Aqua
COMFOR T FOOD Marcia
Jansen's popular column inside
Gulf Islands
Living
september/october 2018
Volume 13, Issue 5
learning launch So many ways and places to grow
SHE FELT LIKE IT Debbie Katz's path to a unique fibre craft
Arts
H I ST O R Y
HAPPY TIDES Mayne Island's centre for healthy living
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contents September/october 2018
TANTALIZERS! PAGE 6
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ARTS
From functional to fun with Debbie Katz's felt art, PAGE 8
HISTORY
Don Cunningham shares his family's story, PAGE 12
VENTURES
31
Gulf Islands Water Taxi marks 40 years, PAGE 23 Happy Tides on Mayne looks after your health and much more, PAGE 25
NATURE
A new season to love for Rhen's Poetry, PAGE 19 SIMRES is all about the whales, PAGE 31
EDUCATION
Workshops and courses galore, PAGE 39
COMFORT FOOD
Island couple from Liege and Slovakia, PAGE 36
Q&A
Longtime school trustee May McKenzie retires, PAGE 46 Page 4 – AQUA – September/October 2018
39
19
michael murray photo
Editor’s Message
Non-stop education
O
ne of the highlights of my summer was a visit from my step-daughter Sylvia and her family from Perth, Australia. As I tromped through the forest playing imagination games with Sylvia’s daughter Ruby, who is five years old and 100 per cent delightful, I was flown back to that marvellous time of life when every experience seems to be about learning in one way or another. I also realized that as adults we can choose to keep learning just as children do. I think of my friends who take painting or writing courses, or learn to play new-tothem musical instruments, and how much I learn about the human body from taking Nia classes with Arleen Sadler (and tapping into total joy at the same time). As I write this I am ridiculously excited to start a fresh Nia session. Fall seemed like a perfect time to give an educational focus to Aqua, and all of the stories touch on some component of learning and enriching our lives in nonmonetary ways.
For starters, we compiled a collection of possible courses for people to take both this fall and at various times of the year on Salt Spring Island. We report on the exciting activities of the Saturna Island Marine Research and Education Society, and how retired teacher Debbie Katz of Pender learned to make fabulous felt art. Tamara Gagne of Happy Tides on Mayne has so much knowledge about healthful living to share, and Don Cunningham talks about the early days of schooling on Salt Spring, among other things. We also dropped into the 40th anniversary open house and floating art show for the Hughes family’s Gulf Islands Water Taxi business, which has transported our islands’ students for the past four decades. One of the most frequent non-student water taxi riders in the past 25 years has been May McKenzie, a Mayne Island school trustee and longtime SD64 board chair. She’s our Q&A person and someone we can all learn a thing or two from. Thank you for your years of dedicated service, May! — Gail Sjuberg
Aqua Gulf Islands
Living
This issue published Sept. 5, 2018 Publisher: Amber Ogilvie Editor: Gail Sjuberg Art Director & Production: Lorraine Sullivan Advertising: Shirley Command Aqua Writers: Cherie Thiessen, Elizabeth Nolan, Gail Sjuberg, Marc Kitteringham, Roger Brunt, Marcia Jansen Aqua Photographers: Cherie Thiessen, Elizabeth Nolan, Gail Sjuberg, Marc Kitteringham, Marcia Jansen Cover photo of Gulf Islands Water Taxi owners Jack and Leslie Hughes by Elizabeth Nolan 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
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•Galiano’s Stock-up Market is running for the fifth year at the South Galiano Community Hall on Saturday, Oct. 13 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. It’s the perfect spot to load up on local fish, lamb, beef, root veggies, greens, garlic, tomatillos, peppers, squash, tomatoes, cabbage, apples, preserves and pickles and more. People interested in participating as vendors should contact galianofoodprograms@gmail.com. •The fall season heralds all kinds of popular events on Salt Spring Island. First up is the Salt Spring Fall Fair, running Sept. 15-16 at the Farmers’ Institute. This year’s theme is Homegrown, Handmade & Farm Fresh. The Salt Spring Apple Festival runs on Sunday, Sept. 30, and Sip and Savour Salt Spring, the signature event of the Harvest Food and Drink Festival in October, is on Saturday, Oct. 20 at the Farmers’ Institute. •Salt Spring Weavers and Spinners Guild members are holding their annual Thanksgiving weekend exhibition and sale at ArtSpring. Running Saturday through Monday, Oct. 6-8, the show includes many new pieces from the island’s talented fibre artists. •Acclaimed performance poet Shane Koyczan’s fall tour includes a stop at Spinners & Weavers Guild wares from a past sale. ArtSpring on Sept. 28. “With his rhythmic
verse in high gear, Shane Koyczan navigates his audience through social and political territory with a furious honesty and a tender humanity that has brought audiences to their feet in New York, London, Edinburgh, Sydney, Stockholm and Los Angeles, just to name a few,” explains Shane Koyczan performs on press material about the Salt Spring on Sept. 28. show. •Terry Fox Runs are happening throughout the islands as usual, and everyone is encouraged to jump on board to fundraise or support friends and family members who are planning to run, walk or cycle the annual route. Runs take place on Mayne, Pender and Galiano islands on Sunday, Sept. 16, and on Salt Spring Island the following Sunday. • Louise Nye, the former co-owner of the cinema on Salt Spring, is hosting slide-show evenings with photos she took of islanders from 1991 to 2001 on the first Thursday of each month between September and December. Set for The Fritz Movie Theatre beginning at 7 p.m. (with doors at 6:30 p.m.), the by-donation events are fundraisers for the Central Community Hall Society, which is aiming to replace the hall's aging siding.
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Island Artists
Feel of
Felt
The fine fabric artistry of Debbie Katz BY CHERIE THIESSEN PHOTOS by Debbie Katz, except as noted
Y
ou take bubble wrap, olive oil soap, a board and a dowel and what do you get? If you’re very committed and creative, you can get felt. Debbie Katz, who creates and markets her felt creations under the moniker Because I Felt Like It, works from her 1,100-square-foot home on North Pender Island. Currently her workspace is bePage 8 – AQUA – September/October 2018
ing occupied by eight-year-old grandson Jonah, who has set up his tent in there. As a result, we’re sitting outside, munching on sugar peas from the large garden she and her partner Herb lovingly tend, and sipping cold drinks in the sun, each of us receiving affectionate attention from Oliver, the couple’s one-year-old Golden Retriever, while I learn about the fascinating ancient art of felt making. Life is good.
HERB KATZ photo
“For making a wall hanging, tea cozy or purse, I begin with my colour selection, then weigh the wool roving that I need to complete the piece; equal distribution of that is so important for a strong and even finish. Then I begin the work by laying down a piece of plastic in the shape of what I am making — this is called a resist or a template. Next I lay out my fibre, pull it gently from the hank of roving, and put down three layers: horizontal, vertical and perpendicular. Each time I put a layer down I sprinkle it with warm water and soap and then mash it and finish it with bubble wrap on the top. It’s all very fragile at this point. I peel off the top layer of the bubble wrap and tuck all my ends in and then I get to work. I roll this wet, fragile piece of felt 800 times: 400 on each side, 100 times in each direction. Then I flip it and do the same thing on the other side. The soap helps the fibres to migrate and the invisible barbs in the roving to lock together. Now I can become more aggressive in my work and start rolling and tossing and rubbing the piece. Depending on
Above: Felt artist Debbie Katz at home. Previous page, from top: Work at Art in the Garden show; Silence is Golden felt wind chimes.
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This summer saw her back in Nova Scotia taking classes as well as giving them
the size it may take a few hours or a few days. I know when it’s finished because I can’t stretch it any more. It’s going to shrink to about one third of the original size.” She uses all kinds of wool that has been processed for felt making, some of it pre-dyed, and some from as far away as Australia or the Shetland Islands. I’m also learning that while many art forms require considerable equipment and space, felt making can be done in even a tiny apartment. Even the Ball Brause Sprinkler Katz uses for wetting the felt is small and inexpensive. Considered the oldest known textile, felt is found in most cultures, many of which have legends around how the art originated. I think it would be a perk for artists working in felt, knowing that they are linking into an ancient and universal craft. As we chat, I’m amazed to hear that on the May long weekend in 1996 it snowed on Pender! Katz swears by it because the couple had come to Pender for some cycling. WestJet had just started up and was offering extremely cheap seats from Edmonton to Vancouver so they hopped aboard one with their bikes. That renegade snowfall drove them out of the Pender campsite and into the motel next door, but it did nothing to chill their enthusiasm. After cycling the hilly island and its slippery roads, they fell in love with Pender. “After that we rented a boathouse and for four summers we stayed there every year for increasing amounts of time.” This retired and fit couple still go kayaking and still sail, hike and cycle regularly. Most days they can be spotted jogging along the road while picking up garbage, preparing for yet another marathon. They built their home in 2002 and, in 2007, after retiring from their teaching jobs, they moved to the island full time. For a couple this busy, it has always been about balance; how Page 10 – AQUA – September/October 2018
to fit in everything that matters: gardening has to be balanced with having a large active dog; kayaking has to compete with sailing; jogging with cycling and felting has to nudge toward centre stage. After all, this fabric artist not only teaches felting now, she also takes regular classes and workshops from her mentors and teachers, from as far away as the Shetland Islands. This summer saw her back in Nova Scotia taking classes as well as giving them. It’s hard to believe she also finds time to market her vivid creations at Pender’s weekly Farmers’ Market where her colourful creations combine with her own charisma to attract fascinated visitors. She has got to be stretched as finely as the felt she works. I’m curious about how she got hooked into fabric art. It turns out she found a book. “It was Feltmaking: The Complete Guide,” she explains. “I loved wool and knitting all my life, but hadn’t done anything much prior to that book. Then I made my first tea cozy in 2008 and carried it around for days. I was so proud I had created this. Another felt maker then showed me fulling: how to smash the fabric around and roll it. That’s what I didn’t know when I started.” She was soon studying with accomplished textile artists, including Ulrieke Benner and Laurie Steffler from Salt Spring. She’s also a member of the Craft Council of B.C. “If you’re juried into that then you are invited to put your work into one of three venues: The Audain Art Museum in Whistler, the council’s Granville Island venue or at the Vancouver International Airport.” Katz’s work is showing at the Audain. She’s also a member in the national association felt :: feutre Canada. From functional to fun, from artistic to avant garde, Katz’s work is irresistible. While all of it pleases the eye and the hand, much of it goes deeper. She has managed to clothe messages in felt.
Above: Santa Clauses made by Debbie Katz. At right: Last Catch. Previous page: Swimming Home.
Debbie Katz does not have a website but readers can go to her Facebook page under Because I Felt Like It, and can see a small selection of her work. To view her work on Pender you can email her for an appointment at d.katz@shaw.ca. Or visit one of the outlets above in Victoria, Whistler, or on Galiano Island.
To see her in action at the Farmers’ Market on Pender, go to www.bcferries.com for ferry times, costs and accommodation packages.
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GULF ISLANDS DRIFTWOOD FILE PHOTO
Island History
Deep Island Roots
Don Cunningham of salt spring island By ROGER BRUNT Photos courtesy Don Cunningham, except as noted
D
ust motes dance in a knothole of light, while in a cobwebbed corner, old ghosts mutter and moan. They’d be much happier if there was somebody nearby to haunt. A barn owl in the rafters shrugs its wings and asks, “Who-hoo? Who-hoo? Who goes there?” It’s a very good question indeed. No one has worked the Cunningham’s old dairy equipment on Church Hill Farm since 1969. Like all the other old dairies on Salt Spring Island (the Heinekeys’ Vesuvius Dairy, Crawford Dairy, Luten Dairy, Shaw Dairy, McKenzie Dairy, Burgoyne Dairy) it closed because of changing government regulations and changing economics. No one is better equipped to talk about these old times than Don Cunningham. Born on Salt Spring in 1939, he spent part of his youth on Church Hill Farm in the big white house next to St. Mark’s Anglican Church just past Central with his father Guy and mother Margaret and brothers Ronnie, Brian and Allan, and sister Lillian. It’s an honour to talk
Page 12 – AQUA – September/October 2018
with Don as his stories weave in and out like the wool of a favourite old sweater. At age 78, he is a conduit into Salt Spring’s past like few others. The Cunningham family is descended from Salt Spring pioneers. It’s said there were only 12 other Caucasian families when they arrived in the early 1880s. “My grandfather was Robert Raffles Augustus Purdy, named after a chance encounter with the famous Dr. Raffles of Singapore fame,” says Don. His grandpa’s sister Emily married Sam Beddis. They all settled near Beddis Beach. In due course, it came to the attention of Salt Spring’s growing community that Grandpa Purdy had been a teacher in England. He was hired to teach at the North Vesuvius school next to Central. During the week, he stayed at Stevens’ Boarding House, using his horse and buggy to get home on weekends. There is some irony in this situation. Purdy had no way of knowing that the Stevens’ Boarding House would become the main
salt spring archives
dwelling on what was to become Church Hill Farm, and someday be owned by his daughter Margaret and her husband, Guy Cunningham, Don’s mother and father. When he quit teaching, Purdy went back to farming, pre-empting land a few miles along from Beddis Beach. In 1884 he built the barn that still stands in the sharp curve of Beddis Road on the bench-land overlooking Ganges Harbour. “I never saw my Grandpa. He died five or six years before I was born,” says Don. “I sure would have liked to have known him.” Purdy’s sister Emily became homesick after her husband Sam passed away in the early 1900s. He had become very ill and she put him in a rowboat and flagged down the CPR boat that took him to Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria. He died there of pneumonia. Up until this time, Purdy had never married, but after their trip to England following Sam’s death, he married Alice Weymouth, an old English friend. Alice was in her late 40s when their first child was born, followed by three more daughters, one of which was stillborn. The children’s names were Margaret, Mary and Hillory. Margaret was Don’s mother. As a teacher both in England and on Salt Spring Island, Don’s grandfather had always believed in public schools. On Salt Spring there were one-room public schools like the Old Divide School on Blackburn Road, Fulford, Isabella, Burgoyne, Cranberry, Ganges, North Vesuvius and Fernwood school. There were also private schools for boys and a private school for girls. Here is more irony. Says Don: “Grandpa’s family believed in private schools, so the kids rowed to their private school in Ganges.
Above: Church Hill Farm house, which had previously been Stevens' Boarding House at Central, where Don Cunningham grew up. Previous page, from top: Don with the Lions bus in 2009; Don at a Masonic Lodge event on Salt Spring.
Mom’s family believed in public schools so they walked over the divide between Beddis Road and Blackburn to the Divide School. As children, mom and dad never met, even though they lived just a mile and a half apart.” In 1940, the Consolidated School was opened in Ganges with
September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 13
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Above: Don Cunningham is sixth from the left in the back row in a class photo from 1951-52. At left: Don's grandfather Raffles Purdy, who first came to Salt Spring in the early 1880s. At right, from top: Don and his wife Molly at a Lions seniors Christmas dinner a few years ago; Don installed as Lions Club president in the 1970s.
all the Salt Spring kids in Grades 1 to 7 set up in downstairs classrooms and the high school students upstairs. The kids were bused to school from around the island. Don started there in Grade 1. By this time, the early 1940s, Church Hill Farm was jointly owned by the Cunningham family. It had come up for auction and the family banded together to purchase it. The Cunnigham Dairy operated from 1950 to 1969 with 30–35 Jersey cows. Don’s father had applied for a veterans loan to buy out the farm and create a state-of-the-art dairy. “We produced wonderfully rich raw milk untouched by human hands,” says Don. “Even the bottle caps were installed by machine. It was our family farm. Everybody helped out. A quart of milk sold for 25 cents. We delivered about 100 quarts a day, morning and evening. Our dairy’s phone number was 145G on a crank-phone party line.” Like all the other dairies on Salt Spring Island there were so many barriers it was hard to stay in business. The milk board set the quota, which is the amount of fluid (bulk) milk a dairy was licensed to produce. They would set the quota in July or August when milk production was at its lowest. They wouldn’t pay for milk at the same rate beyond the established quota, but when the cows were on fresh grass in the spring they would produce two or three times that amount. Several of the dairies made butter with this extra milk, feeding the left-over skim milk to their pigs and chickens. Don continues: “We also faced changing government regulations. When Canada went metric in the 1970s, the government wanted us to re-tool and get rid of our re-useable glass quart bottles. We were to ship our milk in cardboard cartons by the litre. A requirement
also came in that the milk had to be pasteurized, no more raw milk was to be sold. Another requirement was that butterfat was not to exceed 3.25 per cent, but our Jersey cows produced 4.25 per cent. In order to meet this requirement we purchased five or six Holsteins and mixed in their milk, which had lower buttermilk content. “Government veterinarians came twice a year to give the cows blood tests for disease. There were drop-in inspections by the barn and dairy inspector. It was one thing after another, and we worked hard for what we had. Once school was out, it was mainly chores, we were slaves to the farm. I didn’t even realize people got days off and took holidays and got paid. “By 1969, Dad said we were just breaking even although he was supplementing our family income by falling timber in the logging camps and quarrying flag-stone on the farm. Dad was also faced with a much-diminished work force as the kids one by one grew up and left home. Faced with re-tooling our production line to meet government regulations, Dad sold our quota to Roger and Val Hughes of Burgoyne Dairy in the Fulford Valley and went into raising beef cattle, first Simmentals and Charlais, later the Polled Herefords the farm still raises today. “I graduated and went off to Victoria,” Don says. “My first job was selling encyclopedias door to door, which didn’t last long. Then I worked at the Gorge Road sawmill, but was laid off for the winter and came back to the farm. Dad said, “You are not wintering here for free. You were always good at getting engines running on the farm, why not go to vocational school and become a mechanic?” “I applied and loved it. I became a very good heavy equipment September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 15
operator. It was a whole new avenue for me. I transferred from Nanaimo Vocational to Burnaby Vocational where I learned all aspects of road building, paving, surveying, grades and levels.“ “On graduation, I was picked up by MacMillan Bloedel’s highway camp on the west coast of Vancouver Island. By 1960 I was in Kitimat. The Terrace country was pristine, lots of virgin timber. I had been told about a job operating heavy equipment, but by the time I got there the job was gone. There I was, with five dollars in my pocket, but I managed to get on with Skeena Forest Products in the sawmill. The green-chain was a League of Nations with men from countries all over the world.” When winter came, Don was once again laid off, and headed back to Vancouver. By now he had his Class 1 air certification and got a job driving tow truck. Many of the call-outs were to bad traffic ac-
cidents, sometimes with fatalities. “This is not for me,” Don decided, and headed back to Salt Spring for Christmas. Don was soon working as a heavy equipment operator on Salt Spring, but the outfit went broke. He saw an ad for a meat cutter at the Salt Spring Trading Company. Don had learned to cut meat on the farm. “Wearing a white shirt and a bow tie might not be too bad,” Don thought. “At least I’ll be warm.” Doug Simpson, a friend of Don’s, told me, “Don made the best sausage on Salt Spring Island.” “I worked 10 years as a meat cutter, then the Trading Company sold out to Mouat’s. I went to work at Mouat’s Building Supply and Lumberyard until 1974. In those days, Mouat’s controlled every-
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thing. I lived in the little white cottage that is now the Tree House Café. I remember splicing my cable TV from Mouat’s Inn’s cable next door, without permission, of course. “About this time, Valcourt’s Building Supply was bought out by Windsor Plywood. The yard was located behind where the Driftwood office now stands. I was invited to lunch at the Harbour House, offered double my pay if I’d come to work as yard manager. I was now married to Molly and, with a family to support, was happy to accept. We were soon doing a very good business. We bought out Cubbin Lumber, located on Rainbow Road where Windsor Plywood stands today. In 1979, the Windsor franchise changed hands. I agreed to stay on for six months to train a new manager, and I soon went to work for BC Ferries, where I ended my career and retired in 2004.”
The rest of the family also did well. Ronnie, the eldest, continued to be a contract farmer from his own farm on Brinkworthy Road. Brian loved electronics. He could fix anything. He became an electrician, and eventually took over the farm. Allan loved construction and spent his life building on Salt Spring. Lillian became a nurse at Royal Jubilee Hospital. “I always loved history, but Mom was the real historian in the family,” says Don. “All through the war years she documented the family history and authenticated Salt Spring’s archives. I also loved to volunteer. I am a member of the Lions Club, a Mason and a Shriner, was a volunteer fireman and a volunteer at Greenwoods. I was the handicap bus driver for the Lions Club for some 40 years. It gives me a real good feeling to know I’ve helped make the community better.”
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Nature
Rhen's
Poetry
poetic images of salt spring Island POEM & PHOTOS BY BARB LEVY
michael LEVY photo
Crescendo
Barb Levy, AKA Rhen, is a poet, musician and photographer who has lived on Salt Spring for 15 years. Rhen's Poetry matches the seasons in each issue of Aqua.
Autumnal mist shape shifting — almost imperceptibly, like Summer's green dissolving into saffron — ephemeral bridge stretching — quiet as these equine companions — leading you into October’s striking visions — crimson cap on black and white, mirrored fawns and ducks and moonlit swan gliding between pillars of golden light, miniature planets with their starry points and this Stellar's Jay Bandit taking flight 'mid the Oaks bursting into flame. For more images by Barb Levy and to connect with her about her work, visit www.facebook.com/ saltspringbarbrhenpoetry/
September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 19
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Riding the Waves Gulf Islands Water Taxi celebrates 40 years STORY AND PHOTOS BY ELIZABETH NOLAN
Ganges Harbour is a busy place during the summer, with extra traffic from
visitors and locals adding a festive air to public docks. Aug. 24 and 25 marked an especially lively spell amidst the usual round of greetings and calls for permission to come aboard, with two ships in the Gulf Islands Water Taxi fleet bedecked for a pop-up 40th-anniversary celebration and art show hosted by company owners Jack and Leslie Hughes. “We have the best deckhands,” says right-hand-woman Debbie Louise, who has helped keep the business running smoothly for 30 of the past 40 years. She describes a flurry of scrubbing, painting and errands performed to get the vessels ready for the anniversary party. “It makes it so much easier when you can rely on people to be reliable.” Not much has changed for Gulf Islands Water Taxi in the past 10 years, other than upgrades to the existing vessels and the addition of a new fast ambulance boat. Since celebrating its last big milestone — the 30th anniversary event in 2008 — the company has carried on with business as usual providing safe and reliable transportation between Salt Spring and the Southern Gulf Islands, much as it always has. “I just feel a lot of gratitude for being in the community for 40 September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 23
Above: Jack Hughes' artwork on display on The Scholarship water taxi in August of 2018. Previous page, from top: Jack and Leslie Hughes during the Floating Art Show; paintings in the Life Below series.
In addition to the sea, Jack is inspired by unusual landscapes and the natural phenomena of outer space.
years,” Leslie says while preparing to greet guests to the drop-in festivities. The 40th anniversary year in 2018 marks another successful decade in that venture, and if the passengers often happen to be the most vulnerable part of the community in the form of school-aged children and people needing emergency medical treatment, it’s all the more testament to the crew’s professionalism if others tend to take the delivery of that precious cargo for granted. Gulf Islands Water Taxi provides traditional passenger ferry service between Salt Spring, Galiano and Mayne islands during summer Saturdays. But the transportation of middle and high school students to Salt Spring and back home throughout the school year is one of its most important responsibilities. During the 1980s, changing demographics meant the company shifted from taking boarders home on the weekends to transporting kids every school day, now bringing over 100 kids safely over the water each day. Medical calls have meanwhile increased to nearly one per day, with patients and attending paramedics en route to hospital getting transported from the islands for pick-up in Swartz Bay. A new ramp system Gulf Islands Water Taxi pioneered for its ambulance boat Medic 1 has become a standard requirement across the coast. One thing that has changed in the past decade got exposure for the first time with the water taxi’s floating art show, featuring Jack’s vivid acrylic paintings during the anniversary events. The Hughes moved their family to Sidney in 2003 and also spend part of the year in California, leaving day-to-day operations to their competent staff. That gave Jack time to take up painting, which he did around 10 years ago. “In 2012 I started painting for the gallery,” Jack re-
Page 24 – AQUA – September/October 2018
calls. But although he can boast sales both in Victoria and California, until last month no one had ever had the opportunity to see his work on Salt Spring. “A lot of people don’t know about the man behind the business. A lot of people aren’t aware that he has a colourful side, both literally and figuratively,” Leslie says. The renovation of the 50-seat Graduate with brand new flooring this summer provided a unique opportunity with the temporary removal of the seating rows. For two days the Graduate became a floating gallery, the walls filled with Jack’s colourful works. Jack favours a thick, glossy application of pigment and a slightly abstracted style for expressive works that brim with energy. Many of his paintings are inspired by the marine environment, such as “Life Below,” a charming series on the personalities of undersea creatures. Metallic jellyfish swim over through the depths, which are calm and mysterious in emerald, ultramarine and aqua colours. It’s not surprising to learn a sushi restaurant in Sacramento happily snapped up six of these. In addition to the sea, Jack is inspired by unusual landscapes and the natural phenomena of outer space. Rock formations hit by the sun in Sedona; limestone islands in Halong Bay, Vietnam; super novas and colliding stars (as seen in Harmony in Chaos) all provide fodder for exciting colour combinations. His work can also show a sense of humour and whimsy, such as a series of multi-hued portraits that started as fluid expressions of colour and shape and were then refined into characters through the artist’s imagination. “What I try to do is get a personality of something and just go with it,” Jack explains.
Ventures
A place for all things healthy and beautiful Story and photos by Gail Sjuberg
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appy Tides owner Tamara Gagne knows how to treat her visitors and customers. As she makes me a cup of morning matcha, she takes great care to ensure the strength and the temperature are just right for me, pouring hot water from a vintage Stanley brand thermos. For the next hour I am treated to “the full Happy Tides experience,” as Gagne tells me the story behind various products and art pieces in her funky health food and natural products shop in the heart of Miners Bay. In addition to the delicious Domatcha-brand tea, she shares some gluten-free honey grahams, a gluten-free dark almond butter cup, Naturelle hand lotion, and several intoxicating scents from essential oils and different soap and body care products.
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Tamara Gagne by the essential oils shelves. Previous page: Happy Tides sign.
“I’ve always loved perfumes and I have a very sensitive nose,” she tells me, adding that she aims to spend more time creating original scents in the future. Gagne seems to have a genuine connection to everything in her shop, whether it’s packaged herbs and spices from The Gathering Place on Cortes Island, canned fish and frozen pate from The Fishery or acupressure mats to help people sleep better. She describes the many uses for Marseille’s Remedy Traditional Thieves’ Oil, which was based on Salt Spring Island until recently, as well as the legend from the Bubonic Plague times that explains the “thieves” oil name. “They’re a great little company, and I love dealing with small companies that are like me.” One of her favourite companies is Clearwater Soap Works. The proprietors have even made products based on her suggestions or requests, such as a cypress and sage deodorant. “I just sold out of the deodorants
because it was a hot, sweaty summer.” Developing relationships with the people who make the products has other benefits. “I’ve gotten to know these manufacturers and if I have a question from a customer I just phone them right up and ask the question. I don’t say, ‘I don’t know where it was made or what is in it.’” The same holds true with larger companies. “I have a couple of large distributors that know me well and treat me really well, so I have access to lots of good products, and I try to bring in Canadian products whenever possible. Natural Factors, Prairie Naturals, Trophic — each have their really good areas of specialty.” Her “number-one most awesome product” is Broccofusion sulforaphane ointment from a Calgary company called Newco, which helps repair sundamaged skin. As Gagne shares her story, it is apparent that she truly cares about her
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customers’ health and well-being and is definitely in the right business. She even sets out a table and chairs under the shade of a tree in front of her premises so that visitors can have a rest. She is also studying iridology to both add another dimension to the store and to help her friends and family. She credits her late German mother for inspiring a passion for health. “My mom has been a driving force in my life,” she says. “We all thought she was a health nut and didn’t appreciate all the things she had to say. She was years ahead of her time. But I remember her voice in my head almost every day: ‘You must get the poisons out of your body’ and that kind of thing. So I think a lot about what she used to do.” For example, her mother used the homeopathic remedy Arnica long before it was popular. “That is one of the huge things that has come up and become more mainstream now, whereas in the past it was just a European thing.”
Gagne is also an artist and graphic designer. She uses her talents to make original cards, jewellery, new clothes and upscaled couture, including some one-of-a-kind jean jackets. “I get the jackets and then I put vintage or interesting fabrics on the back. They’ve sold really well.” She makes woodburned and painted signs from local driftwood and beach rope, and crocheted cotton wash mitts. Having an artistic side may explain why the store feels “curated,” with each item given its special space and due attention. I look forward to my next visit to see what's new and beautiful at Happy Tides.
Editor’s note: In a story about Christina’s Garden in the last issue of Aqua magazine, it was incorrectly stated that Happy Tides had closed. In fact, Tamara Gagne and Freddie Steele have operated their store continuously for 12 years on Mayne Island, but in three different locations. For the past six years it has been at 478A Village Bay Road. Look for Happy Tides Purveyors of Fine Health Foods and Natural Products on Facebook.
Driftwood signs and cards made by Tamara Gagne at Happy Tides.
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Education
SIMRES on Saturna Giving Voice to the Marine Ecosystem By CHERIE THIESSEN Photos by Cherie Thiessen, except as noted
Captain Larry Peck in front of the East Point lighthouse on Saturna Island. Page 35: Peck outside the SIMRES station.
My partner David Dossor and I are at East Point on Saturna Island in
the offices of the Saturna Island Marine Research & Education Society (SIMRES).
We’re just winding up an interview with Captain Larry Peck, an intrepid blue water sailor, charter boat captain and founding member of SIMRES, when the phone rings. He picks it up and listens. Then we hear: “Oh you’ve got to be kidding! OMG! So we have evidence now!” He is almost bouncing out of his seat with excitement and we intuit we’re going to hear something awesome. He continues to bounce. “Cool! Fantastic! June last year, you said? Brilliant. Thanks so much.” He spins to face us, beaming. “This is so unusual. It’s the first time our hydrophones have picked up humpback whales bubble net fishing. There has been no record of that happening in our waters before. That was Dr. Lauren McWhinnie, our resident scientist. She’s one of three UVic researchers who have been working on research using our hydrophone data and she’s also a SIMRES director. She has been going through our hydrophone data as part of her work on the impact of vessel noise on our whale populations and she has picked up this activity from the June data. I can’t believe that call came through right at the end of our interview like that.” The timing of the phone call was perfect and thus the end of the interview becomes the beginning of this article. It’s a perfect circle, just like the story the captain has just told me about the birth and the life of SIMRES. In fact, there’s a lot of serendipity surrounding us today.
HOW IT BEGAN
With a mission to become a centre for scientific research and educational programs to the island through partSeptember/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 31
nerships with universities, aquariums, parks, scientists, educators and other environmental organizations, SIMRES also wants to encourage citizen science and environmental stewardship and to bring people closer to understanding and appreciating the marine ecosystem through presentations, workshops and hands-on experiences. Formed in 2012 from an economic development conference held on Saturna, at which one third of the island’s residents were in attendance, it was chosen hands-down as the initiative most islanders wanted to see pursued. Subsequently, SIMRES registered itself as a non-profit society in January 2013, and hit the ground running. The first event in May of the same year was successful way beyond imagining. It was the almost-famous Moby Doll Orca Symposium, co-hosted with the Saturna Heritage Committee, a sold out event that attracted many of the very same top marine
scientists, educators and environmental organization representatives that SIMRES was planning to reach out to. How did all this evolve? “When we settled here we were aware that with little more than 300 people on the island full time and with very few young families, we needed to do something to stimulate the economy, so there was an initiative started called Saturna Works and I joined the team because of my background in community development. It was 2011, I had recently returned after eight years of offshore sailing, and I thought ‘I can offer something here.’ So the community held that workshop in order to come up with a development plan. We had lots of posters up on the wall with various ideas. Robert Bruce had come up with the idea of a marine research station, and in the end it was the only idea that succeeded. I wound up being the founding chair of this group.”
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104 McPhillips Avenue, Ganges, 250-537-2812 Fax: 250-537-1926
Find out what’s happening on the Gulf Islands www.gulfislandsdriftwood.com
Helping you see clearly since 1997 250.537.9933 2451 Beacon Avenue, Sidney 250-656-3626 islanDs MeDia
#3 - 316 Cook Street, Victoria 250-380-2735
Page 32 – AQUA – September/October 2018
FIND:
CO & BO
Saturna could not have found a better helmsman. A longtime charter boat captain who owned and operated his own passenger boat in Prince Edward Island at 18 and who revitalized a sleepy coastal maritime town with his innovative approach to tourism, Peck brings passion and total commitment to every task he undertakes. He totally believes in the hands-on approach and most of the good things that have happened to SIMRES happened serendipitously when he met and chatted with key people and wound up turning them into stakeholders and donors. He has also brought together a strong board of directors with myriad skills. Long-time resident and fellow blue water sailor, Robert Bruce, whose idea gave birth to SIMRES, has been heavily involved in the community since the 1970s. Novelist Bill Schermbrucker, Charles Reif, Sue Syverson, Tony Green and Lauren McWinnie round out the current team. Although no longer on the board, past director Maureen Welton continues to organize the SeaTalks program with Humpback whales bubble net feeding off the north coast of B.C. Bruce. It's an ambitious roster of presentations and activities on subjects like The Threat of Microplastics, The Future of The Salish Sea, Humpback Whale Vocalizations, Transient Killer Whales and the popular Intertidal Safari in partnerstream our hydrophone and camera sounds and images over the ship with Parks Canada, an event that BC Ferries sponsors as part of internet and use social media to spread the word about how vestheir community investment program. sel noise can be a danger to the survival of these whales,” Peck “Connecting communities is important to us and we are happy to explains. “Underwater noise can be quite deafening to them and support events like the Intertidal Safari on Saturna Island because of can interfere with their ability to communicate or find their food, the way it brings the community together. We care about the sustainso we have also been awarded another $15,000 by the Victoria ability of the communities we serve, and the event’s focus on ecologiFoundation to take what we learn about vessel noise and whale cal and marine education made it a great fit,” says BC Ferries’ manager activities to create educational materials, slide shows and videos so of communications Tessa Humphries. we can work with other organizations like the Shaw Centre for the
RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
“Maureen helped move our organization forward with her interest in the marine sciences, a passion for our marine ecosystems and her ability to create the most amazing posters and photographic images,” says Peck, as we enthuse over her posters and brochures of intertidal life. Located at the spectacular headland of East Point, one of the orcas’ most frequented feeding grounds, the SIMRES headquarters is in front of the lighthouse. It used to be a storage space for Parks Canada, which generously donated the approximately 650-squarefoot area to the cause. It’s an ideal venue. Half of the area was once a garage used by the firefighters. It’s now what Peck calls “the staging area,” a place to clean shellfish (when the sink gets installed), and a display and demonstration area. “Our relationship with Parks Canada is a good one. They suffered a lot of cutbacks and one of those cutbacks was in research so we collaborated with them.” The Intertidal Safari was one such joint project. But where does the money come from for hydrophones and operations? “Our Fisheries and Oceans habitat stewardship grant is directed at our species at risk, which include the endangered southern resident orca and threatened humpback whales. We have been awarded $10,000 to develop our internet capacity so we can
Salish Sea, the Blue Water Sailing Association, the B.C. Maritime Museum and others to spread the word about how we can help these whales survive.”
HYDROPHONE GIFTS
Peck calls the first hydrophone his “2013 Christmas gift.” It was donated by Ocean Networks Canada board member Tom Gallagher and his wife Christine. The second came from the Flora Foundation, part of the Hewlett Packard Company. Serendipity again . . . here’s how that went: “A researcher from the University of Victoria wanted to do a project with us but needed two hydrophones to do it, and then a few days later when on the ferry I ran into a Saturna friend who had always been interested in what we were doing. So I’m telling her, ‘Just one more hydrophone so the researcher can do the work!’ Little did I know that the friend sitting with her was one of the Hewlett Packard family and a few weeks later I got a letter from them saying they would donate another one in remembrance of Ian Smyth, my friend’s late husband. “The third hydrophone was from Saturna resident Joan Hoskinson, who lives almost next door to where the hydrophone cables come ashore. By then we had about four or five researchers using our data and I told them that the deal was they had to give us the data they learned from the research and that then becomes our education program!” September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 33
janie wray/Bcwhales.org
PASSION & COMMITMENT
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Discover Beautiful Salt Spring Island Salt Spring Island is named after the mineral springs at the North end of the island. Rated as some of the best mineral springs in North America, you can immerse yourself in the healing powers of these amazing waters. • 10 intimate cabins with ocean views, outdoor space, galley kitchen & BBQ • In room soaker tubs for a romantic retreat. • Bicycles and badminton available • Only a few minutes drive to galleries, entertainment and shopping in downtown Ganges.
www.saltspringspa.com Page 34 – AQUA – September/October 2018
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So what’s bubble net fishing? It’s a unique humpback whale feeding strategy. A group of whales swim in a circle blowing bubbles below a school of fish. The shrinking circle of bubbles surrounds the fish and forces them upwards and then the whales swim up through the bubble and feed. See photo on page 33. • Want to know more? Check out the SeaTalks programs and find out what’s happening. Go to www. saturnamarineresearch.ca. • How to get to Saturna: Go to www.bcferries.com for schedules.
Peck smiles: “So we’ve got a perfect circle. Because one of the things we learned from our initial community meeting was that researchers have trouble getting the word out. They do their research and then it winds up on the shelf somewhere. A researcher is educated as a scientist but not as a marketer/communicator. We can do that. We have the grant and the skills. We’re working on getting the school groups out now. And we’re working on having day camps here with the Shaw Centre and we’d like to do the same thing with Camosun College.” Now it’s time to pay a quick visit to the operations room, a space donated by SIMRES director David Osborne, where a computer and several screens are doing important work. Peck shows us the lines on one of the screens and indicates that they are probably reflecting the noise of a large ship. Outside is the antenna and further out in international waters is the nature reserve, Skipjack Island. Peck still needs permission from the Coast Guard and Fish & Wildlife to place his third hydrophone there. “I want to create a triangulation so that we can pinpoint exactly where the sounds are coming from. Ron Hall allowed us to install our radio-controlled hydrophone equipment on his property out at Monarch Head too.” SIMRES is growing up fast and growing up strong. Its ultimate goal is to establish a permanent marine research centre on Saturna. At this rate, it won’t take long.
Paul Zolob
Check out the Saturna Island Tourism site for places to stay and other island information: www.saturnaislandtourism.com.
PAUL ZOLOB
250-526-2626 email: paul@paulzolob.com
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR WATERFRONT PROPERTY? This estate property is in one of the most desirable areas on the island, with stunning southwest views of Stuart Channel and Sansum Narrows and your own private dock. This is the first time this property has been on the market. Come and be captivated! $1,695,000 Duncan Realty
Salt Spring Office
INDEPENDENTLY OWNED AND OPERATED
342 Lower Ganges Rd. Salt Spring Island September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 35
Comfort Food
Creative Living Salt spring suits artistic couple You’d be surprised by how many different nationalities live on Salt Spring Island. And each one of them has their own comfort food.
STORY & PHOTOS BY MARCIA JANSEN
Marcia Jansen is a Dutch journalist and writer who has lived on Salt Spring since 2012. www.ssicomfortfood.com
Above: Zuzana Hudacek and David Marchandise. Next page: Image taken by Zuzana featuring David's pottery.
D
avid Marchandise and Zuzana Hudacek travelled all over the world to find the best spot to live a creative life. They looked in every big capital in Europe, travelled to the States, Australia, New Zealand and Asia, but ended their search on Salt Spring Island. David, 43, was born in Liege, in the northern part of Belgium, and Zuzana, 38, grew up in Kosice, the largest city in eastern Slovakia. They met in Rome three years ago where Zuzana owned a yoga studio and worked as a photographer and David created art as a painter and ceramist. But despite how beautiful, romantic and poetic it was to live in Rome, the two dreamt of building a life together somewhere else. “There is an old energy in Rome, it’s like living in an open air museum,” says Zuzana. So they started their journey in search of a new place to call home. “We shared a dream together to start our own art studio where we can combine different kinds of arts: a blend of ceramics, painting, photography, creative movement and even yoga. We literally travelled all over the world to find that place. We went to
Page 36 – AQUA – September/October 2018
Amsterdam, Lisbon, Paris, Zurich, Brussels, London and Barcelona, but we didn’t find what we were looking for.” David and Zuzana eventually took their search overseas, to Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, San Francisco, Seattle and finally Canada. “My parents moved from Slovakia to Ontario when I was 18 and I went to university in Toronto,” says Zuzana. “We visited Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver as well. We had mixed feelings about Vancouver. We loved the people and the diversity of people living there, but it was also very different from the way we were brought up in Europe and far away from our family.” Living close by the ocean on the west coast felt good, but due to family circumstances it wasn’t the right time for the couple to take the leap. “But we loved the Pacific Northwest with its rugged nature and decided to give it a second chance by visiting friends that moved to Salt Spring with their kids. We were curious why this young, worldly couple had chosen to live on this small island.”
In Salt Spring they found the perfect place to live a creative life. The moment they drove off the ferry in Fulford, they were hooked. “Our friends took us to a winery, the farmers market, we did a yoga class, swam in a lake, all in one never-ending day. It felt so alive. We met people from all over the world who had chosen Salt Spring Island for the quality of life. We were impressed by the amazing food supply, the organic farms, the sustainability, which was so unlike the big cities we had lived in before.” In Salt Spring they found the perfect place to live a creative life. “There is art tourism, a gallery tour that we can be part of,” says David. “Everything lined up,” adds Zuzana, “the creative community, the healthy food and it’s not too far away from a big city. And with me having a Canadian passport it was basically a no-brainer. There is no perfect place, but this came close.” In the year that they have been living on Salt Spring, David and Zuzana spent most of their time working on their house and the vegetable garden. “It was a big lifestyle change for us. We are trying to grow our own food, even in winter, but it is a lot of work. Now we have to find the time to create new art for our studio — called Damazu — that we hope to open next summer.” The couple plans to go back to Europe to visit friends and family once a year. “The people are warm, friendly and generous but I don’t really miss Slovakia. I’ve lived in many places, so I feel like I am part of the world rather than from a small place in Europe,” says Zuzana. Zuzana doesn’t cook a lot of Slovakian dinners, she admits. “We try to eat as healthy as we can, and the traditional Slovakian kitchen — where the winters are harsh and the people had to preserve their food — doesn’t fit in our lifestyle. But there is one dish that I make once a year with Christmas. It is called Kapustnica, a sauerkraut soup that has all the flavours from back home: the sauerkraut, garlic, onions and smoked sausage. You love it or you hate it, there is nothing in between. I made it for David during our first Christmas together. When he told me he liked, I knew he was a keeper,” Zuzana smiles. One of David’s favourites from back home is Boulettes à la Liégeoise, meatballs with fries. “I used to eat it in a café in Liege close to where I lived at the time. They only serve this one dish, but they do it so well, the place is always packed. The sauce is made with plums and it’s savoury and sweet and perfect to dip your fries in. I love Belgium fries, they’re big and chunky, but I only eat them when I am in Belgium. I’ve never made fries in my whole life.”
Kapustnica Ingredients .5 kg sauerkraut 2 pieces (225 gr) kabanos sausage with garlic 1 large onion
3 cloves garlic 1/2 a red pepper Cloves, nutmeg, bay leaves, black pepper, spicy paprika
Rinse the sauerkraut, then put it with a litre of water into a large pot. Cut and mix onion and garlic cloves, add to the soup. Add black pepper, cloves and nutmeg, 2 bay leaves and some of the paprika. Add some more water and let it cook for about 15 minutes. Cut the sausages into small pieces and add them to the soup. Chop the red pepper and add it to the soup with the paprika. Simmer for about 30 minutes. Serve with sour cream.
Boulettes à la Liégeoise Ingredients 1 kg ground meat (ideally half beef, half pork) 4 slices of bread soaked in milk 5 minced onions 1 bunch parsley, minced, 2 eggs 1/4 tsp. dry mustard 4 Tbsp. brown sugar Drizzle of red wine vinegar pinch of thyme
1 litre of meat broth Sirop de liege (fruit syrup, apple or plum) 4 cloves 2 bay leaves A few juniper berries A few currants Salt & pepper Butter Flour
Meatballs: Knead the two portions of meat, the drained bread, 1 minced onion, parsley, salt, pepper, mustard and eggs together to obtain a homogeneous mixture. Roll the meatballs and cook in a skillet with butter. Sauce: Take meatballs out of the skillet and add 4 minced onions and sprinkle with a pinch of thyme, let brown. Add 4 Tbsp. of brown sugar, let caramelize, then deglaze with a drizzle of red wine vinegar. Add the broth. Bring to a boil and stir in 4 good spoonfuls of Liège syrup and 4 cloves, as well as a few juniper berries. Season with salt and pepper and 2 bay leaves. Cook for 30 to 35 minutes. When cooked, add a few currants and bind the sauce with butter and flour. Add meatballs to the sauce and let simmer a few minutes on low heat. Serve with chunky fries, a salad and applesauce.
September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 37
Be Water Wise
Use Only What You Need Water is a precious resource and supplies on Salt Spring are much more limited than in other parts of BC. Please join islanders as we work together to ensure that this summer, and every summer, we use this limited resource wisely. Try these conservation tips: • Keep showers short. • Run only full loads in dishwashers and washing machines. • Shut off the tap while brushing teeth, shaving, and washing. • Flush less often. • Inform guests about our island’s limited water supply, and ask them to be part of the solution.
Together we can make a difference
www.northsaltspringwaterworks.ca Page 38 – AQUA – September/October 2018
Personal Growth
Time to Learn Fall is traditionally a time to pursue specific interests by taking a class or workshop, or embarking on a longerterm course of study. The following are a handful of choices offered on Salt Spring Island at various times in the coming year. By MARC KITTERINGHAM Photos as credited
Workshops on the Rock, presented by the Salt Spring Arts Council, features local artists and instructors from studios on the island. These “At Large” artists offer courses in things like glass fusing, journal writing, ceramics and creative food, as well as others. The “At Large” artists teach from their home studios, but the arts council provides a centralized place for those interested to sign up. They also offer in-house workshops and demonstrations that take place in Mahon Hall in Ganges. These can be one-time-only sessions or multi-week courses on a wide range of topics. Some courses are for children and youth, but others provide professional development for artists who are trying to get into a new medium or pick up new techniques. At Large workshops aim to be accessible for everyone, and the fees depend on the artist. Upcoming sessions include an encaustic painting course by Rosalie Matchett in September and a clay workshop by Julie MacKinnon in October.
salt springARTS COUNCIL PHOTO
Workshops on the Rock
Workshops on the Rock art course participant. WOR is a Salt Spring Arts Council program.
September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 39
Wild Seed School of Herbal Studies
Healing Foods Meditation Retreat
Founded by herbalist Jasmyn Clift, the Wild Seed School of Herbal Studies’ goal is to help people who want to make their own medicines. The school teaches modern mathematical precision combined with ethical harvesting practices to make herbal medicines with the utmost integrity. They offer bi-annual introductory courses, a yearly intermediate program and an advanced case study. Other courses include weekend workshops on specific aspects of herbalism, wildcrafting trips, supervised clinics and apprenticeships. The school teaches students to be self-sufficient and to work ethically, respecting the entire plant and their clients. It is a member school of the American Herbalists Guild and brings in guest teachers from various backgrounds. Their permanent faculty includes Clyft, Maryann Abbs and Kevin Kunzler. Courses are held throughout the year.
autumn
The Healing Foods Meditation Retreat is a fourday retreat that focuses on slowing down and resetting your health with healing juices and foods. Guided by Tamika Schilbe, Carolyn Jyoti Burke and Brenda Dowell, this course incorporates meditation, yoga, relaxation techniques and healthy eating to bring people a sense of well-being and peace. The retreat is held at DevaTree Place. DevaTree also hosts other retreats and courses, including a yoga and writing retreat, and other yogic teachings. The retreats include yoga instruction, meals and travel around the island.
RESTAURANT AND DINING GUIDE
DINING 4605 Bedwell Harbour Road Pender Island, BC V0N 2M0 Driftwood Centre 250-629-6033 www.josplacepender.com
Patio Now Open!
Restaurant Hours: Breakfast & Lunch (7 days a week) ~ 8 - 2pm Dinner Friday, Saturday, Sunday ~ 5 - 8pm
Relaxed and Refined. Join Us for Lunch, Dinner, or Drinks! Located at the Harbour House Hotel, Steps from Ganges Village
from the marina or campground daily until September 29.
B
HU
U
NO
BC
IA
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Page 40 – AQUA – September/October 2018
minutes from the ferry terminal 44 MADRONA DRIVE 250-539-2004 wendycoburn@telus.net
harbourhousessi.com or phone 250-537- 4700
CATCH THE HUMMINGBIRD BUS
B ING IRD P M
GA
6 to 3 mon/thurs 6 to 5 friday 7 to 5 sat sun
M
R E S E R VAT I O N S R E C O M M E N D E D
artisan breads fresh baked goods island famous cinnamon buns espressos . smoothies
For reservations visit
Live Music Every Friday
ISLAN
D
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Craft beer, great food Big screen TV, pool table, darts Local organic burgers, Fresh seafood, salads Friendly staff - Island hospitality 47 Sturdies Bay Rd 250.539.5472 www.hummingbirdpub.com follow us on facebook
The Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) is often described as feisty ( ! ) and ... outflies all other species usually gets its way at feeders at the expense of slower, less-manoeuvrable hummers is observed in every state and province except Hawaii, PEI and Quebec
Ocean Art Studio, located in Ganges, is run by local artist Daina Deblette. Deblette offers art camps for kids, as well as workshops, painting parties and private courses for adults. Her courses cover skills like oil painting; encaustic painting, which is a kind of painting using hot melted beeswax with added pigments; and creative journalling using ink and watercolours. Previous courses have included an investigation into colour through botanical blossoms held this summer. Deblette got her start teaching on the east coast. After giving a guest lesson at a private school in Nova Scotia, she was asked to come back to teach on a regular basis. Her background in photography and figure drawing gave her the tools to influence her painting. She enjoys teaching beginner artists. “Beginners are ideal,” she says. “It’s starting off with a clean slate. People come in and are a little apprehensive and anxious and they’ve got this internal dialogue that is criticizing themselves. “If you take them out of their mind and you show them step by step how to do something, you can see the light turn on in their minds.” Deblette’s classes are also offered on a private basis. More information is available on the Ocean Art Studio website. Ocean Art Studio is located in Merchants’ Mews and is open Monday through Saturday.
MARC KITTERINGHAM PHOTO
Ocean Art Studio
Daina Deblette at Ocean Art Studio, where she teaches a variety of art courses for people of all ages and experience levels.
rtSpring Presents
25 Performances Internationally Touring Artists Music Theatre Dance tickets start at $25 ask about subscriptions Salt
Spring
Island
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artspring.ca
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250.537.2102 September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 41
Land-Use Planning
Linda Adams will be holding a course on the intricacies of land-use planning on the island. The course starts on Sept. 12 and runs for five Wednesdays until Oct. 17. It covers how local governments run land-use planning and how development is regulated across the province. The material is focused on Salt Spring Island but paints a picture of how the process works across the province. The course covers things like the official community plan, land-use regulations, zoning bylaws, development permits, planning for sustainability and more. It's perfect for anyone looking to learn more before the local elections on Oct. 20, or for those who want to know more about how our island works. The gathering is not intended to be a place for debate about local government issues, but rather an opportunity to understand how land-use planning works. Registration is open through the CRD's PARC website and information is available in the fall Parks and Recreation Guide.
Wisdom of the Earth Immersion
Part of the global nature connection movement, the Wisdom of the Earth Immersion Program lets people become more at one with the Earth by immersing themselves in the wild and restoring the human systems of compassion for all living things. The course runs from September 2018 until June 2019, with a break from mid December through January and another in March. The course offers a holistic approach to natural connection and cultural mentoring. Students learn ancestral skills like friction fire making, shelter building, basket making, identifying edible plants and animal processing. Other areas of instruction are on how to become at home in the wild and to become true to oneself. The course is based on Salt Spring, but expect longer field trips and overnight expeditions to Vancouver Island and beyond. The course is one of several offered by Wisdom of the Earth. They also teach youth programs like WOLF Kids as well as other adult and family programs. The immersion course is the first year of a two-year program that brings students through a transformational journey to be able to help with cultural repair. Page 42 – AQUA – September/October 2018
Seraphina Capranos is another herbalism instructor based on Salt Spring Island. She offers various courses on herbalism, including The Alchemy of Medicine, Elements of Magic and other spiritual and pagan courses. Capranos’ courses teach ways of connecting with nature and bringing the human experience back to the ways of previous generations. For much of human history, the only medicines available to people were those that came from plants. Even now, western medicines are rooted in plant-based knowledge. Capranos’ courses help people re-integrate with that essential knowledge. She teaches ways to turn plants into preventative medicine and to foster a deeper understanding of the natural world. “A lot of how I teach is through story and sharing myth and some more traditional ways that people have used plants, not just Indigenous, but those of us with European roots,” she says. “A lot of plants were brought over by the European settlers. The course is about how to use herbs for nourishment and supporting our health and our vitality and learning how to use plants as preventative medicine.” Capranos’ main offering is a nine-month intensive herbalism course where students learn a variety of skills and ways to create medicine from the plants around them. Her courses are good for beginners as well as experienced herbalists, as there is always something new to learn in the field.
COURTESY SERAPHINA CAPRANOS
Seraphina Capranos
Herbalism instructor Seraphina Capranos.
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 2018 – AQUA – Page 43
Permaculture Design
Salt Spring garden that is part of a permaculture system.
Permaculture is the practice of combining human activity with natural surroundings to create a sustainable method of living. Transition Salt Spring is hosting a Permaculture Design wilderness homesteading course on Sept. 23 from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The workshop explores permaculture design on a homestead farm. It will cover topics like self-sufficiency, regenerative forestry, organic food production and community education. Delvin Solkinson is one of the instructors. He says that “nature is a regenerative system. It creates no waste and gets more stable, healthy, diverse and abundant the longer we leave it alone. We can study the design principles of nature and use them to inform our design of human systems to achieve the resilience and regenerate our damaged ecosystem.” The workshop looks at ways to redesign your home, garden and lifestyle in order to be more efficient and ethical. A potluck meal will be held at the end of the course, as well as a farm tour. Though this is the first time the course is being offered on Salt Spring, Solkinson hopes it will become a yearly event. Other permaculture talks and courses pop up throughout the year presented by different groups on the island. The course is presented by Solkinson, Nick Adamson-Jones and Matt Gravel.
342 Lower Ganges Road (Upper
SALT SPRING COMMUNICATION STATION
now the islands source for retail consumer electronics.
Ganges Centre). Stop in and see us and if we don’t have what you need in stock, we can supply it. In addition to our mobility sales, we carry: PC laptops, printers, monitors, tv’s, networking supplies, hard drives, video and audio cables, drones and many other electronic items. Store Hours Tuesday - Friday 10 am - 5 pm Saturday 9 am - Noon
342 LOWER GANGES RD • 250.537.8371 Page 44 – AQUA – September/October 2018
Anytime . . . is a great time to visit the Southern Gulf Islands! Galiano Island
Pender Island
Mayne Island
Salt Spring Island
When thinking Galiano, superlatives come to mind. It seems to have more of everything, except crowds. That’s surprising, really, given that it’s the first stop on the Tsawwassen-Gulf Islands ferry, a trip of under an hour. The lanky island seems to have more sunsets, more oceanfront, more spectacular hikes, more beautiful drives, more stunning views, more range of places to stay and eat, and more things to do. Mayne Island has a lengthy farming history, from the settlers in the late 19th century to the Japanese who established themselves as proficient farmers in the early 20th century. At the peak of production they exported over 50,000 pounds of tomatoes each season. Today the farms on Mayne Island are productive again and the local food scene is thriving.
Where can you get free killer whale shows with a sunset thrown in? Try Thieves Bay on North Pender. The orcas are a big island summer draw as they feed and frolic almost daily in the rich tidal waters here. These islands have the balance just right, just developed enough to have many amenities, and just natural enough to offer secluded beaches and lonely forest treks, especially on the more undeveloped South Pender.
As the largest of the Southern Gulf Islands, Salt Spring has services, shops, galleries, restaurants and accommodations for all tastes and budgets. February is a great time to visit Salt Spring with the annual February Festival on tap. The Family Day concert, Indoor Market (on Feb. 17) and numerous arts and cultural events take place throughout the month.
Saturna Island
How can an island so close to the mainland be so quiet? The answer lies in the getting there. It’s only 14 nautical miles from the Tsawwassen terminal as the crow flies, but the trip involves two ferries, and can take over three hours. The journey is so scenic, however, that most visitors consider this a bonus — two ferries for the price of one. Don’t miss a visit to the Wild Thyme Cafe in the double-decker bus!
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
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
September/October 2018 – AQUA – Page 45
jgail sjuberg photo
Q&A
Cool & Calm After 25 years, May McKenzie is retiring this fall as a Gulf Islands school trustee. She learned a few things in that time.
Q. How long have you been a school trustee and how did you first get involved? A. I became involved with Mayne School a month after my son started school here in 1979, when the principal called to say that my son had informed him that I had a Class-4 driver’s licence and could drive the school bus! The driver was sick and someone was needed to drive the bus for a field trip to Fort Langley. And so it began . . . There was no library at the school until a retired islander had all the books shipped from a library that was closing in Ontario to Mayne Island as a gift to the community. So, about a week after driving a bus load full of kids to Fort Langley, two other parents and I began the task of cataloguing, typing up the library cards and filling the shelves. In 1989 I was hired by the school district as the Continuing Education coordinator for Mayne Island. At that time the district had a robust Continuing Education program with a full-time coordinator on Salt Spring and part-time positions on each of the outer islands. Unfortunately, that was the first program to be cut when the school board of the day began dealing with shrinking resources. In 1993, after years of being involved in the Parent Advisory Council here on Mayne, fellow parents nominated me to run for school trustee. I have now been the trustee for Mayne Island for eight terms. I am an honorary member of the British Columbia School Trustees’ Association and was the board chair for 19 years of those 25 years. Q. What has been the most rewarding thing about being a trustee? A. The number-one reward has been getting to know and working Page 46 – AQUA – September/October 2018
May McKenzie and the new Mayne Island School mural.
with such dedicated people at every level within our system and within the communities at large. And the graduation ceremonies! They never get old — the hope and the promise. Q. What distinguishes the Gulf Islands School District from others you are familiar with? A. We are small. We are very involved in our communities and we know everyone who is involved in our schools. We have been very fortunate to have trustees who really care about what is best for the learners and who have not been motivated by the politics that you see in the boards in the urban centres. Q. How did the school system change from when you first came on the board? Do you think the system serves students better now? A. Education constantly evolves as it responds to current global best practices and the changing nature of society — and so it should. I believe our students are better served now as teachers work to facilitate learning that works for each individual learner. I believe we have come a long way with respect to learning Indigenous culture and responding to the need to teach about the wrongs of history. Here in the Gulf Islands we have strong nature-based programs and we support learning about sustainability. Gardens abound! Q. Do you have any stories about particularly memorable meetings or issues or water taxi rides that you would like to share? A. So many moments . . . The Raging Grannies storming a board meeting to protest budget cuts. One of the most entertaining meetings happened when the board was considering putting condom machines in the high school. The interplay between GISS leadership students and conservative community members made for an interesting day as the chairperson. The endless difficult meetings as we moved to the four-day week always come to mind. When a very vocal protester carried signs to one meeting (saying that we would be responsible for children not learning properly) but had not bothered to check the spelling on his placard, it was hard for us to keep a straight face. Q. What advice would you have for anyone considering taking on a trustee role? A. I truly believe that everyone wants to be the best they can be and for me, it’s all about developing and fostering relationships. Hire the best people available. Get to know them, support them and stay out of the work that belongs to them. Maintain respectful and forthright relationships with the community and with funders. And . . . buckle up and keep calm!
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