Prince George Citizen January 16, 2020

Prince GeorGe

Snow removal budget renewed

Ted Clarke Citizen staff

After digging out of two huge dumps of snow over the past two weeks, Prince George taxpayers can take comfort in the fact the city will allocate the same amount of money for its annual snow removal budget this year as it did in 2019.

That $8.5 million promise is included in the $19 million capital budget for 2020 council approved Monday night as part of the city’s $191 million five-year financial plan for 2020-24. The budget will raise taxes at least 2.15 per cent this year.

Among the list of 65 budget items approved, three new service enhancement positions were created - a forensic video analyst and a data processing supervisor, both to work in police protection, and an additional city planner to help speed the approval process for building projects, which hit record levels in 2019.

The video analyst will help police deal with an increasing amount of video evidence stored on cell phones and computers. The position will pay $101,476 and represents a .09 per cent increase in the tax levy, while the data processing position pays a $91,070 salary, resulting in a .08 tax increase. The new city planner will make $94,559, a .09 per cent tax increase. Without those enhancements, the tax rate increase would have been held to 1.89 per cent.

Council deferred decisions on further enhancements until late February, including one which would fund initiatives to make downtown cleaner and safer and cost as much as $2.6 million. The other would create a full-time climate change and energy coordinator which would pay a salary of $100,559. Council will base its downtown strategy budget decisions on the recommendations of task force which will be formed later this week and will meet for the first time next week.

City staff recommended no budget increases for road rehabilitation, general infrastructure or snow removal. The road budget allocation for 2020 is $7.325 million, with $5.65 million set aside of road rehabilitation; $1.05 million for existing sidewalks/pathways and new sidewalks;

$150,000 for pedestrian crossings and traffic safety improvements and $375,000 for intersection cameras for signal detection/traffic pattern statistics.

The $8.5 million snow levy alone amounts to 4.5 per cent of the city’s total budget.

“From my perspective we provide very good snow removal and so when you set the bar as high as we have the last few years, residents want us to maintain that and it’s a tremendous cost,” said Mayor Lyn Hall.

A $1.9 million expansion of the city administration building at 3940 18th Ave., is part of the $3.923 million approved for civic facility improvements. The addition will replace portable buildings now used by city staff on the site. Other civic projects passed in the budget include city hall window replacement ($530,000); Civic Centre floor replacements ($297,000); replacement of the arena floor at Kin 3 ($145,000); switching the city hall

transformer from a city-owned unit to a BC Hydro unit ($310,000); a new score clock for Rolling Mix Concrete Arena ($100,000); improving accessibility at all city-owned facilities and properties ($100,000), replacing the existing lift at the Elder Citizens Recreation Centre ($75,000) and the purchase of a civic facility/general maintenance van ($70,000).

Police and fire services received modest increases in their budgets. RCMP Supt. Shaun Wright told council wages and benefits account for most of the $263,278 police budget increase, from $26.936 million in 2019 to $27.150 million in 2020.

With construction of a replacement for the No. 1 downtown fire hall slated for a fall completion, Prince George Fire Rescue chief John Iverson highlighted some of the improvements coming to the force, including a new communications centre and high-angle rescue equipment.

The budget council approved Monday will also cover the cost of two rescue watercraft ($35,000) and a wildland rescue utility vehicle ($65,000). The fire protection budget will jump to $1.599 million in 2020, up $17,550 from 2019. Other expenditures highlighted in the plan include parks ($2.655 million), fleet services ($2.412 million), engineering ($1.6 million), information technology services ($1.09 million), events and Civic Centre ($118,000), and development planning/administration ($500,000).

A new $547,000 storage facility to house the Little Prince miniature train at Lheidli T’enneh Memorial Park is also on the list of civic expenditures. The existing Quonset hut is prone to flooding and the lack of space in the structure is a safety concern for the volunteers who maintain the train. A larger building could also be used to house and display historical firefighting equipment.

— See BUDGET PRIORITIES on page 3

P

Citizen file photo

Crews remove snow from the banks along 15th Avenue in March 2019 in the Millar addition.

Plenty more winter ahead

Ted Clarke Citizen staff

If you think it’s cold and snowy in Prince George now, here’s a sobering thought.

Winter is just getting started and there are more bone-chilling days ahead. And if last year was any indicator, it could be even colder once February rolls around.

Before this week, winter had been a breeze. The coldest days at Prince George Airport came back-to-back on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, when it hit -18.6 C, which isn’t far off the -13.9 C average low for this time of year. 2019 was, on average, about one degree cooler than normal for Prince George. The average mean temperature was 3.4 C, compared to the average of 4.3 C. July was the warmest month, averaging 15.3 C, slightly below the historical average for the month, 15.8 C.

Not once did in the heat of last summer did the mercury reach 30 C, the first time that’s happened since 2016. The three hottest days of the year for Prince George were 28 C (Aug. 7) , 27.8 C (July 22), and 26.4 C (June 12).

On the cold end of the scale, February 2019 was a brutal month with seven days of lows in the -30s, including the three coldest days of 2019, -38.6 C (Feb. 4), -33.8 (Feb. 6 and Feb. 11).

“All of Western Canada was cold in February,” said Lundquist.

The coldest days came in the first couple weeks of the month, when athletes began arrive in the city to train for the World Para Nordic Ski Championships at Otway Nordic Centre. The average high in Prince George that month was -10.2 C,

while the average low was -25.

Only on the last two days of February was it warm enough to melt ice and it just barely made it with highs of 1C Feb. 27 and 2C on Feb. 28. That came after a mild January with only one really cold day when it hit -25.4 C (Jan. 8).

Total precipitation for 2019r was 90 per cent of the average for Prince George with 532 mm falling from the sky, compared to the average on 595 mm.

After devastating wildfire seasons in 2017 and 2018, there were very few destructive weather-related incidents last year and most of the province was breathing clean air.

“For B.C, there was not a lot of fire weather, not a lot of severe weather, it seemed like a quiet year,” said Lundquist.

Budget priorities debated

— from page 1

“That’s a lot of money,” said Coun. Kyle Sampson. “I struggle with paying for a train which shouldn’t be owned by the City of Prince George.”

Sampson suggested the city consider transferring ownership as a gift to The Exploration Place museum, which already oversees maintenance of the train, or to the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George.

Mayor Hall did not share Sampson’s concerns and anticipates grants will help defray the cost of running the train, a popular summertime draw to the park for tourists and residents.

“It was passed in the budget knowing full well that once we take a look at secondary funding and, perhaps, funding from the feds and the province, it will come back to us,” said Hall. “Staff are looking at other potentials for that location too. We have a very old fire engine up at hall No. 2 that needs to be taken out of the garage and displayed as part of our history.”

Park improvements proposed in the budget include Cottonwood Island riverbank stabilization/Heritage river trail refurbishment ($925,000), washroom refurbishment at Lheidli T’enneh Memorial, Freeman and Gyro parks ($300,000), removal/replacement of three playgrounds annually ($250,000), conversion of horseshoe pits at Carrie Jane Gray Park to beach volleyball courts for the 2022 B.C. Summer Games ($250,000), parks water truck ($300,000), trails rehabilitation ($250,000), boulevard restoration, focused in 2020 on Tyner Boulevard/Tabor Boulevard ($160,000), tree planting ($100,000), nature park improvements at Shane Lake/Ferguson Lake ($75,000), off-leash dog areas/parks ($25,000) and parks signage ($20,000).

Council postponed a decision on whether to create a new division within public works, which would cost $280,000.

The tax bylaw, which cannot show a deficit, must be finalized by May 15.

Citizen file photo

Snow blows off a roof as pedestrians walk down the alley way between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue last February.

Traps found at blockade

Arthur WILLIAMS Citizen staff

RCMP are conducting an investigation into dangerous traps along Morice West Forest Service Road, southwest of Houston, after patrols found trees pre-cut for felling and stacks of tires containing jugs of fuel.

The Morice West Forest Service Road and Morice River Bridge – located 47 km southwest of Houston – are the location of an ongoing blockade by Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their supporters against development of the Coastal GasLink natural gas pipeline through the area.

On Jan. 3, the Wet’suet’en hereditary chiefs and members of the Unist’ot’en camp issued an “eviction notice” to workers at camp 9A and the surrounding area. In a statement released last week, RCMP said they have brought their concerns to the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and have launched a criminal

investigation under Section 247 of the Criminal Code for traps likely to cause bodily harm.

Officers from the Community-Industry Safety Office (C-ISO) are monitoring the situation along the Morice West Forest Service Road to ensure the safety of people at the blockade site, Coastal GasLink employees and general public, the statement said.

“On Jan. 6, 2020, during the course of regular patrols, officers attended the 39.5 kilometre mark and were stopped by a blockade of fallen trees. Officers conducted foot patrols towards the 44 kilometer mark, and noted several dozen trees had been felled across the roadway,” the statement said.

“Of particular concern for safety, they noted some trees that were partly cut in readiness for felling. This creates a hazard where these trees can fall unexpectedly due to wind. Three stacks of tires were also noticed, each covered by tarps

and trees, and contained several jugs of accelerants – gasoline, diesel, oil, kindling and bags full of fuel soaked rags.”

The RCMP respects the rights of individuals to peaceful, lawful and safe protest, the statement said, but the RCMP will act to ensure any person who unlawfully threatens the safety of people or property will be held accountable in accordance with Canadian law.

“This applies to demonstrators, industry employees and contractors, as well as the general public,” the statement added.

“Our priority is to engage with (Coastal GasLink), Indigenous communities and government to facilitate a resolution without police enforcement,” North District RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Madonna Saunderson said via email. “And our senior commander has already been in direct contact with representatives of all these stakeholder groups, including the hereditary chiefs.”

In a statement published on the Unis’ot’en Camp website Wednesday afternoon, the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their supporters reported finding signs of activity in the area of the blockade.

“Trespassers were heard walking toward and behind the Gidimt’en checkpoint, and chainsaws were heard operating,” the statement said. “Snowshoe tracks were found, and we believe that the trespassers were trying to create a trail to access/surround the camp.”

The statement also said that copies of the B.C. Supreme Court ruling made on Dec. 31 were posted at the 39 km mark of the Morice West Forest Service Road. The ruling authorizes Coastal GasLink to remove barriers set up on Morice West Forest Service Road and on the Morice River Bridge, and gives the RCMP a mandate to arrest and remove persons preventing that from happening.

Truck rampage charges laid

Charges have been approved against a Prince George man suspected of crashing a full-size pickup truck into vehicles along Ospika Boulevard and Massey Drive this past summer.

Keenan Michael Richard Gatey, 50, faces one count each of impaired driving causing bodily harm and failing to stop under the Criminal Code and a count of driving while prohibited or licence suspended under the Motor Vehicle Act, according to court records. Gatey was arrested July 6 when RCMP responded to multiple reports of a full-size pickup

truck running rampant before it came to rest near the corner of Massey Drive and Opie Crescent with both front tires punctured. The driver fled on foot but, with the help of witnesses, a suspect was apprehended and arrested and put through a 12-step evaluation conducted by a drug recognition expert, RCMP said. Further investigation found that the vehicle was uninsured and displaying licence plates that belonged to another vehicle, RCMP had added.

Gatey is scheduled to make a first appearance in provincial court on Feb. 12.

Missing Quesnel man found dead

A 90-year-old Quesnel man who was reported missing on New Years Day has been found dead in Kamloops.

Malcolm Earl McLaughlin, who had signs of dementia and a history of memory loss, was last seen in Quesnel on Dec. 30 at 4 p.m.

His body was located inside his vehicle on Tranquille Road in Kamloops.

Police believe McLaughlin was involved in a single-vehicle crash and don’t regard the crash as suspicious, according to a statement by the RCMP.

McLaughlin’s dog, a dachshund named Chico, was found alive and uninjured. Chico was taken to a local animal hospital until arrangements could be made to return the dog to McLaughlin’s family.

Forestry sector looks For rebound

For B.C. sawmill workers and loggers, 2019 was a year that they can only hope is not repeated in 2020.

Wet weather in the U.S. that delayed the construction season, higher stumpage rates, American duties on softwood lumber, a shrinking timber supply and one of the longest strikes ever by sawmill workers on Vancouver Island converged into a perfect storm that left thousands on picket lines or unemployment lines.

B.C. forestry companies went from making record profits in 2017 and 2018 to posting losses in 2019, and more than 3,000 sawmill workers lost their jobs. Many more logging contractors were also left without work.

Even mills that are still operating eliminated shifts. And when those shifts are added to the permanent mill closures in the province, it is the equivalent of eight sawmill closures in 2019, according to forestry consultant Jim Girvan.

The central issue in 2020 for the B.C. government will be fixing the current stumpage system, said Russ Taylor, managing director of the Forest Economic Advisors consultancy.

“The model is broken,” Taylor said, adding that the severe downturn in the industry was unique to B.C. “Alberta, they made a ton of money last year.”

Taylor concluded an analysis of 29 lumber-producing jurisdictions. It

confirmed that, in 2019, B.C. was the highest-cost producer in the world – even higher than Germany, which traditionally had the highest log costs, but which has been burning through salvage wood from a spruce beetle epidemic.

Taylor expects lumber prices will increase by 10 per cent in 2020. That may forestall further mill closures in 2020.

“The mills that have closed – they’re gone,” Girvan said. “But there’s 20 more that are in reduced shifting or they just closed indefinitely because of markets. They should be able to come back.”

The B.C. NDP government can expect to face increasing criticism in 2020 for failing to address the crisis in forestry,

Mass timber construction rising

A new year brings new beginnings, and for Penticton-based Structurlam Mass Timber Corp., that includes building on key developments from last year. With its expertise in cross-laminated timbers, it welcomed changes in the B.C. Building Code last March allowing for mass-timber construction in buildings of up to 12 storeys.

Canada’s national building code will adopt similar rules this year.

Structurlam recently won a contract for the first project approved under the new B.C. code, a tower DB Services of Victoria Inc. is building in the Vancouver Island municipality of Langford. Other projects

are in the planning stages, including one by Adera Development Corp. that includes mass timber as a component of its Quiet Home approach to construction, and an 83-room addition to the Ramada Kelowna Hotel & Conference Centre by RPB Hotels & Resorts of Penticton.

“I have never seen a code adoption happen so quickly in any of the other sectors I’ve been involved with,” remarked Structurlam CEO Hardy Wentzel.

The changes in Canada parallel similar changes in the U.S., which now allows mass-timber construction in buildings of up to 18 storeys. Structurlam, which expanded its workforce to 290 with the

addition of 70 people over the past year as capacity at its four B.C. plants grew, is building a fifth facility in Conway, Arkansas, to serve the U.S. That facility will open in 2021.

It’s not just the new building code that’s been adopted speedily. The buildings themselves rise quickly, with a minimal labour force. Brock Commons, the landmark 18-storey tower at the University of British Columbia that served as a precursor to the code changes, went up in just 57 days with a workforce of nine people.

“A construction site is actually more of an assembly site now than a construction

according to the mayor of Port McNeill, Gaby Wickstrom.

“The NDP has been coasting along in its belief that it is immune to the forestry crisis, and therefore hasn’t been expending an ounce of political capital to fight to help the workers and prop the sector up during its worst crisis in decades,” she tweeted in December.

Taylor said there is little question that the formula for calculating stumpage rates in B.C. is the biggest problem and needs to be fixed.

“It’s absolutely crystal clear to me that the B.C. wood costs are the only region that’s gone up in the world, and it should be going down,” he said.

site because so much of this is done in a factory,” Wentzel said. “It’s quite remarkable how much faster construction is, and when you do that you get to monetize your investment that much sooner.”

Similar arguments have been voiced in favour of modular construction, which is enjoying popularity not only for lowincome housing in Vancouver but also for hotels such as the new 104-room Hyatt Place in Prince George that Mundi Hotel Enterprises Inc. of Kamloops is developing with components from the Kamloops plant of Horizon North Logistics Inc. That hotel is set to complete next month.

Ticks putting bite on moose

Citizen staff

The B.C. Wildlife Health Program is calling on the public to help track the spread of winter ticks threatening the region’s declining moose population.

Tick infestations can contribute to moose population declines, especially where climate change and habitat conditions promote large numbers of ticks, a statement by the provincial government program says.

“As the female ticks mature, they feed on the blood of the moose in late winter. The irritation causes moose to scratch and groom themselves excessively, resulting in hair loss and less time spent foraging or resting, which can lead to weight loss,” the statement said. “The

extent of hair loss on a moose can be observed easily from a distance and is a rough indicator of how many ticks are present. There can be tens of thousands of ticks on one moose.”

The province’s annual moose winter tick surveillance program relies on wildlife professionals and members of the public reporting observations of moose in the wild from January to April.

According to a provincial report from 2019, 42 per cent of moose observed in B.C. last winter showed some sign of hair loss due to tick infestation, up from 33 per cent in 2018. Ninety-eight per cent of the 512 moose sightings reported came from the Omineca, Cariboo, Skeena and Peace regions – including 232 from the

Omineca region, which includes Prince George.

During the peak of the tick infestation in March to April, 84 per cent of the moose seen in the Omineca region showed signs of hair loss.

In total, 105 moose sighted in the surrounding area from January to April, 2019 showed no sign of hair loss, 38 had slight loss, 43 showed moderate hair loss, 37 had severe hair loss and nine “ghost moose” having near-total hair loss were reported.

“Northward range expansion of the winter tick is a serious concern for moose populations and other host species,” the 2019 report says. “Studies have show that winter tick can survive in regions

Joyrider sentenced to Jail

A young Prince George man was sentenced last week to 15 months in jail, followed by two years probation, for taking a stolen pickup truck on a wild ride.

Less credit for time served prior to sentencing, Mason Lee Henry-Larose, 20, has a further 192 days to serve in jail. He was also prohibited from driving for one year and ordered to provide a DNA sample.

The terms stem from a July 16 incident that began when the truck had been reported stolen from a Nations Crescent home.

About four hours later, an RCMP officer

spotted a truck matching the description near Fifth Avenue and Highway 97.

By the time the officer was able to safely turn around, the vehicle was gone.

But minutes later, police received multiple reports of the truck hitting another vehicle on Simon Fraser Bridge and then carrying on and hitting a second vehicle near the entrance to the BCR industrial site.

By that time, it was being driven on a flat tire and against the flow of traffic and, as it entered the lot of a nearby gas station, it was going at a speed high enough to make one witness worry he was going to be hit, the court heard during a recounting of the event.

Henry-Larose, who was behind the wheel, and co-accused Karl Robert Boreland jumped out of the pickup truck.

Henry-Larose attempted to steal another truck stopped at the gas station but its owner was able to grab Henry-Larose and pull him out.

Boreland was quickly arrested while Henry-Larose fled on foot. He was found hiding near a concrete post by the Continental Way overpass and, as officers converged, he ran across the highway where he was soon apprehended following a struggle.

The entire incident lasted about 10 minutes and no one was hurt but that gained little traction with provincial

of the Yukon and Alaska where originally, they were thought to be unable to survive due to long winters and very low temperatures. Warming climatic conditions are creating opportunities for tick survival in previously unsuitable habitat and establishment of winter tick populations in the more northern latitudes.”

The survey began in 2015, as part of a provincial investigation into declining moose populations. A 2014 study found moose populations declining in the Omineca, Cariboo and Kootenay/Boundary regions of the province, the report said.

“The summation of both winter hardships and high numbers of winter ticks can be a fatal combination for moose,” the report said.

court judge Cassandra Malfair.

“This situation could’ve easily resulted in tragic or even fatal consequences,” Malfair said. “The sentence imposed by this court must hammer home to Mr. Henry-Larose that this type of behaviour will not be tolerated and deter others from repeating it.”

Crown counsel had been seeking 18 months in jail while defence counsel argued for time served.

In settling on 15 months, Malfair took into account Henry-Larose’s decision to plead guilty to four counts, his youth, his aboriginal background and his childhood which was filled with violence and abuse.

Mark nielsen Citizen staff

Volunteers and the dreaded CRC THINKING ALOUD

TRUDY KLASSEN

Prince George has been able to brag about being the volunteer capital in BC. It’s a wonderful attribute and one that our volunteers and organizations can be proud of. However, volunteering with an organization serving our vulnerable populations now almost universally require a criminal records check, or CRC, and some say it discourages volunteerism.

The universal groan at being given the CRC paperwork from potential volunteers is usually followed by a resigned “It doesn’t actually protect kids, it just protects the organization, but I will do it.” In answer, I usually pipe up “You are right, but it serves to discourage potential predators as well.”

Are we discouraging “good” volunteers with the CRC requirement? Do we simply accept this infringement on our civil liberties by rationalizing the invasion of privacy as worthwhile to protect organizations? Do we accept the fact that we are requiring a reverse-onus; forcing our potential volunteers to prove they have no prior conviction? We know that predators make up a very small percentage of our population, so is it effective to screen everyone to avoid “hiring” someone with a conviction?

However, a clean CRC does not guarantee good character, it only states the person has not been convicted. Since child abuse, or any abuse conviction for

that matter, is hard to prove in court, there are more guilty than convicted, is there any point to the CRC?

I believe there is, simply for the deterrence factor. Most predators don’t want to be bothered with the paperwork or waiting period, so in that way, the CRC acts as a bit of a gatekeeper.

But I am very aware of the need for more thorough volunteer screening.

Other than the preliminary CRC screening, there are a number of other tools at our disposal, which may help to reduce the risk of exposing our children, youth and other vulnerable people from predators not convicted. Screening interviews by trained personnel who conduct background checks with former spouses, references and employers. Checking out social media accounts can offer clues and hints for the type of questions to ask. There are many local sources for advice, so if you are in an organization that serves the vulnerable check them out.

SOS: Surpassing Our Survival and the Ministry of Children and Family Development are two local groups that provided me with good advice. Two Christian groups - GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment) and the Christian Reformed Churchhave both done a significant amount of research and work with excellent online resources.

There may be a more streamlined, easier way to administer the CRC, to make it more efficient. Following this thought, it would be interesting to see if there has been any change in abuse statistics in organizations since widespread CRC requirements were implemented. However, until we find a better way of conducting

Volunteers portion out pieces of pie at Sacred Heart auditorium during the 47th Annual

preliminary screening to ensure we are not placing convicted predators with our vulnerable, children, youth or elders, the

CRC is likely here to stay. If you have a better idea, please share it.

Citizen file photo

St. Vincent de Paul Christmas Day Dinner.

OPINION

Member of the B.c. Press council a division of Glacier Ventures international corp e-mail: letters@pgcitizen.ca.

Farewell to a modern-day warrior

Remember Columbia House?

In their introductory offer stuck inside so many magazines in the early 1980s, you could buy as many as 11 cassettes for just a penny, with the promise that you’d buy five more over the next couple of years for about $13 dollars each.

It was such a thrill to receive that first shipment of 11 cassettes in the mail and listen to them all. Because I got so much music right out of the gate, I was willing to take a chance on some bands and one of them was Rush. I knew Tom Sawyer from the radio and nothing else so I ordered Moving Pictures, 2112 and their live recording Exit Stage Left.

Those three albums changed my life because I went from a casual fan of songs to a music lover, someone who studied songs and bands, devoured liner notes and felt a connection to the people playing these great songs that moved me and inspired me so much.

I studied Rush the hardest in my teen years and I obsessed over drummer Neil Peart, listening to his parts over and over.

NIGHT SHIFT

NEIL GODBOUT

I had never heard rock music played quite like that before and I had never heard drums played that way. It sounded like there were three drummers playing all at once, not one single man keeping time behind the kit.

How did he do it? How did he develop those parts and then perform them live? And he wrote the band’s lyrics, too!?! Who was this Canadian mad man?

Countless times, my parents found teenage me downstairs, air drumming to Limelight, Spirit of Radio, Xanadu, 2112 and other Rush classics, trying so hard to get the timing right with my hands and my feet, knowing I wasn’t even close but feeling like I was. It was the Walkman era, so I would

LETTERS To The ediTor

isolate myself inside the music, lying in the dark or walking to school, with Peart constantly reminding me time was not a constant but flexible, that drumming could be musical, not just percussive.

For many years, I always seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, never getting a chance to see Rush live, to marvel at Peart’s playing in person. Finally, in 2015, during the band’s 40th anniversary tour, I saw them in Calgary.

In his early 60s, he played like a man possessed, a magician wielding two wands, hands and feet moving independently of one another but forming a single percussive unit of time and sound, his face frozen in concentration.

Peart’s back story, both as a man and a musician, fascinated me.

He brought fierce discipline to Rush, insisting to his bandmates Alex Lifeson on guitar and Geddy Lee on bass and vocals that they independently practice for a month on their own before getting together for final rehearsals before heading out on tour. A relentless perfectionist,

Fuller column hits the mark

Some of the headlines – Downtown task force in works. Action needed to fix downtown, forum hears. Then an excellent article on page 29 of the Dec. 5 edition of The Citizen written by Business Coach Dave Fuller appeared in his usual business section of the paper, but which could well have been placed on the opinion page: Poverty and the responsibility of business.

He comes at the subject from his long experience as a volunteer and his years of operating businesses in the downtown area. He is well acquainted with the people, the area, the problems and he offers real solutions. He sat down with some of the folks at the place where he volunteers to ask for their thoughts on why they go to the centre and what they felt was the root of the problem.

He engaged those who are actually living the problem every day. He even asked one fellow if he felt giving them money would fix the problem and after some thought, his reply was, "no, giving money wouldn't fix anything. The problem is different; we need more jobs."

There are many jobs - small, big - that could be done by those caught in this cycle of poverty: cleaning up the area

Trump poses ThreaT To humaniTy

At this time on Earth, it is more clear every day that U.S. President Donald Trump is not just an American dilemma but an actual threat to all of humankind. Who thought that the assassination of an obscure individual in Eastern Europe would trigger the First World War?

In trying to understand Trump’s egocentric mind, words and behaviour, and

how he became a cult leader revered by millions of Americans, it is indispensable to step back from the insanity of American politics. Let us consider the thoughts of bestselling author Eckhart Tolle in his book A New Earth:

“The mental illness we call paranoia manifests a symptom that is an element of every ego, although in paranoia it

he chose to retire after that 2015 tour because he knew he was at the end of his ability to physically play those demanding parts he crafted decades earlier. He endured horrible personal tragedy, losing his 19-year-old daughter in a car accident in 1997 and his common-law wife to cancer just 10 months later. He hit the road on his motorcycle, putting nearly 100,000 kilometres on his bike in a quest to ride away from his grief, even reaching Inuvik at one point. He chronicled his travels and that long road to recovery in his book Ghost Rider. I shed some tears for my musical idol on the news of his death Friday but ones of gratitude, not sadness. His words and music enriched my life in so many ways and for that, I am eternally thankful. It all started with a geeky teenager, scraping together his allowance money to buy some cassettes through the mail. That kid lives on in a middle-aged dad body, still trying to capture drum parts in the air and on the steering wheel, all because of Neil Peart.

takes on a more extreme form. The more the sufferer sees himself persecuted, spied on, or threatened by others, the more pronounced becomes his sense of being the centre of the universe around whom everything revolves, and the more special and important he feels as the imagined focal point of so many people’s attention. His sense of being victim,

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around businesses; any kind of manual labour, even just a couple of hours a week (snow clearing tops the list right now), can give purpose, hope and be the first step out of poverty to someone who has hit rock bottom. It empowers people to take control of their lives."

If you didn't read Dave's article, it's on The Citizen's website.

Joan McKay, Prince George

of being wronged by so many people, makes him feel very special. In the story that forms the basis of his delusional system, he often assigns to himself the role of both victim and potential hero who is going to save the world or defeat the forces of evil.” Somewhat prophetic do you think?

Norm Sorenson, Prince George

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Q

uestion of the week

THIS week’S queSTIon: How would you grade the city’s snow removal efforts so far this winter?

“Better than last year” took top spot with 32 per cent and 203 votes, while “same as usual” slipped in a close second with 30 per cent and 191 votes. A very positive “better than ever” took 18 per cent and 117 votes, while “as bad as ever” took 10 per cent and 64 votes, while “continues to get worse” also took 10 per cent with 61 votes. There was a total 636 votes. Remember this is not a scientific poll.

How to vote: To answer go online to our website: www.pgcitizen.ca nexT week’S queSTIon: “How are you coping with the cold weather?”

Proteins offer window to Pain

Our sense of touch helps to define our sense of self. If you can’t feel a limb, it can seem a foreign object. One woman explained how she lost feeling in her arm while asleep and when she woke up, she thought a snake had crawled into bed with her. She leapt from her bed, beating at the unrecognized limb.

Understanding our senses has been a goal of science dating back hundreds of years. We have a good understanding of sight and how molecular interactions in rods and cones result in the generation of nerve impulses to the brain. We have an appreciation of our sense of taste and smell which are essentially the same thing. The physical nature of molecular docking and conformational changes in receptor proteins is reasonably well understood in our taste buds and nasal cells. The response to chemicals in our environment – called chemitaxis – is arguably the oldest of all senses. Moving towards sugars, fats and proteins is an essential action for even the simplest cells as is moving away from acids, alkalis and other potentially harmful substances. But touch has been a much more elu-

RELATIVITY

sive sense to track down because touch is not as singular as sight or taste. There are multiple levels of touch, from the delicate detection of moving air molecules within the ear to the sensation of a gentle breeze to the painful sensation of walking into an unseen street lamp. Neuroanatomists have found multiple types of touch receptors embedded within our skin and throughout the body. Our internal sense of touch is equally important to our sense of self as our external sense. If you close your eyes for a moment and move your hand, you have a reasonable sense of where it is in relation to your body. You could likely reach out for, say, a cup of coffee and while you might not be able to pick it up smoothly, you would at least have a sense of where your hand is in relation to the cup.

This sense of our body’s position in

space is a crucial ability called proprioception. It allows us to walk, reach, and do things since we have a sense of where our body is at any moment. When we lose connection with parts of our body, we can wake up thinking we are in bed with a snake because we don’t know what the thing we are feeling is.

In 2013, one teenager girl arrived at a hospital in Calgary with an inability to hold her limbs still. Even if she tried hard to hold her arms and hands steady, her fingers would wiggle. If she closed her eyes, everything got worse. It appeared as though she lacked control over her limbs – a lack of proprioception.

When her doctors sequenced her DNA, they found mutations in a gene called PIEZO2. A few years earlier, researchers discovered that this gene encoded for a pressure-sensitive protein critical to the sense of touch. The discovery of the gene and its related protein, along with a related protein called PIEZO1, were the high points to understand touch.

The proteins are ion channels and have an unusual shape. They are a trimeric system consisting of three arms

branching out from a central pore, as determined by cryo-electron microscopy. The arms are laced into the cell membrane, woven in and out multiple times, with the result that the whole structure creates something of a dimple, a sort of daisy-like structure but with only three symmetrically place petals. How the structure works is still a work in progress. One theory is that pressure on the cell causes the cytoplasm to push on the dimple, effectively ‘popping’ it outwards and resulting in a flat surface. The change in structure forces open the hole in the middle and allows the free flow of ions which generate the signal. While this is the simplest mechanism, it is also possible the blades of the protein are twisted by shifts in the cellular membrane. In this case, spinning outwards or inwards would control the opening.

The ongoing investigation into the structure of the protein is hampered by its large size – about five times the size of a typical protein – and an inability to develop model systems. But successful research on the PIEZO proteins may go a long way to helping us control pain.

Why you need to be aggressively positive

I was 21 the summer the accident happened.

I was working on a farm and my boss and his family had gone off to the lake. I was left with a list of chores that included clearing out a culvert on a dam that was being plugged by beavers. I thought that this would be the perfect task on a hot afternoon and headed over to the dam to do the job.

When I got to the dam, I saw that there was a cover on the culvert that was being plugged by the beavers. I lifted the cover, propped it up with a stick, got my rake out, lay on top of the culvert with my head between the cover and the culvert and started pulling the sticks and debris from the culvert.

It was only a couple of minutes before the inevitable happened. My rake knocked out the stick that was propping the culvert cover up and it came slamming down with the force of the water of the dam, pinning my forehead against the steel edge of the culvert. I tried in vain to lift the heavy cover against the force of the water with no luck.

I like to think I am pretty positive, however after yelling for help for a couple minutes, I came to the realization that there was not much hope of anyone rescuing me. My head was really starting to hurt and I was worried that I was going to pass out. I understood that if I didn’t get myself out of this situation,

BUSINESS

COACH

things were only going to get worse. I said a short prayer and then with all the strength I had, I forced back the log frame of the cover against the rushing water and lifted it off my head and stood up, blood from my head spraying everywhere.

We have all experienced similar situations where it seems like the forces of nature, the economy or our poor judgment have put us in a difficult position where we are not sure if we are going to survive, financially, socially or even physically. In leadership and business, because of our need to take risks we are likely to experience difficulty where we have our back to the wall.

Being aggressively positive means that when we get into those situations we are determined to succeed and work hard to accomplish that success.

In this context, being aggressive is essentially playing to win. It means that we move forward with intent and that we work in a manner that enables us to succeed through our direct actions and those of our team. Aggressive doesn’t

mean putting down others or succeeding at the expense of others, however it does mean that we are doing what we can to ensure that we achieve our goals. This might mean asking suppliers for the best pricing and doing everything ethical to get that big contract or large sale.

Being positive means that we believe that we are going to succeed in our endeavors. We cultivate a positive mindset that we are going to get through the tough times, that we are going to be able to drive our sales up, increase our profits, reach new customers and get our organization on track.

In order to be aggressively positive as an organization, we need to involve our team. Without buy-in from the people in our organization, we will never be able to achieve what is necessary in order to survive those tough times. We will face opposition and doubters both inside and outside the organization. However, unless we deal with that negativity and put an end to it, it will be difficult to ensure that we have the positivity necessary to succeed.

Aggressiveness without positivity can result in some poor decisions. When we are aggressive without the positive outlook also needed by our suppliers and our customers, we can come across as a bully. Bullying as we know doesn’t work well in the long run in our personal lives or in our businesses.

My accident could have been substantially worse had I not been both positive and aggressive in dealing with my situation. Over the years in business, I have had to have the same aggressive positivity when faced with competition, economic downturns and adversity. I have always tried to involve my team in developing solutions and celebrated successes. In hindsight, I probably should have celebrated more and better recognized those that contributed to the successes of some of my previous endeavors. When we believe that we are going to succeed one way or another, and don’t limit ourselves to relying on only one option, our chances of achieving results go up substantially. Business and leadership can be difficult but when we put our minds to it and bring our team on board in a positive manner, the world is our oyster. In the words of Henry Ford, “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you are right!”

Mindset is everything, being aggressively positive can set you apart from your competition and allow you and your organization to meet almost any reasonable targets or goals - God willing!

- Dave Fuller, MBA, is an award-winning business coach and the author of the book Profit Yourself Healthy. Need some aggressive positivity? Email dave@ profityourselfhealthy.com.

DAVE FULLER

Fear deFines the worst leaders

What is interesting about tyrannical leaders is that they share certain qualities.

In essence, they live under a tremendous fear of being overthrown. Through their actions, almost without exception, they inadvertently make this fear a reality.

I know how fortunate I am to live in a free country.

I will never forget my first experience of no longer having the freedom to question the government under which I was living.

As a university student, I lived in the Philippines toward the end of the Marcos era.

The fear the majority of his citizens was palpable, as was the defiance lying just below the surface.

It is important to note that dictators do not think like other people.

British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain is often criticized for giving in to concessions with Adolf Hitler, claiming “we have achieved peace for our time.” Give and take is normal in international diplomacy.

Chamberlain was clearly not dealing with someone who was normal. Had he known this, perhaps he wouldn’t have signed a deal with the man who started the Second World War only one year later.

As a result of the rise of Nazism, in 1948 the Declaration of Geneva mandated health professionals to speak up when they recognize the rise of a destructive regime.

LESSONS IN LEARNING

GERRY CHIDIAC

This does not mean that they diagnose public figures, as one cannot diagnose someone who is not a patient. An informed and honest warning from an impartial professional, however, is far different from a diagnosis.

Though we do not know the mind of Donald Trump, his actions have raised many red flags among mental health professionals.

It is not normal for a leader to call their political opponents silly names, like “Crooked Hillary”, or to incite crowds to chant, “send her back,” when discussing an elected member of the U.S. Congress.

It is not normal for a democratically elected leader to publicly admit that he would like to have dictatorial powers.

What is interesting is that shortly after Trump’s inauguration as the President of the United States, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) put strict restraints on what their members could say about a public figure.

A forensic psychologist on the faculty of Yale Medical School, Dr. Bandy Lee, points out that this puts people in her field in a precarious ethical position, having to either violate the directives of their professional association or the ethics of the Declaration of Geneva.

Regardless of the restrictions of the APA, Doctor Lee and others compiled The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump. It is interesting to note as well that Lee has received many invitations to speak about this book on well-known American news programs, only to have them cancel 100 per cent of the time, possibly because those in high offices do not want the topic discussed on their networks. I will readily admit that I do not have the capacity to determine who could be dangerous if they were placed in a position of authority.

I also do not know how to effectively respond to these people when they are in power.

Mental health professionals offer a great public service in helping us to

Not the

you’re

recognize the danger signs, the risks of having a tyrant in office and the most effective means to disarm them.

Donald Trump may be as wonderful and brilliant as he claims to be.

The point is that when we question the truth of his claims, we are not doing anything wrong.

Academic freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of the press and professional ethics are vital to the proper functioning of a democratic society.

In fact, they are our safeguards from tyranny.

- 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

droids

looking for

As promised, “hot takes” are now being served, beginning with the most recent news items and working our way backwards. America’s cold war with Iran might escalate, after the Revolutionary Guard’s Major General Qasem Soleimani was killed by a drone strike.

This action was sanctioned personally by POTUS: like his predecessor, Trump has grasped the potential of UAVs to do surgical strikes without the risk of putting any of the troops directly into harm’s way.

No one is mourning the posthumously promoted Lieutenant General, except perhaps his brother Sohrab, former warden of Iran’s prison system. The family trait for terror ran deep, as Lt-Gen Soleimani had led the Islamic Republic’s Quds Force since 1998, which has helped the likes of Hezbollah, as well as Bashar al-Assad. To put it bluntly, Soleimani had earned a Hellfire missile with his name written on it.

Meanwhile in Washington, D.C., the airwaves are full of noise about impeachment. What needs to be clarified is that when it comes to this uniquely American Constitutional device for removal of a president, the direness of the “high crimes and misdemeanors” is in the eye of the beholder, including whether they even qualify as such.

That Pence is not already president is all the proof needed to show no smoking gun has been found. This stunt will only hurt Democrats.

We shall be viewing Boris Johnson’s “huge, great, stonking mandate” next, but it bears repeating that those on the Left in the Anglosphere refuse to accept the votes cast almost four years ago by people fed up with a system that felt unaccountable and fossilized. Instead of any kind of alternative, save Maoism, the Left and its allies have tried to reverse 2016’s decisions by any means necessary, only to be rebuffed as shown by polls, fundraising and Britain’s election. Brexit will be happening, even if it means a great shock to the economy of the world. In a moment of historical irony, a century after everyone tried to pass off the bills for war debt to each other resulting in a depression as well as another global conflict, the exact opposite arrangement has caused only

slightly less strife: the loss of autonomy and anemic growth for over a decade has

RIGHT OF CENTRE

NATHAN GIEDE

brought the European Union to the brink of breaking up into its traditional local allegiances.

BoJo defeated Jeremy Corbyn - antiSemitic in rhetoric, ambiguous on Brexit - thanks to his uncompromised stance: “let’s get it done.” Indeed, like the Blue Wall broken by Trump in 2016, BoJo managed to take down the Red Wall of Labour ridings which had stood for decades. The realignment has manifested, yet many on the Left continue to quibble and curse, using both high-brow sneers and low-brow slurs to describe opponents, but refusing to answer the people. And now for something completely different. The divination of meaningless culture might be the last step to becoming a “crank.”

Yet I’ll admit to suffering through both Cats and The Rise of Skywalker this holiday season: the former was a dumpster fire, the latter a pulverized horse carcass; but at least the actors in Cats could dance and sing; the participants in Star Wars IX, even after $300 million, could not manage a coherent plot, let alone compelling performances.

I looked up how they did at the box office. Surprise, surprise, the uncanny valley and furry fetishists devoured Cats for less than half its costs; meanwhile, the nearly 150 minute toy commercial grossed over three times its budget. Conclusion?

We paid people to disobey all the rules of their own fictional universe, while scourging an adaptation that failed spectacularly. We voted with our wallets - turns out we’d rather be treated with contempt than try something new. That more than anything might bode ill for the 2020s. It’s a tired old line, but if the 2010s taught us nothing else, it is that we are in need of some new ideas and the courage to try them.

SPORTS

WeekenD sports aCtion

Citizen photos by James Doyle Prince George Blizzard skater Benjamin Konwicki speeds towards the finish line at the Outdoor Ice Oval on Saturday morning while participating in the B.C. Cup Long Track speed skating meet, top left. Top right, UNBC Timberwolves forward Madison Landry looks to make a play with the ball against University of the Fraser Valley Cascades defenders Jessica

Parker (#9) and Taylor Glaggett (#10) on Friday evening at the Northern Sport Centre. Bottom left, Kelly Road Roadrunners player Braeden Muise drives to the net against the Charles Hays Rainmakers on Friday night during the PGSS Polar Clash Sr. Boys basketball tournament. Bottom middle, Emmit Giesbrecht of Nechako Valley Secondary School, right, grapples with Josh Zacharios of Nechako Valley

Secondary School on Saturday afternoon at Kelly Road Secondary School while competing in the 59kg weight class of the 39th annual Kelly Road Wrestling tournament. Bottom right, Prince George Spruce Kings forward Nicholas Poisson drives to the net while protecting the puck from Surrey Eagles defender Cade Alami on Saturday night at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena.

UNBC SEES RESEARCH GROWTH

The University of Northern British Columbia placed first in its category for corporate research income growth, according to a recently-released survey.

According to the latest edition of the Canada’s Top 50 Research Universities ranking, produced by Research Infosource, UNBC’s corporate research income grew 177.3 per cent in 2018 to $452,000. It was the largest increase of any university in the undergraduate tier. “By partnering with industry, the work our researchers do in the field and the discoveries they make in the lab can be applied directly by companies who are looking to address complex challenges and make a difference in the lives of people in British Columbia and around the world,” said UNBC president Daniel Weeks.

“The knowledge our researchers possess in a wide variety of disciplines makes UNBC an ideal partner for many industries who are seeking answers to questions that our experts can answer.”

Overall, UNBC received more than $9 million in research funding in 2018, a slight decrease from the previous year. UNBC ranks 46th in the country for total research income. Some of the research highlights from the past year include:

- The opening of the Hakai Cryosphere Node, part of a $2.4 million joint research project between UNBC and Vancouver Island University focusing on the role that seasonal snow cover and glaciers play in the hydrology of key watersheds in British Columbia.

- The appointment of two new Canada Research Chairs and the re-appointment of two others.

- A $1.3 million five-year project to transform health service delivery in Northern British Columbia.

- UNBC and Carrier Sekani Family Services are partnering on a $1.5 million project to strengthen mental wellness and suicide prevention for elders in the Northern Interior region of British Columbia.

“As an engaged university, we are always looking for new ways to look beyond the traditional ‘four walls’ of the academy and elevate the great work that we do through partnerships,” said UNBC vice-president of research Geoffrey Payne. “The partnerships that we continue to forge are integral to our research mission.”

SIDES AGREE ON ARBITRATOR

Administration and faculty at the University of Northern British Columbia have a name in mind when it comes to

agreeing on an arbitrator to break the impasse in reaching a new contract.

“The parties actually came to an agree-

ment on an arbitrator before the end of last year,” UNBC spokesman Matt Wood said. “However, that individual still has to be approached to ensure they will take on the work. Once we have that process complete, we can start talking about the actual arbitration process, dates, etc.”

On Dec. 19, the sides agreed to take their differences to “final offer selection arbitration.”

Under the process, the arbitrator selects between the parties’ best and final offers and without the ability to “split the difference” between the two.

The sides had until Jan. 3 to agree on an arbitrator and the hearing process is to start by Feb. 1 unless the parties mutually agree to extend that deadline.

A similar process was used in 2015 to

reach an agreement on the first contract between UNBC and the Faculty Association.

In agreeing to taking the step, members of UNBC’s Faculty Association ended their job action, which included a threeweek strike in November followed by a campaign of refusing to perform duties beyond holding lectures and working with students.

UNBC FA bargaining committee chair Ted Binnema said he expects to have a “much clearer sense of where things are going” by sometime over the next week. He also said the faculty association remains in the process of deciding whether to pursue its complaint to the Labour Relations Board alleging administration engaged in bad faith bargaining.

Rookie foRwaRd Riding high

Ted Clarke Citizen staff

Fareed Shittu didn’t start playing basketball until his Grade 11 year at Harry Ainlay High School in Edmonton.

But if you watch how effortlessly he dunks the ball or how quickly his body soars into position to finish off an alleyoop play, you’d swear he was born with springs on his feet and a nose for the net.

One of the most exciting rookie recruits in the eight-year Canada West history of the UNBC Timberwolves men’s basketball program, the six-foot-six, 185-pound Shittu has rapidly endeared himself to Twolves’ fans with his ability to defy gravity to score points and grab rebounds, and the best is likely yet to come in his burgeoning basketball career as he finds his way around the U Sports playground.

“Honestly, I just like to have fun, whenever I’m out there, even if we’re winning or losing, I like to go out there with the mindset that I want to get better and try to have fun,” said Shittu, who turned 18 on Oct. 20.

Just starting to establish his reputation as a gamebreaking forward, Shittu has forced head coach Todd Jordan’s hand and he’s played him an average of 25 minutes per game - much more than Jordan thought he would get his first season.

“I was not expecting to come here and play this many minutes but I’m also very happy,” said Shittu. “It’s a pretty big jump (from high school) but I played for two or three months a club team in Edmonton

called Good Hoops and played in one or two lower college-league tournaments, so I got a university taste from there. I’m not the biggest guy out there so I do have

Cougars loaD uP on Draft PiCks

CiTizen sTaff

The Prince George Cougars picked up a defenceman and a pair of forwards in a two separate trades last week.

The Cats acquired defenceman Majid Kaddoura, the rights to unsigned forward Jayden Watson and a first-round WHL bantam draft selection for 2020 from the Saskatoon Baldes. In exchange, the Cougars dealt d-man Rhett Rhinehart to the Blades along with a third-round WHL bantam draft pick for 2020.

The Cougars also swapped forward Reid Perepeluk to the Brandon Wheat Kings for forward Jonny Hooker.

“The moves today fit into our plan for not only our future, but for right now as well. Getting another first-round selection in what is a very-talented... draft class is what we were striving for,” Cats GM and head coach Mark Lamb said. “Reid and Rhett were good players for our organization, and it was a tough decision to make these moves, but they were made with our future in mind.”

Kaddoura, 18, is from Chestermere, Alta. and was in his second season with the Blades. In 77 WHL games, the six-

foot-two, 177-pound d-man banked three goals and nine assists.

Watson, 16, currently plays for his hometown Grande Prairie Storm Midget AAA team in the Alberta Midget Hockey League. Watson posted five goals and 16 assists in 25 AMHL games.

Watson, who is six-feet tall and tips the scales at 185 pounds, was drafted 162nd overall in the 2018 WHL bantam draft.

The Cougars now have three firstround selections in the upcoming bantam draft.

Hooker – a six-foot-one, 186-pound 18-year-old from Winnipeg – is in his third WHL season and has a career record of 14 goals and 13 assists in 134 games. The Wheat Kings picked up Hooker 175th overall in the 2016 draft.

Rhinehart played 133 games for the Cougars over three seasons, earning 33 points for 11 goals and 32 assists. The Cats picked him up in the first round of the 2016 draft, 13th overall.

Perepeluk played 96 games with the Cats in last three years, picking up eight goals and 11 assists. The Cougars drafted him 114th overall in 2015.

to spend a little more energy trying to fight around the bigger guys on the court and that was a big adjustment.

“I’m a pretty quick learner and just over

this half-season I’ve been able to pick up on ball movement and where the ball bounces off the rim, really stretching for rebounds and just getting a better feel for the game.”

Shittu is rapidly closing in on the Twolves’ record for points in a season by a rookie (90) set by teammate Tyrell Laing in 2017. Also within Shittu’s long reach is the team record for rebounds in a season by a rookie, held by Navjot Bains. Bains collected 94 in the 2012-13 season.

Shittu was born and raised in Edmonton and his parents are from Nigeria. A natural athlete, just like his parents, he played club soccer for eight years and was also into snowboarding and BMX racing before he joined his first basketball team when he was 16.

“He’s been great, he’s bringing lots of energy to the games and he’s athletically gifted so he can rebound the ball very well for us,” Jordan. “He doesn’t create a lot of scoring for himself but when guys help off of him, he’s able to finish above the rim. He’s definitely an exciting guy to watch.

“He has a high D-1/NBA vertical jump, it’s up around 40 inches. Because he hasn’t played a lot of basketball he’s still learning the basics of the game at this level, some technical stuff as far as defensive schemes and offensive schemes of how to execute pick-and-rolls. He’s very athletic but the physicality is much different for him, going against men now. He’s still a work in progress getting stronger in the weight room.”

Kings shuffle roster

CiTizen sTaff

The Prince George Spruce Kings were busy last week in anticipation of the BCHL trade deadline.

They acquired the rights to 19-year-old right winger Haydn Delorme in a future considerations deal with the Coquitlam Express, which came on the heels of a trade to pick up 18-year-old centre Mason Reeves. Reeves was acquired in the deal with the Brooks Bandits which sent winger Ryan McAllister to the Alberta Junior Hockey League team.

Delorme, a five-foot-11, 175-pound native of Port Moody, missed the first two-thirds of the season while he recovered mononucleosis and has yet to play a game in 2019-20. His game conditioning might take time to acquire but Delorme needs no introduction to the skill level and fast pace of junior hockey.

After starting his junior career two seasons ago with the the Express, Delorme made the jump to the WHL last season with the Portland Winterhawks. He played 31 regular season games, posting

a goal and three assists, and was also on the ice for four playoff games.

The former Vancouver Northeast Chiefs major midget put up six goals and 14 points in 53 BCHL games with Coquitlam in 2017-18 and also collected two points in four playoff games.

The Kings also sent 18-year-old rookie defenceman Cole Leal back to his native Ontario in a futures trade with the Hawksbury Hawks of the Central Canada Hockey League.

Leal, who missed six weeks early in the season with an ankle injury, was a healthy scratch Dec. 20 in Surrey and wasn’t happy with his icetime and asked Hawes for a trade.

Left winger Wil Kushniryk, who played six games in the WHL over the last couple months after getting called up to the Calgary Hitmen, is back with the Spruce Kings. In 19 games with the Kings this season the six-foot-five, 210-pound Chilliwack native has two goals and two assists.

Citizen Photo by James Doyle

UNBC Timberwolves forward Fareed Shittu looks to make a play with the ball against University of the Fraser Valley Cascades defender Dhivaan Bhogal on Friday night at the Northern Sport Centre.

AROUND TOWN COMMUNITY CALENDAR

ObSErVaTOry OpEN HOuSE

Fridays beginning Jan. 17 from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. the Prince George Astronomical Observatory, 7365 Tedford Road, is hosting open houses for the public. There is a brief astronomy related talk followed by observing with the main 24-inch telescope and smaller telescopes on the viewing deck. Viewing is weather permitting. Dress warmly. Entry is by donation. Start and end times change as the days get longer. For more information visit www.pgrasc.org.

SONGS, STOrIES aNd SErENadES

Saturday, Jan. 18 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Vanier Hall, 2901 Griffiths Ave., the Prince George Symphony Orchestra presents Richard Strauss’ Serenade for Winds, Anatol Liadov’s Eight Russian Folk Songs, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet and Launy Grondahl’s Trombone Concerto featuring Brian

Wendel, principal trombonist with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. For more information visit www.pgso.com.

bC Old TIME FIddlErS’ daNCE

Saturday, Jan. 18 from 8 p.m. to midnight at the PG Elks Community Hall, 663 Douglas St., the BC Old Time Fiddlers present a dance featuring old-time dances like polka, waltz, schottishe, barn dance, seven step, two step. Entrance fee of $10 includes light lunch, prizes. Cash bar. Tickets available at Books & Co. or at the door. Children get in free.

GIN blOSSOM: a SpEakEaSy

Saturday, Jan. 18 from 8 p.m. to midnight at Theatre NorthWest, 36-556 North Nechako Rd., Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern BC and Theatre NorthWest, with the help of a host of guest bar tenders, are teaming up for a gin cocktail competition. Each guest bar tender will create a signature gin based drink, which will be in a people’s choice competition. At the end of the evening BBBS and TNW will make a $500 donation to the registered charity of the winning bar tender’s choice. The second place winner will get

a $200 donation to the registered charity of their choice in Prince George. The event is 1920’s themed, and guests are encouraged to dress up. Tickets are $60 at www.theatrenorthwest.com.

TrINITy dOwNTOwN MuSIC

Sunday, Jan. 19 at 3 p.m. at the Trinity Downtown, formerly Knox United at 1448 Fifth Avenue, there is a concert offered featuring mostly organ music featuring the balcony Wurlitzer, as well as other musical guests. Admission if free and donations accepted.

GOSpEl SHOw

Monday, Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. in the basement of the College Heights Baptist Church, 5401 Moriarty Cr., there is a Gospel Show featuring Elvis impersonator Steve Elliot, hosted by the North Central Seniors Association. Tickets are $15 at the door or $10 in advance Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to noon from Maurice, who will be in the basement of the church during those hours.

TapESTry SINGErS FuNdraISEr

Saturday, Jan. 25 at 6:15 p.m. at the Hart Community Centre, 4900 West Austin Rd., the Tapestry Singers are holding a silent auction and dinner to fundraise for their trip to the Con Brio Whistler Music Festival in April. The senior choir will perform three sets while there is dinner and door prizes, along with the silent auction. All proceeds go to the choir for the trip. Tickets are $50. For more information contact choral director Carolyn Duerksen at 250-964-8184 or email carolynduerksen@hotmail.com.

rObbIE burNS NIGHT

Saturday, Jan. 25 from 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. at the Exploration Place, 333 Becott Pl., the Prince George Symphony Orchestra presents Robbie Burns Night dinner. This is the symphony’s third annual event that promises a new take on entertainment to have guests laughing, toasting and dancing to fiddle and drum. Tickets

are $100 each. For more information visit www.pgso.com.

bEGINNEr CrOSS COuNTry SkI lESSONS

Every Monday from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at 8141 Otway Rd., Caledonia Nordic Ski Club offers free Classic Cross Country Ski Tours for seniors 55+ led by senior ski instructors. There will be tour groups to accommodate all levels of skiers from beginner to experienced. For non-members there are half-priced rentals and trail passes. There is free hot beverages and goodies served in the ski lodge from 2:30 to 3 p.m. Register at 250-564-3809 | office@caledonianordic.com.

ukulElE JaM SESSIONS

Tuesday, Feb. 4 from 7 to 8 p.m. at Bob Harkins Branch, Prince George Public Library, 888 Canada Games Way, everyone is welcome to the Ukulele Jam Sessions for Adults. This is a monthly ukulele jam session for absolute beginners or those just wanting to work on their skills. Use one of our ukuleles or bring your own. Free drop in. Contact: 250-563-9251 | ask@pgpl.ca

bEGINNEr SNOw SHOE lESSONS

Every Wednesday from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at Otway Nordic Centre, 8141 Otway Rd., the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club offers free snow snowshoe lesson for seniors (55+). Tours are led by experienced senior snowshoe instructors. There will tours to accommodate all levels of ability from beginner, intermediate and experienced and there is one group for participants with some physical limitations. There is free hot beverages and goodies in the lodge after each tour from 2:30 to 3 p.m. Register at 250-564-3809 | office@ caledonianordic.com

adulT baNd

Every Monday until June 29 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the First Baptist Church, 483 Gillett St., the Alban Classical New Horizons Adult Band meets. Contact: 250563-4693, admin@albanclassical.org

Special hoodies offer hope

Christine hinzmann Citizen staff

As it dropped down to 40 below with the wind chill recently, there was a plan put in place to make it a tiny bit better for some of those living on the streets of Prince George.

Adam Prytula of Adamant Prints has designed a rays of hope logo that will be on each of 100 hoodies that will be handed out by the Spare A Pair group that asks residents to donate cold weather gear they distribute to those in need. The goal is to raise enough money so 100 hoodies can be given out this winter.

With a $25 donation, people can support the Gift of Warmth effort that sees not only the rays of hope hoodie, but a toque and a canvas bag going to those who need it the most.

So far, the effort has raised $575 and the final goal is $2,500 to cover the cost of the hoodies, toques and canvas bags that are distributed in a bundle.

The message of hope is an important one to send out with the hoodies, Prytula said. "I want to attach meaning to the hoodies and hope is something I've been working on a lot myself lately," he said. "It's really a glass half full versus a glass half empty approach to life and when we approach life with a glass half full attitude and you look at the future and see that it can be brighter and it can be better then that gives us the energy to push forward and it helps see us through the tough times in front of us."

Prytula said when we're in the opposite of hope - despair - it seems like those tough times are never ending.

The Spare a Pair initiative will be in the streets giving out the hoodies, toques and canvas bags, along with other donations they have received from the community including gloves, hats, scarves and blankets.

To donate to the Gift of Warmth fundraiser visit their Facebook page.

Grant backs charGinG network

The Northern Development Initiative Trust is partnering with 23 regional districts, municipalities and First Nations to install Level 2 electric vehicle charging stations in 26 locations across northern and central B.C.

NDIT announced $192,000 in funding for Charge North initiative, which will help fund a total of 47 public charging stations – including 11 in Prince George. The Regional District of Fraser-Fort George submitted the application for the funding and is working with the other local governments on the project.

“Six regional districts from Kamloops to Haida Gwaii decided to work together to plan an EV charging network,” district vice-chair Lara Beckett said. “For most people have an EV, it will be a nice addition. But most people who have EVs have charging stations at home, and that’s usually sufficient for day to day. I think the bigger thing is for people travelling, and promoting tourism.”

Beckett has been driving an electric vehicle since 2006 – first a custom converted truck, then a Nissan Leaf. She said her family uses its vehicle to drive from the regional district to downtown Prince George – 25 km each way – and has never had an issue. However, the ability

to top up the battery at a public station on a cold day offers a little extra assurance, she said.

In May 2019, an information sheet released by B.C. Hydro estimated a Prince George resident living in College Heights and commuting downtown each day would spend $77 per year in additional electricity consumption driving a Nissan Leaf EV, compared to $340 per year in gas for a Honda Civic sedan, $389 per year for a Toyota RAV4 SUV or $583 per year for a Ford F-150 pickup truck. For residents living in the Hart or further out, the savings for driving an EV were even higher.

The 47 planned stations will primarily be located in tourist and visitor-friendly areas, to provide extra charging options for residents and tourists, she said. What the plan isn’t attempting to do is offer the high-speed Level 3 chargers.

Level 2 charges use 240V circuits –similar to household plugs for electric stoves and clothes dryers – and can take up to eight hours to fully charge a typical EV. Level 3 chargers can charge many EVs from empty to 80 per cent full in 30 to 40 minutes, but require specialized high-capacity power infrastructure.

“For people who want to get from here

to there, Level 3 chargers are the way to go,” Beckett said. “(But) the Level 3s are very expensive. For any municipality or regional district, it would be very difficult to afford.”

In 2018, B.C. Hydro and the provincial Ministry of Transportation committed to expand its network of Level 3 charging stations from Kamloops up to Prince George, then west to Prince Rupert.

The B.C. Hydro network along Highway 5 from Valemount down to Kamloops – including a station in McBride on Highway 16 – is already operational, and Level 3 stations in Hixon, Quesnel and Williams Lake are expected to be operational next week, BC Hydro spokesman Bob Gammer said. A planned BC Hydro Level 3 station in Prince George is expected to be complete this spring, however a private Level 3 charging station is available at Hub City Volkswagen.

“The plan is to build (the charging station network) west to Haida Gwaii this year, subject to funding,” Gammer added.

Beckett said the network planned by the local communities is intended to supplement the B.C. Hydro network, not duplicate it.

The funding from Northern Devel-

Large load approval simplified

Arthur WilliAms Citizen staff

The province has streamlined the permitting process for trucks hauling large loads from two Lower Mainland ports through northern B.C. to Alberta.

Project Cargo Corridor permits will allow large loads meeting specific criteria to travel between the Fraser Surrey Docks and Lynnterm East Gate ports to Alberta via Highways 5 and 16 without going through the normal extraordinary-

load approval process.

The normal process can take up to 12 business days to approve, while Project Cargo Corridor permits can be issued in as little as two business days, according to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.

"The number of requests for extraordinary load approvals continues to increase every year," a ministry officia said via email.

"In 2019, there were about 8,000

extraordinary load approvals issued, and those resulted in about 3,700 extraordinary load permits issued. Not every approval results in a permit, because sometimes multiple carriers will be applying to move the same load, and some approvals result in multiple permits."

Extraordinary loads are those which are large or heavy enough that they require analysis to ensure the infrastructure along the proposed route – roads, bridges, overpasses, etc. – can handle it without being damaged.

"There is a huge variety of loads this covers: everything from hydro dam equipment or wind farm components to industrial equipment that is too big and heavy to drive down the road on its own," the spokesperson said in an email.

To be eligible for permits, the load

opment will cover some of the costs, and each municipality has committed between $2,500 to $5,000 per station for the capital costs. The Northern Development funds are dependent on other grant applications, and many of the specific details still need to be worked out, she said.

“Even if all the money was approved tomorrow, it would still be some time before they are all built.”

The Community Energy Association has been tapped to administrate the plan, based on the group’s experience developing a similar plan in the Kootenays.

“The number of British Columbians switching to electric vehicles is growing exponentially. There are over 20,000 new EVs on B.C.’s roads, with more diverse models coming to the market,” Community Energy Association senior manager Janice Keyes said in a press release. “This project recognizes that growth and the potential it provides.” Northern Development CEO Joel McKay said the funding isn’t a “one and done” project.

“As the number of EVs increase, so does the need for charging stations and I look forward to committing more grant dollars in the future,” McKay said.

must be "non-reducible," meaning it can't be disassembled into smaller loads without damaging it.

To qualify for the Project Cargo Corridor permits, the combined truck and payload can weigh up to 125 tonnes, have an overall height of up to 4.88 metres, a width of up to five metres and a length of up to 50 m.

"The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure has been working on putting these corridor approvals together for some time, in response to increased volume in the extraordinary load process and interest from industry and the ports," the ministry spokesperson said.

"If the program works well for industry by saving time and making the process more efficient, the ministry will look at implementing for other corridors.”

Drivers nabbeD over holiDays

Citizen staff

Prince George RCMP busted 34 impaired drivers and impounded a total of 58 vehicles during its holiday enforcement campaign.

Between Dec. 6 and Jan. 1, officers from the Prince George RCMP municipal traffic services section and North District RCMP traffic services section conducted check stops and roving patrols targeting impaired drivers during their Holiday CounterAttack operation, a statement issued by the RCMP said.

"We ask the members of our community to remain focused on our roads this winter, and to exercise good judgment," police spokesperson Cpl. Craig Douglass said. "We continue to focus on those drivers that do the most harm in our community."

During the Dec. 6 to Jan. 1 campaign, police caught 34 impaired drivers. Two people were charged with Criminal Code impaired driving charges, while 14 people were issued 90-day immediate roadside prohibitions and another 18 were issued three-day immediate roadside prohibitions.

In addition, police issued 10 24-hour suspensions for alcohol consumption, eight for drug consumption and suspended one learner or new driver for having

RCMP officers conduct roadside checks in December during the CounterAttack impaired driver campaign.

alcohol in their system. In addition, police caught 16 or prohibited or suspended drivers behind the wheel.

The Prince George RCMP traffic services section will still be out on the roads looking for impaired and prohibited

City hiring rCMP staff

ted Clarke Citizen staff

The cost of policing Prince George could be on the rise now that the RCMP is in the process of becoming unionized.

The 20,000-member national force expects to begin negotiations for a collective agreement in mid-March, with salaries, staffing levels and benefits identified as the top priorities.

Coun. Brian Skakun expressed his concerns to Prince George RCMP Supt. Shaun Wright at last Monday’s city council budget meeting and asked Wright if he could divulge any information to help prepare the city for any additional strain on taxpayer resources.

“The short answer is no,” said Wright. “If you can figure out what the federal government is going to do, let me know. I do know some communications have been getting out to municipalities to budget for certain amounts each year for incremental (salary) increases.”

Wright’s attendance at the meeting was to explain the need to hire two RCMP support services staff as a budget enhancement, which council approved unanimously.

“It will allow our investigators to focus on what they do best, and that’s go

out and be investigators,” said Wright. “There is a lot of calls for boots on the ground, but policing has become very complex and there’s a lot of work to be done in the background in order to move those investigations from the initial stages right through to a prosecution.”

The new city funding will cover the cost of a video analyst to help police sift through what Wright describes as “an explosion in video over the last five years,” obtained through surveillance cameras, dash cameras and other sources. It’s an intensive time-consuming task, which requires hundreds of hours and limits the time officers are free to go out on patrol.

The video analyst position carries a salary of $101,476, while the other new position is for data processing supervisor, which will pay $91,070 annually.

Having the data position filled locally will negate the need to out source investigative work to private companies to obtain evidence stored on cell phones, tablets and computers. It will increase the capacity of the RCMP to package evidence, primarily for serious crimes, and reduce the time it takes to prepare for court cases.

“The actual enhancement is for overtime patrols of the two members as opposed to actual new members,”

said Wright. “Those members would be scheduled there for the six hours (per shift) and would be dedicated to that. That would be on an ongoing basis so those hours wouldn’t be affected by mandatory training, annual leave, that sort of thing.”

With the additional staff and yearly salary increases added in, the net operations budget for police protection will cost the city $27.392 million, as compared with the 2019 budget of $26.936 million.

Skakun explained to Wright that one of the presenters at a special meeting in December focused on downtown issues requested a more visible police presence as a means to reduce crime. Wright told council downtown patrols will happen with more frequency as a result of the pending staff hires.

“The enhancement would really provide us the opportunity to do that because those members wouldn’t be tasked with transporting prisoners or responding to calls in other areas and they would largely be dedicated to foot and bicycle patrols” said Wright. “We would maintain our downtown safety unit there, which is dedicated to that area. As well, the watch members assigned to that (downtown) area as well as other

drivers, and stepping up enforcement at high-collision intersections this winter, the statement added.

members would be encouraged to make patrols there on their way in and out the downtown core just for additional visibility.”

Crime and downtown social issues have become more prominent, spawning outcries from business owners and residents for city officials to tackle the problem, and Wright says Prince George is not alone.

“In a lot of medium-sized cities in B.C. and Western Canada, it’s really a social phenomenon, particularly in the last couple years,” Wright said. “I think there are some economic factors at play and definitely some social factors, in my personal opinion. The move away from residential mental health (treatment facilities) from that model has placed a lot of people in the streets where, unfortunately, they’re not able to cope. So they come into contact with the public and police in a negative light and I think that’s increased over the last two decades.

“The destigmatization of a lot of homeless situations and behaviour, whereas a lot of those people used to hide in the shadows, now they’re out on public because they feel entitled to be. We’ve definitely seen a shift in the boldness in a segment of that population in the last couple years.”

Citizen Photo by James Doyle

CLASSIFIEDS THE PRINCE GEORGE CITIZEN

REMEMBRANCES

Obituaries

ERIN LINDSTROM

When asked where she would like to spend this Christmas, Nancy had said that she hadn’t yet decided. There were plenty of great options. She could take a flight to spend Christmas with any of her three children and nine grandchildren: Heidi Rae and Gary Rae (1966~2015); Ashton and Arewyn, or Carsten Crolow, Jenn Crolow; Evan and Gracie, or Danica and Andrew Booth; Teagan, Luca, Aurelia, Grayson and Katrielle. She could catch a ride to visit any of her three brothers: Arne and Jeanette Hanson, Dennis and Joanne Hanson, Eric and Julie Hanson (1949-2019) or her little sister Brenda Mae and Bruce Ronald. Or she could simply have a cozy Christmas Eve at home. In the end, Nancy surprised everyone with an idea that no one had even considered. She accepted an invitation to spend Christmas with the Angels instead. It’s the only time she’s ever really disappointed anyone.

Nancy gave the best hugs. She could point out the most beautiful miracle in the tiniest detail of nature and find diamonds in a gravel pit. She cared for all creatures great and small, who happened to find their way into her garden. Nancy loved walking the meadow trails with a good friend. She had an insatiable appetite for bad puns, which somehow always left you chuckling no matter how terrible they were. And Nancy truly listened.

She had great empathy and compassion for both friends and strangers, yet always knew how to give a good nudge in the right direction when needed. She could make a stranger comfortable enough to share their entire life story on a flight to France. Or Italy. Or London. Or Vancouver. Or Kelowna. Nancy was kind and considerate, generous with her heart and time.

She was a great maker of jams: raspberry, huckleberry, apricot, you name it. She was an artist of many mediums. She could knit, sew, draw, paint, and was even known to make a torrent of mean macrame in the 70’s. She had a weakness for chocolate, the entire series of Mash reruns, any song by Leonard Cohen, and really good BBC detective shows. She could fish like a champ, handle northern B.C. road conditions like a boss. She was brave, strong and capable.

Nancy served as an OR Nurse for many years at the Prince George Regional Hospital where she was a calm, steady presence in the staff, surgical and recovery rooms. She did her job to the best of her ability, and it showed. She lifted others up with her strong work ethic, her jokes, and her compassion. For the past number of years, she volunteered at BFM thrift store. Nancy truly cared.

Nancy shared a portion of her life with Peter Crolow and together, they created a beautiful family. They eventually parted ways, but in the end, she and Peter shared a last, lighthearted conversation that reminded them both of the genuine care they had for each other.

She talked with her kids almost daily and loved her grandkids immensely. Nancy was the mom and gramma that anyone would be lucky to have. And as most mothers do, often put others before herself. Nancy deeply loved Jesus and was grateful for His grace. Her days were not without her share of pain, mistakes, struggles or loss,. She found encouragement and strength in prayer.

She was not afraid.

A very, very special thank you to Nancy’s longest, closest friend, Viola Remple for being with Nancy in her last moments. Also, to her good friend Irma, for her quick thinking and heroic efforts; to Rose and Lina, Robin, Nolan Hanson and Peter Crolow; to Christie at PG Funeral Service for her incredible kindness & professionalism; and to Constable Choy and the paramedics (you know who you are) for doing everything in their power to bring Nancy back to us.

Thank you, Mom. We love you.

We will miss you and think of you every single day, until we see you again.

Nancy’s Celebration of Life will be held in April 2020. Exact location, date and time to be announced. Pls refer to the following link for details https://www.pgfs.ca/

Lindstrom,RonaldA. April5,1936-December31,2019

Ronpassedawaypeacefullywithhisfamilyathisside.He issurvivedbyhischildren,Laurel,Anita(Terry),Eric,and Erin(Tim);grandchildren,Kevin,Amanda,Jessica,Jaden, andCarsen;andagreat-grandchildontheway.Ronhad alovefortheoutdoorsandhisfamily.Hewasalways thereforhisfamilyandfriends.Somanyrecallfondlyhis easy-goingdemeanourandconversations.Hewillbe missedandalwaysinourheartsandmemories.

GOBBI, Barbara May

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our loving mother and wife, Barbara. She was born in Atlin, BC on December 31, 1939 and passed away of heart failure the morning of January 11, 2020 at Simon Fraser Lodge in Prince George, BC.

She had recently enjoyed the celebration of her 80th birthday surrounded by family.

Barbara is survived by Gregory, her loving and devoted husband of 56 years, and her children Rena, Jenine (Dale), Nichole, Mike (Judy), David, Frances (Jeffrey) Anderson, Vanya (Allan) Pfannmuller, Philip (Nancy); and grandchildren Julian, Kira, and Arianna Sapach, Mary and Munro Anderson, and Sophie Gobbi.

Throughout her life Barbara made it her mission to advocate for life. She worked tirelessly in the pro-life movement and Catholic Women’s League of Canada, CWL. Her work involved, but was not limited to, writing hundreds of letters to the editors of various newspapers and politicians. She was elected to and served on the board of the Prince George Hospital for many years. Likewise, she served as the local president of the Pro-Life Society for 10 years in Prince George and an additional 10 years on the Sunshine Coast. She was a member of the CWL for many years, serving in roles as both Parish and Diocesan President. Barbara also had a generous and hospitable heart toward those in need.

Barbara worked as a primary teacher in both the public and Catholic school systems. Her teaching career began in 1958 at Stone Creek School, also including Austin Road, Blackburn, Blewett (Nelson), 2nd Street School (Burnaby), and Carney Hill. She spent the majority of her career teaching at Sacred Heart Elementary School. There will be prayers for Barbara at Sacred Heart Cathedral at 7:00 PM on Thursday, January 16. The funeral (with Mass) will be 2:00 PM on Friday, January 17 at Sacred Heart Cathedral. All are welcome! Wheelchair access is available.

We would like to thank Dr. Kathleen O’Malley, the staff and caregivers in the Juniper wing at Simon Fraser Lodge, YMCA and Rainbow Adult Daycare for their dedicated care of Barbara. In lieu of flowers please make a donation in Barbara’s name to the Pro-Life Society of Prince George or the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition of Canada.

KULL, Mina Rosina

February 21, 1927January 8, 2020

Rosi went to be with the Lord on January 8, 2020 at the age of 92. She is predeceased by her husband Oskar, sister Margaret, and brothers; Jakob, Heinrich, Rudolf and Fritz. She is survived by many nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Life Service for Rosi will be held in the spring. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the BCSPCA North Cariboo District Branch. Condolences may be offered at www.AssmansFuneralChapel.com

Ernest Kimberly “Kim” Choquette

August 18, 1949January 2, 2020

We are heartbroken to announce Kim’s sudden passing at age 70 in the early hours of January 2nd at University Hospital of Northern BC.

Kim was born in Montreal and moved to Prince George at age 4 with his mother, Ruth, and younger brother, Shayne. They lived with his grandparents until his mother remarried Peter Choquette. He attended school at King George V, Harwin, St. Mary’s, Prince George College and BC Vocational School where he earned his Drafting Diploma.

Mourning him is his high school sweetheart and wife of almost 50 years, Annalise; his loving children, Michelle (Lee) Cooke and Jennifer Choquette; his precious grandchildren Hunter and Gage Cooke and Patsy Conger; his brother, Shayne Choquette and nephew Sean Choquette; his brothers and sister-in laws, Tineke (Reg), Peter, Trudy (David), Nick (Elisabeth), John (Connie), Theresa (Les), and Maria (Ian); 22 nieces and nephews and their families on Annalise’s side; and cousins, Dee, Marni and Michele, Jo-Ann, Bob, Barb, Lynda-Lee and Betty- Lou and families. Family was important to Kim and he enjoyed the camaraderie of family functions.

Kim was predeceased by his infant son, John (January 6, 1971); parents, Ruth and Peter Choquette; grandparents Lucille and Ernie Burden; uncles Bob, Ron (Nora) and Bill (Loreta) Burden; and mother and father-in-law Truus and Nick Veeken.

Kim had a great love for cars, and spent most of his career selling cars and RV.s. His charismatic personality made him a very successful salesman and earned him numerous awards over the years. He has a huge collection of car magazines dating back to the 60’s and was well known for the many cars he owned over the years; Corvettes, Bricklin, Auburn Speedster, Jaguar, Shelby, hot rods, muscle cars, even a Rolls Royce. The more exotic the better! Any new business venture was exciting to him and he was never afraid of a challenge. He was very empathetic and generous, especially to those less fortunate.

He enjoyed all kinds of music, was an avid reader and loved to drive and listen to audio books while enjoying the many road trips he and Annalise shared over the years. They were lucky enough to travel across Canada, the entire Western and Central USA, many Caribbean and Mexican destinations and three of the Hawaiian Islands. They loved being on the road together and spent the last few years following their grandsons to basketball tournaments to cheer them on!

Kim had many friends from all walks of life, and for over 30 years enjoyed morning coffee with Art and Harry at the White Spot, meeting the “Happy Hour Gang” and travels and visits with the “Striker Clan”. He had an enduring friendship with his childhood friend, Andres. They enjoyed many adventures over the years. He cherished all your friendships.

Our thanks to the medical staff in the ICU unit for their sincerity and compassion during a difficult time.

Kim’s memory will be honoured with a Funeral at St. Mary’s Church, 1088 Gillett St., Prince George, B.C. on January 18, 2020 at 1:00pm with Father John Garden officiating.

A reception will follow at Prince George Golf and Curling Club at 2601 Recplace Drive. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to a charity of your choice.

We will miss you Kim and hold you in our hearts forever!

Lawrence J. Moyle

Oct 21, 1942 - Jan 6, 2020

With sad and broken hearts the family of Lawrence J. Moyle announce his passing on Jan 6, 2020 in Prince George, BC. He leaves behind his wife Sue and 4 children and their spouses, Lindsay (Charyl), Dianne (Tom), Robert, and Larry Jr. (April), 8 grandchildren and 2 great granddaughters. Larry retired from Canfor after 25 years. No service by his request.

We miss you Larry, Dad and Papa

Allison Mary Meyer

April 25, 1960December 24, 2019

It is with heartfelt sadness that we must announce the passing of Allison Mary Meyer (nee Gebetsroither) after a hard fought 2 year battle with cancer. Allison is predeceased by her parents, Fred and Anna, and her brother, Bert. Allison is survived by her husband Larry, her son Drew, and her brother Corey and many friends and relatives.

There will be a celebration of life on Saturday, January 18, 2020 at the Elks Community Hall, 663 Douglas Street, Prince George, BC from 12:00 - 2:00pm.

Allison has requested in lieu of flowers or donations, a promise from everyone who knew her to go for regular medical checkups.

RAY TRACY

2x52.3

Tracy,ThelmaG. November20,1931-December16,2019

PGC001944

Withheavyhearts,thefamilyofThelmaGraceTracy(nee Bulmer)announcesherpassingonMonday,December 16,2019,inPrinceGeorge,BritishColumbia,withfamily membersatherside.

ThelmawasborntoBeatriceandEllsworthBulmerin Sackville,NB,onNovember20th,1931.Asayoung woman,ThelmaworkedattheKennelClubonBridge StreetandattheSackvilleTribuneoffice.

ThelmamarriedArt(Arthur)TracyinJanuary1949and theybegantheirlifetogetherintheRCAF,livingin Manitoba,Ontario,Germany(twotimes),andQuebec, beforeretiringfromtheservice.Momspentthoseyears workingasacivilservantonthevariousbases.Theylived inSt.Catharines,ON,fornineyearsbeforemovingto PrinceGeorge.

Sheispredeceasedbyherhusbandof64years,ArtTracy (2013);andsisters,PhyllisOgdenandDorisEstabrooks. Mumissurvivedbyherthreechildren,Sandra(Archie) Grover,Edmonton,AB;Bonnie(Chris)Spence,St. Catharines,ON;andRay(Maureen)Tracy,PrinceGeorge, BC.

Thelmawasveryproudofherfourgrandchildrenand11 great-grandchildrenandwillbegreatlymissedbyallof herfamily.

Ascremationhastakenplace,anearlysummerservice willbeheldinSackvilleforinterment.

Carol Alexis Waldie “Nano” December 19, 1944January 5, 2020

It is with heavy hearts that we announce Carol passed peacefully surrounded by her family on January 5, 2020 in Prince George, BC.

DEBORAH KREKLEWETZ

2x46.3

PGC001948

GOODMAN,Kathleen June21,1938-January2,2020

Kathleen(Kathy)passedawaypeacefullyatRotary HospiceHouse.Sheissurvivedbyherdaughter,Deb; granddaughters,Kimberly,Angela,andPamela;andgreat -grandchildren,KayleyandRonan.

Sadlypredeceasedbyherhusband,Mel;daughter,Kristy; andson,Greg.

Thefamilywouldliketothankthestaffathospicehouse fortheexceptionalcareandcompassiongiventoMom.

AspecialthankyoutoKathy’sniece,Arlene,forproviding supportandfriendshipandalwaysbeingthereforMom. Aprivatefamilygathering,tohonourherlife,willbeheld atalaterdate.

A loving wife, mother and Nano, she is survived by her husband of 51 years, Les, their children, Troy (Marlo) Waldie and Karla (Gord) Gallop; grandchildren Cole, Grace, Chelsea, Reid & Quinn; great grandchildren Aedan & Audrey.

Friends and family are invited to a reception to share stories and memories of Carol on Friday, January 10, 2020 from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Courtyard by Marriott at 900 Brunswick Street, Prince George, BC. Funeral services will be on Saturday, January 11, 2020 at 2:00 pm at Trinity United Church, 3555 5th Ave, Prince George, BC with reception to follow. The funeral will be live streamed at https://www.trinitypg.ca/pages/live-stream

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to either the Waldie Family Fund at the Prince George Community Foundation, 770 Brunswick Street or to the Canadian Cancer Society - Kordyban Lodge, 1100 Alward Street.

“The table will be set for me and I will set the table for you”

With the opportunity for great personalization, the funeral service can truly reflect the uniqueness of the life it honours. Contact us to find out more.

Glenn Johnston

Director

IRENE ROBISON

March 8, 1922January 8, 2020

It is with heavy hearts and profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved mother and Nana, Irene Robison.

Irene was loved and cherished by her family and by anyone who was lucky enough to be called “friend”. Irene will always be remembered for her dedication to her family, her feisty spirit and her unwavering faith in God.

Irene is survived by her six loving children: Omer Robison, Laura (Bill) Grant, Sharon, (Albert) Buker-Schwartz, Valerie (John) Burgher, Delores (Al) Iwaskow and Paul (Linda) Robison. Irene leaves behind her 15 grandchildren, 27 great grandchildren and 6 great great grandchildren. Irene is also survived by her only remaining sibling, 100 year old sister, Bernadette Kennedy of Tisdale, Saskatchewan.

The family would like to extend special thanks to Dr. Inban Reddy and the staff at Gateway Lodge for your care and dedication to our mom during her years in your care.

A funeral mass will be held at St. Mary’s Church, 1088 Gillett Street at 3:30pm on Saturday, January 18, 2020. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Canadian Cancer Society.

Willma Joyce (Oakley-Meyers) (Lees)

Piland

April 5, 1940November 23, 2019

Born in Springhill, Nova Scotia and passed away in Prince George, BC at the age of 79. She was the daughter of the late William Oakley and Cecilia Meyers ,her aunt and uncle fostered her for most of her younger years. The late Elisabeth Rosalisa (Rose) Clarke and Arthur Clarke. She had one child Kathy (Lees) Siddall who passed in 2017. The cousins that she grew up with were considered by her to be sisters. She is survived by these cousins Deborah (Bliss) Brown Amherst, N.S.;. Barbara (Richard) Noiles of Springhill, Patricia (late Brad Doyle) (Clarke-Gould) Doyle of Cole Harbour ; and their brother, Arthur (Kathy) of Union Square,N.S.she is also survived by her husband of 51 years Kermit Piland and the two grandchildren Keenan Siddall, Prince George,BC and Jocelyn Siddall Victoria, BC step daughters Heidi Piland of Woodburne, Oregon and Mindy Martinez of Portland ,Oregon, father of her daughter in her first marriage Arthur Lees. Vancouver, BC.

Joyce lived in Alberta, Chile So. Am. Nova Scotia, USA, Saskatchewan and put her roots down in British Columbia, she was an artist and a painter , potter a glass bead manufacturer and she was also a teacher of these crafts travelling out of town. Her crafts were under the name Joyce Meyers or Studio 3380

Animals were a big part of her life she loved all animals she had raised sheep, and dogs and cats and horses achieving ribbon status in all. Her working career was mostly in the retail arena having owned a pet store a pet grooming shop and a craft store.

She passed away at the Hospice House in Prince George after being transferred from the hospital and Kordyban Lodge, battling cancer and a massive stroke after her first chemotherapy treatment.

The family would like to thank all of the doctors and staff at the Kordyban Lodge and The Hospice House she had met a lot of friends at both places. A fighter right to the end, always had a one liner comeback in a kibitz manner. She passed with her close family with her at 7:AM She will live on in our fond memories and she will surely be missed by anyone that knew her. She was going to have tea with the angels and visit Kathy and Julie.

Special thanks to Kristi and the staff at Assman’s Funeral Home and Fraserview Crematorium for their compassion and care. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to: PG Hospice House, 1506 Ferry Avenue, Prince George. Or Joyce’s favorite the SPCA or Kordyban Lodge.

There will be no service by request. A celebration of life will be announced at a later date.

Lauri Valiaho

10 August 194004 January 2020

Lauri passed away peacefully on January 4th, 2020. He is survived by his wife Marjatta, daughter Anne (Colin), son Eric (Iuliana), granddaughters Elissa (Blake) & Kristen. He is also survived by his brother & sister, cousins, nieces & nephews in Finland, as well as many friends in Prince George and throughout Canada.

Born in 1940 in Finland, Lauri immigrated to Canada in 1957 and settled in Prince George in 1974. He was an active cross-country skier his whole life, and took up cycling as well while living in Prince George. Lauri was diagnosed with PSP (Progressive Suprauclear Palsy) in 2017 and entered Complex Care at Gateway Lodge in January of 2018. Thank you to the staff of Gateway for their care of Lauri over the past 2 years.

A Celebration of Life service will be held Saturday, 18 January 2020, 1pm, at Gateway Christian Ministries. Lauri was a supporter of missionary work. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Missions Fund at Gateway Christian Ministries.

Paul Michael Pakenham April 7 1952 - January 7 2020

Paul’s distinctive deep voice and booming laugh have been silenced and will be sorely missed by his wife Lynne, son (James) Bryce, family, friends and colleagues.

Paul was born in Victoria B.C., the son of Bruce and Alice Pakenham. As a son of a Canadian Navy family, Paul lived in naval port cities on both Canadian coasts and in England. As a child, he had the unique privilege of having travelled on the Queen Mary.

Paul graduated from Claremont High School in Cordova Bay, Victoria B.C. and went on to attend Queen’s Faculty of Law in Kingston, Ontario. He was proud of the wonderful training he received at Queen’s and remained an active alumnus. Paul became a member of the BC Bar in 1979 and practiced throughout the province of British Columbia as a barrister, excelling in criminal and civil litigation. His long distinguished legal career included many successes in high profile cases, jury trials, and successfully arguing before the Supreme Court of Canada.

Paul loved the law, and his passion was evident in his desire to help others. Paul often donated his time and expertise to help people overcome difficult legal problems. He was compassionate and wise. When people turned to him for help, he would put them at ease and walk them through a problem in a very logical way, sharing his advice and breadth of knowledge without hesitation.

Paul mentored many people, including his son, who cherishes the mentorship and working with his father on many legal cases.

Paul’s interests include politics, photography, travelling and a love for animals and gardens.

Paul loved the birds and deer that roamed his property. They were so comfortable around him that when gardening, they often remained nearby, close enough to touch. Paul loved his dogs and was particularly attached to Geordie, Towser, and “El Chapo”.

Paul loved and collected cars. Favourites included a Morris Minor, a bright red Aston Martin, a Jaguar, a 1967 Land Rover, a Mini Morris, a collection of Mercedes, and a vintage Norton Motor Cycle.

Family was important to Paul. He was an exceptional and loving father, who was devoted to his son. He had a loving ritual of making Sunday breakfast-in-bed of eggs and soldiers for his wife on Sundays. He took pride in making sure everything was looked after.

We will miss Paul’s fabulous sense of humour and his caring and loving advice rendered without reservation to help us navigate so many of life’s problems. Our little world will never be the same.

A service celebration of Paul’s life will be held at 1:00 pm on Saturday, January 18th, 2020 at St Michael’s Anglican Church, 1505 5th Avenue, Prince George, B.C. A small reception will follow.

In lieu of flowers, donations could be made to the Society of St Vincent De Paul.

Hendrikus (Harry) Snijders passed away peacefully on December 20, 2019. at University Hospital of Northern BC in his 98th year. Harry was born in Urmond Holland on February 13, 1921 always wanting to know what lay beyond the next hill. In 1958 Harry, his wife Tonny and their three young children immigrated to Canada settling in Prince George. By the time the family had grown by five more children he had begun his career in the steam plant at Northwood Pulp. From living through the hardships of the war, he learned to make do with what he had on hand and in doing so learned many skills from plumbing to gardening - he was a true jack of all trades. He made his own kayak and travel trailer to explore our beautiful province with his family. It wasn’t until retirement that Harry began volunteering with Meals on Wheels and became active with the Knights of Columbus. Our greatest joy has been watching dad interact with his grandchildren Leah, Amanda and Danielle. After the loss of Tonny, Harry received a renewed interest in life when he met and married Marcelina who joined him in his adventures.

Harry is predeceased by his parents Johannes and Mechtildus, first wife Tonny, son in-law Terry and numerous siblings. He leaves to mourn his second wife Marcelina; sons Harry; Michael; daughters Rita; Joyce; Jenny (Darrell); Thea; Emilie; Betty; step daughter Julie (Jim); grandchildren, great grandchildren and extended family in Canada and Holland.

Funeral will be held at a later date. He will be lovingly remembered for his gentle humour, the spark in his eyes and his sweet smile. In lieu of flowers, donations in his name may be made to St Vincent De Paul Society or a charity of your choice.

MARGARITA EUGENIA PALMA born on April 9th, 1950 in Santiago, Chile. Passed away peacefully on January 5th, 2020 in Fort St. James, BC with her loving family by her side. Margarita was diagnosed with stage four brain and lung cancer on November 6th, 2019. She fought bravely until the very end. Loved and Survived by: Husband Carlos of 49 years, Daughter Paula Allen (Steve), and Son Carlos Palma (Erin). Grandchildren - Janessa, Marcus, and Mateo. Amo Mucho Viejita/Yaya

ANNOUNCEMENTS AGRICULTURE

Established Franchise Photography Business

Serving Northern B.C for over 35 years

Gross Revenues of $150.000 plus annually from seasonal work

Lots of opportunity to expand the business. Transition support available to the right buyer

Serious Enquiries Only

Office 250-596-9199

Cell 250-981-1472

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

Established Franchise Tax Preparation Business Mackenzieservicing and McLeod Lake area for over 30 years.

Gross Revenues of $85,000 to $90,000 Annually and Potential to expand revenues in a growing economy. Transition support available for the right buyer.

Serious Inquires Only

Office (250)997-9003

Home (250)997-5538 Cell (250)990-0152

EMPLOYMENT

Fishing Clothing

Snow Equipment

EMPLOYMENT

Allen’s

BLACK PRESS - CLASSIFIEDS

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R0011782945

RN’s and LPN’s

Casual Registered Nurses and Licensed Practical Nurses needed for in home 1:1 pediatric respite care for medically fragile children in your area. Offering union wages, paid training and full support.

For full details and to apply visit www.resourceability.ca

Director of Works and Services

The Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine (RDKS) is seeking an individual for the position of Director of Works and Services. This full-time position offers a competitive salary and a full range of benefits based in Terrace, BC.

The region is vibrant with a rich cultural history. Terrace is a community with a regional population of about 18,000 people situated alongside the Skeena River in northwestern BC. It is the retail, business and medical hub for the region with immense outdoor recreational opportunities, such as skiing, fishing, golfing and hiking, along with a diverse arts and culture community. This area offers quality advanced education opportunities with both the Coast Mountain College and a satellite campus of the University of Northern BC.

The Regional District provides a variety of local government services to an area of 100,000km² in northwestern British Columbia. Services range from rural land use planning to community water systems, fire protection, library services, solid waste services, recreation facilities and programs. The Region is undergoing a period of growth with increasing demands for new services.

The Director of Works and Services will be a senior management team member, reporting to the Chief Administrative Officer. This individual will be a proactive visionary, highly professional with proven leadership skills and ability to adapt and lead change using superior interpersonal skills along with excellent verbal and written communication skills. The position will be responsible for a full range of capital projects and field operations. The individual will oversee the Senior Engineer, Utilities Manager, and Solid Waste Manager while determining priorities, ensuring operational requirements are met, engaging stakeholders, preparing annual budgets, and working effectively with RDKS staff and contractors.

The preferred candidate will possess the following education and competencies:

• A minimum of 5 years senior management experience in the operation of local government services, including water, wastewater and solid waste services;

• A minimum of 5 years related experience in construction and project management of local government infrastructure projects;

• A valid Class 5 BC Driver’s License.

The Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine wishes to thank you for your interest and advises that only candidates under active consideration will be contacted.

Interested individuals are requested to submit their letter of application and resume by mail, or email to the Regional District of Kitimat- Stikine by 4:00pm on Monday, February 3, 2020

R0011782945

UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA - CENTRE ON AGING

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Self-Management Program Coordinator, Northern British Columbia

We are seeking a part-time (.6 FTE) program coordinator for the northern region of the province. Self-Management BC is funded by the Ministry of Health under the Patients as Partners Program located at the University of Victoria Institute on Aging and Lifelong Health Ladner Office in Delta BC. Responsibilities will be to train volunteers and implement self-management programs and a telephone health coach program for people with chronic health conditions.

Candidates will have the appropriate educational training, have been involved in the volunteer sector, and have several years’ experience working with persons living with chronic health conditions. Full training and support will be provided.

Interested persons are encouraged to visit the website www.selfmanagementbc.ca.

Please submit a cover letter and resume to Naida Khan at nkhan@uvic.ca by January 24th 2020.

R0011785065

ASSMAN’S FUNERAL CHAPEL

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Cemetery and Pre Need Funeral Sales

We are a JD Powers Presidential Level company. Assman’s Funeral Chapel, First Memorial Funeral Services, Lakewood Chapel, Fraserview Crematorium have been serving Prince George since 1936.

Have you ever experienced the planning of an untimely passing of a loved one or heard of someone that has? We are looking for someone that has compassion, the yearning to help families and educate them on the benefits of pre planning. Our industry is not for the faint of heart but for those who want to assist families and alleviate stress when the circle of protection is completed ahead of time.

IF YOU HAVE:

A will to succeed with good communication and computer skills

Ability to work independently in a team structure

Previous sales experience (an asset, not required)

Flexible work schedule

Valid driver’s license and reliable vehicle

WE OFFER:

* Full benefits package including Medical, Dental, and Vision Care. Industry leading training program including our own online University.

*Job Type: Full-time

If interested please email your resume to: vanessa.burmamastroianni@dignitymemorial.com

R0011785719

For Sale: 2006 Kenworth, serial#: INKDX4EX96R989736, Whereas Mike Prest is indebted to 0870989 BC LTD. DBA Just Diesel for the sum of $18,838.09.

ASSMAN’S FUNERAL CHAPEL

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R0011786763

DISPOSITION OF UNCLAIMED CREMATED REMAINS

Pursuant to Section 8 of the British Columbia Cremation Interment, and Funeral Services Act Regulations, the following unclaimed cremated remains will be interred on February 13th, 2020, at Lakeview Memorial Gardens, (A division of Service Corporation International (Canada) ULC) 2850 Dry Valley Rd, Kelowna, British Columbia, V1V 2K1.

Unclaimed cremated remains for the following deceased individuals are in the care of Assman’s Funeral Chapel, 1908 Queensway St, Prince George, British Columbia, V2L M21/ If you are the executor or legal representative of a deceased individual listed below in this notification, please call 250-564-4431 to arrange final disposition or to claim the cremated remains.

NOTICE

APPLICATION FOR PRIVATE BILLS

NOTICE is hereby given that pursuant to Standing Orders of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, applications for Private Bills must be filed with the Clerk of the House not later than February 25, 2020.

Applications for Private Bills must conform to the Standing Orders of the Legislative Assembly, copies of which may be obtained from the Office of the Clerk, Room 221, Parliament Buildings, Victoria, B.C. V8V 1X4.

Kate Ryan-Lloyd

Acting Clerk of the Legislative Assembly

Assman’s Funeral Chapel, 1908 Oueensway St, Prince George, BC, V2L 1M2

KHARE, Suraj April 16th, 2002

WILLIAMS, Robert February 18th, 2017

WILSON, Deklin July 9th, 2015

Fraserview Crematorium, 3355 Memorial Park Lane, Prince George, BC, V2L 4V7

AIELLO, Virginia BOUDREAU, Robert DAVIDSON, Kevin DUKE, Thelma GAIRDNER, Clarence HRUSHKA, Destin LETOURNEAU, Femand SA V ADRA, Catherine

April 19th, 2018 May 24th, 1999

December 24th, 1983

February 18th, 1981

January 26th, 1983

August 15th, 2002

December 27th, 1982

February 6th, 2015

First Memorial Funeral Services Lakewood Chapel. 1055 Ospika Blvd S, Prince George, BC, V2M 3R7

CODERRE, Jean-Yves August 26th, 2014

DONNELLY, Clarence August 4th, 2015

R0011786763

Great Canadian HoCkey tour

offiCial rules

Contest starts: October 3, 2019

Contest closes: February 5, 2020 at 5:00pm

Entrants further grant the Prince George Citizen the right to use and publish their proper name online and in print, or any other media, in connection with the Contest.

$10,000.

Includes all taxes and fees.

All weekly winners will be eligible for the Grand Prize draw Thursday, February 13, 2020.

No cash alternative, judges decision is final, no correspondence will be entered into. Prize must be accepted as awarded.

All entries must be received by 5pm February 5, 2020.

General rules:

No purchase necessary. Maximum one original newspaper entry per participating advertiser location will be accepted. Contestants must reside in BC and must be 19 years of age.

Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received.

Prince George Citizen reserves the right to restrict the local winners to only persons whose primary residence is within a 100 mile radius of the affiliate’s’ office.

Employees of Prince George Citizen, its respective parent, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising sponsors and promotional agencies, and the immediate family members of each are not eligible.

Contest entrants agree to abide by the terms of these Official Rules and by the decisions of the contest commissioners, which are final on all matters pertaining to the contest.

Winner must provide name/names of those able to leave on the trip the night of the draw, Thursday, February 13, 2020.

Must be in attendance to win.

Prince George Citizen reserves the right to use any and all information related to the Contest, including information on contestants obtained through the contest, for marketing purposes or any other purpose, unless prohibited by law.

The Contest and all of the related pages, contents and code are copyright of the Prince George Citizen - Glacier Ventures and/or participating advertisers. Copying or unauthorized use of any copyrighted materials, trademarks or any other intellectual property without the express written consent of its owner is strictly prohibited.

Each winner, by acceptance of the prize, agrees to release all Sponsors, and their parent and subsidiary companies, their officers, directors, employees, agents, shareholders, affiliates, suppliers, distributors, and advertising agencies from all liability, claims, or actions of any kind whatsoever for injuries, damages, or losses to persons and property which may be sustained in connection with the receipt, ownership, or use of the prize.

This contest is not intended for gambling. If it is determined that a contestant is using the contest for gambling purposes they will be disqualified and reported to authorities.

Prince George Citizen reserves the right to change the rules at any time.

This contest is officially sponsored by Prince George Citizen and the 20 participating advertisers.

The Prince George Citizen is not affiliated with any contests run in conjunction with the Great Canadian Hockey Tour by participating sponsors.