Prince George Citizen August 15, 2019

Minister seeks more

federal

help for ailing forest sector

Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff mnielsen@pgcitizen.ca

B.C. Forests Minister Doug Donaldson is seeking more help from the federal government for the province’s struggling forests sector.

While attending a meeting in Saskatchewan this week of federal, provincial and territorial forests ministers, Donaldson delivered a letter to federal Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi outlining a five-point plan for further collaboration between the two levels of government.

The proposals include:

• Enhancing and extending the Softwood Lumber Assistance Program to address the urgent needs of mill workers, independent contractors and affected communities.

• Developing a bridging program to allow older workers to take early retirements. It would apply to both those put out of work by a mill closure and those whose job could be filled by someone from another mill.

• Establishing a centrally-operated “worker transition coordination office” to oversee support services and coordinate placement opportunities.

• Fine tuning Employment Insurance eligibility for rural, forestry-dependent workers.

• Expanding and extending support for converting mills from producing conventional products to engineered wood, pulp, bioenergy and composite products.

In an interview, Donaldson said the proposals amount to a mixture of immediate and longer-term “targeted interventions” reached after “being in communities, on the ground, talking to

union workers, talking to contractors, talking to communities and First Nations.”

Donaldson declined to say how much money he is seeking from Ottawa.

“I’m not going to negotiate publicly at this point,” he said.

“Our deputy ministers have those figures in mind and will be discussing that over the next few days.”

That the proposals have been raised just as the writ is to be dropped for the federal election is a benefit, Donaldson said, in the sense that it raises the urgency to respond.

“From a political sense, it could be something that the federal government might be interested in announcing as a lead up to an election,” he said.

Heather Sapergia and Tracy Calogheros, respectively the NDP and Liberal candidates in Cariboo-Prince George, both expect the ailing forest sector to be an issue in the coming federal election. It would make sense for the federal Liberals to roll out some help before the writ is dropped, Calogheros said.

Cariboo-Prince George Conservative MP Todd Doherty did not return a request for comment on Wednesday.

Opposition forests critic John Rustad said Donaldson could have taken the step much sooner.

“Has he been asleep all this spring and summer? I mean, this has been going on now for many months,” Rustad said.

The MLA for Nechako-Lakes disputed the governing New Democrats’ claim that the previous B.C. Liberal government had no plan for dealing with the looming crisis. He said strategies had been drafted to diversify the economy through mining, liquified natural gas and petrochemicals while also working

with local governments through the socalled beetle action coalitions.

And he said the community engagement process was ready to go right after the 2017 election.

“For whatever reason, the NDP didn’t follow up with that,” he said. “They decided to just let it sit, I don’t know why.”

He noted the government ran a $1.5-billion surplus, yet has not put any additional money into helping the forest sectors.

The ministers met in Elk Ridge, known as the “heart of Saskatchewan’s boreal forest.”

Donaldson said the “unjust and unfair” tariffs on softwood lumber was among the topics discussed and noted the onaverage 20-per-cent levy is delivering an even bigger impact due to rising log costs and declining prices for dimensional lumber.

He said data is being collected through the B.C. Timber Sales program to support Canada’s appeal of the tariffs. Using the tack has been successful in the past, Donaldson said, “and that’s why to fiddle with stumpage rates, which some are suggesting to do at this point, (would) definitely hurt our cause in these appeals and is something that would be seen with great suspicion by the U.S. lobbyists and lawyers.”

But Rustad said B.C. could take a page from Alberta’s playbook and calculate stumpage on a monthly rather than quarterly basis.

“It’s not a matter of subsidizing or dropping stumpage, it’s just a matter of bringing stumpage in line with more realistic, current-market conditions,” he said. — with files from Yorkton This Week CITIZEN

Ready for school

Breanna Poirier, 8, was one of a thousand school-age children to receive a box full of school supplies and a backpack on Wednesday. The Prince George Native Friendship Centre held its fifth annual back-to-school event which provides students with back packs, school supplies, coupons for hair cuts and clothing for the new school year. The event featured activities for the children and a free lunch provided by the Smokehouse Restaurant. A number of businesses contributed to the event in the form of cash donations, discounts, goods and services and through volunteer support.

Sockeye facing rough season

Glacier Media

Fish of all stripes – commercial, First Nations and recreational – should brace themselves for what could be an epic bad year for sockeye salmon.

The combination of closures on chinook, a major landslide on the Fraser River that is blocking the passage of returning chinook and sockeye and drastically lower than expected returns of sockeye are building up to what could be a year of idle fishing boats.

This year’s sockeye return is a sub-dominant year, so it was expected to be lower than last year’s dominant year returns.

But in-season forecasts, based on test fisheries, are now suggesting that Fraser River sockeye returns will be so poor this year that a full closure can be expected. That includes First Nations food, social and ceremonial (FSC) fishing.

Lower Fraser River First Nations are already calling this year’s fishing season “a disaster,” thanks to closures to protect chinook stocks. And they are angry that they are not allowed to fish for FSC purposes while the sport fishing sector has been given limited access to chinook.

They had expected FSC closures to be lifted by July 15, but in some areas, FSC openings have been postponed to Aug. 23.

“This season has been a disaster,” Les Antone, councillor and fisheries manager at Kwantlen First Nation, said in a press release.

“The feeling of not being able to fish is bad, but it’s made worse knowing that other fisheries are happening in the Fraser and Salish Sea.”

The word “disaster” may not be an overstatement, according to in-season test fisheries, which suggest this year’s Fraser River sockeye return could be a repeat of 2016, when only 860,000 Fraser River sockeye returned – the lowest return on record.

The pre-season forecast was 1.8 million to 14 million Fraser River sockeye, with a median forecast of 4.8 million, and 5 million pink salmon. — see ‘THE NEWS, page 3

Ex-firefighter teams up with developer to create wildfire app

Brenna OWEN

The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER — Former firefighter Aaron Kilback says his friends in Penticton used to ask him for updates on campfire bans and active wildfires, and he figured it would be easier if the information was all in one place.

So, Kilback and app developer KC Dyer teamed up about four years ago to build a mobile app that compiles active fires and fire danger ratings, evacuation alerts, and air quality reports from the provincial fire service, Environment Canada and NASA.

“We’re just two guys who wanted the B.C. wildfire data accessible quickly on our phones,” says the description of the BC Wildfire app.

The app offers several different maps of wildfires in B.C., Alberta and the western U.S., an evacuation alert map, and a mashup of wildfires across western North America. Each fire is clickable, offering details including the size and estimated cause of the fire.

“People are used to opening an application and having the information optimized,” said Kilback, adding that all the same information is found on government webpages with extra steps, but this is more accessible on a cellphone when people are camping or out in the woods.

The number of users for the app varies throughout the year but it peaks during the summer months, said Dyer

In 2018, one of the worst years for wildfires in B.C., Dyer said there were more than 40,000 installations.

More than 27,000 users have

installed the app so far this year, he said.

For Anthony Ettlinger, the app means he can keep track of where his wife, Leslie Ettlinger, is working. She’s an on-call firefighter at a local fire hall and has been deployed on structure protection several times. Ettlinger, who lives outside Vernon, said the provincial wildfire service does a great job of posting information online for people using computers, but he’s had trouble loading the same information on his iPhone.

“(The app) gives me immediate access to the conditions near where I am.”

The Ettlingers moved to Canada from the U.K. in 2015 and quickly realized how prevalent and destructive wildfires can be in B.C.

“There was an actual wildfire that started not far from the house and we sort of watched in amazement as the bombers and helicopters and everybody went in,” said Ettlinger, who recently donated to the BC Wildfire app to help keep it running.

Dyer said he’s grateful it’s been a slow fire season since he and Kilback have been paying hundreds of dollars each month to keep the app running at its peak.

Last year, Google changed its pricing structure to provide a US$200 monthly credit equivalent to 28,000 free dynamic map loads.

In June, there were more than 60,000 BC Wildifre map loads, which cost them $336 after Google’s monthly credit was applied. Kilback estimates the small team who set out to create the app has paid around $14,000 out of pocket to get the app built and to keep it running

Ready to ride

Nove Voce win silver in Sweden

Christine HINZMANN Citizen staff chinzmann@pgcitizen.ca

Nove Voce, a local choral society, has returned to Prince George with silver medals from the INTERKULTUR Grand Prix of Nations and Fourth European Choir Games event held in Gothenburg, Sweden. Choirs from all over the world gathered to compete and participate in mass choir performances and workshops.

“The city of Gothenburg is spectacular,” Robin Norman, Nove Voce’s choir director, said. “It’s got this beautiful balance of old and new, so the venues we were singing in were glorious.”

Stora Teatern is a grand theatre in Gothenburg that has four tiers of box seats and everything is gilded, Norman described.

“Oh, it was just such a joy,” she added. “We went in there to sing and we all sound like angels because the acoustics are so good.”

The other competition was held in a university hall.

“We got to perform in front of these glorious murals from 1750 and it was just so beautiful,” Norman said. “We were feeling pretty overwhelmed with some of that, especially because the city of Gothenburg really opened its arms to everybody. It was pretty lovely that way.”

The group competed in two categories, folk song and chamber.

As for the Grand Prix of Nations competition which is for national title holders, Norman said Nove Voce members were happy and sad about it.

“The girls sang really well and about half the judges recognized that,” she said. “It’s like the marking power in figure skating so the judge from Indonesia loved us and gave us nines across the board, but Sweden did not. The judge gave us fives.”

Other judges from South Africa and Britain gave scores between 7.5 and 8.5 and Norman said she believes Nove Voce’s performances were more in line with their scores than the Swedish judge’s score. For scores to come in between 5 and 9 is some-

Scouten steps down as museum president

Citizen staff

Katherine Scouten has stepped down as president of the Exploration Place board of directors.

Scouten sent a letter to the museum’s board and management team on Wednesday confirming the move, executive director Tracy Calogheros said.

Scouten took the step because she is busy starting up a new consulting business, Calogheros said. Vice-president Shauna Harper will be filling in until at least the board’s September board meeting when members will discuss next steps.

“I’m going to miss her,” Calogheros said. “Kathy’s been on my board for 15 years, it’s a big loss.”

Scouten was also Exploration Place’s liaison with B.C. Science World, Calogheros noted. “I get it, I know why,” she said. “When you have a business and your volunteer work is interfering with your business, work has to come first. But it’s a shame, we’re going to miss her.”

Scouten will also be taking a back seat on Calogheros’ bid to become the next MP for CaribooPrince George after being the official agent during the 2015 campaign, Calogheros said.

thing Norman considers quite diverse and no critique or explanation will be forthcoming.

Norman was able to offer her assessment of the choir she leads and said she understood when the choir sang Log Driver’s Waltz with more expression and had more fun they were awarded .5 higher and during another performance .2 was taken from their score when they momentarily lost rhythm.

“And that made total sense to me,” Norman said. “We knew we weren’t going to walk away with the grand championship. There are choirs competing that have done this for several years and this is our first time. So we just went in saying we’re doing this to represent Canada because Canada hasn’t been in the Grand Prix of Nations for a while.”

Nove Voce took in a workshop with South African choral director, composer and clinician Christo Burger, who said they were an impeccably prepared group and he loved their sound. He pushed them harder to make them better, Norman said. He was so in tune with the choir he could point to an individual and offer constructive advice.

“It was a pretty remarkable experience,” Norman said.

Nove Voce participated in a Friendship Concert with choirs from Norway, China and Denmark.

The local choir made such an impression that the Norwegian choir wants to come to Prince George for a visit, Norman said.

The choir had support from family and friends who made the trip with them and just made it so much easier, she added.

Canfor donated black and red plaid jackets for the choir to wear while they sang classic Canadian folk songs like the Log Driver’s Waltz. Local businesses and individuals sponsored the group in such a way that if money was the only thing standing in the way of the choir member attending the competition, the non-profit choral society, who was also able to fundraise throughout the year, was able to help make it happen.

‘The news may get even worse’

— from page 1

The Pacific Salmon Commission (PSC) yesterday dropped the forecast to 1.6 million sockeye, and even that target may not be met. And that will mean no fishing for anyone.

“With that reduced run size of 1.6 million, there would be no marine and Fraser River sockeye directed fisheries this year,” said Catherine Michielsens, the PSC’s chief of fisheries management science.

“And also for First Nations, food, social and ceremonial sockeye fisheries remain closed as a result.

“The news may get even worse,” she added.

By now, half of the 1.6 million Fraser River sockeye should have returned.

But as of Wednesday, only 15 per cent

A section of Victoria Street is expected

be reopened by the

make

have shown up. “So in order to still have a run size of 1.6 million, we need to start seeing substantial numbers of additional salmon arrive soon, or the run size will be downgraded further,” Michielsens said.

Sockeye generally have a four-year lifespan, compared to pink salmon, which mature and return in two years.

Over the last several cycles, Fraser River sockeye have followed a pattern in which there is one dominant year, with fairly large returns, followed by a sub-dominant year and two years of very low returns.

Last year, 11 million sockeye returned to the Fraser River, allowing for a commercial harvest of 5.8 million, 900,000 for FSC fisheries and 140,000 for the recreational sector.

For more information about the choir visit www.novevoce.ca. Citizen staff

of

on

They are replacing a five-metre section of storm drain between McCullagh and Milburn Avenues. Once that’s done, they will backfill and repave the site. The stretch has been closed since late last week as the city worked to determine the best way to fix the damaged culvert, now believed to have been installed in the late 1960s.

“The operation was slowed for a few days as rain and ground water filled the excavation site and had to be removed,” city hall said.

CITIZEN PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN

The Sizzler gets a wash down as West Coast Amusements sets up the midway at this years BCNE that opens this morning at the exhibition grounds on Ospika Boulevard.

RCMP ‘sitting on’ watchdog report, civil liberties group says

Jim BRONSKILL The Canadian Press

OTTAWA — The RCMP has been sitting for two years on a watchdog report into alleged Mountie surveillance of anti-oil protesters, a civil liberties group charges.

In a letter this month to RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki, a lawyer for the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association laments the “inordinate delay” that has effectively obstructed the report’s release.

The association lodged a complaint in February 2014 with the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP. It alleged the national police force improperly collected and shared information about people and groups who peacefully opposed the planned Northern Gateway pipeline project and attended National Energy Board meetings.

The association said monitoring, surveillance and information sharing with other government agencies and the private sector created a chilling effect for those who might wish to take part in hearings or other public discussions on petroleum issues.

The commission launched a public interest investigation and completed an interim report into the matter in June 2017, forwarding it to the RCMP for comment on the conclusions and recommendations.

The commission cannot prepare a final report until the RCMP commissioner responds, which also means the findings can’t be disclosed to the civil liberties association or the public.

In March, Paul Champ, a lawyer for the association, wrote commission chairwoman Michelaine Lahaie to express concern that more than five years had passed since the complaint was filed, saying the RCMP may have violated the fundamental freedoms of Canadians exercising their democratic rights.

“It is our view that this interminable delay undermines the credibility of the CRCC and,

more importantly, calls into question its ability to fulfil its primary function: ensuring accountability of the RCMP and fostering public trust and confidence in Canada’s national police force,” Champ’s letter said.

“It is regrettable that the CRCC may not be treating this complaint with the seriousness it deserves.”

After receiving no reply, he followed up with another letter in May.

Nika Joncas-Bourget, the commission’s director and general counsel for reviews, told Champ in late May the watchdog shared his frustration with the Mounties.

“We can assure you that we have repeatedly expressed concern to the RCMP regarding the time it is taking to receive the Commissioner’s

Response,” she wrote.

Joncas-Bourget said once the commission receives Lucki’s response, it will “promptly issue” its final report, something it usually does within 30 days of getting the top Mountie’s input.

The RCMP had no immediate comment on the reason for the delay or when the commissioner’s response might be coming.

In his Aug. 9 letter to Lucki, Champ noted the RCMP Act imposes a legal duty to provide a response to the commission’s interim report “as soon as feasible.”

“In short, the RCMP has been sitting on this report for over two years and effectively obstructing its release to my client and the public,” he wrote.

B.C. Oil and Gas Commission failing to properly enforce rules, report says

VANCOUVER — A new report says British Columbia’s Oil and Gas Commission isn’t taking action that would protect the environment in the public interest, favouring instead the companies it is intended to police.

Author Ben Parfitt accuses the

Crown corporation of serving the interests of the industry and a provincial government that promotes fossil fuel developments ahead of the public interest.

The report released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives highlights times when Parfitt says the commission hasn’t penalized companies to the fullest extent for the construction of unlicensed dams and violations of rules to protect endangered species. The commission and provincial government did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the report. Parfitt says there will be a significant ramp up in oil and gas industry activities once liquefied

NEWS IN BRIEF

B.C.

issues call for suppliers of potbased edibles

VICTORIA (CP) — The BC Liquor Distribution Branch wants to hear from licensed marijuana producers able to make and supply new pot-based creations as the province prepares for the soon-to-be legalized edible cannabis market. The branch has issued a product call, asking wouldbe suppliers to identify their interest and ability to provide the branch with edibles, beverages, topicals and extracts. A statement from the liquor distribution branch says successful applicants will see their products marketed throughout the province in both licensed private retailers and government-run BC Cannabis Stores.

The product call opens Thursday and closes on Sept. 11. New federal regulations covering the sale of non-medical marijuana products take effect in mid-October but Health Canada requires licensed processors to give at least 60 days notice before putting a new cannabis product on the market. Blain Lawson, liquor branch general manager and CEO says the product call is an “exciting time” as the branch explores new product categories in B.C.’s legal marijuana market.

“We are currently working with over 30 licensed producers and look forward to engaging with new suppliers to expand our wholesale product assortment,” Lawson said.

natural gas plants are built on the B.C. coast, which will lead to an increase in new drilling and fracking.

The report says a new arm’s length agency should be created to oversee regulatory compliance and enforcement, and a single water authority should be reinstated to regulate all water users in the province.

It says the provincial government should also remove the commission’s powers to change regulations and compel it to release all information deemed to be in the public interest.

Military watchdog to investigate racism in the ranks

OTTAWA (CP) — Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan is asking Canada’s military ombudsman to investigate racism in the Armed Forces.

The unprecedented request follows several troubling incidents and reports linking some service members to right-wing extremism and hate groups, including white-supremacist organizations. Sajjan’s request comes on the eve of a fall federal election in which racism and identity politics are expected to figure prominently. Sajjan says his request is “absolutely not” motivated by politics.

He also says it does not mean he lacks confidence in the military’s ability to deal with racism in the ranks. Sajjan says commanders have done a good job responding to incidents on a case-by-case basis but an independent investigation is needed to get a handle on the scope of the problem and identify ways to prevent it.

B.C. perogy pioneer dies at 88

VANCOUVER (CP) — Bill Konyk, a legendary Vancouver businessman who fought a human rights battle to maintain his nickname Hunky Bill, has died. He was 88. His youngest son, Mark Konyk, says his dad will be remembered as a man who opened the West Coast to good Ukrainian food, adding he was a pioneer in educating people in B.C. about how to eat and make perogies. Konyk died of cancer on Tuesday evening surrounded by his family.

A statement from the Pacific National Exhibition announced “with incredible sadness” the death of one of its longest standing concessionaires. Konyk was a general sales manager for a Vancouver radio station in 1967 when he bet a friend $10 that he could get a booth at the PNE and sell his Ukrainian food.

A history of the business on his company’s website says Konyk convinced the exhibition to give him a booth and Hunky Bill’s Ukrainian food has been a mainstay at the fair ever since. There were numerous restaurants and retail outlets in the Lower Mainland under the Hunky Bill’s name. Konyk said his dad opened the door for many other perogy makers. “When he brought them out to the West, people didn’t know what a perogy was. He always said they thought it was a hockey puck or something.”

Demonstrators march down Government Street during a protest against the approval of the Trans Mountain pipeline in Victoria on June 22.

The Canadian Press

Trudeau breached Conflict of Interest Act, says ethics commissioner

Joan BRYDEN The Canadian Press

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau violated the Conflict of Interest Act by improperly pressuring former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould to halt the criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, Canada’s ethics watchdog declared Wednesday in a bombshell report that leaves a substantial crater in the Liberal government’s road to re-election.

Mario Dion concluded that Trudeau’s attempts to influence Wilson-Raybould on the matter contravened section 9 of the act, which prohibits public office holders from using their position to try to influence a decision that would improperly further the private interests of a third party.

But Trudeau, who said he accepted both Dion’s report and full responsibility for what happened, stood his ground Wednesday on one particular matter: that he shouldn’t be having contact with his attorney general when the well-being of Canadians is at stake.

Dion found little doubt that SNC-Lavalin would have benefited had Trudeau succeeded in convincing Wilson-Raybould to overturn a decision by the director of public prosecutions, who had refused to invite the Montreal engineering giant to negotiate a remediation agreement in order to avoid a criminal prosecution on fraud charges related to contracts in Libya.

“The prime minister, directly and through his senior officials, used various means to exert influence over Ms. Wilson-Raybould. The authority of the prime minister and his office was used to circumvent, undermine and ultimately attempt to discredit the decision of the director of public prosecutions as well as the authority of Ms. WilsonRaybould as the Crown’s chief law officer,” Dion wrote.

“Because SNC-Lavalin overwhelmingly stood to benefit from Ms. Wilson-Raybould’s intervention, I have no doubt that the result of Mr. Trudeau’s influence would have furthered SNC-Lavalin’s interests. The actions that sought to further these interests were improper since the actions were contrary to the constitutional principles of prosecutorial independence and the rule of law.”

Trudeau, who has long insisted he had the economic interests of the country at heart, stopped well short of offering WilsonRaybould an apology.

“What happened over the past year shouldn’t have happened,” he said. “We need to make sure that my government or any government going forward isn’t in that position again.” But he added: “Taking responsibility

means recognizing that what we did over the last year wasn’t good enough, but I can’t apologize for standing up for Canadian jobs because that’s part of what Canadians expect me to do.”

Dion said Trudeau also improperly pushed Wilson-Raybould to consider partisan political interests in the matter, concluding that the prime minister and his staff “viewed the matter chiefly through a political lens to manage a legal issue,” despite Trudeau’s protestations to the contrary.

According to Dion, who interviewed Trudeau and received a written submission from him, the prime minister’s legal counsel argued that he was concerned solely about the public interest, not with the potential political fallout or SNC’s financial situation.

“His concern was, at all times, with the public interest, with the potential impact of a conviction on SNC-Lavalin on its employees, pensioners and suppliers, and that those interests be properly taken into account in prosecutorial decisions,” the report says.

Trudeau acknowledged having mentioned to Wilson-Raybould during one discussion on the matter last September in the midst of a Quebec provincial election, that he was an MP from a Montreal riding. But Dion said he maintained “this was an attempt to convey to the Attorney General that real people and real communities would be affected by her decision.”

Wilson-Raybould quit Trudeau’s cabinet in February over the affair; friend and cabinet ally Jane Philpott resigned soon after.

Trudeau subsequently kicked both women out of the Liberal caucus; they are running for re-election as independent candidates. Both said Wednesday they were still reading the report and would not comment until they’ve read it in its entirety.

Trudeau’s political rivals, all of whom are jockeying for position with the start of an election campaign now just weeks away, wasted little time in seizing on what appeared to be a golden opportunity.

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said Trudeau is “the only PM in history to be found guilty of breaking federal ethics law not once, but twice.”

Previous ethics commissioner Mary Dawson ruled that Trudeau violated the Conflict of Interest Act by accepting an all-expense paid family vacation in 2016 at the private Bahamian island owned by the Aga Khan, the billionaire spiritual leader of the world’s Ismaili Muslims.

“His first violation... was shocking. This one is unforgivable,” Scheer said at a news conference in Regina, adding that Dion has unearthed enough evidence to warrant an RCMP investigation.

CP FILE PHOTO

Ethics commissioner Mario Dion says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau contravened a section of the Conflict of Interest Act during the so-called SNC-Lavalin affair.

Violence is a treatment issue

Re: Thinking Aloud by Trudy Klassen, “Mental disorder law needs to be changed.”

Thank you for addressing this difficult issue and my condolences to the families of the two people killed and to those who were brutally assaulted with absolutely no provocation by a man ultimately judged “not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder” (NCRMD).

The mental illness of the accused, Mr. Goodridge, included the delusional belief that these killings were necessary to defend himself and to stop the angry voices in his head. Mr. Goodridge has also had a long history of serious mental illness and was not taking his antipsychotic medication when these horrendous events occurred. He is now in a special hospital receiving appropriate care and treatment for his illness.

In addition to the recommendations about discharge, I wish to raise some legal issues that could help prevent the occurrence of such senseless violence.

Before that, two points of clarification.

First, Ms. Klassen says that “at the discretion of his treatment team, this man will go free.” It should be noted that while the medical team provides input, the decision for conditional or full release is actually made by an independent review board, with a lawyer as chair.

Next, Ms. Klassen is rightly concerned that psychopaths are responsible for a huge amount of violent crime. But the assumption that psychopaths fall under the

NCRMD classification is incorrect. Although psychopaths have a mental disorder, they generally do not quality as “not criminally responsible” because they do know right from wrong. It is important here to note the difference between psychopathy and psychosis.

Psychopathy is a disorder for which there is currently no psychiatric treatment.

However, many people in the forensic hospital system have treatable brain illnesses like schizophrenia and bi-polar, which cause psychosis.

A person suffering from psychosis has difficulty distinguishing what is real from what is not real. Symptoms include seeing or hearing things that are not there (hallucinations) and false beliefs (delusions). If treated in a timely manner, people with early symptoms of psychosis are unlikely to develop delusions or hallucinations that can lead to violent behaviors.

Some advocates say that people with a mental illness are no more dangerous than others. That is wrong. People with an untreated mental illness, like Mr. Goodridge, are indeed more dangerous. The good news is that, with treatment, people with psychotic illnesses are no more dangerous than others. In other words, violence is a treatment issue. Treatment works and it is key to preventing the senseless tragedies caused by untreated mental illness.

In the case of Mr. Goodridge, he was involuntarily admitted to hospital seven times in Alberta. These readmissions were likely related to not taking his medication. In B.C.,

the law requires that a person involuntarily admitted to hospital for a mental disorder will receive treatment for their illness. In addition, they may also receive treatment in the community if they will not voluntarily comply with essential conditions of their hospital discharge (taking prescribed medication, regular doctor’s visits, stable residence).

Such laws are designed to reduce the awful consequences untreated mental illness that Mr Goodridge suffered and caused. Citizens of British Columbia should actively lobby their MLAs to retain these important laws in the name of individual patient health and public safety rights.

Unfortunately, the B.C. Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS) wants involuntary patients – including those in forensic hospitals like Mr. Goodridge – to be able to refuse the very treatment that is necessary for their release.

It is hard to believe that an organization supposedly dedicated to furthering human rights is advocating for laws that will deny liberty rights, since people with serious mental illness cannot be released if they do not receive treatment. As well as disrupting family and community life and denying personal autonomy, untreated patients are more likely to interfere with the rights of others, including assaulting nurses and other patients. They are also more likely to be put into restraints and seclusion because medical staff cannot provide treatment with antipsychotic medications, Everyone agrees that patients and

Trust instinct

Recently I read an article in the Vancouver Sun about a study done that found that accidents involving children are not accidents at all and that they were all deemed to be avoidable.

I feel I’m the voice of experience on this issue as I will explain briefly.

My beautiful daughter Kaitlin was just a newborn in 1994 and at the time we were living in the basement suite that my dad and I had developed over the winter.

It was a daylight suite so there were only four steps down to the entryway landing.

The problem was that they were all built with concrete which offered no soft landing for a child.

Thus I lined the landing and steps with plywood including a lower level handrail.

To add another layer of cushion at the entryway, I put a rubber welcome mat.

A number of months moving forward I had just seated myself

Stinking smog

This morning was a good time to re-read Dr Marie Hay’s frightening letter about the proposal to locate the Olefin petrochemical plant in Prince George.

It is now 11 a.m. and the air is still hazy and somewhat putrid but earlier we had a

Missing link

On July 3, the B.C. Forest Practices Board proposed a new forward looking forest-planning process – described as the “missing link.” This welcome proposal could provide direction to forest operations on public (Crown) land, which is 94 per cent of B.C. and a public asset of enormous importance and value.

across the table from my daughter at the dinner table.

I was horrified to see the “W” bruised across her face and not a whimper about it! Thank God I acted on my instincts.

As with my boy Kyle, he was always a rambunctious kid so when we walked together I always had my middle three fingers in his hand and my thumb and baby finger I always kept tip to tip around his wrist with enough force that I could counter

thick smog reminding me of the stinking London smogs which killed thousands of people over half a century ago. That was partly solved by the Clean Air Act of 1956 – power plants abandoned coal heating.

To be effective and efficient, however, this new planning process will require:

• outcomes based legislation. This proposed legislation (and regulations) would ensure both political accountability, while enabling practitioners the flexibility required in diverse situations to deliver competent results;

families should have input into treatment decisions. But to allow patients to refuse the very treatment required for their release is “madness.”

I would urge people concerned with the well being of people with serious mental illness, their families and their communities to write to their MLA and to the B.C. Minister of Health and the Minister of Mental Health expressing their opposition to treatment refusal for involrmtary patients. While these “pre-incident” suggestions will reduce the NCRMD findings, Ms. Klassen is expressly concerned about what happens when the ill person is released. What if they go off their medication and reoffend?

The positive finding here is that people with NCRMD status who are fully released by a review board have much lower rates of reoffending than people released from prisons. However, a small number do commit an offence, usually not as serious as the initial offence. To ensure longer periods of supervision, review boards can keep a person on a conditional release order in the community and have their treatment supervised for many years if they are concerned about danger. For those patients released but who may relapse, a long-term supervision period makes clinical sense. I personally would support such a measure with appropriate safeguards. That is an issue for the federal government.

D. Halikowski, President BC Schizophrenia Society Prince George Branch

Letters welcome

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any quick unexpected moves that a young rambunctious child is capable of.

It was awkward at first but quickly it became second nature.

A few years later, Kyle and I were standing at Third and Dominion waiting for the crosswalk light to turn green.

Beside us crossing the street were two young ambassadors for the city hired to greet tourists.

I did not notice that a candy cane was passed to my son while

I cannot believe that we are now so frantic for jobs that we’ll allow a plant producing plastic precursors to be placed within 40 km of this populous city. As Dr. Hay points out, the byproducts have many known and unknown damaging effects on the health of

• forest condition indicators (data), to measure the present condition of our forests, to establish success or failure;

• an annual sustainability scorecard, to inform citizen owners whether we are winning or losing;

• and effective corrective action, to contain the losses and restore ecological integrity, quality and

SHAWN CORNELL DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING

crossing the road.

Kyle dropped the candy cane on the street and then when we stepped on the curb Kyle took off back to pick up the candy. It caught me by surprise but Kyle wasn’t able to break my grip and a second later a yellow cab went streaking over the candy cane! We can save children from serious hurt by following through on our instincts.

Miles Thomas Prince George

humans as well as animals, and the environment, and are impossible to eliminate once deposited.

Please think again seriously, people! Carolyn McGhee, MD Prince George

value to ensure the multiple benefits from our magnificent forests can be secured and sustained.

The cost of not doing this would likely be more negative cumulative environmental effects and further reduction in B.C.’s overall forest economy – now only 2.5 per cent of the direct GDP and declining.

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Done well, the benefits of this new forward thinking in forestry would be to reduce risk, add value and create options for society, especially important in this time of climate change. If we do not control our own destiny, someone else will. Ray Travers, RFP (Ret.) Victoria

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A fairy tale life is hard work

Couple quits corporate life to make kids books in converted barn

Amy JOYCE The Washington Post

The idea sounds utterly delightful: a couple lives in a rowhouse in Baltimore. Tired of city life and corporate jobs, they head off to a charming town on Maryland’s Eastern Shore to write children’s books in a barn.

Here’s the reality, a few years later: the kids are out of school. One is on a swing hanging from the living room ceiling, another needs his diaper changed and the other two are begging for screen time. Contractors are drilling and pounding in an adjacent room to create an office space just off the parents’ bedroom so they can have a little privacy. Papers, ideas, designs, kid artwork and all sorts of detritus are strewn throughout Robbi Behr and Matthew Swanson’s workspace. There are deadlines and family commitments to meet, child care to arrange, speaking engagements to plan, ideas to create and, oh yeah, a summer as commercial salmon fishermen in Alaska to plan for.

In other words, this is not an easy storybook life. It’s the life that creators of the popular The Real McCoys, Everywhere, Wonder and other books for young readers have made piece by piece, story by story, illustration by illustration.

In Baltimore, Behr and Swanson had, they say, “a perfect life” as a married couple. They had a lovely rowhouse and desirable jobs at the same design and communications firm. They lived in a fun neighborhood.

And yet, something was amiss. They had taken these jobs knowing they would be paid well, they would have insurance, and they could build on design and writing skills they felt were necessary for what they eventually wanted to do, “which was making books,” Behr said.

“Everything was great, except we came home exhausted and unable to have any sort of great, creative impulse at all,” she said. And not making books, Swanson said, “was making us sad.”

One rainy day they had an epiphany. “Let’s drive to Chestertown tonight and tell my parents that we’re moving into the barn!”

Behr’s parents owned the barn. There, Behr’s mother had a pottery studio. Upstairs in the hayloft were piles of old tires, bags of shipping peanuts, old couches, lumber. And it was perfect for them, for their desire to run away and create.

But when they told Behr’s parents of their plan, they were met with stunned silence.

Behr’s mother had saved money for years to buy passage on a cargo ship to come to the United States from Tokyo. It was because of her “entrepreneurial, renegade spirit,” Swanson said, that they thought she would embrace their decision. But to her mother, Behr said, being an American meant having a 9-to-5 job with benefits and a grill in the backyard. To her, Behr and Swanson had already made it. They decided to go for it anyway and give it a year.

The couple sold their Baltimore house with a gain of $40,000, using that money to fix up the barn, where they were able to live rent-free.

To kick things off, they started a book subscription service. For $50 per year, a subscriber would receive 10 books, written by Swanson and illustrated by Behr. “Really, that was just so we’d have our paper and printing costs covered, and to make sure we had 10 things made in that year,” Swanson said. The books were creative picture books for adults, something they had started doing together before they were married, when Swanson was taking fiction courses and Behr was a freelance designer.

After the first self-published books came out, their local bookstore, the Bookplate, started carrying them. And then the Carla Massoni Gallery, which represented Behr’s mother, put on a show with the books. “All of these things were happening that were making this feel like not just some silly project,” Behr said.

Once the year was up, they wanted to stay. Around the same time, Swanson’s boss asked him to come back on a half-time, workfrom-home schedule – with insurance – instead of freelancing, as he had been. Soon after, Behr was pregnant with their first baby. They decided to keep going. “We really believed in ourselves, but in a completely unrealistic way,” Swanson said. “If at any point someone (had told) us the

amount of effort it took, I would have blanched.”

As they were deciding to stay in the barn making books for a living, a man picked up one of their creations at an indie publishing book fair they attended.

That man worked for Disney and took the book with him to a meeting, where Erin Stein, then an editor at Little, Brown (still their editor, but she’s now publisher at Imprint, part of Macmillan) said she needed someone to create a superhero board book for kids.

“We were handed this book,” Swanson said. “And then we did it 600 per cent.”

Stein got to know them, and “it turns out they had lots of ideas,” she said. “So many children’s books are published every year. You’re always looking for something fresh, different and original. They think about things in a different way. They give themselves space to think in creative ways and do creative work.”

Was that superhero book the “big break?” Yes, but it doesn’t mean they can kick back and watch the birds swoop toward the Chesapeake Bay as the sun sets. Not only do they have to continue coming up with creative ideas (and then scrambling to sell their ideas and books), but they also have four children: Alden, 11; Kato, 9; August, 7 and Jasper, 2.

They’ve had to learn how to work with each other harmoniously enough that they can keep their home running. Here are some of the ways they make this life work.

With four kids and a home office that is essentially in their bedroom, work and life are incredibly intertwined. Finding a balance – and some peace – in which to work hasn’t always been easy or achievable. Behr and Swanson consider themselves lucky to have parents who can help. Swanson’s mother moved to Chestertown, two blocks away, several years

ago. Behr’s mother died in 2010, but her father still lives down the street in the house she grew up in.

“We have had wonderful people willing to watch them when they were little. And a wonderful Montessori preschool, and now public school,” Swanson said. “It’s pretty free range around here. We work on one side of the wall and the children play on the other.”

Their lives are challenging, they admit. “But everything is challenging,” Behr said. “I hate to say it’s more challenging than other people’s lives.”

They’ve learned to let go of certain things – “or we can’t get anything else done,” she said. So cleaning the house? Once every few months. And just like most working parents, “we sometimes fret we don’t spend more time with them.”

“It’s the life we chose,” Swanson said. “Even if we are not directly interacting with them all the time, I love that we are near our children all the time. They get to see their parents doing this thing that they love. And they’re always available if we need or want them. It’s a joy, but a joy with headaches built in. We don’t have the ability to leave the work.”

Behr and Swanson have also learned they need to take turns on the kid-front and work-front sometimes.

For instance, when Behr has a deadline, Swanson may take the children and go away for a week or two at a time. Behr typically takes the kids to New England or upstate New York in the summer for a week or two, and Swanson stays home to write.

Even with their business and their four kids, Behr and Swanson agree it’s nonnegotiable that they spend their summers commercial salmon fishing in the Alaskan tundra.

Behr grew up fishing in Alaska, and it’s “part of who I am,” she says. “I would miss it profoundly if

I didn’t do it. I think poor Matthew gets suckered along because he’s a good husband.”

“There are moments of intense ‘What the heck am I doing?’ and moments of intense gratitude and gratitude that my children get to see a different way to life,” Swanson says. “To see us in the mode of doing hard physical labour in a completely different part of the world, to grab fish with their bare hands and see that there is a different way of obtaining food... (there are) so many intangibles that I believe they are getting.”

They live without many amenities while they are away, including internet. They don’t work on their books so much there, though Swanson has gotten some writing done. Behr says she always brings art supplies but never ends up with the time to create. The best part of the Alaska trips is the time and space to think about their lives. “The insights we have up there really helped us make important life decisions,” Swanson said.

This sort of break from their usual world is rejuvenating, they say, feeding their work.

One of their upcoming picture books, called Sunrise Summer, will be about the first time their

daughter was able to fish with them, crossing that threshold from being a kid to being a member of the crew.

“It’s a life collaboration that includes book collaboration,” Swanson said. “Every single thing we do is part of the enterprise. Our children are our work. Fishing in Alaska is our work. All these things that come together to make these books possible.”

Among other projects, Behr and Swanson spend time visiting classrooms, speaking to children and donating books.

They hope to expand that next year during a “great American road trip” with their kids, visiting schools and libraries to discuss storytelling and the importance of reading.

So with nine children’s books set to be published by the end of 2021, does that mean they’ve made it and can relax a little?

“That’s beyond the dreams we had,” Swanson said. “And yet we know we have to keep doing it. When we talk to kids (at school visits), we talk about doggedness. If there’s something you love, you have to keep doing it forever. Talent is even less important than doggedness.”

WASHINGTON POST PHOTO/HANDOUT ILLUSTRATION

Above, Robbi Behr works on an illustration while her husband, Matthew Swanson, and their daughter spend time at their home in Chesterown, Md. Left, Milton and big sister Moxie are characters from Swanson and Behr’s The Real McCoys.

Why yield curve matters

The Canadian Press

For the first time since before the Great Recession, the yield curve on two- and 10-year U.S. government bonds has inverted, a possible warning that another recession is on the way.

On Wednesday, the yield on the 10-year Treasury briefly fell below the two-year yield. By late afternoon, the rate was 1.58 per cent 10-year yield and 1.56 per cent two-year yield. However, the spread remains very narrow, a rare occurrence as investors usually demand more interest for tying up their money over a longer term.

This latest inversion is the result of a steep slide in long-term yields as worries mount that U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war may derail the economy. Broader measures of the U.S. economy, meanwhile, are not pointing to an imminent downturn. The job market, consumer spending and consumer confidence all remain solid to strong.

The Canadian Press asked National Bank of Canada Chief Economist Stefane Marion questions about this phenomenon that

prompted a sharp decline Wednesday in North American stock markets.

What is a yield curve inversion?

It’s when the payout on a 10year treasury drops below a shortterm bond, either a three-month or two-year rate. Long-term bonds typically yield more than shorter ones to reward holders for waiting longer to get paid, but an inversion reverses that.

Why does it happen?

People are expecting there’s going to be slower growth ahead. Historically, it occurs when markets believe that monetary policy

has been tightened too much and that central banks will need to lower interest rates. What that means is the markets believe that we’re near the end of the economic cycle and therefore expectations of rate cuts are being built in the curve.

What does it signal?

All recessions have been led by yield-curve inversions and since 1957, there have only been two false signals when the yield curve inverted but a recession did not follow: 1966 and 1998. This is why the markets fear the signal of the yield curve because it’s got a pretty good batting average in terms of forecasting recessions.

What’s unusual this time?

Monetary policy is not seen as being restrictive and central banks are expected to lower interest rates even more. Really, this trade war uncertainty is starting to bite and the stress is not coming from the central banks so the inversion of the yield curve stems from tariff wars and uncertainty.

Is this the first inversion in 2019?

No. Three-month bonds inverted with 10-year treasuries in March. What’s unique is that the shorter-term bond inverted before

the two-year bond. When the three-month bonds inverted, some economists warned that it may not be an accurate forecasting tool.

Is the two-year bond inversion a better signal?

Not necessarily. We’re not seeing a collapse of consumer confidence or business confidence as we would normally see during an inversion of the yield curve. This is the reason why I’m hoping that if the trade war does not escalate we might be fortunate that the cycle will be prolonged and it will be the third false signal after 1966 and 1998.

How soon could a recession be in the offing?

On average, a recession hits within 10 months of a yield inversion.If you believe this is a real signal, well on average you have 10 months before the next recession, so since the inversion started last March, you could say that would mean a recession early in 2020.

Are Canadian bonds inverted?

In fact, Canadian bonds inverted before U.S. bonds but aren’t seen as solid a signal. Canadian 10-year bonds had a yield of 1.16 per cent, compared with 1.36 per cent for two-year bonds.

Where you live and what you rent

Say what you will about the 25-to-30-something crowd, but there is a certain crop of them, at least in the circles I travel in, who are starting very young in developing a housing rental business to complement their long-term career aspirations.

Property barons with student debt hangovers.

Video gamer landlords.

D&D aficionados with pointy shoes, a real estate paper under one arm and a Starbucks latte moustache.

I must admit, their youthful quirks haven’t hindered their laser focus on building a portfolio of rents.

Barely out of college or barely shaving (or not at all), they make chatter at lunch about tenant quality, price per door, and those peskily low Vancouver cap rates creeping northward. I admire their pluck. Keep at it, manage the downside risks and they will do OK, I suspect.

But do watch those cap rates. And it isn’t not just the millennials.

I know of a single mom who went after this business about 15 years ago, all squirrel-eyed and sweaty-palmed. Nervous about the first one she bought, asking me a few questions about financing (my job at the time). Today, I would be her grasshopper. She owns something like 20 of them now and will no doubt retire comfortably. In other housing matters,

IT’S ONLY MONEY

MARK RYAN

another instalment today on the taxation ins-and-outs of Canada’s Principle Residence Exemption. Prior to 2016, you weren’t required to report anything to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) with respect to the sale of your principal residence if the property was designated as such for every year you owned it. If a different property, such as a cottage, was designated as your principal residence for one or more years during the same period of ownership, CRA required additional filings.

Under current regulations, when you sell your principal residence (or are deemed to dispose of it, say at death) you are required to report the date of acquisition, the proceeds of (deemed) disposition and the address of the property. If the property was your principal residence for every year you owned it, you’ll need to make the principal residence designation on Schedule 3 of your tax return.

If you don’t report the disposition or fail to make the principal residence designation in the year of the sale, you can ask the CRA to amend your tax return. The CRA may be able to accept a late-filed principal residence designation in certain cases, but a penalty may apply, calculated as the lesser of

$8,000 or $100 for each complete month from the original due date to the date your amendment request was made.

When you convert your principal residence to a rental property, any resulting capital gain on the deemed disposition can usually be eliminated or reduced by the principal residence exemption up to that moment.

If you’re unable to eliminate the gain, you can make an election to not recognize the deemed disposition. This allows you to defer the recognition of any gain until you sell the property. If you make this election, you still have to report the net rental or business income you earn from the property and cannot claim depreciation on the property.

Even if you’re able to eliminate the gain using the principal residence exemption, you may still want to file this election. In addition to deferring the gain, the election allows you to designate the property as your principal residence for up to four years, even if you don’t use the property as your principal residence. However, you can only do this if you don’t designate any other property as your principal residence for this time.

To make this election, attach a letter (signed by you) to your income tax return for the year in which the change of use occurred. Where you convert your rental property to a principal residence, you may also elect to not recognize the deemed disposition and defer the recognition of any

capital gain until you actually sell it. Keep in mind that you can’t make this election if you claimed depreciation on the property for any tax year ending after 1984. If you make this election, you can designate the property as your principal residence for up to four years before you actually occupy it as your principal residence. To make this election, attach a letter (signed by you) to your income tax return for the year in which you sell the property, or 90 days after the date the CRA asks you to make the election, whichever is earlier.

The deemed disposition rules also apply where there’s a partial change in use of a property. Under the current rules, an election can’t be made to defer any capital gain that is deemed to be realized as a result of a partial change in use of a property. The 2019 Federal Budget proposes to allow an owner of a multi-unit residential property to make use of the elections to defer the gains where there is a partial change in use of the property on or after March 19.

— Mark Ryan is an investment advisor with RBC Dominion Securities Inc. (Member–Canadian Investor Protection Fund), and these are his views, and not those of RBC Dominion Securities. This article is for information purposes only. Please consult with a professional advisor before taking any action based on information in this article. See Mark’s website at: http://dir.rbcinvestments. com/mark.ryan

The main stock indexes in Canada and the U.S. suffered their worst day of the year on Wednesday as North American markets plunged on growing fears of a global recession. There was disappointing economic data in China, the German economy contracted and factory production in Europe plunged the most in three years in June. And then, yields for two- and 10-year bonds inverted for the first time since before the Great Recession, adding to investor angst. The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 304.90 points at 16,045.94, for the largest single-day decrease since last October. In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 800.49 points at 25,479.42, also the largest drop in 10 months. The S&P 500 index was down 85.72 points at 2,840.60, while the Nasdaq composite was down 242.42 points at 7,773.94. There was a sea of red across all 11 major sectors of the TSX. Energy decreased 3.4 per cent as crude prices fell on worries that slowing economic growth would curtail demand. Crescent Point Energy Corp. was down 8.4 per cent, followed by other Canadian energy producers.

The September crude contract was down US$1.87 at US$55.23 per barrel and the September natural gas contract was down 0.4 of a cent at US$2.14 per mmBTU.

MARION

The Citizen archives put more than 100 years of history at your fingertips: https://bit.ly/2RsjvA0

Jandrics head north to Alaska

Ted CLARKE Citizen staff tclarke@pgcitizen.ca

Prince George brothers Stephen and Chris Jandric know they will be playing at least one more season of college hockey together in Alaska with the University of Alaska-Anchorage Nanooks.

However, their future as teammates beyond the 2019-20 season with the Western Collegiate Hockey Association team remains in doubt as a result of drastic cuts proposed to the state-funded university’s budget.

“There were so many unknowns going into the summer but we stuck with it and our coach (Erik Largen) called us a couple weeks ago and said we’re for sure still playing,” said Nanooks defenceman Chris Jandric, who turns 21 on Oct. 3.

Alaska has three state-funded universities – Alaska-Fairbanks, Alaska-Anchorage and AlaskaJuneau. Alaska governor Mike Dunleavy announced in June he wanted to slash $135 million from the university budget in 2020, which would likely have forced consolidation of the three schools and possible suspension of varsity sports programs. But on Tuesday Dunleavy revealed a new plan to halve the cuts to $70 million, phased in over the next three years, a 21 per cent reduction in the state’s university budget.

The Nanooks play NCAA Division 1 hockey in the WCHA, along with the Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves. On Aug. 3, the WCHA confirmed both hockey teams will play full schedules in 2019-20. Until that was confirmed, there was a possibility the Jandrics would have to look for another school to continue playing hockey.

“We know for sure there’s a team this coming year and after that it’s a little bit unknown,” said Steven. “Hopefully I will get to finish off my final year and Chris’s last two years in Fairbanks, but whatever happens, happens.”

Steven, who turns 22 on Sunday, is about to begin his third season of college hockey.

He was the Nanooks’ top-line left winger last season. The former Cariboo Cougar midget put up nine goals 15 assists and 24 points, after a four-goal, 23-point rookie season. In both seasons he played all 36 games.

His linemate the past two seasons was former Spruce Kings

right winger Chad Staley, who has since graduated, and they played against forward Jeremy Luedtke, also a former Spruce King, who just finished his last season wit the Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves.

Chase Dubois, a former Cariboo Cougar forward, is joining the Nanooks this season.

Chris, who turns 21 on Oct. 3, made a spectacular adjustment to college hockey, one of only two defencemen to make the the WCHA all-rookie team. Like his brother, he played the previous two years before college in the BCHL with the Vernon Vipers. In 28 games with the Nanooks, the five-foot-11, 173-pound Prince George native scored three goals and had 12 assists for 15 points, with 42 minutes in penalties.

“It was an awesome experience, the team fell a little short in playoffs but I thought, from a personal perspective for Steven and I, we both had good years,” said Chris.

“We both played lots and we couldn’t complain about anything going on up there, so we’re excited to go back.”

He played well enough to draw first-line power-play duty with Steven, who set up Chris for his first NCAA goal in his 10th game at Lake Superior State.

“That was super-cool, it was a power play and he was on the halfwall and he just fed me for a onetimer, I just put my head down and shot and it went in,” said Chris. “It was awesome having him on the team, he was definitely a key guy for us, finishing checks

and scoring, he was a two-way player.”

Steven stands six feet and weighs 200 pounds. He says the league is slightly faster than what he was used to in the BCHL and he’s playing against older and stronger players compared to what he encountered the junior A ranks.

“It is fun, not too many people get to play college hockey with your brother,” said Steven. “It’s pretty special, and we only have two more years left and we just have to cherish our next two years.

“I’ve been given every opportunity to play and improve my game since I’ve been up there, which I’m thankful for. That being said, you still have go up and earn your spot.”

Fairbanks is located in the

Jr. national course hones Bailey for Simon Fraser Open

staff

Bailey was hoping he’d have four rounds of tournament golf behind him

week when he gets back to swing his

at Prince George Golf and Curling Club Saturday afternoon during the Simon Fraser Open. Bailey, 18, started the week on the other side of the country, teeing off at the Canadian junior boys championship in Hartland, N.B. But after shooting 78 on Monday and 74 on Tuesday on the par-72 Covered Bridge Golf and Country

Club, Bailey missed the cut. His two-round eight-over 152 total ended Bailey’s championship ambitions and he finished 115th in a field of 154. Christopher Vandette of Beaconsfield, Que., holds a two-shot lead over Jeevan Sohota of Victoria heading into Thursday’s final round. Vandette, who won the tournament in 2018, is at 13-under after three rounds (62-69-72–203), while Sihota is at 11-under (68-6968–205). Brady McKinlay of Lacombe, Alta. (72-70-65–207) and Carter Graf of Sylvan Lake, Alta. (67-68-72–207) were

tied for third place. Bailey, a native of Terrace, is expected back to Prince George in time for the two-round men’s Simon Fraser Open, which has 83 golfers entered. Saturday’s opening tee time is at 1 p.m. The tournament resumes Sunday at 8 a.m. Trevor Metcalf of Vanderhoof, 31, is the defending champion. Last year, he won the title for the fourth time in five years, carding a four-under 69-68-137. Bailey ended up six strokes behind (70-73-143) and finished in a three-way tie for fifth place.

middle of the state north of the Arctic Circle at a latitude of nearly 65 degrees. It’s 580 km north of the coastal city of Anchorage and has an area population of about 97,000. With a mean average January average temperature of -22 C, it’s the coldest larger city in the United States. In the dead of winter, days are limited to about six hours of daylight, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., but they spend most of their time indoors studying or at the rink so that’s no big deal to the Jandrics, who are both majoring in business.

“It’s really similar to Prince George, with the scenery and where we’re situated in the state,” said Steven.

“It does get down to minus-40 but it’s a dry cold, so it’s not too bad. It feels like home and that’s one of the reasons we decided to go there.”

The team averages crowds at Carlson Center between 2,500 and 3,000. Last season the Nanooks finished seventh in the conference with a 12-21-3-0 record and were eliminated in the first round of playoffs by Northern Michigan. The Nanooks play 18 road games and fly to all of them except when they play their state rivals in Anchorage. Most of the team’s $2 million budget is to cover their flights and hotel expenses. Last year’s schedule took them to Arizona, Colorado and this year they will visit Pennsylvania, Michigan, Minnesota and Alabama, where former Spruce Kings defenceman Max Coyle will be starting his college hockey career in Huntsville.

“I never thought I’d go to Alabama in my life but I’ll get to play hockey there, it’s pretty cool to see all that,” said Steven, who returned to Alaska with his brother on Sunday.

On travel weeks, the team typically leaves Tuesday, practices Wednesday and Thursday for games Friday and Saturday. The Nanooks have one two-week roadtrip planned this season to Michigan Tech and Penn State.

“Our schooling works where you usually takes two or three online classes and three in-class classes so when you do take those big trips you don’t fall behind too much,” said Chris, who switched from criminology to business this year.

“There’s usually tutors that come along with us and support us and watch over us and if you need help, they’re there.”

Spruce Kings, Cougars begin training camp next week

Citizen staff

Scary as it is to believe, hockey season is just one week away. With the cold of winter fast approaching, the BCHL-champion Prince George Spruce Kings are getting ready for it when they begin their main training camp on Aug. 23 at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena. The team will be divided in half for daily training sessions next week on Friday from 7-9 p.m., Saturday 6-17:15 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to noon.

Head coach Alex Evin and his newly-hired assistant Jessie Leung will be behind the Kings bench at Rolling Mix when they start the twogame exhibition season on Aug. 27 against the Merritt Centennials. The Kings and Cents meet again in Merritt on Aug. 30.

The Spruce Kings open the 2019-20 season at home against the Surrey Eagles on Sept. 6. On that night they will raise the Fred Page Cup and Doyle Cup banners they won last season to the rafters.

The Prince George Cougars also start their WHL training camp on Aug. 23.

The Cats will play six preseason games, all away from home. That starts Sept. 6 in Langley against the Kamloops Blazers, and the Cougars face Vancouver the following night.

On Sept. 8 they will be in Kelowna to play the Rockets and they conclude the exhibition schedule with games Sept. 20 and 21 in Dawson Creek against the Edmonton Oil Kings.

The Cougars, under head coach and general manager Mark Lamb and his assistant Jason Smith, open their 26th season in Prince George on Sept. 20 at CN Centre against the Vancouver Giants.

Stephen and Chris Jandric of Prince George are suiting up for the University of Alaska-Anchorage Nanooks.

CITIZEN FILE PHOTO

Cody Bailey keeps an eye on his tee shot on the fourth hole at the Prince George Golf and Curling Club on June 10, 2018 during the final round of the Junior Simon Fraser Open.

Bronze caps bantam T-birds’ stellar season

Ted CLARKE Citizen staff

tclarke@pgcitizen.ca

The Prince George U16 bantam Thunderbirds will look back in satisfaction at 2019 as a year of accomplishments which earned them some significant hardware.

Two weekends ago they represented B.C. at the Western Canadian girls B softball championship two weeks ago in Biggar, Sask., and came home with the bronze medal.

In a season of highlights, the T-birds got it going in May with a tournament title win in Cloverdale, believed to be the first for a Prince George girls fastball team at a Lower Mainland tournament in more than 20 years. They placed third in the Abbotsford tournament and went on to win the Prince George Women’s Fastball Association title in late June. In mid-July they finished second at the provincial B championship in North Delta, which qualified them for the Western Canadian championship.

“It was a spectacular season,” said T-birds head coach Lee J Leslie. “Back in October of last year when we picked the team we had a parent-player meeting and committed to this year financially, emotionally and physically as being a year where everybody is all in, because we knew we had a team that could do some damage.

“It’s a year these girls will never forget.”

At the nine-team Western Canadian tournament they were among four teams to advance to the playoff round. The T-birds finished the preliminary round tied with the Carlisle (Saskatchewan) Supernovas and Interlakes (Manitoba) Phillies, each with 4-2 records, but claimed second place based on their plus-20 run differential.

“We played very well in the round robin and beat the teams we should have beaten,” said Leslie.

“It didn’t take these girls long to realize that they belonged. They were right there at that calibre and weren’t really intimidated

Simona

Joe KAY

or overmatched in any single game.

“One of the bigger games for us was against the Biggar Nationals. They were the Saskatchewan provincial champs and the crowd was full but they weren’t intimidated and we came out if there with a 4-2 win.”

Prince George then came up against the Tisdale Riverdogs in a must-win situation and mercied them 11-1.

In the first versus second playoff, the T-birds took on the first-place (5-2) Westman Magic of Brandon, Man., in their first playoff game and lost 11-4.

The Magic broke open a 4-4 tie with seven

runs in the fifth inning.

In the silver-bronze game against Carlisle, the Supernovas collected four runs in the top of the first inning and went on to win 6-2. Leslie said a couple of disputed calls by the umpires went against his team, which led to two of the first-inning runs. The Tbirds rallied in the sixth inning and had the bases loaded with nobody out, but a couple more questionable rulings resulted in outs which killed the Prince George rally.

“It was tough to move past those calls,” said Leslie. “That was an extremely tough loss, but once they were presented the

bronze medals these girls realized the magnitude of what they pulled off. To be top-three in Western Canada is a pretty amazing feat.”

The T-birds roster

Halep rallies to avoid upset in Ohio

MASON, Ohio — Simona Halep

wasn’t sure how her left foot would feel. After dropping her first set but feeling no pain, she dug in and advanced at the Western & Southern Open.

The fourth-seeded Halep had no problems with her left Achilles as she rallied to beat Ekaterina Alexandrova 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 on Wednesday, one week after she dropped out of the Rogers Cup quarterfinals because of the injury. She was tentative when she took the court.

“You are a bit scared,” Halep said. “But I think I played much better in the end.”

The Wimbledon champion fought off two break points in the third set and then broke Alexandrova to serve for the match. It wasn’t easy, but at least it was pain-free.

“I felt slowly that I’m feeling good and I have no pain,” Halep said. “I got the confidence game by game, even if she was leading me.”

Top-seeded

since retiring in the first round at Wimbledon with a forearm injury,

Toronto after leading by a set. Sharapova reported no physical problems, but she felt rusty because of the lack of matches due to the injury – something she can fix with practice.

“I have sat in this chair a few times where I haven’t finished the match or I feel like I have a long road ahead of me in terms of recovery with the body, so, yeah, that’s a positive,” she said.

“But there’s definitely the repetition, just the feeling of being in a match. It’s very different.”

Barty, too, was looking to recover from an upset, losing her first match at Toronto last week, and she was satisfied with her return to the court.

“I mean, it was certainly no panic sessions after last week,” she said.

Also, No. 2 seed Naomi Osaka beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich 7-6 (3), 2-6, 6-2 in a much closer rematch of their U.S. Open match last year.

Osaka beat the Belarusian 6-0, 6-0 on her way to the Open title

last year. Sasnovich got treatment on her left knee after falling behind 3-0 in the final set.

Osaka laughed after some of her mistakes early in the match and struggled to get momentum in her easy-going frame of mind. She bore down and closed it out.

“Some of them I was laughing at my errors because it was so ridiculous, and then other times I was laughing because, like, I was in a good mood,” she said.

Eighth-seeded Sloane Stephens rallied for a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over Yulia Putintseva in an evening match.

There were more upsets in the men’s bracket, leaving four qualifiers in the round of 16 at an ATP Masters 1000 event for the third time in the history of the series that began in 1990. It also happened at Monte Carlo in 2001 and Hamburg in 2005. Second-seeded Rafael Nadal withdrew before the start of the tournament because of fatigue after winning the Rogers Cup in Montreal on Sunday.

includes Morgan Case, Kiana Mero, Camryn Frie, Hannah Case, Amelia Musselman, Destiny Bautista, Avery Leslie, Kaitlyn Doucette, Rylee Paterson, Tessa Sturgeon, Brooklyn Hill, and Jordan Maloney. For the Western championship they added pitcher Nevada Johnson of the Delta Invaders. Don Doucette of Quesnel and Doug Sturgeon are the T-birds’ assistant coaches.

HANDOUT PHOTO

The Prince George U16 bantam Thunderbirds took bronze at the Western Canadian girls B softball championship.

The Associated Press

Ashleigh Barty beat Maria Sharapova 6-4, 6-1. Sharapova has had a rough time

losing in the opening round at

AP PHOTO

Simona Halep returns a shot from Ekaterina Alexandrova at the Western & Southern Open in Mason, Ohio on Wednesday.

Where the new colours are born

Editor’s note: This is a revised and updated version of a column that was first published in The Citizen in 2013.

Ienjoy painting. It started when I was a kid and finger painting for the first time. I mean where else can you stick your hands in ooey, gooey stuff and not get in trouble?

Finger painting is also a chance to learn about mixing colours. Red and yellow give you orange. Blue and yellow give green. Blue and red give purple. And by changing the amount of red, blue, or yellow, all sorts of shades are available. The whole rainbow is there for the asking. Of course, there is a lot more to painting than simply swirling colours on a piece of paper. There is a lot of science involved.

Paints are a mixture of pigments or dyes and a medium of some sort. Getting the mixture for the medium right and finding lightfast colours challenged scientists in the past. Or maybe I should say “challenged artists in the past” since they were often one and the same.

Consider oil paints. The precursors to modern oil paint date back to the earliest Mediterranean civilization. Hot beeswax and mineral pigments such as the oxides of iron, copper, and manganese, called encaustics, were used to paint murals. Tempura was developed around the same time employing pigments mixed in a medium of eggs, water, and vegetable oil.

Egg, as anyone who has ever left the breakfast dishes for too long knows, dries very fast to give an incredibly hard film. This made eggs an excellent medium for paints requiring a short drying time. But it wasn’t the best medium for overall durability nor for keeping the colours true.

Olive and other vegetable oils soon became the principle medium giving rise to oil paints. These oils are pliable and fluid, able to hold pigments and provided a lightfast medium. Unfortunately, most oils take a very, very long time to dry. Artists experimented with other media formulations mixing all sorts of compounds in with their oil paints.

Many of the formulations were kept secret so the artist would have a monopoly on a particular colour or formulation. These oil paint formulas were handed down from master to apprentice. It was generally the apprentices who spent their days grinding pigments and mixing media to make the paints the master required.

Oil painting, in the modern sense, emerged during the 15th century when the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck developed a stable medium based on linseed oil. His painting Giovanni Arnolfini and his Wife, which hangs in the National Gallery in London, is considered one of the first to

RELATIVITY

use the linseed oil based paints that are still used today. Van Eyck’s experiments lead to a craft of paint-making separate and distinct from the artist’s studio. Modern artists buy paints premixed in tubes from the factory.

While most of these paints are based on a linseed oil medium with similar chemical compounds present, the quality of oil paints varies significantly between suppliers. Most artists find a brand they like and stick to it.

Part of the reason for this is the drying of oil paint is a very slow process.

Light from the sun or artificial sources, oxygen from the air, and water vapour react with the linseed oil to form a polymeric elastic solid.

Oil paints don’t dry so much as they undergo a polymerization reaction to form a compound called linoxin.

In essence, dried oil paint is a plastic polymer generated by chemical reactions over time with pigments or dyes suspended in it.

The rate of drying – or the rate at which the polymerization occurs – can often be critical to the overall product. Different oil paint formulations employ different drying agents to speed up or slow down the rate of these chemical reactions. Compounds such as aluminum hydrate, aluminum stearate and cobalt salts can alter the drying process. Individual artists search for paints which matches the way they work and tend to stick to one so all of the oil paints cure at the same rate.

With oil paints, there is also the issue of opacity versus transparency, which depends upon the pigment and other compounds in the paint and the issue of colourfastness with respect to photochemical decomposition and the issue of blendability and... well, oil paints are a complicated business.

Many of the paints used in the past were happy accidents or byproducts of other chemical processes. Over the past half-century with the development of an understanding of colour, much colour research has seen scientists and artists working side-by-side.

Of course, the real measure of an oil painting is not so much the science. After all, that is not what we admire as we gaze upon the Mona Lisa with her enigmatic smile.

It is the art we see.

But without the science, the art would not happen.

HANDOUT IMAGE

Giovanni Arnolfini and his Wife, a painting from 1434, hangs in the National Gallery in London and is considered one of the first modern oil paintings.

Irene Caplette June 20th,1939- Aug 9th, 2019

It with great sadness that our family announces Irene Marie Caplette has passed away peacefully at age 80, August 9th, 2019 Prince George B.C Predeceased By her Husband of 52 years Paul Caplette Survived by Her Children Janice, Casey, ( Marlene) Chad , ( Tammy) Carmen (Ryan) Her loving Grandchildren,Service will held Assman Funnel at 11am Saturday August 17, 2019 Reception to announced after service.

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Robert (Bob) Beatch on August 8, 2019. Bob was born and raised in Richmond, BC, the son of the late Katherine & Clarence Beatch. At the age of 18 he enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces, with 5yr postings in Trenton Ont., Lahr Germany and Kamloops. Bob moved to Prince George in 1981 where he retired from the Air Force. Bob then became a realtor with Century 21 for many years as well as the co-owner of Royal Rose Limousine with his son. Bob was particularly proud of his service in the Canadian Forces, especially his time spent in Lahr, Germany. His favorite hobbies included fishing/camping, computers (electronics), and spoiling his dogs. Bob also enjoyed serving on the PG Heritage Committee as well as BC SPCA Community Council. The former Rotarian, who held a perfect attendance record, looked forward to driving the bus to the Rotary RYLA camp each year. The youths were quiet on the way there unlike the ride home, due to the impact of the leadership program resulted in such youthful enthusiasm. Every Monday & Wednesday one would find Bob at the Coast Inn of the North with his Coffee Club which started almost 20 years ago. His friendship will be missed deeply by Paul E., Paul S., Roger, Jo, Kathi & Echo and others who often joined us including his servers Tim & Laura and his favorite Chef, Shelby. Bob is survived by his siblings Elaine, Sherry, Roxanne, Rod & Don.

Terrance (Terry) Chester George Sept 10, 1958 Aug 8, 2019

It is with deepest regret and sorrow that we announce the passing of Terry. Left behind to cherish his memory are his daughter Kimberley and grandson James. Brothers; Ron, Rod, Jim and Peter, Sisters; Sheila, Jerenia and Cheryl. He was also surrounded by numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. Terry is now united with his parents Jim and Mabel, sisters Louise and Vivian and brother Paul. Please join us at Assman’s Funeral Chapel on Saturday August 17th at 4:30 pm to celebrate Terry’s life. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Fire Pit Cultural Drop-in Centre.

Apr 5, 1937 Hairy Hill, AB Aug 4, 2019 Vernon, BC

A loving husband, father and grandfather, he is survived by his wife Carole and their children. Son Andrew Tkachuk (Katherine) of Prince George, Daughters Janice Tkachuk (Margaret Stephens) of Peterborough, ON and Catherine Featherstone (Peter) and the Featherstone grandchildren Gareth, Simon, David and Amelia of South Surrey, BC, and Grand dog Walter. Grateful thanks to the staff at Gateway, 3rd floor, and Simon Fraser Lodge in Prince George and Noric Care Home and hospital in Vernon. In lieu of flowers, donations to Canadian Cancer Society, SPCA or charity of your choice would be appreciated. Private service to be held in Vernon, BC. Arrangements in care of Vernon Funeral Home, 3007 28th Street, Vernon BC. 250-542-0155.

TKACHUK, MICHAEL D., P.Eng

Adult & Youth Newspaper Carriers

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• Hart Area

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Full Time and Temporary Routes Available. Contact for Details 250-562-3301 or rss@pgcitizen.ca

The Bailiff offers for sale by tender, interest in the following goods of Judgement Debtor(s): Trevor Van Haskell, purported to be: 2014 Dodge Journey VIN# 3C4PDCAB2ET208072

we are declaring that they may not be suitable for transportation and may not be compliant with the motor vehicle act. North Central Bailiffs Ltd. is not responsible for determining the correct model year or description. Terms of sale: Payment in full including taxes upon notification of being the successful bidder. The highest or any bid may not necessarily be accepted. The Court Bailiff may cancel or adjourn the sale without notice. www.northcentralbailiffs.bc.ca Michel Zuber Court Bailiff North Central Bailiffs Ltd SALE UNDER THE REPAIRER’S LIEN ACT www.northcentralbailiffs.bc.ca

THURSDAY, AUGUST 15, 2019

FAIR PART OF AREA HISTORY

With the theme We’ve Got a Good Thing Growing: 107 Years of Community, the fall fair will be held at the exhibition grounds from Aug. 15 to 18.

Organizers of the British Columbia Northern Exhibition (BCNE) have some new events on the schedule along with plenty of old favourites.

Food is always a big part of any fair and the BCNE is no different.

There’s a food court that offers a wide range of cuisine, while there’s the usual fair treats like cotton candy, candy apples, corn dogs and mini donuts on the menu.

The mandate for the fall fair is to promote and showcase local agriculture. The themes are Buy B.C. and Every Chef Needs a Farmer, Every Farmer Needs a Chef. To promote these homegrown ideas there is a special barbecue contest that sees local chefs, DJs, and firefighters going head to head during a cook-off judged by Shaun O’Neale, MasterChef winner of season 7.

Why would a U.S. championship-winning chef busy riding the wave of his MasterChef fame take time out to come to Prince George?

Because Sylvia Layzell, president of the BCNE, asked him to.

Layzell was in New Orleans on holidays, went to eat dinner at Aaron Sanchez’s restaurant and found herself seated at a table next to O’Neale’s, who was there for a trade show.

Layzell said hi, continued the conversation, got her photo taken with O’Neale and then took the leap.

“I asked him if he’d come up here and he said sure,” Layzell said. “It was a chance meeting that worked out really well for us. There will be three days of barbecue competitions and Shaun will be doing a couple of barbecue demon strations.”

As far as entertainment on the schedule, guests at the fair can take in

local entertainment, including Limelight Quest’s finale, where a singer will be crowned the winner of the annual competition, square dancing demonstrations, juggling, magic shows, heavy horse pulls and agility dogs. Guests at the fair can explore Heritage Lane, the 4H barns, home arts and horticulture displays, a quilt show, and something new and rather unusual on the roster

this year.

“We’ve got noodle jousting out on our rodeo grounds,” said Aimee Alsplaugh, general manager of the BCNE. “So people will be dressing up in medieval costumes and jousting with pool noodles for entertainment.”

And they are on horseback.

“I don’t think it’s well known but it’s a thing,” Alsplaugh laughed.

“There’s a whole set of rules and a couple of our directors are organizing it,” Layzell said. “They thought it would be cool.”

To make the fair more accessible gate admissions are more affordable, with children 11 and under free and there’s no charge for parking.

For a full schedule of events visit www.bcne.ca.

CHRISTINE HINZMANN 97/16 staff

CREDIT

Aimme Alspaugh, general manager and Sylvia Layzell, president of BCNE. The BCNE runs today through Sunday.

Lisa Redpath hangs art work for the opening of Art Displacement, the story of forgotten 6x6 paintings. This unique exhibit of paintings is comprised of pieces of artwork, 6” by 6” in size, unclaimed from the past seven annual 6x6 Auctions. The beautiful pieces of locally-made artwork are looking for new homes and each paining is being offered for $45 each with 100 per cent of proceeds will go towards helping local youth attend a Community Arts Council Pro-D Day Arts Camp this coming year, as the cost per child of attending an arts camp is $45. The exhibit runs until Sept. 6, during Artisan Gift Shop hours, Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

SENIORS FAIR SET FOR BCNE

draws for lots of freebies is once again on the agenda.

Everything you ever wanted to know about being a senior citizen and where to find what you need to do it right will be provided as the Prince George Council of Seniors presents the Seniors’ Fair on Aug. 15 in Kin 3 during the B.C. Northern Exhibition.

Admission to the BCNE is a toonie for seniors’ on Pioneer Day, which makes the Seniors’ Fair accessible for everyone.

The local council of seniors non-profit organization has offered this event since 2007, so this is lucky number 13, said Lola-Dawn Fennell, general manager of P.G. Council of Seniors .

Information booths, the Old Boot Cafe, carpet bowling demonstrations, and

“So seniors will find the usual round up of local organizations and businesses with services and products that would be of interest to seniors or their caregivers,” Fennell said.

New to the Seniors’ Fair is a booth where seniors will find representatives from Revenue Canada.

“So if people have questions about things like income splitting, or disability benefits or credits they will be there to answer their questions,” Fennell said.

“We’ve also got Northern Health Community Services on tap this year.”

The Prince George Elks’ Lodge has taken over the Moose Hall, 663 Douglas St., and is looking to promote it as an

events venue since it’s been refurbished. The Prince George & District Elizabeth Fry Society will be there to talk about housing options. There is also a business called Active Health Solutions that offers a comprehensive approach to health and wellness by incorporating functional fitness with good nutrition and healthy lifestyle choices.

The cafe will offer a light lunch and refreshments and is a great place to take a break at any time during the very busy fair day.

“As usual the Hart Pioneer Centre folks will be on hand to demonstrate carpet bowling and people always enjoy that,” Fennell said. “There will be lots of free draws and many different activities at the information tables.”

September 17 - 23

97/16 photo by Brent Braaten

97/16 file photo

Val Weed, Kathi Hughes and Sue Bond at the Caladonia Nordic Ski Club booth during the Seniors Fair at the 2017 BCNE.

MAKING MUSIC TOGETHER

SENIORS’ SCENE

Joe Anderson, one of four boys, was born in 1940 and grew up on a farm in Morris, Man.

After high school, he worked in northern Manitoba for Canadian Nickel, then returned to Winnipeg where he trained and worked as a television repairman. He happened to meet Janice Taylor at a YMCA dance. They were good friends and had been dating for several years when Janice moved to Vancouver to work for BCTel.

Janice said, “I actually thought Joe might come to Vancouver one day but that did not happen and I have to admit that I was disappointed because he was such a nice guy.”

Joe next worked for CN Telecommunications and traveled quite a bit for his work and ended up in Vernon. He eventually moved to Prince George in 1982 working as a photocopier technician. He was working for Docu-Shred Mobile Paper Shredding when a heart condition forced him into retirement at the age of 70.

Janice was born in Rivers, Manitoba in 1944. She said, “My mother was a stay-at-home mom until I was a teenager. Then she landed a job as a housekeeper and I was in charge of the cooking three days a week, which taught me many good lessons.”

Her father worked in the railway yard building and repairing rail cars. When the Rivers yard site shut down, he moved his family to Winnipeg for work at the Canadian National Railway Yard at North Transcona.

Interesting to note that the Transcona yard construction project was completed in 1912 at a cost of $4 million with a capacity for over 12,000 cars complete with its 106-foot turntable capable of handling 100-foot locomotives. At the time, Transcona was the largest railway yard in North America.

“When I was six, my mother made sure I had piano lessons and when I excelled at that (or so my mom thought I did) she bought an old piano that would not hold a tune. I played it just the same until my dear brother Ted bought an upright piano for the house. That was actually the start of my musical career. Many years went by and when I saved enough to buy my own piano my brother did all the negotiating and I got a good deal on it.

“My brothers were always so good to me and I loved them all. My brother Harvey (I was born on his seventh birthday) died of cancer at the age of 55, Les (Darlene) live in Prince George, Ted (Betty) live in Ceres, California and Bob (Corrine) live in Kamloops.

“I loved singing at an early age; I used to wake up and start singing before I got out of bed. My mother always encouraged me to sing and it wasn’t long and she sent me to singing lessons and of course, I was delighted about that.”

Janice worked for BCTel in Vancouver for five years and then worked on the

switchboard at Sears. She married in 1967 and separated 17 years later. She has two children; James and Jennifer who in turn gave her four wonderful grandchildren.

Janice received word from her brother Ted that Joe was now living and working in Prince George and that he was still single.

Janice said, “We rekindled our friendship and we started corresponding and traveling back and forth to be with one another. I could easily see that Joe was a man worth waiting for (and so did my brother). I moved to Prince George and we married in February 1994, honeymooned at Esther’s Inn, bought a house on Maple Street and we have been happy there ever since.

“My mom played the old-time fiddle and through her playing she met and became good friends with Dave and Bess Bowman. She became a member of the Old Time Fiddlers right up to the time that she went to live at the Parkside senior’s residence at the age of 90.

“Music has always been a big part of my life. When I moved to Prince George, I became a self-employed voice and piano teacher. I cleaned houses on the side and had many good clients. I was able to retire at the age of 65.”

Volunteer work for Janice at the Elder Citizens Recreation Centre started 28 years ago when she became the music director of the Rainbow Singers which is now the Forever Young Chorus. Time went by and the North of 65

group and the Sunshine Sisters evolved as splinter groups of the Forever Young Chorus. The Sunshine Sisters sang together for ten years. The group consisted of Janice, Terri Meyer, Wendy Wlasitz, Vi Arnett, Andrea McKenzie, Terry Pollard, Melody Harris and Elaine (Clark) Armstrong with accompaniment on piano, guitar, the Celtic drum, mandolins and the keyboard.

Janice said, “We entertained all over the city and as often as possible. It was a great group and we had so much fun together. Sadly, some have passed away and the remaining group slowly retired.”

She is an active part of the nearly 30-member ukulele group and the director of the North of 65 singing group at ECRA.

Janice is a member of the nearly 15 Knotty Knitters at the Kordyban Lodge. She loves knitting and making things with her hands plus the ladies are a fun group to be with. The Knotty Knitters do many kinds of hand-crafted articles and then sell their finished items at the Lodge, craft sales and through their outlet at the Railroad Museum with all proceeds going back to the Kordyban Lodge to be used as needed to make the lives of their guests more comfortable.

The Knotty Knitters meet once a month at the Lodge and the rest of the month they do their work at home.

Janice said, “Joe has always been a handyman. He can work on any vehicle as long as there is no computer system on it. When I first met Joe, his mother al-

ways told me that if she needed anything done, he was always cheerfully there to give her a hand complete with a big smile for her. I thought that this was a really good recommendation for a husband.”

Joe said, “I volunteer as the sound technician at ECRA. My experience as a television technician was a big help. I first assisted Art Reynolds and when Art moved away the job has been mine ever since. I am nearly 80 so I hope to retire from this volunteer position soon. Well, just as soon as I can train another and hopefully a bit younger person to take over. The choir members always show me their support and gratitude and that makes it a great job.”

Janice loves her flower garden and does decorative rock painting while Joe keeps busy with his woodworking projects. She will describe an idea she has for a project and Joe can usually produce it. She said, “He is usually very quiet while he is thinking about my idea and how to make it all happen. He is quite the inventor and handyman; there are not many things that he can not do.”

In her retirement, Janice has been able to spend quality time with her grandchildren who are a big part of her life. Her daughter Jennifer and three of her grandchildren live in Prince George and she enjoys spending time with them on special weekly gramma days.

In conclusion, Janice said, “I would like to thank all the choir members – both past and present – for enriching our lives. Both Joe and I appreciate them all.”

KATHY NADALIN

97/16 photo by Brent Braaten Janice Taylor and Joe Anderson enjoy their garden.

DRIP BARS ARE THE NEW JUICE BARS

Inhospital, receiving intravenous (IV) fluids is one of the most common treatments a patient can get. IV fluids are given for a number of reasons including for the purpose of rehydration, delivering medications and correcting electrolyte abnormalities. Now it seems as if new reasons have been created, and are the justification for the existence of IV injection therapy clinics, or drip bars, as they’re known in many larger cities. Want to cure a hangover? Combat fa tigue? Or mitigate the effects of altitude? And have an extra $100 hanging around? Then drip bars are likely targeted to wards you.

A drip bar, or IV injection clinic, is a clinic where IV fluids are provided to in dividuals, even when it’s not considered medically necessary or recommended by a medical doctor. These fluids contain a concoction of vitamins, antioxidants and electrolytes and are marketed as being the answer to a number of common problems.

ing provided with are not necessary?

I started hearing mention of drip bars several years ago, although the concept seems to have been around for at least the past seven years. In 2012, an American anesthesiologist opened Hangover Heaven, a tour bus that supplied IV fluids as a “treatment” for hangovers. Since 2012, the company has established a brick-and-mortar clinic in Las Vegas and the concept of drip bars has spread across the United States and now into Canada.

Drip bars, or IV Injection clinics, are marketed to individuals who have “high stress and anxiety, want to boost athletic performance and/or drink alcohol in excess.”

In short, IV fluids are not a treatment for anxiety, no amount of excess IV fluids, vitamins, antioxidants or electrolytes will improve athletic performance and “drinking alcohol in excess” may be a sign of something that requires a more serious intervention than what a bag of salt water can provide.

Businesses who deliver IV fluids to individuals for no medical purpose and make promises that are not supported by evidence are feeding into a nutrientfocused culture. Nutrients are labeled good and bad, vitamins and minerals are pushed on product packaging and there are plenty of businesses and individuals to take advantage of that desire to be healthier and the belief that if a little is

Some businesses have made a point of promoting their therapy as using only water-soluble vitamins. They’ve done this recognizing that an excess of fat-soluble vitamins, including vitamins A, D, E and K, can build-up in the body, leading to toxic levels and negative side effects.

In healthy individuals, an excess of water-soluble vitamins are filtered out of the body and carried away through your urine. So, in other words, the consumer may likely be paying $100 to have nutrient-packet urine.

While there are numerous benefits to providing necessary IV fluids in hospital, the benefits promised by IV injection clinics have yet to be proven. Unfortunately, these treatments are pushed by individuals claiming to be experts in this area, much like fad diets profiting off of false promises.

In fact, the only difference between fad diets and unnecessary IV injection therapy is the route of delivery. Iinstead of eating “good” nutrients, they’re being injected into your veins. Most people who have exercised a lot, have a hangover, jet lag, or the flu can drink enough fluids for what they need. If an individual is dehydrated or nutrient-deficient to the point where they require intervention via IV, they likely need to be admitted to hospital.

Kelsey Leckovic is a registered dietitian with Northern Health working in chronic disease management.

ABOUT US

• Colleen Sparrow, publisher and GM

• Neil Godbout, editor-in-chief

• Shawn Cornell, director of advertising

• Call us at: 250-562-2441 or 250-562-3301

• Find us at: 505 Fourth Avenue, Prince George, B.C. V2L 3H2

• Follow us on Facebook, by going online to: https://bit.ly/2SdAmek

• Visit https://bit.ly/2S9W4zW to find the location nearest you to pick up extra copies of 97/16.

RAILWAY MUSEUM HOSTING FAMILY DAY

ily on Saturday, Aug. 24 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Family Fun Day at the Central B.C. Railway and Forestry Museum will be filled with activities geared for the fam-

There will be a clown making balloon animals, a giant lawn chess game set up, interactive toys will be available

for playtime for the children, while the blacksmith forges in steel. Everyone is welcome to explore the grounds, train cars and the Penny Station full steam ahead.

The concession will offer hot dogs and hamburgers and admission is by donation to the Humane Society and Two Bunnies Rescue, who will be on hand with furry friends to answer any questions guests may have about their organizations.

Within the last few years the railway museum has undergone some expansion.

One of those comes in the form of the acquisition of the school house from Island Cache.

“We’ll have the permanent story inside the school house,” Katherine Carlson, executive director of the museum, said.

“We’ll also use the building to hold different types of exhibits. So we’re focusing on doing restoration and making some changes before it will be accessible to the public.”

The focus will be showcasing the region’s heritage, she added.

This year the museum was able to get funding through government employment programs for 12 summer students. There’s students of horticulture who are working on the grounds, a curatorial team doing inventory and a group of heritage interpreters who conduct the mini rail train rides and offer tours to guests.

“It’s thanks to these students that the site looks better than ever before,” Nadine Fieber, events coordinator, said.

“We had a lot of people donating plants to us and we have plenty of room for them. Our urban orchards and heritage gardens are really producing this year.”

The orchard trees are apple and cherry and are planted throughout the grounds, Fieber added.

Students can reap the rewards for their efforts by taking some of the vegetables grown in the garden home throughout

the summer and at the end of the season the fresh garden-grown food is donated to St. Vincent de Paul Society or Positive Living North’s Firepit that provide meals to those in need. It’s important to support community efforts.

Another new attraction on site is the shop the Blacksmith Guild has recently set up. A blacksmith now does demonstrations on event days like Family Fun Day and the guild meets on location on the last Saturday of the month at 10 a.m. and new members are welcome to attend.

“It’s been very popular during our special events and black smith Barry Schaefer always has spectators watching him,” Fieber said.

“It’s just wonderful because he fits in so well here. When he’s here there’s lots of hammering noises and smoke coming from the chimney and kids enjoy it and so do the adults. Some people watch for hours.”

Weather permitting on Family Fun Day there will be some water toys on hand for children to enjoy and from 3 to 4 p.m. Huggleberry the clown will be making balloon animals.

The Spinners and Weavers Guild will be on site giving demonstrations and a chance for guests to try weaving for themselves.

“We always make each event unique so that it’s different every time visitors come here and this one is for families to come and enjoy and have fun,” Fieber said.

Admission is by donation to the SPCA or Two Bunnies Rescue. Suggested donation items for Two Bunnies Rescue are gift cards for grocery stores for vegetables for the rabbits, hay, including timothy or orchard grass, rabbit pellets from Spruce Capitol Feeds and Pine wood shavings and rabbit-safe small animal toys. For the Humane Society people can donate laundry soap, dog food, puppy food, cat toys and hand sanitizer. For more information about Family

97/16 photo by Brent Braaten

Cassandra Thummerer, summer student at the Railway and Forestry Museum, paints the school house from Island Cache.

CHRISTINE HINZMANN 97/16 staff

AROUND TOWN

B.C. Northern Exhibition

Thursday to Sunday at Exhibition Park for 107 years, the BCNE has promoted agricultural and rural life, past and present, as well as providing a huge venue for diversity of artists, artisans and heritage performers to interact with the ever-expanding frontier of Northern B.C. by hosting an annual four-day fair. Our theme this year is We’ve Got a Good Thing Growing; 107 Years of Community. Contact: 250-563-4096 | pgbcne@gmail.com | www.bcne.ca

Launch of DJ Dance Nights

Thursday from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. the Omineca Arts Centre, 369 Victoria St., presents the launch of DJ Dance Night in conjunction with the Unfold 2: Emerging Artists Group Exhibition to get bodies grooving and keep spirits and energies high. Each night will feature various local, regional and/or touring DJs. Both Licenced and Dry DJ Nights will occur each month. Admission by donation (suggested $5-20 sliding scale). No one turned away for lack of funds.

Unfold

2: Emerging Artists Group Exhibition

Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Omin-

every Thursday from 10:15-10:45 in the Knowledge Garden beside the Bob Harkins Branch of the Public Library.

eca Arts Centre, 369 Victoria S., Unfold 2: Emerging Artists Group Exhibition opening reception will see the second of two exhibitions featuring fifteen artists’ work. Unfold uncovers the inner workings of one’s cognition through art which can be a harrowing task. Unfold 1 and 2 are layered with the exploration of self, society and expression. The exhibit continues until Sept.

18. Everyone is welcome to attend the opening reception. Contact: info@ ominecaartscentre.com

Wordplay Open Stage Night

Third Thursday of every month, Aug. 15, Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave., hosts Wordplay Open Stage Night in Cafe Voltaire from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. This event is geared for poets and storytellers, aspiring, published or professional. Bring original work, take the stage and share with a creative reading.

Storytime

Every Thursday at the Prince George Public Library in the Knowledge Garden children can gather for a good yarn and a song or two. Storytime runs for 30 minutes at 10:15 a.m., free of charge. It is geared for children up to six years old. This event is the companion to the indoor storytime at the downtown library every Tuesday at the same time. Contact: 250-563-9251 | ask@pgpl.ca

Cardboard Armour Splashdown

Friday from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Bob Harkins Branch, Prince George Public Library, 888 Canada Games Way, craft the perfect cardboard battle armour and put it to the test in an epic summertime water battle. Cardboard, water launchers and balloons will be provided. Geared for those 10 to 18 years old. Call to register: 250-5639251 ext. 108. Contact: 2505639251 | adhanjal@pgpl.ca

Board Game Social

Friday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Nechako branch of the Prince George Public Library, 6547 Hart Highway and

Monday, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Bob Harkins branch library, 888 Canada Games Way, kick back, eat snacks, and play board games at this evening social for 19 to 30 year olds. Drop in. Contact: 250-563-9251 | adhanjal@pgpl.ca

Foodie Fridays

Every Friday until Sept. 6 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., 808 Canada Games Way, hungry residents and visitors are invited to come downtown for Foodie Fridays. Tantalize your tastebuds at a variety of licensed sidewalk and food truck vendors and listen to live music throughout the lunch hour. For more information call 250-614-7880.

Friday Night Mics

Every Friday at 7 p.m. Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave., in Cafe Voltaire, hosts an open mic night for all musicians local or just passing through. The weekly event features great music, audience engagement, tasty beverages and treats while intermission finds people browsing through book shelves filled with contributions from local authors as well as best sellers. For more information visit www.booksandcompany.ca.

Open Drum Circle

Sundays until August 25 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Omineca Arts Centre, 369 Victoria St. Building community in an inclusive drum ceremony, we use it to learn and promote Indigenous and Dakelh languages, knowledge, cultures and histories. Everyone is welcome to our Open Drum Circles on Sundays to participate, share, dance, learn or observe.

Contact: info@ominecaartscentre. com

Free Yoga in the Park

Every Sunday until Aug. 25 from 10 to 11 a.m. join Chinook Yoga at Lheidli T’enneh Memorial Park bandshell all summer long for free Yoga in the Park. Bring a mat or do yoga in the grass. Bring a water bottle and grab a friend or two, all ages welcome.

Contact: 250-564-9642 | www. chinookyoga.com

Scrabble Sundays

Every Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m. at Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave., in Cafe Voltaire there is Scrabble Sunday every weekend. Bring friends, family or yourself and your scrabble board. Contact: 250-563-6637 | orderbooks@shaw.ca

The Crazy Senoritas

Monday and Tuesday from 6 to 9 p.m. at The Twisted Cork, 1157 Fifth Ave., in the Cariboo Room, there will be music, comedy and dinner as The Crazy Senoritas entertain. They are a troupe of female impersonators from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Their show features humorous musical tributes, warped adult

and

97/16 photo by Brent Braaten

Sierra Cook from the Prince George Public Library introduces her friend Mr. Squirrel to children at Storytime in the Garden last Thursday morning. Storytime in the Garden is

AROUND TOWN

the members of the audience who find it hard to believe these actors are actually men. Tickets include a show and dinner for $64.95. Tickets available for purchase at either The Twisted Cork or The Black Clover.

Contact: 250-561-5550

Walking Tours

Tuesdays and Thursdays until Aug. 22 from 11 a.m. to noon take a free interesting trip through the city’s core provided by the Prince George Public Library. Meet in the main lobby of the Bob Harkins Branch for a guided tour of Prince George’s fascinating historic sites. Done in partnership with The Heritage Commission and The Exploration Place. Contact: 250-563-9251 | ask@pgpl.ca

Summer camp

Every Wednesday until Aug. 21 from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at Studio 2880, 2880 15th Ave., Art Monkey summer kids art classes are geared for children ages six to 11. Cost is $45. Call 250-563-2880 or register online at www.studio2880. com.

Family Fun Day

Saturday, Aug. 24 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. the Central B.C. Railway and Forestry Museum, 850 River Rd., is hosting Family Fun Day where admission is by donation to the Humane Society and Two Bunnies Rescue. All activities are geared for the whole family, including a giant lawn chess game, big checkers game, lots of toys for the younger set, blacksmithing demonstrations and Huggleberry the clown will make balloon animals from 3 to 4 p.m. Mini rail rides and concession items are available for purchase. For more information call 250-563-7351 or visit www.pgrfm.bc.ca.

Queer Cafe

Thursday, Aug. 28 Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave., host the Queer Cafe from 5 to 6:30 p.m. where where LGBTQ individuals and allies can come together and meet members of the community and make new friends every month. Small craft projects and icebreaker cards will be available for conversation starting purposes. Feel free to bring your own projects or sit back and enjoy a cup of coffee with the friendly queer community.

Red Green

Sept. 26

He’s colourful in name and deed. Red Green is the bumbling but pleasantly practical TV fix-it man, the clown prince of duct tape, the sage of the man-shed. This Canadian comedy icon is coming to Vanier Hall on his Red Green-This Could Be It Tour. His P.G. shows are always a sell-out. Get tickets at the TicketsNorth website/box office.

Patrick, Scott & Tessa

Oct. 12

During last year’s sold out Thank You Canada tour, it was clear to figure skating superstars, Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir and Patrick Chan, that they were far from done creating and developing a new style of skating entertainment. They and some special guest performers come back to CN Centre to show the Prince George fans what they’ve come up with next. Rock The Rink is the first edition of an annual tour that focuses on being more than a figure skating

show. Combining the highest level of on-ice superstar talent with an everevolving touring production, Rock The Rink will produce the highest value of entertainment in the figure skating realm. This year – along with upgrades to lighting, video and interactive technology – live music will be introduced to the show, with featured special musical guest, Birds of Bellwoods.

Burton, Live

Oct. 18

Canada’s piano man, the Guess Who’s epic vocalist, the only artist inducted into the nation’s music Hall of Fame for both his band and his solo career, the incomparable Burton Cummings is coming to PG. He was the power voice propelling American Woman, These Eyes, No Time, Clap For The Wolfman and many other hits of the groundbreaking band The Guess Who, but then when he went solo he continued the multi-platinum success with I Will Sing A Rhapsody, Stand Tall, My Own Way To Rock,

Fine State Of Affairs, You Saved My Soul, Break It To Them Gently, and more besides.

Cummings will be solo at the piano at Vanier Hall. Tickets are on sale now through all TicketsNorth platforms.

World Curling

March 14 start

Don’t let the date fool you. The event may be in 2020 but the plans are underway now and the tickets are on sale for this Prince George groundbreaker. P.G. goes global as the host of the World Women’s Curling Championships starting. Get your tickets now, and spread the word to friends and family everywhere that this is the time to come spend some Prince George time, and get a close, personal view of the world-class action the rest of the winter sports community will only get to see on TV. Oh yeah, and there’s also the great social side of curling –there’ll be no bigger party in Canada. Contact Tickets North for tickets and info.

97/16 file photo

Valerie Rakoczy, from left, John Aitken, Suzanne LeFebvre, and Reace Rakoczy get ready to play Scrabble on Scrabble Sunday at Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave., last August.

Though Disney has been criticized for changing traditional fairy tales to make them palatable for modern audiences, sometimes they simply bring the lesson of the legend into very clear focus.

A good example of this is the 2015 live action version of Cinderella staring Lily James, of Downton Abbey fame. Cinderella’s birth mother gives her a simple yet profound message before she passes away – “have courage, and be kind.” This line is repeated numerous times through the film.

The story of Cinderella has taken many forms in many places through the centuries. In essence, it is the story of a generous young girl who loses her parents, lives with an abusive stepmother and her daughters, yet maintains her sense of self and goes on to become the most powerful woman in her realm.

Many have criticized this approach to abuse, claiming that Cinderella should have left, or at least fought back. There are many times in a person’s life, however, when these options are simply not possible. Abusers, whether on a personal or social level, have power over others

Iam blessed with an awesome family and excellent friends. On the B.C. Day long weekend, we went to our friend’s cabin at a local lake for a work

and they do not relinquish their positions willingly. Escape is also often not an option. Indeed, where would Cinderella have gone?

Instead of blaming the victim in these situations, we need to ask ourselves what we did to help and what we could have done. So often people express thanks to those who made a difference in their lives, those who were there when then needed someone, yet far too many times we turn our backs and walk away.

To understand the effectiveness of “have courage, and be kind,” we can to look at examples of great people in recent history.

Immaculee Ilibagiza is a Tutsi woman who experienced the Rwandan genocide, which resulted in the death of up to a million Tutsis and moderate Hutus. Her book Left To Tell recounts many har-

rowing scenes. While the world ignored Rwanda, Immaculee courageously faced her potential murderers, held true to her principles and survived. Today, she is a highly revered writer and speaker on the power of faith and forgiveness.

Nelson Mandela faced extreme racism in apartheid era South Africa. After trying to liberate his people using violence he was sentenced to life in prison. He spent his time incarcerated courageously rediscovering his principles, learning to understand the thoughts of those who imprisoned him, and emerged 27 years later as one of the greatest leaders the world had ever seen.

Mohandas Gandhi similarly faced racism under British colonialism. He endured beatings and imprisonment with courage. He embraced kindness and unrelenting nonviolent resistance. In the end, he brought down the most powerful empire in the world and changed history.

In many ways, this quote from Gandhi is a summary of the Cinderella story – “when I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem

invincible but in the end, they always fall – think of it – always.”

We all face hard times, injustice and oppression. Our instinctive reaction as human beings is either fight or flight, yet often times neither option is possible. T he Cinderella story is thus for all of us, because “have courage, and be kind” is always a choice we can make. We may need to find creative ways to cope with uncomfortable situations as we wait for them to turn around, as Cinderella turned to her imagination, and Mandela studied Afrikaans, but as long as we remain true to our principles these too will be life-giving.

In essence, Cinderella did not become a great queen by chance. She had already overcome adversity with integrity and grace, and when the opportunity to rule the land came to her, she was prepared. Regardless of what life brings out way, “have courage, and be kind” is always the path to greatness.

— Gerry Chidiac is a champion for social enlightenment, inspiring others to find their greatness in making the world a better place. For more of his writings, go to www.gerrychidiac.com.

bee to build stairs (I did not help), paint trim (I did help) and put up new siding (no help from me here).

My parents have been watching the

NEED EXTRA CASH?

kids during these last few weeks of summer and have been a great help to us in many ways. They agreed to keep the kids out at the lake while we had to go back to Prince George to work on our many projects with increasingly early deadlines.

I am trying to finish my thesis and that takes a certain amount of time without interruptions. As you can well imagine, time without interruptions is a precious commodity in our house. Because my mother is a genius, she bought the kids little fairy doors so they could make fairy houses in the woods and decorate them. They had little tiny mailboxes with them and they started writing to their fairies in the woods. Magically, they ended up getting responses.

and wonder. It was like the circle of life except no animals killing and eating each other. Maybe that was a bad analogy.

Perhaps that is the appeal about having children; the ability to pass along some of the magic and wonder from your own childhood. For myself, one of the best things about being a parent is watching them gain confidence and grow as human beings and, also, talk in their sleep. Now that is magical.

I have two kids with vastly different personalities. When our son talks in his sleep, he is usually working out a problem that he has had during the day: an issue with LEGO breaking, Minecraft not working right or his sister not leaving him alone. He will ask questions with nonsense language and is easily comforted with us saying, “It will be okay. We’ll talk about it in the morning.”

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, more delightful than watching a child experience the joy of magic. Our friends have four daughters and they are lovely girls and rapidly getting older. The two youngest daughters started writing to our kids as the fairies in the woods and left them presents and made up names for the fairies. They were all so excited: our kids for having the magical friends and the girls for being the agents of the excitement

Then he goes back to sleep and snores loudly. Our daughter is pretty much always angry even when she’s sleeping. When she talks in her sleep, she is usually always shouting “No!” at the top of her lungs. It is enormously funny.

Watching excited little faces with big, surprised eyes discover that magic is real, is the best present that anyone can get. I am enormously grateful that I get to be a witness to their awe and wonder.

KIDS DESERVE LEVEL PLAYING FIELD

Being privileged means it is our job åblocks to those with less means than we have. It certainly means we should not take from the poor to give to the rich but I see that happening in our school system. When we take public funds and resources, and distribute them to students unequally, depending on the income of families, we are putting up roadblocks.

In a publicly funded school system, I think it is fair of us to expect that there would be equal opportunity for each child, regardless of family income.

For those of us middle or highincome earners, we budget for school supplies, extracurricular activity and sports fees. We can pay the fees with varying difficulty, but we manage. The lower someone falls on the income scale, the more difficult this is.

I will speak mostly to the “us” that are reading this paper. We take pride, as we should, in our free and meritorious society, that facilitates our social mobility. We generally elect governments that are in favour of free markets and equal opportunity, and this has resulted in

THINKING ALOUD TRUDY KLASSEN

our country being among the best places to live on the planet. Even those people who begin their working life as working poor do not stay in that position through their lifetime, in fact, only about 10 per cent do, so for the vast majority of Canadians, we have it pretty good. I see no one pushing a small boat off our shores to head for a better place to live. This doesn’t mean we should repair disparities when we see them.

Schools host and partially fund their extracurricular activities and sports teams, so this portion is a burden shared by every taxpayer, regardless of income, regardless of their child’s participation. The ministry of education allows for schools to charge fees on these extracurricular activities, but that doesn’t mean it is wise to do it. The harm to school culture is something we all need to consider, even if we think it is okay that “poor” kids can’t

participate equally.

If sports are too expensive for schools to participate in without charging families anywhere from $100 to $2,000 per year per student, why not change how we do school sports? Why not have school teams

If field trips or art programs are too expensive, why not reduce the costs or number of trips each year, so that every child can go regardless of their family’s financial flexibility that year?

that compete against the other schools in the city and then one (free to the student) sponsored city team made up of the best players that would travel? The benefits to school cohesiveness and moral, when every

child has an equal opportunity to tryout for a team, could go a long way to improving the school culture. If field trips or art programs are too expensive, why not reduce the costs or number of trips each year, so that every child can go regardless of their family’s financial flexibility that year? Or find a sponsor to cover the cost? I find it astonishing that we are okay with having extra-curricular activities on the class calendar, but not everyone can go to see, touch, and feel, the subject the entire class has been working on.

Others may have better ideas on how to correct this disparity, but we need to change this. I am not advocating for more money to be put into the public system to cover these costs, but I am advocating for a change in how we spend our education funding so that the school experience is as equal as possible for every child, regardless of current family financial status. It is up those of us with political power, or social capital, today, to make our schools more equitable for all. We will all benefit in the end.

Read the newspaper for a few minutes every day and you will be on your way to success in school and life! Kid Scoop is fun to read once a week, but what can you do on the other days of the week?

This week, use Kid Scoop all week long. We have created a fun newspaper reading game for each day of the week!

I’m a

MARS

The Romans named Mars after their god of war, because its color reminded them of blood.

Each time you read 10 column inches of the newspaper, color in a planet in our solar system. When you reach Neptune, cut out the sun and wear it as a badge to let everyone know you

NEPTUNE

Planet Adjectives

Read the short description of each of the eight planets, plus the dwarf planet, Pluto. Each day, look through the newspaper for adjectives that describe three planets. Glue the adjectives near the planet they describe.

Hold on to your hats! Neptune is storms, storms and more storms!

MERCURY

Closest to the sun, Mercury’s days are a whopping 800° F and at night the temperature drops to 300° F BELOW zero!

VENUS

Covered with a poisonous acid, Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system. The planet’s thick clouds let the heat in, but not out! This is called the greenhouse effect

EARTH

Not too hot and not too cold, it is the only planet where we know there is life.

JUPITER

Jupiter is the largest and heaviest planet. If it was hollow, more than 1,000 Earths could fit inside.

from the sun, Pluto is colder than all the other planets and dark all the time, even during the day.

SATURN

Saturn is nearly as big as its neighbor, Jupiter, but it is not so heavy. Scientists say that if you could find an ocean big enough, Saturn would float.

URANUS

How heavy is the asteroid?

Asteroids are space rocks that orbit the sun between Mars and Jupiter. They come in all shapes and sizes.

Look through the newspaper for a number to put into each of the boxes on the asteroids. Do the math and find out what each asteroid weighs!

Satellite Story

The moon is a satellite. A satellite is a smaller object that orbits around a larger one. Some satellites, like moons, are natural. Others are man-made. People have launched man-made satellites into orbit around the Earth to take pictures of clouds and land forms, and to study space.

Natural or Man-Made?

Look through the newspaper and find five things that are natural. Then find five things that are man-made.

Pretend you are sending a package into space that, if life exists on other planets, will tell about life on Earth. Look through today’s newspaper to find pictures and articles that you would put into your package. Tell why you selected each one.

Find the words in the puzzle. How many of them can you find on this page?

This is a thriller starring a group of kids trapped inside a moon base. When one of the top scientists turns up dead, Dash jumps into action to find the killer. This chapter book is a fast paced/murder mystery/science fiction read and the first in a series of space thrillers.

To discover the name of this book, find the letter on the outer ring, then replace it with the letter below it on the inner ring.

• Going to a library regularly will result in you reading more.

• Owning a library card teaches you the responsibility of looking after it and the responsibility of looking after the books you take home and returning them on time.

• The wealth of choice in books, movies and tapes allows you access to more information that you otherwise would ever be able to reach.

• Children’s librarians are a great resource steering you to more books and topics than you might otherwise have considered.

• Children’s libraries everywhere have programs that encourage reading, researching and exploring mind-expanding information.

race as fast as a rocket to Mars! Make up your own exaggerations.

Farthest

PLUTO DWARF PLANET

Uranus has rings just like Saturn, but the rings go around the planet up and down like a ferris wheel. Through a telescope, this icy planet looks greenish-blue.

Standards Link: Grammar: Identify adjectives. Standards Link: Earth Science: Students know that each planet has unique characteristics.

© 2019 by Vicki Whiting, Editor Jeff Schinkel, Graphics Vol. 35, No. 36

Use the Kid Scoop Secret Decoder Ring to discover the name of this book by Stuart Gibbs, which is available at the library.

IS POT SAFE WHEN PREGNANT?

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Pregnancy started out rough for Leslie Siu. Morning sickness and migraines had her reeling and barely able to function at a demanding New York marketing job, so like rising numbers of U.S. mothers-to-be, she turned to marijuana.

“l was finally able to get out from under my work desk,” said Siu, who later started her own pot company and says her daughter, now 4, is thriving.

There’s no proof that cannabis can relieve morning sickness, and mainstream medicine advises against use in pregnancy because of studies suggesting it might cause premature birth, low birthweight and infant brain deficits. But the National Institute on Drug Abuse is pressing for more solid evidence. Many of those studies were in animals or complicated by marijuana users’ other habits and lifestyles.

“I don’t want us to cry wolf,” said Dr. Nora Volkow, the agency’s director. “We have to do these studies in a way that can identify risks.”

With nearly $200,000 from her agency, University of Washington scientists in Seattle are seeking clearer answers in a new study investigating potential effects on infants’ brains. The agency is supporting three similar studies in other states.

In Seattle, they’re enrolling pregnant women during their first trimester who are already using marijuana for morning sickness. Researchers don’t provide the pot, and the use of other drugs, tobacco and alcohol isn’t allowed. Infants will

undergo brain scans at 6 months and will be compared with babies whose mothers didn’t use marijuana while pregnant.

For government and university authorities, it’s worthy research that takes advantage of a booming trend. Recent data show the number of pregnant U.S. pot users has doubled since 2002, with 7% reporting recent use and higher rates in some states.

But some opponents of recreational

marijuana who think the science is settled have complained to the university and the federal government, calling it bogus research that endorses drug use and needlessly endangers fetuses.

The criticism underscores the challenges of investigating how drugs of any kind affect pregnant women and their offspring.

“There are so many reasons NOT to study drugs - particularly fear of causing birth defects. But the results would be no studies of the drugs’ efficacy during pregnancy, or the risks to the fetus,” said Dr. John Lantos, director of pediatric bioethics at Children’s Mercy hospital in Kansas City, Missouri. “It’s risky to do studies of potentially risky drugs but it’s risky not to do studies.”

Among the most tragic examples is thalidomide, a drug developed in Germany in the 1950s as a sedative. It was later widely promoted and prescribed to treat morning sickness, mostly in western Europe and Canada, despite a lack of research in pregnant women. It soon became linked with severe birth defects and was removed from most markets by the early 1960s.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration never approved thalidomide for morning sickness because of safety concerns. The agency has approved a synthetic version of THC, the part of marijuana that causes a high, for AIDSrelated appetite loss and a similar drug for nausea caused by cancer drugs, but has not approved it for morning sickness.

Scientist Natalia Kleinhans is leading the University of Washington’s study, aiming to recruit 35 pregnant marijuana users and 35 pregnant women who didn’t use pot.

The pot users are asked to buy from licensed dealers and photograph it so researchers can calculate the THC and CBD, another compound that doesn’t cause a high. Participants are paid $300 but can quit using anytime and remain in the study.

Medical and recreational marijuana are legal in Washington state, and Kleinhans says women who use it for morning sickness are different from pregnant pot users in years past, who often did other drugs, smoked or drank.

“They’re making a choice that people might not agree with. But it’s not out of desperation. It’s an informed choice,” said Kleinhans, a brain imaging specialist who studies the brain and behaviour.

Study opponents contend that researchers are recruiting marijuana addicts, that payment encourages partici-

AP photo Leslie Siu poses for a portrait next to her cannabis products geared toward women on display in Groundswell dispensary in east Denver.

STUDY SEEKS ANSWER, DRAWS CRITICS

pants to keep using, that women aren’t being adequately informed of risks, and that babies will be harmed by being tested. Researchers say MRI brain scans are safe and that infants will be tested while sleeping so won’t need potentially risky sedatives.

While more than 30 states have legalized marijuana for medical and/or recreational use, opponents also note that the federal government still considers pot an illegal drug - a stance that scientists say has hampered research. Dr. Pat Marmion, an OB-GYN in southern Washington, says he helped co-ordinate efforts to file complaints with the university and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the National Institutes of Health. An HHS spokesperson de-

clined comment.

“We should be encouraging women who are pregnant to not use marijuana instead of incentivizing them to continue,” Marmion said.

Under U.S. law, research that involves humans must be approved by review boards to make sure participants’ rights and safety are protected.

Karen Moe, director of the university’s human subjects division, said

authorities there investigated the critics’ concerns and concluded that most were unfounded. But she said they agreed to provide a handout on possible risks from marijuana use in pregnancy, not just links to similar information online, and also reworded recruitment materials to clarify that participants could quit using marijuana and still receive full payment.

“From our standpoint the situation

is essentially resolved and the study is good to go,” Moe said.

Dr. Mishka Terplan, a member of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ addiction expert group, said that for years, the thalidomide scare “shut down all research of medications in pregnancy.” Not enough is known even about medications commonly prescribed for morning sickness, he said.

“We shouldn’t assume that because we classify something as illegal that it is shameful,” Terplan said. “And that because something is legal and prescribed, it’s helpful.”

The National Institute on Drug Abuse is providing almost $1.5 million for three similar studies of marijuana use in pregnancy - at Washington University in St. Louis, at the University of Denver and at Kaiser Permanente in Northern California.

“One of the big arguments about why this is unethical is that we already know the answers. That is not true,” said Susan Weiss, who oversees outside research for the institute. “We’re living in this very large social experiment and we need to learn from it.”

Leslie Siu, the businesswoman who used marijuana while pregnant, now lives in Denver, where pot is legal, and sells a marijuana-based spray. Siu said marijuana deserves to be studied “so we can get the right answers.”

AP file photo This Nov. 27, 2015 file photo shows two marijuana buds displayed for a customer in Denver.