk and the legendary Information distinctlysidney.ca Thursday night street market that stretches along four blocks of Beacon Avenue. It’s also Canada’s first and only Booktown, featuring six independent bookstores. Now home to Victoria Distillers, guests can tour the facility and sample innovative cocktail creations, with the ocean as the perfect backdrop. With expansive views of the Salish Sea, the chance to uncover local artisans, shop for unique goods, find that perfect read, enjoy a handcrafted crepe, sip a cocktail, or sample dozens of fine restaurants, Sidney is truly a town of experiences.
PLAN YOUR TRIP Sidney Destination Information
distinctlysidney.ca
>idney ˙harmacy ¤td. Fast, friendly COMPLETE SERVICE or phone for refills and talk to a “real” person! 2425B BEVAN AVE., SIDNEY 250-656-0744 MONDAY - FRIDAY 09:00 AM - 05:30 PM
Did you know that we have a retail shop?
Visit during lounge hours and take away some spirit of your own including the NEW Empress 1908 Gin 9891 Seaport Place, Sidney, BC • 250.544.8217
www.victoriadistillers.com
@vicdistillers
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 23
vacation ON THE GULF ISLANDS Come and enjoy our island paradise!
Salt Spring, Pender, Mayne, Gabriola, Galiano and Saturna are the most popular Gulf Islands and offer daily ferries from both Vancouver and Victoria. Offering a variety of activities and services to the visitor these islands are all well known for their unique character, natural beauty and tranquility. Bring your friends and family to explore the rocky shores of these islands, kayaking the waters between them, or simply browsing through the local craft markets.
For details on accommodations, restaurants, things to do, attractions, events information and maps
gulfislandstourism.com Page 24 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Arts Groups
Weaving Community Salt Spring Basketry Guild celebrates 20th anniversary
kelly wilson photo
photo courtesy joan carrigan
BY ELIZABETH NOLAN Photos as credited
Guild members with Irish potato baskets made at a 2013 Katherine Lewis workshop.
The Salt Spring Basketry Guild is celebrating a special milestone this year, as 2017 marks 20 years since the
founding members first decided to elevate their individual passions into a more structured group setting.
To celebrate the guild’s two decades in action, a number of different events have been scheduled throughout this year. The group has already launched a “land art” show at ArtCraft and led a class at the Salt Spring Conservancy’s first ever Art & Nature Fest. Heritage Day demos and a workshop for school kids at Mahon Hall have also been big hits. Things come to an exciting head this fall, starting with a monthlong retrospective display featuring members’ work at the Salt Spring Public Library. Basketry demonstrations and hands-on basketry making with a focus on kids of all ages will take place in the program
Curly willow nest by basket maker Joan Carrigan.
room on Oct. 21, while a show of new work runs at the Salt Spring Gallery from Oct. 12 to 24. None of this would have been possible if Joan Carrigan had not invited a small group of people to come together and share their interest in learning basketry back in 1997, with Donna Cochran, another founding member, enthusiastically stepping in to organize. Lorna Cammaert and Denise McCann-Beck were other key supporters in the guild’s early days. “Very early on it was an active, creative group,” Carrigan says during a recent interview at her home on St. Mary Lake, where she grows around a dozen types of willow for her classes and personal use. Carrigan had already established a teaching practice on the island when the guild idea took root. The two women met through one of those classes. For Cochran, translating her love of baskets into actually making them was an addicting experience — something she says is common in first-time workshop participants. Basketry is
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 25
Books Coastal
community-minded l globally connected
Celebrating 20 Years of bookselling on Galiano! www.galianoliteraryfestival.com
Discover a great selection of new and second-hand titles in our six unique bookshops, all within easy walking distance in beautiful Sidney BC.
Open year-round with over 50,000 titlesfrom the comfort of This season shop online plus a great selection of Canadian authors, your home. Visit our webstore for used books, art supplies & gifts.
books, gifts, gift certificates and
sidneybooktown.ca
Home of Galiano Literary Festival, February 2018 much more! www.galianoliteraryfestival.com
Happy Holidays!
Shop online at www.galianoislandbooks.com
www.galianoislandbooks.com 76 Madrona Drive Galiano Island BC V0N 1P0 250 539 3340 • leetrentadue@gmail.com 250 539 3340 info@galianoislandbooks.com
76 Madrona Drive Galiano Island BC V0N 1P0
DgiM
Salt Spring Books
isis iffee plee impl ssim
Lli
e dd
eaat, E t, psl e rreeaa p, .. .
the centre oF SAlt SPrinG
Salt Spring Books
new and used books OPEN DAILY (we will be closed
✓ Books for everybody ✓ 1000s of magazine titles ✓ Nautical charts & maps
✓ Puzzles, games & toys ✓ Art supplies & stationery ✓ Email, internet, fax service
104 McPhillips Avenue, Ganges, 250-537-2812 Fax: 250-537-1926
art gallery greeting cards toys journals art supplies great gifts special orders
open 7 days on Sundays from October through a week April)
250-629-6944 250-629-6944
DriftwooD gulf islanDs MeDia
publishes the Driftwood newspaper and several magazines both in print and online. To subscribeDriftwooD call gulf islanDs
Q 4-4605 Bedwell 4-4605 Bedwell Harbour Road Harbour Rd,BC pender Island Pender V0nIsland 2M1 BC V0N 2M1
admin@talismanbooks.ca www.talismanbooks.ca
DgiM
250.537.9933 MeDia
2017 available available available l
nnua
A 11th
GIANT BOOK books books SALE
Planning books a Gulf Island Getaway ? Do you have books to donate for Salt Spring Literacy’s 2017 Giant Book Sale?
Drop them off at BMO, CIBC and Island Savings in Ganges. Jewelry for our Jewels for Literacy sale can be dropped at Cafe Talia, Mondo Trading or SS Literacy. The 2017 book & jewelry sale is on Nov. 17-19 at the SSI Farmers’ Institute.
d
Eve
ON O
gulfislandstou Salt Spring Literacy Learn. Grow. Succeed.
Page 26 – AQUA –September/October 2017
pla
The group was formally recognized as a guild by the Salt Spring Arts Council in 1998.
jen maclellan photo
an accessible place to start being creative, because it doesn’t require investment in specialized tools or equipment. When making a basket, your main tool is your hands. “I think it’s people’s sense, first of all, in basketry’s tactile nature — and then a fascination with the technique,” Cochran says. “A workshop can be frustrating initially, but people are impressed by what they can accomplish right away, and then they want to put more time and patience in.” “People are delighted and so pleased with themselves. They want to do it again,” Carrigan agrees. The group was formally recognized as a guild by the Salt Spring Arts Council in 1998. By the following year, the guild had its first gallery show as guests of the “2x6 Woodworkers Exhibition” at ArtSpring in April, and then their first ArtCraft Showcase exhibition that August. During 1999 the guild also participated at the Canadian biennial basketry conference in Naramata and accomplished getting their own display section at the Salt Spring Fall Fair, instead of being grouped in with the weavers. In 2000, the guild held Willow Week, a basketry conference that included workshops, talks and a instructor/student exhibition at ArtSpring. The international panel of instructors featured Werner Turtschi from Switzerland, Vicky Lash and Debbie McClelIand from Washington State, Rae Hunter from Alberta, Alastair Heseltine from Hornby Island and Salt Spring master Lionel Demandre. Since then, many connections have been forged, both with the international community and with basket masters closer to home. Danish willow expert Eva Seidenfaden makes regular visits to the island to give workshops. Haida basket makers Delores and Holly Churchill have also been much-appreciated instructors. The guild enjoys a high retention rate among members, perhaps because of the multiple functions the craft fulfills. After the boost of initial accomplishment, there are endless different techniques and types of materials that can be learned. “People who are gardeners and have a love of plants are naturals,” Cochran observes. There’s also a sense of connecting with traditional crafts combined with the excitement of exploring contemporary directions. Carrigan first got interested in baskets as a young woman backpacking through the South Pacific. Cochran had a similar yen during her career in teaching and international development, on trips to Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. Those who are concerned about climate change and environmental issues find basketry is a good way to practise a low-impact craft. Repurposed materials from plastic to metal wire and dried compostables like honeysuckle vines and bull kelp can all be incorporated into a stunning piece of art. The guild structure is casual, and membership is open to anyone with an interest in baskets. The numbers have reached as high as 70 at the peak 10 years in, and are now holding strong at around 50. Most members live on Salt Spring, but participants have also hailed from other parts of British Columbia, Alberta, Washington State and even Europe. “It’s a lovely group. There’s a common interest, with varying degrees of exploration. It’s a way to bring people together and explore creative pursuits,” Carrigan says.
Donna Cochran basket titled Wishful Thinking, part of a 2013 exhibit.
The benefits of joining include access to guest speakers, hands-on workshops with members and visiting instructors, field trips, exhibition opportunities and social events. These have included movie and popcorn nights, barbecues and Christmas parties, to name a few. “One of the most rewarding aspects of teaching is witnessing the friendships develop,” says Carrigan, who has watched near neighbours become acquainted for the first time in her classes. “It’s also been very popular for newcomers to the island. It’s a way for them to meet people.” In addition to other anniversary events, Carrigan will likely offer a four-week night course in which participants can learn the foundations of basketry, making three different types of baskets over the course of four nights. More information can be found on the guild’s website at www. ssibasketryguild.ca or the Salt Spring Island Basketry Guild Facebook page. September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 27
Come visit SEE WHAT WE HAVE TO OFFER!
The Cowichan Region’s name Quw’utsun’ is derived from an aboriginal word meaning “the Warm Land.” As the perfect place for growing, a great variety of produce and food products originate in the warm Cowichan Valley. Top-quality food and drink come from the region’s burgeoning farms, wineries, cideries, distilleries, fishers and artisans. For a delicious taste of Cowichan, be sure to attend the annual Savour Cowichan Festival from September 29th to October 8th.
A Natural Sleep Starts at the Very Beginning Join us at the Mums, Tums, Babies and Toddler Show Sept 9th & 10th in Nanaimo
Visit resthouse.ca/promotions for show details
126 STATION STREET, DUNCAN | 1-844-855-REST (7378) Page 28 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Come visit
our Passion, our Dedicatio Fine Jew
SEE WHAT WE HAVE TO OFFER!
Our Passion, Our Dedication, Commitment. our Passion,Our our Dedication, ou
our Passion, our Dedication, our Commitment. Fine ... Great Value Fine Fine Jewellery Jewellery… great ValueJewellery
The
BEST in the Business of
Style
world world
aa all wear Kibela and of ofthey coll co Julia, Jennifer and Cameron di and they didn’t ask for a discount!
JEANS | SHIRTS | SOCKS PANTS | TIES | BELTS | SUITS SWEATERS | JACKETS | SHOES
Julia, Jennifer andJennifer Cameron all wear Kibela andall theywear didn’tKibela ask for a discount! Julia, and Cameron
250 748 7709 | 211 CRAIG STREET DOWNTOWN DUNCAN
world of collectibles
• Belly Dance Outfits & Accessories • LPs • Books • Comics & Magazines • Crystal
250 748 7709 – 211 Craig Street – Downtown DunCan &&Accessories Accessories
jewellery
outlooksformen.com a
• •Brass Brass • • Toys Toys LARGEST SELECTION OF SILVER JEWELLERY DIAMOND - PLATINUM AN • •LPs LPs - GOLD ON THE WESTCOAST • •Sports Sport SELECTION OF SILVER JEWELLER • •Books Books Julia, Jennifer and Cameron all wear Kibela and they didn’t ask • •Dague Dagu 250Craig 748 7709Street – D 250 748 7709 & – &211 • •Comics Comics Magazines Magazines Knive 211 CRAIG STREET • DOWNTOWN DUNCAN • •Knives • •Crystal Crystal • •Antiqu Antiq DIAMOND - GOLD - PLATINUM AND THE Smalls Small
jewellery
250-597-2848 53 Station Street | Duncan | BC
DIAMOND - GOLD - PLATINUM AND THE LARGEST • •Belly Belly Dance Dance Outfits Outfits T SELECTION OF SILVER JEWELLERY ON WESTCOAS DIAMOND - GOLD - THE PLATINUM AND THE
• Brass • Toys • Sports Cards • Daguerrotype Photos • Knives & Swords • Antique & Collectible Smalls
jewellery
SELECTION OF SILVER JEWELLERY ON T
NO NO
250 748 7709 – 211 Craig Street – Downt
Vinyl Vin with wit LPs LPsana 2424S
250 748 7709 | 211 CRAIG STREET DOWNTOWN DUNCAN
a world of collectibles a world collectibles • Belly Danceof Outfits & • Crystal • Knives & Swords a world Accessories of collectibles • Brass • Antique & Collectible • Belly Dance Outfits • LPs & Accessories
• Brass
250 748 7709 | 211 CRAIG STREET DOWNTOWN DUNCAN
• Toys
101 Wedne Wed 252
Soulful Soulful Memori Memor
Smalls
• Toys • Belly Dance Outfits • Brass • Books • Sports Cards •& LPs • Sports Accessories •250-597-7585 ToysCards • Daguerrotype Photos • Comics & Magazines Books • Daguerrotype Photos •• LPs • Sports Cards • Comics & Magazines • Knives & Swords • Books • Daguerrotype Photos • Crystal & Collectible • Comics & Magazines • Antique • Knives & Swords Smalls 2020 Station Station Street, Street, Downtown Downtown Duncan Duncan 250. 25 Vinyl Record store with thousands of • Crystal • Antique & Collectible soulfulmemories.ca soulfulmemories.ca LPs and DVD movies. Smalls OPEN NOW
Soulful Memories
Vinyl Record store with thousands of LPsDuncan and DVD movies. 20 Station Street, Downtown 250.597.768 Record Station Street,store soulfulmemories.ca 24Vinyl with thousands of Duncan. LPs andtoDVD 10AM 5PM movies. Wednesday to Sunday 24 Station Street, Duncan. 250-597-7585
NOW OPEN
10AM to 5PM Wednesday to Sunday
NOW OPEN
24 Station Street, Duncan. 10AM to 5PM Wednesday to Sunday. 250-597-7585
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 29
Comfort Food
From Tel Aviv to Salt Spring Lifestyle and food truck = happiness STORY & PHOTOS BY MARCIA JANSEN
You’d be surprised by how many different nationalities live on Salt Spring Island. And each one of them has their own comfort food.
G Marcia Jansen is a Dutch journalist and writer who has lived on Salt Spring since 2012.
uy Morgan grew up in Tel Aviv, situated on Israel’s Mediterranean coastline. The city is famous for its mild climate, the wide variety of world-class restaurants and its vibrant nightlife. He worked as a chef in a high-end restaurant for 12 years when he decided to leave his home country. “Being a chef cook is a stressful job, especially in a high-paced environment like Tel Aviv. My chef wanted to make some cuts, while I wanted to pay my cooks a better wage. We had a conflict about that on the day before New Year’s. I went home, called a travel agency and asked for the first flight out of Tel Aviv. He found me a flight leaving in four hours, so I called a friend and asked if he could take me to the airport.” Destiny brought him to Thailand, where he met Mikaela Heydemann, an artist who was born and raised on Salt Spring Island. “Five days after we met, I asked her to marry me,” smiles Guy, whose mother is Canadian. One month later he and Mikaela came to Salt Spring and got married on the beach. “Because I left the
Page 30 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Guy Morgan in his Humsa food truck at the Kizmit Galeria and Cafe property on Beaver Point Road.
restaurant in a hurry, I didn’t get my last paycheque and I arrived in Canada, in the winter of 2011, almost broke. I couldn’t even afford to buy cigarettes, so I gave that up after 15 years.” And that was not the only lifestyle change he made. “I got a job at the Harbour House where I prepared dinners with fresh vegetables out of the hotel garden and other local ingredients; simple but highly nutritious food. That was a big eye opener for me. In Tel Aviv, I made meals that tasted good but weren’t
Sabich very healthy. On Salt Spring I learned about growing vegetables, superfoods and the value of nutrition. It changed my life.” The Morgans didn’t stay on Salt Spring for long. They went to Byron Bay, Australia for a restaurant position offered to him there. He then cooked in a vegetarian restaurant in Mexico, a Mexican restaurant in Nelson and as a chef for the Shambhala Music Festival. When Mikaela got pregnant with their first child they decided to move to Costa Rica for the rest of the pregnancy, where Guy started to work in an Israeli restaurant. In Costa Rica, he began to dream of having his own food truck in Canada. “I’d never made falafel in my whole life,” he admits. “There are so many places in Tel Aviv where they make great falafel, so it’s much easier to buy it than to make it. So I did a couple of try-outs at home and I came up with a pretty good recipe. It probably contains a third of the ingredients they use elsewhere. I just want to keep it healthy and simple and use produce from my neighbours. It’s funny: I worked in fancy restaurants with the best equipment and ingredients that were flown in from all over the world and ended up in a tiny food truck on Salt Spring Island. But I am so much happier now. “I love it on Salt Spring. The abundance of food here and the beautiful community full of kind people, farmers and artists, who are doing what they’re passionate about. The only down side for me are the winters. This winter with all the snow and followed by the rain was so depressing. That’s why we’re working so hard right now, so we can go to a warmer place this winter.” In winter he misses Israel the most. “I miss everything: My relatives and the big family dinners, my friends, the beaches, the warm weather, the big food markets and of course the food itself. In Israel you can find the best food in the world.” Guy’s favourite Israeli dish is sabich, which means “morning” in Arabic. Sabich was brought to Israel by Iraqi Jews who moved there in the 1940s and 1950s. On the Sabbath, when no cooking is allowed, Iraqi Jews ate a cold meal of pre-cooked fried eggplant, boiled potatoes and hard-boiled eggs. In Israel, these ingredients were stuffed in a pita and sold as fast food. “People line up for a sabich breakfast in the morning, but I love to eat it at any time of the day.”
Ingredients • 3 ripe eggplants (thinly sliced) • 30 g salt, (olive) oil, crushed black pepper • Sauce: 500 ml tahini paste, 2 garlic cloves (minced), 6 organic lemons (juiced) Sauce: Mince garlic, juice lemons and combine with tahini paste. Mix in with a whisk between 600 to 800 ml, depending on how thick you want your sauce. Add salt to taste. Sabich: Try and find local organic eggplants, which are in season right now. Slice them thin and lay on a tray, sprinkle some salt over the eggplants and repeat. Wait for one hour, as during this time a lot of water will be drained from the eggplants. Tap them dry and put in a big bowl. Sprinkle with some salt and black pepper. Heat up a pan and add 0.5 cm of oil. When the oil looks hot, add one slice. If it is sizzling nicely, keep on adding more slices, cook until golden on both sides and place on paper towel to soak up excess oil. Serve with a lot of sauce, boiled eggs, some pickles and your favourite hot sauce recipe.
The Cobbler 718 View Street, Victoria
The Cobbler 718 View Street, Victoria 250-386-3741
-386-3741 Flagship Store in Victoria 250 Blundstones September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 31
Gulf Island
Country Lanes Salt Spring’s Little Pie Shop Specializing in made to order desserts !
Year-round
Fri. 8am-5pm pring's LittleMon.Pie Shop -
Unit 15 - 315 day - Friday Upper 8am-5pm Ganges Rd aturday 8am-3pm 778-353-2253
rollingpinproductions@gmail.com 5-315 Upper Ganges Rd
Art Jewellery & Intelligent Clothing
GD
rhubarb designs
Ganges Alley, 127-149 Fulford-Ganges Road 250.931.1290 info@giuliettadesigns.com www.giuliettadesigns.com
105.149 Fulford-Ganges Rd 250.537.8873 | www.lorrainehamilton.ca
Giulietta Designs GALLERY & STUDIO
778-353-2253
pinproductions@gmail.com
ISLAND GIRLS B OUTIQUE
THE SHOP
50 BAG STYLES IN-STORE also featuring: bedding by Coco Loco ceramics by Yasmine Amal goods by Salish Grove clothing by Donna Johnstone Stall outside every Saturday
BOUTIQUE
Pender Island • islandgirlstyles.com
SIDNEY
EYELAND OPTICAL
2451 Beacon Avenue, Sidney 250-656-3626 #3 - 316 Cook Street, Victoria 250-380-2735 Page 32 – AQUA –September/October 2017
#110 in Ganges Alley, Ganges, SSI osisiboutique.com
Island Artists
The Gift of Abstract Expression A visit with Pender artist Judith Walker Story and photos by CHERIE THIESSEN
A
n artist’s studio is a magical place of constant birth, chronicling a history of creativity’s shifting shapes, charged with an energy and an intimacy that often reveal glimpses of the essence and journey of its occupant. For me, an artist opening her space to visitors is both a gift and a sign of trust. Judith Walker’s creative space is the upper floor of a barn-like structure, the first thing that she and her partner, Brent Marsden, built when they purchased their 10-acre North Pender Island property in 1992. She had her priorities down even then. The spacious 750-squarefoot aerie is filled with works past, current, in waiting and in process. There’s a lot of motion in this space. Even the beautifully carved window frames depict wave-like movement. I feel I have to steady myself when I enter. “I think art is a metaphor for process,” she told me earlier. “Everything in life is about process. The making of art certainly reinforces this in me. Nothing is black or white but shades of grey.” This ambiguity surfaces in her work. In some ways it’s easier to say what her work isn’t. It isn’t serene or still. It isn’t unobtrusive or easy to ignore. It doesn’t mirror the world or blend into it. There’s a creativity at work here that is violent as well as vibrant; go too close and
Above: Judith Walker holds Life Interrupted, one of her abstract paintings, in her Pender Island studio. Page 35: Walker's piece called 'And the great water sighed for love' at Red Tree Gallery. September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 33
it will snag you. On an easel, an as yet unnamed 3’x5’ canvas on wooden cradle depicts a red globe pulsing in the centre of a violet blue circle while a smaller replica, tinged in red, hovers on that circle. In the corner, fragments tumble and another sphere begins to show. The galaxy? Maybe, but like the artist has said, it’s not black and white. Like a dream, it threatens to spin you ever deeper and I want to go there. “It’s the beginning of a planned five-cradle piece I think I’ll call Opus,” muses its creator.
Originally from Virginia, Walker lived in Texas for eight years before moving to Costa Rica in 1980. “That’s when I met Brent. Then later I moved with him to Pender. He was living in Browning Harbour on the schooner he had built himself. We stayed on the boat for about two and a half years and then moved to an old farmhouse here. I think our rent was about $100 a month and we had to help with the cows now and again.” Her lofty space, lit by shafts of sun from the large skylights,
Island Marketplace
The deadline for advertising in the next issue of Aqua is October 4, 2017. To advertise, call 250-537-9933
AL’S ASIAN TREASURES & IMPORTS Aluminum Driveway Gates, Garden Gates, Marble and Garden Statues, Asian Furniture
alsasiantreasures.com
3107 Henry Road • Chemainus, BC • 250 324 4444
www.mblabs.com FULL SERVICE Accredited Est. 1983
PROFESSIONAL LAB ANALYSIS • Drinking Water • Waste Water • Indoor Air Quality • Food • Soil
D.H.MOORE / ARCHITECT 250-818-4614 www.dhmarchitect.ca
Groom That Dog
by
Janet Lynch
Call for an appointment Flexible with your ferry schedule Now Featuring: Anesthetic-Free Teeth Cleaning for Dogs & Cats by Cheyanne Cave www.happytailsteethcleaning.com
778.977.3647 • groomthatdog@gmail.com 10109 MacDonald Park Road (near Slegg Lumber) Page 34 – AQUA –September/October 2017
FX: 250.656.0433 PH: 250.656.1334 2062 Henry Ave., Sidney, BC V8L 5Y1
Bernard LeBlanc FINE FURNITURE & MILLWORK Add a touch of class to your home • unique custom crafted furniture • creative cabinetry with storage solutions • luxurious & simplistic urns and accessories
bernardleblanc@me.com www.bernardleblanc.com
PH/FAX: 778.353.1963 CELL: 250.538.7570
also a founding member of the thriving Art Off the Fence event, is filled with picture frames of all sizes, canvases, the tools of which now in its 21st year continues to draws visitors and guests the artist, and soft, cozy furniture. Because of the light and every mid July weekend. She has shown at the Sooke Fine Arts because of its size, however, the studio doesn’t feel crammed. Show and her work can be found throughout Costa Rica, the There’s room to move about and to take in every corner. United States and Canada. “The making of an abstract work is not for the faint of heart,” The artist, who has moved from oil to acrylics and mixed meWalker has written on her blog, and I’m beginning to think dia, explains her creative process: “What has evolved for me is that the viewing of good abstract work is not for the faint of an automatic approach to making art that was a long time comheart either. “The process requires us to call upon our sense of ing. Because my work is initiative and automatic and I no longer adventure and our willingness to risk; by trusting our intuition draw and grid and transfer and do all that stuff for a realism we open to the possibilities of exploration and experimentation. Finding the balance between intention and intuition, spontaneity painting, I rely on where I am at the moment and allow it to happen using the technical skills I’ve learned through the years. and knowledge, is the gift of abstract expression.” I was quite sick over several months last winter and so didn’t I spot a small oil painting near the window, depicting a blosdo much of anything. I knew I had a show happening in July, soming orchard. It’s a much earlier work, when the young artist however, and had to get something together, so I purchased was experimenting with Pointillism, but even in that idyllic dethese 30‘x30’ canvases and thought, “OK, just put these on the piction, things are not quite what they seem. Why is the tree on easel and start working. the left bare? Its twisting branches almost look like the tentacles of something you’d want to shy away from. “The act of painting for me is a dance between what I underWalker, who worked hard stand about tools and techover the years to achieve nique and what is expressed her skills, completed half a from the depths of my being. university degree in interior Painting often feels like a design, which involved taking meditation to me. It carries some mechanical drawing me to a place where nothing and architecture courses. exists but that moment. When Perhaps it’s this influence beginning a painting I ground — JUDITH WALKER many see in her work. I’ve myself with the blank canvas heard some pieces described by gently touching it with as geometrical and certainly both hands and moving them concrete shapes tumble in over the entirety of the surface. many of her pieces. I select a palette and then be“I love to design as I paint,” gin an underpainting by laying she says. “It is probably the on the paint with a tool and a most compelling part. Those new technique that I want to courses contributed immeaexplore.” surably but it was upending I’m intrigued by the fact that that degree and moving to this self-proclaimed artistic Costa Rica for five years that “recluse” thrives on teaching really furthered my developart. “I have found teaching to ment. It was there that I truly be almost more rewarding than began to work.” painting,” she says. “I totally en• Walker’s classes in beginner and intermediate acrylic Walker says she has tried joy seeing students explore and painting begin the week of Oct. 1, 2017 and run for six to keep the rest of her life in find joy in what they create. I weeks. (Maximum six students per class.) Phone to regisbalance, to keep her proclivfocus on the principles and ter: 250-629-6432. ity to hide out in check. I elements of design in a positive, • She also holds private sessions for up to eight people. think she has done a good non-judgmental environment.” Called Studio Time, they consist of a two-hour session in job of it. One of the origiWhen you allow the unwhich she guides students through painting exercises nal cooperative members of conscious to guide you, never that expand ease and facility with acrylic paint. Pender Island’s thriving Red knowing where you’re go• Website and blog: www.judithwalker.ca. Tree Gallery at Hope Bay ing, the loss of control with Email: goosepond@shaw.ca. when it opened in 2005, her no planned outcome can be • Studio times are from 10 am - 12 pm. Walker’s work work has been showcased frightening. However, standing can also be viewed at The Red Tree Gallery on North many times, the most recent in Walker’s studio I can perPender. www.redtreegallery.ca. being her July exhibit which ceive that if you have the trainspeaks to being blocked. It ing, the skills and the courage, was called Rebound. She was you can go to amazing places.
“Painting often feels like a meditation to me.”
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 35
Events
From left, Janet Dwyer, Sibeal Foyle, Peter McFarlane, Garry Kaye and John David James, five Salt Spring Island artists among 49 SSNAP finalists from across Canada.
SSNAP is Back!
Second biennial exhibit opens this month By GAIL SJUBERG Photo by Jen MacLellan
W
Page 36 – AQUA –September/October 2017
hen a group of Salt Spring Islanders came up with a plan to hold a national art exhibition in the fall of 2015, it may have seemed like a crazy idea. After all, how could a community
of only 10,000 people host such a high-profile undertaking? But the Salt Spring Arts Council committee that took on the task proved the Salt Spring National Art Prize concept was anything but crazy.
With 1,367 entries received from more than 800 artists across Canada, and exuberant public support for the final exhibition of 52 pieces and related events, the inaugural SSNAP was a winner. The second SSNAP show opens on Friday, Sept. 22 in historic Mahon Hall and will feature two and three-dimensional contemporary art by 49 Canadian artists — including six from Salt Spring Island. Work was selected by jurors David Garneau, Naomi Potter and Denis Longchamps, who did not know the name or the residence of the submitting artists. A total of 2,160 submissions were received from 1,227 artists this time.
“This is going to be one of the best visual arts exhibitions in Western Canada, if not country-wide.” – Ronald T. Crawford Salt Spring finalists are Janet Dwyer, Sibéal Foyle, John David James, Garry Kaye, Eric Klemm and Peter McFarlane (although Klemm has recently moved to Vancouver). James was also a finalist in 2015. The first SSNAP exhibition featured four Salt Spring artists. Nicola Wheston took home first prize in the People’s Choice Award and Susan Huber earned the ASA Award for outstanding Salt Spring artist.
Organizers are anticipating a packed house during the monthlong exhibition. “This is going to be one of the best visual arts exhibitions in Western Canada, if not country-wide,” said Ronald T. Crawford, SSNAP founding director and spokesperson. Some of the materials incorporated into the artists’ pieces include beads, moose hide, otter skin, hand spun book pages, oak and spider web. SSNAP is offering $30,000 in prizes this year, up from $25,000 in 2015. Another exciting SSNAP event is a panel discussion on creativity in the arts and sciences. The Creative Mind: Creativity in the Arts and Sciences will take place on Oct. 14 at ArtSpring. Speakers include film director Atom Egoyan, astrophysicist Art McDonald and photographer Meaghan Ogilvie. See www.saltspringartprize.ca for updates.
SSNAP 2017 Key Dates:
• Sept. 22: Gala opening of finalist exhibition • Sept. 23 to Oct. 22: Exhibition open daily • Sept. 23, 30, Oct. 7, 15: SSNAPy Saturday workshops • Sept. 29 to Oct. 22: Parallel exhibition in the ArtSpring gallery • Sept. 29 to Oct. 31: Young at Art exhibition in the ArtSpring lobby • Oct.14: The Creative Mind: Creativity in the Arts and Sciences • Oct. 21: Winners announced at Gala Awards Night
cell phones, satellite, landlines, accessories Stop in today, and choose from one of the latest name brand smartphones!
342 Lower Ganges Road | Salt Spring Island 250-537-8371
September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 37
Q&A
Back to the Land
Tony Threlfall of Willowcrest Farm is an active member of Salt Spring’s agricultural community.
Tony Threlfall at Willowcrest Farm.
Page 38 – AQUA –September/October 2017
Q. How and when did you become a farmer? I started out life on my grandparents’ farm in northern Saskatchewan. It was a mixed crop farm, wheat, oats, livestock, bees and, of course, a huge vegetable garden that had to supply sufficient fruit and vegetables to keep two families totalling 10 people in food until the following year’s crop was ready. We moved west to Vancouver when I was about to become a teenager. The next 35 years were dedicated to education, marriage, starting a family and career. My wife Margaret and I would often discuss how self-sufficient we thought we could be and started to think of someday owning a small acreage. In 1984, when our children assured us that they had completed their education, Marg and I decided the time was right for us to set sail on a new course. We purchased what we now call Willowcrest Farm. The property is the original home site on what was an historic 100-acre farm homesteaded in 1880. We added another nine acres of the homestead a couple of years later. Q. Tell us a bit about Willowcrest Farm. We had no idea of what direction our farming would take. Our determination was to feed ourselves, but we quickly realized that income was necessary to pay taxes, upkeep, etc. As often happens, fate stepped in, and we met Matt Robley. Matt is a storied former Salt Spring sheep farmer. He got us hooked on sheep and was a huge help to us. After starting out in the meat end of the business, we soon determined that butchering lambs didn’t hold a lot of appeal for Marg. Then we started to wonder why there wasn’t a market for Salt Spring fleece. Research followed and we set course on a plan to develop a specialty fleece for spinners and weavers. We also built a flock of purebred Border Leicester sheep and started selling breeding stock. Our fleece ended up being a favourite with felters and our
largest market developed in the U.S. Willowcrest had become a successful small farm. It still amazes me today how much of my grandfather’s farming knowledge was stored away and frequently comes to mind and resolves another problem. Q. What are the biggest challenges facing today’s farmers? Without a doubt, the incredibly high cost of land. This is undeniable. Secondly, the total lack of government support. Every day we hear words like “food security,” “local food,” and on and on. But they are only words. The total lack of support for the local food movement is missing from municipal, provincial and federal governments. If government is truly interested in food security, some of the multimillion-dollar programs found for other segments of society must be dedicated to agriculture. Q. You have a long history with the Salt Spring Island Farmers’ Institute. What is your primary role with that group? I have been a director for over 20 years and a board officer for many years. I am probably most proud of my work with the buildings and maintenance committee. We have been involved with every building on the grounds. Next to that would be the fall fair committee. I am now focusing some of my attention on the institute’s Bittancourt House Museum. Q. Can you share a story that epitomizes why you love living on Salt Spring? My wife is an artist. Where on earth is a better place for an artist to live? We built Marg her own studio and she meets people from all over the world in her environment. On top of that, we are able to have our grandchildren, and now, great grandchildren visit “the farm.” There is no way that we could recreate this environment in the city. Imagine the children visiting my former warehouse in Vancouver! Additionally, we have entertained pre-school groups, elementary school classes and farm tours over the years, which has let us expose children to farming and to talk about agriculture to the adults. Q. What is one thing about Tony Threlfall that very few people know? I was a working musician for about 20 years. It helped to feed the family while we bought our first house. A great experience, but part of the fabric of the past.
Be Water Savvy Use Only What You Need
Water is one of Salt Spring Island’s most precious resources. Please join islanders as we work together to ensure that we use this limited resource wisely, and that we respect and protect our island watersheds. Try these handy water saving tips: Keep showers short. Use low-flow shower heads. If bathing, try a 1/4 tub only. Run only full loads in dishwashers and washing machines. Shut off the tap while brushing teeth, shaving, or washing up hands or dishes. Use low-flush toilets. Flush less often. Use a bucket to capture and reuse shower, bath and dishwater in your garden. Inform guests about our islands’ limited water supply, and ask them to be please be aware of keeping consumption down.
Together EVERY water saver makes a difference.
North Salt Spring Waterworks District www.northsaltspringwaterworks.ca September/October 2017 – AQUA – Page 39
For all your Home Decor needs
Located in Mouat’s Home Hardware building mon-sat 8:30-5:30 sun & holidays 10-5 250-537-5551