Prince George Citizen June 11, 2020

Anti-racism rally draws crowd

Ted Clarke Citizen staff

Three months after he arrived in Canada as an immigrant from Liberia, Emmanuel Drame was driving on an Alberta highway when he got pulled over by an RCMP officer.

He wasn’t speeding or driving erratically, but having seen real-life police shows on TV he did what he thought he was supposed to do.

“Before he even did come over, I was afraid,” said Drame. “Back then I had seen what was going on in the States and had experienced a certain level of racism, so the first thing I did was I opened the car door and put my hands up and put my leg out to show that I was harmless.

“He came over and I thought, OK here it goes, but he was nice and he said, ‘I’m going to show you how this is done.’ I told him it was my first time experiencing that and said OK, get back into your vehicle, close the door, put the window up and put your hands on the steering wheel and when I come over I will knock on your win-

dow and I want you to roll the glass down. I thought he was going to do what I had seen in the movies and ask for my licence and insurance but then he asked me ‘Are you high, are you drunk? Do you have any weed in your car.’ Just going through that awakened something in me.”

For Drame, that awakening manifested itself into his role as organizer of the antiracism protests in Prince George the past two days. The 26-year-old, a UNBC international studies/political science graduate now working as a B.C. Corrections officer, let his passion for the anti-racism cause be heard through a megaphone Saturday afternoon. Sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minnesota while in police custody, Drame led a crowd of about 400 sign-waving people gathered at the feet of Mr. P.G. in chants of “Black lives matter,” “We are unique, we are all people,” and “No justice, no peace.”

Chiko States can relate to similar experiences he lived growing up as a black man in Halifax. States, who moved to Prince George last year to attend the College of

Ted Clarke Citizen staff

Whether people care to admit it or not, racism exists in Prince George.

Tyrell Laing has seen it with his own eyes.

The 22-year-old UNBC Timberwolves basketball team point guard couldn’t believe what those eyes were telling him while he checked his computer to find rental accommodations.

“It’s hard to talk about personal experiences but the best example was when I went on the internet maybe a year ago and there was an ad on Kijiji for somebody renting out a basement suite and they had ‘whites only’ in brackets in the post – that was pretty shocking to see,” said Laing. “In our city of community, how would that ad ever be perceived as acceptable to society? Racism still exists in Canada. People seem to forget there was slavery in Canada and I think it’s important to understand it’s not

New Caledonia, says while he has met many kind people in the city who treat him with dignity, Canadians still have much to learn about what life is like for visible minorities and the need for more empathy and sensitivity.

“When you’re with a person who is not of colour they might not see the dirty look that you’re getting or they might not recognize you’re being followed around a store or that the cop asks you to get out of the car you’re not driving and asks to see your ID,” said States. “When you grow up and didn’t have to experience it, it’s harder for you to understand. Because it’s never happened to you it’s just makes it harder to accept it’s happening to someone else. But it’s not overreacting. If you see something going on that you don’t believe is just, speak on it, address it. When you close your eyes to the issue, you’re not part of the solution, you’re a part of the problem.”

Ivan Paquette, a Prince George musician who works as a government advisor for the Metis Nation of British Columbia, is encouraged the growing tide of pent-up

strictly a United States issue, it’s a global issue. Canada experiences different levels of racism and we have our own issues, especially with the Indigenous community.”

Laing, who won the U Sports Canada West Conference scoring crown and was chosen as UNBC’s male athlete of the year, spoke to a crowd of several hundred people who gathered downtown for a protest rally and march Friday at city hall. Laing, the product of a white mother and black father, has lived his whole life in Prince George.

“I think in a smaller city like Prince George, why people have a hard time (accepting people of colour), it’s because they are not exposed often enough to the different minority groups like black people,” Laing said. “When I was a young kid in the city there weren’t very many black people and that has recently changed with the college and university and people

emotion unleashed by a world outraged by the circumstances of the last eight minutes and 46 seconds of Floyd’s life and he is hopeful his death will cause people to reconcile their differences and rethink how they treat people of different cultures.

“There was a cause and effect and it gave us an opportunity to come together, and we have to come together,” said Paquette. “The (Indigenous) medicine wheel teaches that the colour black means reason. There’s a reason why everything has happened and it’s a shame what’s happened but justice will be served and those seas will ripple and they will create change. COVID is a curse but it’s also a blessing in so many different ways, because it’s revealed a lot of things. When we were sitting in isolation we were thinking about a lot of things and that’s brought this forward. It’s revealed the darkness in the soul of man. This brought out the awareness we needed in order to make change, and we’re going to make change. We’re living in exciting times and we’re going to do this together.”

coming in from other places. But I think it is harder for people to become accustomed to or accept when they aren’t exposed to it, like the big cities are.”

Laing was encouraged by UNBC sports information officer Rich Abney to sit on a stool at centre court at the Northern Sport Centre and share his thoughts on racism and that video is now available on the T-wolves Facebook and Instagram sites.

He’s hopeful his video and the protests will continue to reshape public attitudes.

“They’re giving the black community a voice and currently they’re doing a great job of that, and I really hope this isn’t something that blows over in a week or a month,” he said. “I like to think that we’ve come a long way but there’s still ground to make up and we need to keep pushing the bar to make this a better place to grow up in for any culture or race.”

citizen Photo

anti-racism protest organizer emmanuel Drame gets his message out to the crowd gathered Saturday afternoon at the Mr. P.G. site.

bill bond mourned

Citizen

staff

Bill Bond, a longtime Prince George resident and the unendingly supportive spouse of his wife of 41 years, MLA Shirley Bond, has died.

According to Bill’s Facebook page, he was born Jan. 18, 1950, attended Prince George Secondary School, the College of New Caledonia and worked for the City of Prince George.

Shirley announced Bill’s death on her Facebook page Monday evening with this statement:

“The time has come for me to share some news that has broken my heart. Some of you know that my husband Bill has been facing a series of health challenges during the last months. His heart, kidneys, crushed vertebrae, the list goes on. The final challenge was a massive left brain stroke that Billy just couldn’t manage despite his courageous efforts. My beloved husband of more than 41 years passed away at St. Paul’s Hospital in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. I struggle to imagine a world without Billy in it. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather,

son, brother, uncle and friend. He was my life partner and best friend. More later, but for now, rest well Billy, we love you to the moon and back!”

Bill and Shirley were known in the region as Team Bond.

They attended countless community events together to show their support for the community in which they lived and raised their family, including adult twins and beloved grandchildren.

In response to Shirley’s announcement, more than 1,000 people on Facebook have responded by offering their condolences.

Here are some of the statements made: Bob Zimmer, Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP

Just heard a few hours ago Shirley Bond and so saddened by the news. Bill Bond meant alot to us as was just always there. Will always remember Bill as a kind man who would regularly ask about my family and talk about life. In our busy and intense jobs Bill was such a refreshing breath of normal. We will sure miss him. Whatever you need we are here for you. Take care Shirley.

The Bond family watches the 2017 election results come in. From left to right, Cristina Bond, Cooper Bond, 5, MLA Shirley Bond, Caleb Bond, 7, and Bill Bond, who died Monday.

Terri McConnachie, Prince George city councillor, CHBA-Northern B.C. executive officer

Kevin and I are so very sorry, Shirley. You two were always a dynamic duo and the loss of Bill to you and your family, and to our community, is profound. We hold you in our hearts.

Todd Corrigall, CEO Prince George Chamber of Commerce

I am so sorry to hear this, Shirley. Bill was a great man and you two were the perfect match for one another. While I know you have a long road ahead, know that you are loved, appreciated and have an entire community ready to help out. All of our love to you, your children, grandchildren and extended family. Melanie, Todd and Violet.

Colleen Van Mook, Downtown Prince George executive director

Oh Shirley Bond my heart goes out to you and your wonderful family! Billy was the best! I am honoured to have had the pleasure of knowing you both for over 30

years! You have been an inspiration in so many ways. We will miss Bill so much. Please know we are here for you like you have been here for so many of us!

Pat Bell, former MLA, local business owner

Billy was, and always will be a great friend. Brenda and I will be there for you Shirley.

Tim Bennett, Big Brothers Big Sisters, executive director, School Board 57 trustee

Shirley I am so sorry for your loss. Thoughts with you and your family. Bill will be missed.

Bailey Grose, community member, founder of the global social media movement Hearts of PG

Oh my Shirley, I have gotten to know how wonderful and amazing you are over the last few months since we became “Facebook friends” and my heart broke for you reading this. If your husband is half as sweet as you are he was an incredible man. I’m sorry I never got to meet him.

Citizen staff photo

Nurse escorts help rural residents

Mark NIELSEN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A team of Prince George-based nurses is now in place to accompany patients being transferred into University Hospital of Northern B.C. from outlying communities.

So-called nurse escorts are common – they typically accompany ambulance crews about 14,000 times a year across the province, according to B.C. Emergency Health Services.

“This is a long-established practice to ensure patients have the level of care they require when being transferred between

hospitals,” BCEHS spokesperson Lesley Pritchard said.

But in contrast to past practice, the nurses based in Prince George travel out with paramedics when needed to retrieve patients from community hospitals.

“In the past, nurses from the community hospitals or clinics would have left the community with the patient - often leaving the community without a nurse resource for extended periods of time,” she said.

“This program is intended to prevent this from occurring and ensure nurses remain available to provide care.”

The change in procedure was introduced

in early May in response to the novel coronavirus pandemic “to ensure that the appropriate level of care is available to manage any surges in demand.”

As of May 28, members of the team have been deployed twice, both times on transports using ground ambulance.

In all, nine nurses have received orientation to fill the role, which includes staffing transports by air ambulance, with no current plans to increase that number, Pritchard said.

The unions representing paramedics and nurses have variously raised concerns about encroachment on their jobs, safety

Petition calls for light where teen was hit

Mark NIELSEN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

An online petition has been launched to improve safety at a crosswalk where a Prince George teen was struck by a car and seriously injured on May 31.

Posted on change.org, it is calling for a traffic light at the corner of First Avenue and Ospika Boulevard.

Mavra Lode, who started the petition, said pedestrians trying to cross at the corner are put at risk by a series of blind spots for drivers and noted that with an elementary school in the vicinity, children cross there nine months of the year. The call appears to have gained the

city’s attention.

In a statement, city spokesperson Mike Kellett said crosswalks across the city are going through a review as a result of updated national guidelines and staff will be presenting a strategy to city council later this year.

“At this time, there are a number of crossings that have been identified for suggested upgrades as part of the review, including the crosswalk on Ospika Boulevard at First Avenue,” Kellett said.

He also noted that last year three new signed and marked crosswalks were installed, another two were upgraded with pedestrian activated, rapid-flashing beacons and the crosswalk at Queensway and

Fifth Ave was upgraded with a pedestrian timer.

Between 2014 and 2018, there were 11 collisions at the intersection including one involving a pedestrian, according to the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia.

According to a witness, the teen was hit as he stepped into the southbound lane of Ospika. A friend had also stepped into the crosswalk but stepped back when she saw a car coming and tried to pull him back to safety.

The car’s driver remained at the scene and cooperated with police.

“Our poor 18 year old boy is fighting for his life in hospital right now, it is time for change,” Lode said.

issues and a lack of consultation.

But Pritchard said the nurses will not replace paramedics.

“The nurses will be called out only as needed, and only to augment the care provided by the transporting paramedic crews when needed,” Pritchard said.

Pritchard also said the BCEHS and Provincial Health Services Authority leadership are working to address the unions’ concerns and questions.

“The safety of employees and our patients is core to BCEHS and we have long-established processes in place to ensure safety,” Pritchard said.

Five years after everything changed

Christine hinZMAnn Citizen staff

June 8 marked the fifth anniversary of the day Angela Shymanski’s SUV went down a 12-metre embankment as she was driving back to Prince George from Calgary with her two children, Lexi, 5 and Peter, 10 weeks old.

They were 15 km outside of Jasper when Shymanski fell asleep at the wheel.

At the bottom of the embankment, Shymanksi was left unconscious with a broken back, broken ribs and internal injuries while the sleeping Lexi woke to Peter’s cries. Lexi got herself out of her harness car seat and scrambled barefoot up the embankment to wave down passersby.

The family was taken by ambulance to Seton-Jasper Healthcare Centre. Angela and Lexi were then taken by air ambulance to the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton while Peter was taken by ground ambulance and arrived later that night because they thought he was fine. It was later discovered Peter had experienced brain trauma that had to be treated with surgery to alleviate the pressure of swelling. Lexi came away from the accident with bruises and scratches.

During the past five years, the family has had a chance to heal from their significant wounds. Lexi came away from the accident with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. Shymanski has part of her spine fused to battle the excruciating chronic pain that is finally manageable. According to the neurologist, Peter’s brain has found

new pathways around the damage so he can function.

“Peter’s healing was thanks to pediatricians and neurologists and the therapies that were available to us to give him the best chance of recovery,” she said. “We are just so grateful that we have places like the Child Development Centre in Prince George that helped with Peter’s recovery.”

Lexi, now 10 years old, has an entrepreneurial spirit that sees her selling her felled-tree coasters, and other handmade items that her family has created. Lexi is very active and she’s good at every sport she tries, Shymanski said.

“She took her Home Alone course and she took First Aid - she just has that kind of mind,” Shymanski said. “There’s something special about Lexi that she was able to do that heroic thing five years ago.”

Lexi is showing early signs of being interested in medicine and has the take-charge personality that Shymanski believes is needed for that kind of career path.

“We’re very excited to see what comes of it,” Shymanski said.

It’s also been a long road back for Travis, Shymanski’s husband, who has been on the healing journey with the family every step of the way. During this whole time Travis, who wasn’t in the car at the time of the accident, was trying to deal with the aftermath of caring for his five-year-old with post traumatic stress disorder, his baby boy with a brain injury and a wife who couldn’t walk for years.

“Every time he had a chance to get out-

side his escape was to create a treehouse,” Shymanski said. “And now the treehouse is insane - it’s got a king size bed and a fireplace and a winding staircase with ropes. It was his coping mechanism to work on it and it’s so awesome because now me and the kids spend so many nights out there and it’s incredible.”

For now and in the future the Shymanski family has rewritten the accident as a positive. There are good days.

“Now we celebrate the good things that came because of it,” she said. “Every year we celebrate the day - it’s our family’s biggest holiday and we always bring a treat in for Lexi’s class and she brings her medal.”

Lexi was awarded the Medal of Bravery by the Governor General to recognize the action she took to save her family.

And there are bad days.

“Then of course there are days when

we’re really mad it even happened,” Shymanski said. “There are days when Lexi is so disappointed that I have a broken back and there are things I can’t really do like run and things like that but we always latch on to the positives. We can’t just paint it as all rainbows but at the same time it’s taught us that there’s always bad that we can focus on but we just always try to make the best of it.”

The family has created toy drives geared for the pediatric unit at the hospital, they drop off coffee and donuts to first responders during drills in their neighbourhood and host lemonade stand fundraisers to donate to organizations that help children like the Child Development Centre.

“Five years later we’re just so grateful to the community for their support,” Angela said. “We’ve tried so hard to give back where we can.”

Handout pHoto

Travis and Angela Shymanski with their son Peter and daughter Lexi.

Soccer season cancelled for T-wolves

ted clarke Citizen staff

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced U SPORTS and the Canada West Conference to cancel its fall season and that means the university soccer will not be played at Masich Stadium this year.

“It’s heartbreaking,” said Loralyn Murdoch, UNBC’s director of athletic and recreation. “With how things stand now with the COVID and the provincial health organization recommendations we couldn’t see a way to actually get those sports going as they’re contact (sports) and you can’t keep players two metres apart.”

Canada West also announced Monday it has cancelled its football and women’s rugby seasons and delayed the start of varsity basketball, hockey and volleyball seasons until January.

The 17 Canada West member schools voted unanimously to pull the plug on the fall seasons. Of all the contingency plans discussed in dozens of conference calls this spring involving league administrators

and athletic directors, the possibility of losing an entire season was the worst-case scenario for the players, coaches and fans who flock to Canada West games.

“This is a reality for us,” said T-wolves women’s soccer head coach Neil Sedgwick. “Some people I’m sure don’t want to believe the reality and think in three months time we might be able to have them training and playing in leagues. But Canada West had to put a plan together and give people notice, especially our student athletes, as far as what direction it’s going to go.”

UNBC men’s soccer head coach Steve Simonson said it will take time for the coaches and players to digest the fact they will not be playing this year. He and Sedgwick will have to unveil alternate strategies to keep their teams intact as much as possible until they can return to the playing field in 2021.

Both coaches live during the off-season in the Victoria area and they both anticipate returning to Prince George in Septem-

ber when academic studies resume the fall semester begins. With university classes online this fall, some students might stay in their home cities and the two coaches will consider out-of-town visits with those players for group high-performance training sessions, depending on what the provincial health authority will allow.

Players won’t lose a year of eligibility with the season cancelled but to maintain scholarships each is required to take at least three courses per semester at UNBC.

Both teams have a strong core of returning players with six on the men’s team entering their fifth year of eligibility while the women’s team would have had three seniors. The women’s team is coming off its most successful season in eight years in the Canada West league and made the playoffs in 2019. The men’s team brought in 10 new players last season and despite failing to qualify for the postseason earned respect around the league for its cohesiveness and ability to test some of tougher teams in the conference.

“Hopefully, for the vast majority, this is just a pause,” said Simonson. “I’ve already had two players send messages saying, ‘I guess it’s just a long preseason.’ The biggest impact is those who will graduate this year or are in line to graduate, and they may choose to lighten their course load now. If (fifth-year players) want to be here they will be welcomed back in 2021, should we be playing, and if they want to move on to the next chapter in their life we’ll congratulate them for being a big part of our program.”

Both coaches will now have to adjust their training plans for the players to keep them engaged and keep them practicing their skills so they don’t regress by the time competitive soccer games are being played again.

Murdoch said the basketball schedule won’t be finalized until Oct. 8 and UNBC staff on both teams will have until then to sort out what will happen to student-athletes on the men’s and women’s T-wolves teams.

officers charged from 2016 takedown

MARK NIELSEN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The BC Prosecution Service has approved charges against three Prince George RCMP officers caught on video that suggested excessive force was used while arresting two men found in a stolen pickup truck.

Cst. Joshua Grafton has been charged with assault, assault with a weapon, and obstruction of justice. Cst. Wayne Connell and Cst. Kyle Sharpe have been charged with assault causing bodily harm, the BCPS said Monday. First appearance for all three is set for Aug. 12.

After a video from a security camera trained on an alley in the 2200-block Oak Street showing the arrest was provided to a Lower Mainland television station, B.C.’s civilian-based police watchdog, the Independent Investigations Office, looked into the matter and, in June 2018, submitted a report to the BCPS.

“The charge assessment process in this

case was significantly delayed due to the complexity of the issues, the volume of initial disclosure, BCPS requests for further information, and subsequent receipt of additional disclosure,” the BCPS said in a statement Monday announcing the charges.

Nathaniel Lazarus Basil and Cuyler Richard Aubichon were arrested during the early morning of Feb. 18, 2016.

A video from a camera installed on a nearby home showed an RCMP officer using a service dog to pull Aubichon out of the truck and onto the ground before elbowing him in the head.

Three other officers were involved in the apprehension of Basil, who had got out on the other side. His arrest was largely out of the camera’s view but it appeared one of the officers had stomped on him.

“The charges were approved by an experienced Crown Counsel with no prior or current connection with the officers,” BCPS said.

Dog theft thwarted

Citizen staff

Two Prince George men are in custody after a home invasion to steal a dog.

Shayn Robert Bulmer, 23, and Dylon Sadillo McLemore, 23, have each been charged with break and enter to commit an indictable offence, possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose and two counts of assault with a weapon. They were arrested

shortly after police were called to an 1800block Tamarack Street home.

The suspects and one of the home’s occupants are known to each other and the incident appears to have been a targeted attack, RCMP said, noting a toddler was sleeping in the home at the time.

“No one, including the dog, was physically injured,” RCMP said.

A century of locAl rAcism

While the eyes of the world are currently focused on the explosion of racial violence in the United States at the hands of militarized police, there are many people who believe that such racism does not exist in Canada. However, to find historical examples of such racial vitriol in our country, we do not need to look any further than our own city.

To find an early and poignant example of such racism, one can turn to the spring of 1921, when Prince George was a bustling new community of 2,053 residents. While most residents of the city at this time were white anglophones, Prince George was home to small and vibrant ethnic communities, seeking opportunities and a new life in the vast forests of the Canadian North.

In April of 1921, a fight broke out on Quebec Street between two groups of Chinese residents. The brawl was quickly broken up by the Prince George Municipal Police, but the implications of this fight moved far beyond the Chinese community. City Council, led by Acting Mayor Barney Keegan, developed a strategy to clean up the city of those they deemed undesirable. Their plans were published in The Citizen on April 22, 1921. However, it was curiously not the Chinese community who faced the blame or the consequences for the strife. Rather, Acting Mayor Keegan called for the round up and expulsion of the city’s 25-30 Black residents, most of whom lived in a small ethnic community centred around Third Avenue and Quebec Street. This part of town was referred to by the white residents using a name that will not be found boasted on signs and plaques around our

downtown. Because Third and Quebec in 1921 was known as N*****town.

In the article, entitled “Shake-up Threatened in the City Government” it was noted that “[a]t that meeting Alderman Patterson made a motion, seconded by Alderman Wimbles, which instructed the city clerk to forward to the police commissioners a strong expression of the council’s desire to have the city cleared of undesirables… asking that all undesirables be ordered out of town, especially referring to ‘n*****town’.” The article goes on to state that “this city has become the ‘dumping ground’ for members of the underworld, and is putting up to the small police force of the city a heavy task to keep these undesirables in their place and protect the respectable citizens from annoyance.”

At the end of April 1921, 99 years ago, the City of Prince George was set to use police force to drive out the local Black population on the basis of race rather than merit. A response came on May 6, 1921, from Charles Sager, local barber and member of our fledgling black community.

Sager, like all non-Indigenous citizens of Prince George, came seeking opportunity. Sager worked as a playwright across the U.S., staging shows across the Midwest through the late 1800s. In Chicago, he was a founding member of the Pekin Theatre, the first Black owned and operated theatre in the United States in 1905. At some point between 1905 and 1921, Sager found his way north. Here, in this little community of Prince George, a storied member of the Black community found in history books was cutting hair for a living.

Sager’s response to the proposed expulsion of our Black community was written

with a fire and passion that the century has not dulled. Entitled “An Open Letter To the Honorable the Mayor and Members of the Council, City of Prince George,” Sager’s letter moved far beyond a simple retort against the City’s plans for N*****town, but was a deconstruction of racism at a time when such views were commonplace. Sager opens his letter with a stand against race-based discrimination: “At no previous period in the history of the Negro has he been confronted with a more critical situation than today. On the one hand, the forces of prejudice fighting to keep him in that bondage of prejudice because of race; and on the other the Negro, as never before, to achieve the status of citizenship – full and unlimited by caste or color. Race prejudice is not so much a matter of startling deeds as of petty insinuations. This is the negro’s point of view, and it is a direct challenge to every self-respecting Negro in Prince George – in Canada. It is a vulgar appeal to insult and violence; it demoralizes, debases and promotes hate and envy – the very ground root of race prejudice.”

Sager then goes on to deride the basis of language used to describe the black community: “To call a Negro “n*****” is to belittle and destroy the last vestige of hope, manhood and self-respect left in him, after two hundred years of the most cruel slavery on earth. We feel reasonably sure that under normal conditions thinking men would not close the door of ambition and opportunity in the face of any man on account of his color; and yet it is the very thing done, and the principle cause of race antagonism today.”

After further discussion of race and relations in Prince George and beyond,

Sager ends his letter with a plea: “We ask a square deal; the equality of opportunity and of privilege from the powers that be, and the honest endeavor to cultivate interracial respect. Believing that we all will find more to praise and less to complain of in one of the best little cities in Canada.”

After this letter was published in The Leader, no expulsion of the Black community in Prince George occurred. Times changed, and N*****town disappeared from the history books, and with it Charles Sager. We know his wife Willa died in Prince George and is buried in our cemetery. And we know that Sager ended up in New York in 1930. The rest of his time here in Prince George is lost to the past.

The story of racism in Prince George does not end with Charles Sager, even to this day. The vitriol against Indigenous peoples in Prince George remains a stark reminder of this fact. We as a community must ask ourselves some hard questions. Do we stay rooted in our past and continue to make the same mistakes as those who came before us? Or do we break the cycle of racial prejudice to forge a new future, full of understanding and opportunity?

Patterns can be broken, reconciliation can still live if we use our hearts and listen to those who have struggled and suffered like Black and Indigenous communities in 1921 and now.

We have a choice.

Reflect on these thoughts, reflect on Charles Sager, and reflect on how you can make this world a kinder place. Look to the past and we will find our way in the future.

- Aaron Larsen is a historian at UNBC and a teacher in School District 57.

Confronting the reality of racism

As an American ex-pat living in Prince George for the past three years, it’s not uncommon for others to ask me whether I’m happy I no longer live in the U.S. This question seems to come up more frequently now, especially in light of all the protests inspired by the murder of George Floyd. It’s a tricky question when you think about it. If I say no, I run the risk of offending my new neighbours and coming across as ungrateful for all that Canada has made possible for my family and me. But if I say yes, which generally feels like the answer locals want to hear, I feed a false reassurance that many Canadians seem to rely on, which is that we are immune from the social challenges the U.S. faces. That, or we convince ourselves that while such problems may exist here as well, they are not nearly as severe for us. If the U.S. is violent, we are peaceful or at least less violent. If the U.S. is racist, we are tolerant or at least less racist. The truth is much more complicated and depends mostly on how you look at it. I can only share my perspective as a person of colour who has struggled with racism in both countries.

My first conscious encounter with racism happened when I was ten years old. While riding the school bus, another boy taunted me by saying how “America was going to kick my country’s ass.” The context was the U.S. had just invaded Iraq and launched the first Gulf War. I remember being confused because I’m not Iraqi. My family is from South America but I’d lived in the U.S. since I was one-year-old. My DNA is a mishmash of Spanish, Italian, Indigenous, and other European ancestries, but I just saw myself as American at the time.

More bizarrely, no one came to my defence, not even my friends. For me, the painful thing wasn’t being called Iraqithere’s nothing wrong with that, of course. It was the realization that my peers, even my friends, had all bought into this idea that I wasn’t American simply because of my skin colour. It didn’t matter that Iraq isn’t a Latin American country. Their logic had no basis in geography, culture, or history. We (and I wasn’t part of that “we”) were at war with brown people and I was brown. That’s all they needed to know. I saw myself as another typical American kid on the bus. But everyone else there saw me as a stranger in their midst. And strangers, as you know, can’t be trusted. This feeling of alienation has persisted into adulthood, reinforced by the usual litany of dehumanizing encounters. Do any of these experiences sound familiar to you? Here’s a sample list. Store clerks following me while shopping to see if I was stealing anything. Security guards questioning my motives for being in an office building where I work. A neighbourhood vigilante interrogating me as to why I’m hanging out in front of my apartment.

GUEST COLUMN

IgnacIo albarracIn

Police officers cornering me with weapons at the ready to make sure I’m not breaking into my parked car. In all these instances, the only common denominator I can see is my physical appearance, specifically my skin colour, which provides an excuse to treat me with suspicion.

I’d like to say that since moving to Canada, things have improved dramatically for me. They have not. Not long after starting a new job here, a customer reached out to my employer to express dissatisfaction with my organization’s decision to hire an American. This person has never spoken directly to me, and all they know about me comes from an article that the Prince George Citizen published at the time, which includes my photo. I can’t help but wonder if the customer would have taken any issue with my hiring if my name sounded more English and I had a lighter complexion. Regardless, my national origin seemed to be the issue once again.

Fast forward one to two years later, I’m in my house in College Heights when police officers mysteriously show up on my doorstep. They claim to be looking for a specific individual and request that I verify my identity. All this is happening in front of my wife and children. I provide the officers with my driver’s license, and while they inspect it, they ask my wife if everything is okay. Everything checks out, and they leave. The interaction, while awkward, goes relatively smoothly, and my peaceful reality eventually stabilizes again.

these situations by maintaining my composure and generally playing along with the whole charade. In all those circumstances, I behaved as if what was going on was normal and reasonable. The last thing I wanted to do was give the other party an excuse to cause me further harm, which, as we can see from the cases of Trayvon Martin and George Floyd, includes getting murdered.

It’s very tiring to constantly have to be on the defensive and proactively monitor your behaviour so that white people not feel threatened by your very existence and presence. It is humiliating.

To this day, I have no idea what happened. Were the officers trying to verify my identity, or was that all a ruse for them to investigate my house because someone had reported suspicious activity? And if the latter, what was I doing that was so suspicious? And who reported it? Regardless, I’ve yet to meet a white person in my lifetime who has had these sorts of experiences, certainly not here in Prince George. But the same is not true for people of colour. You can talk to almost any Black, Indigenous, or Latino person at random, and you’re likely to hear variations on all these themes. Only the time, setting, names, and outcomes seem to change.

It may surprise you, but I think I’m rather lucky. I’ve successfully deescalated all

But deep down, I assure you that I’m furious. It’s very tiring to constantly have to be on the defensive and proactively monitor your behaviour so that white people not feel threatened by your very existence and presence. It is humiliating. Truly I tell you that one of the easiest ways to upset some white people is to present them with a self-confident and assertive person of colour. The idea that a person of colour would dare challenge their beliefs or authority is unsettling and subverts their innate understanding of how the world should operate. To be fair, many who react this way understand that racism is wrong, but then proceed to resolve the cognitive dissonance by convincing themselves that the issue isn’t about race at all, and instead about manners and decency. It’s not okay to mistreat someone because of their race, but it is okay to mistreat them if they are disrespecting you.

The result is an almost universal expectation that people of colour always be polite, respectful, and, most importantly, obedient. The refusal to abide by these unspoken rules can lead to the end of a friendship, a reprimand, a legal citation, an arrest, or in extreme cases, an officer of the law placing their knee on your neck and slowly depriving you of the air that keeps you alive. The truth is that what happened to George Floyd and Ahmaud

ADDRESS

Arbery could’ve happened to me. And more frightfully, it might happen to my son one day because history teaches us that the perpetrators of such violence usually get away with it, which itself incentivizes the repeat of such aggressive behaviour. This article is not an indictment of law enforcement in general. I only seek to bring attention to the perspective of people of colour who, because of our growing numbers and political clout, will continue to demand that the terms of the social contract equally apply to us. I want to live in a land where I can trust that the laws and courts also exist to protect my interests. That vision obviously must include a role for the police, but more importantly, it requires that we dramatically change the structure and dynamics of our society. That is the message underlying the popular refrain, “No justice, no peace!”

I’m certain some readers will quickly dismiss some of my points and argue that I have provided no conclusive evidence that I have experienced any racism personally. At best, they will suggest I am speculating and unfairly ascribing ill motives to the actions of otherwise good people acting reasonably in challenging circumstances. I must have said or done something that led those other people to act the way they did. Or they might say I’m overly sensitive and point out that white people also experience prejudice. I cannot persuade those who refuse to listen, nor will I waste my energy trying. To quote the scriptures, if that’s what resonates with you, I will “not cast pearls before swine.”

My only hope is that some readers will pause and reflect and perhaps come to realize that racism against people of colour is very much still alive and strong in our society. Perhaps they will see that such racism can manifest itself in many forms, some much more subtle than others, and that sometimes it’s hidden in plain sight, as this graffiti currently on display in College Heights demonstrates. It’s no exaggeration to say that realization may save a person of colour’s life one day. I encourage you to see the world with open eyes and ally yourselves with the cause of social justice. We will all be better for it.

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Graffiti in College Heights last Friday that is visible from a walking path frequented by neighbourhood residents and young kids who perform bicycle tricks in the vicinity.

Inside Donny Johnny’s noggin

Iwill admit that U.S. President Donald Trump is a lot smarter than I thought he was. In fact, he is quite cunning.

I also once thought that Donald Trump was very unpredictable. I just couldn’t make sense of what he was doing.

The guile of Donald Trump came into clear focus in a statement by Michael Nutter, the former mayor of Philadelphia, commenting on looters causing havoc as crowds try to express their grief and frustration in response to racist acts in the United States.

“There are people who want destruction. They want chaos. They want confusion. And they meld into some of these crowds. And the next thing you know, you have chaos.

Now, Donald Trump likes chaos. And he likes this environment, because he can now play to his political base that he has to keep these people in control. This is a political game that he is playing. And we’re talking about life and death of people and the life and death of communities.”

In fact, this is Trump’s reality televi-

LESSONS IN LEARNING

GERRY CHIDIAC

sion show The Apprentice on steroids. Any effective leader knows that running a business involves respect and teamwork. That would make boring reality television. Trump’s approach was to spread seeds of mistrust among people, to get them arguing while he sat as judge over the chaos and then said, “You’re fired!”

Judging by the fact that he has had several bankruptcies and is involved in thousands of lawsuits, Trump likely runs his enterprises the same way. That is certainly not an effective way to run a country.

To a typical narcissist, the goal is not to be effective, it is to be in control. I’m not saying that Trump is a narcissist, but if we look at his actions from this perspective, they make perfect sense. Just as in his reality show, the need to crush opponents and

Obama is right

That’s not a title I would have thought I would write but there it is. The former president and I are at opposite ends of the political spectrum but that is mostly a disagreement in method, not values. Like many, I cheered his election. But like many, I was disappointed at his inability to bring Americans together during his presidency.

His essay published on June 1, 2020, in the Medium contains the most statesmanlike thoughts he has written and I have read. He writes about how to change systemic racism. I don’t know much about that, except that racism is evil and it exists more than too many would like to admit. But I appreciated his comments about how to make change real and lasting.

Obama begins by acknowledging the real anger of protesters and rioters. He goes on to mention how difficult the rioters and looters will make life for some.

“I saw an elderly black woman being interviewed today in tears because the

THINKING ALOUD

TRUDY KLASSEN

only grocery store in her neighborhood had been trashed. If history is any guide, that store may take years to come back.”

Rioting and looting may feel good to an angry person but the consequences often hit the most vulnerable. No government can stop citizens who chosoe to riot. They can simply try to restrain them.

It is interesting that Democrats, (or Liberals and the NDP) think that “trickle-down social change” would work, but watching the Democratic primaries it seemed that the irony was lost on them. Obama seems to have learned that despite eight years in the White House, very little changed on the ground for black Americans.

“But the elected officials who matter most in reforming police departments and

So tired of being tired

Extreme fatigue is a common symptom of brain injury.

Before my injury, I survived on six hours of sleep per night, commuted 20 hours (or more) per week to my job in McLeod Lake and worked 7.5 hours per day, five days a week. And after a near 60-hour work week, I cleaned my house, did laundry, grocery shopping, cooking, maintained my yard, shoveled snow in the winter and had a social life. In comparison to my life now, I used to be a superhero. In a previous article, I mentioned the Spoon Theory. Where I access support at the Brain Injury Group (BIG), members are taught that when we are well rested, we start our day with 12 spoons in our possession. Making breakfast can take up two spoons, a phone conversation another two spoons, grocery shopping four spoons and so on. Survivors of brain injury can use up the 12 spoons very quickly because it takes our brain so much energy to focus on the tasks at hand. I have often used my 12 spoons by noon and I’m done for the

win at all costs leads to chaos. If Trump can maintain the loyalty of a few “flying monkeys” (drawing from the character of the wicked witch in the Wizard of Oz) to do his bidding, he can control the chaos, for a while at least.

Trump is smart enough to know that the greatest threat to his leadership is a morally justified unified opposition. Mohandas Gandhi, for example, was a great spiritual leader who inspired people to put aside their religious differences in opposition to the Machiavellian British Empire. Martin Luther King Jr. also had great success using these methods.

Manila Archbishop Jaime Sin used passive resistance in forcing Ferdinand Marcos to abdicate as dictator of the Philippines.

Marcos insisted he had won the presidential election over Corazon Aquino and sent his military into the streets to quell the masses who disagreed with him. Soldiers were given flowers and were invited to walk and pray with the people. There no violence, and this has become known as the People Power Revolution of 1986.

Knowing the power of religion, Trump recently created a photo-op, holding a Bible in front of a historic church near the White House. Interfaith leader Rabbi Jack Moline referred to it as “one of the most flagrant misuses of religion I have ever seen.”

The next day Trump tried to cause further division by posing at shrine of Pope John Paul II, an act Washington Archbishop Wilton Gregory said “violates our religious principles.”

What is particularly ironic about this last act is that John Paul II borrowed from the playbook of leaders like Gandhi, King and Sin by uniting people despite the efforts of the communist dictatorship to divide and make them fear one another.

He thus caused one of the most powerful empires of the 20th century to crumble.

Given that we understand the way Trump thinks, we can easily predict he’s going to try to create further chaos. We also know how to respond effectively.

Fire whomever you like, Donny Johnny. We choose to walk together in peace.

the criminal justice system work at the state and local levels….”

Unfortunately, voter turnout in these local races is usually pitifully low, especially among young people, which makes no sense given the direct impact these offices have on social justice issues, not to mention the fact that who wins and who loses those seats is often determined by just a few thousand - or even a few hundred - votes.

“So the bottom line is this: if we want to bring about real change, then the choice isn’t between protest and politics. We have to do both. We have to mobilize to raise awareness and we have to organize and cast our ballots to make sure that we elect candidates who will act on reform.”

I cannot remember any former president ever talking about the importance of “unimportant” local elected officials in fixing America’s problems. To have a former president pointing out that local elections have the lowest voter turnout, while having the greatest local impact,

BOGGLED

DIANE NAKAMURA

day. I’m so exhausted I can’t cook dinner or take my dogs for a walk.

Prior to the pandemic lockdown, I was sleeping 12 hours or more per day. I had anywhere from two to five appointments per week. Household errands and chores on top of that made me a tired camper. Since mid-March, I have not had any appointments. And I’m still sleeping 12 hours a day. I’m not doing much at all yet my sleep patterns have not changed. Logically, I should be sleeping less. What gives? Being a new member to the brain injury world (one year and seven months), I’ve relied on the wisdom of my peers at BIG who have been survivors for much longer than me. Many survivors of brain injury have been diagnosed with Post Traumatic

Stress Disorder (PTSD). I knew from some of my behaviours that my PTSD had been triggered by this pandemic, especially behaviours such as consuming huge amounts of sugar (mainly Jell-O) and increased anxiety.

A few of my friends from BIG told me a few other key pieces to my puzzle. My one friend explained the loss of usual routines knock us off course and our brains experience significant difficulties in reconciling these changes. This can lead to instant fatigue. In addition, the enormous burden we all carry about doing things right - safe distancing, hand washing, wiping everything down with disinfectant. Survivors of brain injury already have enough struggles with memory and having these additional tasks is overwhelming. We are frightened that we have no room for error and that one day we will mess up because we forgot to do something.

One of my other friends from BIG is in my mind a superstar. She is extremely regimented in maintaining a routine. She

and encouraging people to get involved, is hopeful and not in a “hopey-changey” way. For Americans concerned about systemic racism, Obama gave clear and concise advice that, if followed, will result in real change.

Whether our concerns are racism, policing, drugs, gangs, our personal safety, the arts, the environment, the economy, potholes, or our kids education, local elected officials have the most sway in the direction these things go.

We, the public, have the most power simply by paying attention during local elections, and then going to the ballot box. It’s a month or two of campaigning every four years, and if you pay attention then, it will probably save us a bunch of frustration later.

Obama is right.

Protests have their place but politicians act on what their electorate want. They have to know what that is and the best time to have their ear is during the election campaign.

told me by structuring her day, every day, she has experienced increased energy. I definitely need to take a page out of her book.

Sadly, one of my other energy drainers has been racist mistreatment towards me during a few of my shopping trips. For a period of time I was scared to go out in public by myself. Being stubborn I decided to suck it up, go out on my own and face whatever racist demons crossed my path. One of my good friends Kellie informed me that it takes incredible energy for me to leave my house with this potential threat hanging over my head. In addition, I still carry the trauma of being assaulted by a male street person that resulted in my permanent brain injury.

This is how I operate. Bad things happen, I pull up my socks and keep going. I have no time for self pity or ever regard myself as a victim. I’m grateful for my friends who nurture, ground me and provide me reminders so that I’m not so hard on myself. What would I do without them?

Work avoidance has major consequences

Afew years ago, I was working with a construction company that was having an issue with projects not getting completed on time. There was general frustration among the workers because one of the foremen, who was the owner’s son, would be sleeping in his truck during working hours.

As a result, supplies weren’t being picked up on time, safety meetings were missed and there was a lack of communication about what needed to be done. So other employees felt they could take extended breaks and did so. The owner’s son wouldn’t accept any blame for the projects’ slow delivery and was placing the blame on the carpenters and laborers on the site.

The problem of projects and jobs not being completed on time, or at all, is a problem that is facing many business owners right now.

Changes in work environments, working from home and a lack of business has taken work avoidance to a new level for

BUSINESS COACH DAVE FULLER

some employees. However the issue of work avoidance is not a new one. There are indications that staff members who are not performing now probably had challenges in the past. The fact is that their failure may not be theirs alone, but one of leadership.

There is nothing as frustrating for some leaders as when tasks don’t get done and it seems like the employees don’t care. This frustration can be heard in conversations such as: “If I don’t do it myself, it never gets done;” “I don’t know how many times I have to remind James that he has to do his job;” “Perhaps we need to move the desks to the water cooler to get any work done around here;” or “Another project that we failed to complete on time or on budget.”

Environmental Assessment of the Cariboo Gold Project Virtual Open House and Invitation to Comment

Barkerville Gold Mines Ltd. (BGM) proposes to develop an underground gold mine with a production capacity of 4,750 tonnes per day in and near the District of Wells, British Columbia (B.C.). The ore is proposed to be milled at the existing Quesnel River mill, located 58 km southeast of Quesnel, B.C., and waste rock stored at the mine site and existing Bonanza Ledge Mine, located near Barkerville, B.C. The project would also include an approximately 70 km transmission line to BC Hydro’s Barlow substation near Quesnel, B.C. The proposed Cariboo Gold Project would have a proposed mine life of 12 to 15 years.

The Cariboo Gold Project is subject to review under British Columbia’s Environmental Assessment Act (2018). The Environmental Assessment Office (EAO) is inviting the public and Indigenous nations to review the Initial Project Description and provide feedback to assist BGM with further design considerations, understanding of potential interactions of the project and development of a Detailed Project Description. Comments received will also support the EAO in the preparation of the Summary of Engagement for the project. Once completed, the Summary of Engagement will be provided to BGM to inform the next steps in the process.

To provide information to the public about the Initial Project Description, and to receive comments from the public, the EAO is inviting the public to the following online open houses. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated physical distancing and self isolation measures, these open houses will be held virtually. The open houses will be held:

on: June 17, 2020

from: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. PT

Skype Broadcast - link to join: http://ow.ly/ODbd50zQCQo

on: June 23, 2020

from: 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. PT

Skype Broadcast - link to join: http://ow.ly/qzPk50zQCUJ

The open houses will begin with a presentation by the EAO on theenvironmental assessment process followed by a presentation by BGM on the proposed Cariboo Gold Project. Then the remainder of the open house will be an opportunity to ask questions online. The EAO intends to have the presentation available on the Cariboo Gold Project page following the open houses.

There are 45 days for the submission of comments by the public to the EAO in relation to the Initial Project Description. The comment period will take place from June 12 to midnight PT on July 27, 2020. All comments received during this comment period will be considered.

The intention of seeking public comments is to ensure that potential effects –environmental, economic, social, cultural and health – that might result from the proposed project are identified for consideration at this early stage of the assessment process.

The EAO accepts comments through the following ways:

• By Online Form at: gov.bc.ca/eao - click ‘Commenting on Projects’

• By Mail: Katherine St. James Project Assessment Director Environmental Assessment Office PO Box 9426 Stn Prov Govt Victoria BC V8W 9V1

• By Fax: 250-356-7477

The Initial Project Description and other public engagement materials are available on the EAO’s website at: https://projects.eao. gov.bc.ca/ - search ‘Cariboo Gold Project’. Information regarding the environmental assessment process is available at: gov. bc.ca/eao.

As leaders when we fail to hold people accountable for doing their jobs we are failing in our responsibility.

According to the Table Group, a survey of 12,000 companies found that 65 per cent of respondents said that a lack of accountability was an issue in their organization. A lack of accountability leads to a lack of production and profitability, a loss of morale, and a high staff turnover. I have experienced it in my businesses and observed it in many others.

There are many reasons why we don’t hold people accountable for doing their jobs. We sometimes think that the person will quit if we confront them about doing the work they signed up for.

Many of us fear conflict and think that approaching the subject will cause a huge argument. Sometimes we worry that the person is going through personal problems and we shouldn’t burden them by asking them to do their job.

The elephant in the room doesn’t leave, it just goes on to consume more resources until there is no space to breathe and good employees leave in frustration or in some

cases, the situation blows up. However, building accountability in an organization might not be as difficult as it seems. The best method of accountability is when peers start holding each other accountable for results. There are a number of ways to do this. However, one of the easiest ways is by having weekly meetings where there is reporting about what was completed in the last week and what will be completed in the coming week.

When we start holding people accountable to do their jobs, one of two things usually happens.

The jobs start getting done or the person in question feels the pressure and moves on to another job where they can succeed or continue to cover up their lack of willingness to work. Lack of accountability is the downfall of many a leader and when we can overcome this issue, we move on from being mediocre back towards the road to greatness.

- Dave Fuller, MBA, is an award-winning business coach and the author of the book Profit Yourself Healthy. Comments about this article? Email dave@profityourselfhealthy.com

NOTE: All submissions received by EAO during the public comment period in relation to the Cariboo Gold Project are considered public and will be posted to the EAO’s website.

CL ASSIF IEDS

Memoriam

In Loving Memory of Travis Haiste

October 30, 1982June 7, 2016

TYSON BACHINSKI

August 18, 1994June 14, 2019

Always in our hearts, never forgotten.

Til we see you on the other side

Love Mommy, Seth & Breanna

Luchka, Morley John

June 29, 1939May 27, 2020

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our father on May 27, 2020 at the age of 80, following a short battle with cancer. He is survived by his children Ken (Karen), Mike, Cheryl (Wayne), and Kevin (Carry) and grandchildren Kimberly, Hailee, Jordyn and Jaxson. Special thank you to Dr. Nadeem, Dr. Ahmed, emergency room staff, and the staff in PCMU at UHNBC, and the staff at PG Hospice Society. A memorial donation may be made to the PG Hospice Society.

“Goodbyes are not forever. Goodbyes are not the end. They simply mean I’ll miss you, until we meet again.”

Condolences may be offered at www.FraserviewCrematorium.com

Veronica Anne Kueng (Meier)

It is with great sadness that the family of Veronica Anne Kueng (Meier) announce her sudden passing, on Thursday May 28th at the age of 62 years. “V” will be lovingly remembered by her mother Minnie, brothers Jim (Janice) and Marvin (Bonnie), daughters Pam (Shawn) and Jo (Justin) and stepson Cam. She will also be forever remembered by her many nieces, nephews, grandchildren, extended family and friends. Veronica was predeceased by her father Lawrence and husband Garry McFadden. We will miss “V” and her love of cooking, as well as her infectious laugh. She was caring, creative and knew how to make just about anything from scratch. Her life was full of family and friends who cared for her and will miss her dearly. A service will take place in Prince George at a future date.

Condolences may be offered at www.assmansfuneralchapel.com

REMEMBRANCES

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the sudden passing of Paulette Lucking on May 21, 2020. Paulette was born in Tisdale Saskatchewan in 1944. She moved to Terrace with her parents in the mid fifties and attended Skeena High School, graduating in 1962. She completed her teaching degree at UBC in 1964. She met her lifelong partner Ted in Terrace and they were married on July 31, 1965. Ted & Paulette settled in Prince George in the early 70’s where she continued to teach until she started working for Prince George Pulp & Paper in 1979. She enjoyed working there up until her retirement in 2001. She loved going for drives, gardening, fishing, camping and travelling in their minihome. She especially enjoyed spending time with Ted and her German Shepherds. She spent countless hours in her sewing room where she made so many wonderful quilts and memorable items. We lost a wonderful person, a devoted and loving wife, mother and grandmother. She will be greatly missed. She is survived by her loving husband Ted, son Rick (Tammy), and granddaughter Alexa. Paulette requested that no formal services be held.

September 21, 1977June 2, 2020

and sons by her side.

Carla is survived by her husband Tom Price, sons Tye and Nate, brother in-law Bob, mother-in-law Linda Boehler, along with her parents Mike and Charlene Schab, sister Trisha (Darcy) Legeard, sister Chantel (Corey) Peterson, and nieces and nephews, Alana, Katie, Devin and Megan and numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins.

As per Carla’s wishes a tea will be held at a later date, yet to be determined. Thank you to all our friends and family for the care, meals and support they provided to Tom and the boys during this time. Special thanks to Dr. Higgins, Dr. Kraima and all the wonderful staff at the Prince George Hospice for the kindness, care and attention they gave to Carla.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Carla’s memory to the Prince George Hospice House.

F*ck Cancer

Paulette Lucking

Carla Marie Price (Schab)

Carla Marie Price, passed away peacefully in her sleep on June 2, 2020 with her loving husband

ISTVAN LASZLO HORVATH

July 7, 1938 - Budapest, Hungary April 2, 2020 - Calgary, Alberta

Steve Horvath, beloved husband of, Evelyn (nee Heisler) of Calgary, formerly of Prince George, B.C. passed away on Thursday, April 2, 2020 at the age of 81 years.

Steve was born in Budapest, Hungary where as a young man he began playing soccer. He later became a professional soccer player in Canada. Steve escaped during the Hungarian Revolution to Germany in 1956 and then immigrated to Canada in 1957. He moved to Calgary in 1962, where he met Evelyn and were married in 1968. Steve and Evelyn moved to Prince George in 1969 where he worked at the pulp mill, and lived there until 2002. They moved to Redcliff, AB in 2002 and lived there until moving to Medicine Hat in 2008. In 2019 they moved to Calgary where he resided until his passing. Steve will be remembered for his love for soccer, humor, fishing, gardening and for being a very meticulous man.

Steve is survived by his loving wife Evelyn; three sons and a daughter, Steven (Lisa) Horvath, Teresa Lepla (Wilf Naugle), Peter Horvath (Debbie Baynham) and Jeno (Debra) Horvath; six grandchildren; one great-granddaughter; one sister Ilona and one brother Tibor (Ted).

A private family graveside service was held at Hillside Cemetery in Medicine Hat. Condolences, memories and photos may be shared and viewed on Steve’s obituary at www.McInnisandHolloway.com.

In living memory of Steve Horvath, a tree will be planted in the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Area by McINNIS & HOLLOWAY FUNERAL HOMES.

DAVID MELVIN CROFT

July 17, 1941June 2 , 2020

Born July 17, 1941 in Luscar Alberta, the second of three children born to William John Croft and Mary Julie Croft. David’s family moved to Vancouver in 1942 and then on to Prince George in 1951. David received his schooling in Prince George at the Sacred Heart School and later King George V.

He joined the Royal Canadian Navy in 1959 and was stationed in Cornwallis Nova Scotia and later Victoria B.C., where he became a member of the Naden Marching Band. David left the service in 1961. He joined the Royal Canadian Legion and has received his 55 year membership pin.

When David returned to Prince George after his Navy stint, he began work in the transportation industry owning and operating delivery service vehicles as well as contracting for Canada Post. In 1982 he sold his interests in the trucking business and became a fulltime Canada Post employee. He became a full time letter carrier and an inside assistant until his retirement in 2002.

In August 1965, David married Faye and together they had two beautiful children David Jr. born in 1967 and Kimberley Ann born in 1970. They enjoyed travelling and many of their holidays included visits to Australia, New Zealand, the South Pacific and most parts of Western United States. He particularly liked cruising and spending winters in the warmer climates of Southern California and Arizona. They recently went to Europe on a cruise with the family and he particularly enjoyed the company of his two youngest granddaughters, the apples of his eye.

He spent many hours at coffee with his friends of many years, and then would spend many hours doing crosswords from the local paper.

His two children David (Maria) and Kimberley (Peter) were always his pride and joy and they blessed him with five beautiful granddaughters; Roxanne, Tiffany, Vienna, Farrah and Claudelle Avry. He has one remaining sibling his brother Ken Croft (Liza) and his forever friends are Brian & Audrey Kerr, Bruce & Marilyn Rayner , John & Cathy Bilbrough, Carl & Helen Pitchko and all the boys at the mall coffee bar. David was predeceased by his parents and older brother. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Hospice House. A memorial Celebration of his life will be held at a later date.

Toys/Games/Puzzles

PUZZLES - Never opened. $5-$10 each. 778-675-4716

Business Opportunities

BUSINESS for sale, Sewing Shop, next to Nelly’s Pub, all merchandise for sale, serious enquiries only. 250-564-2262 between 10am-3pm, 250-640-7326

Business Opportunities

BCYCNA 1x31.0 R0011761908

ATTENTION INVENTORS! Ideas wanted! Call Davison today! 1.800.218.2909 or visit us at inventing.davison.com/BC Free

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

Wednesday, July 8, 2020 4:30pm-6:30pm

This year the Annual Public Meeting will be held virtually to comply with Public Health Agency of Canada recommendations on physical distancing. The 2019 Annual Report and Operational Review will be presented via zoom. Questions from the public will be taken in advance via email. Please send them to info@pgairport.ca before June 29, 2020. Meeting log in details can be found on our website: www.pgairport.ca R0011816155

Notices / Nominations

When:

Memberships are $6.00 and will be available to purchase at the meeting. Due to Covid-19, space is limited. Please RSVP to 562-1394 to reserve your seat.

Personal Messages

ANYONE with a drinking problem? Alcoholics Anonymous, www.bcyukonaa.org 250-564-7550

PG GOLF & CURLING CLUB R0011820397

3.00x92.0-BW PG17 / PG000025

NOTICE OF 2020 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the 2020 Annual General Meeting of the members of Prince George Golf and Curling Club Ltd. will be held as follows:

DATE OF MEETING: Monday, the 6th day of July 2020

TIME OF MEETING: at 7:00 P.M.

LOCATION OF MEETING: the meeting will be held at the Club House of the Prince George Golf and Curling Club, 2601 Recplace Dr. Prince George, B.C.

The purpose of the meeting is as follows:

1. To receive and consider the report of the Directors to the members and the consolidated financial statements of the Limited Company for the 12 month period ended November 30, 2019 and the auditors’ report thereon;

2. To elect directors for the ensuing year (either by single resolution or separate votes, as determined at the meeting);

3. To appoint auditors for the ensuing year, and authorize the Directors to fix the remuneration of same;

4. To transact such other business as may properly come before the meeting, or any adjournment or adjournments thereof.

MEMBERS WHO ARE UNABLE TO ATTEND THE MEETING IN PERSON AND WHO WISH TO ENSURE THAT THEIR VOTE WILL BE COUNTED AT THE MEETING ARE REQUESTED TO COMPLETE, SIGN AND RETURN A FORM OF PROXY. A PROXY WILL NOT BE VALID UNLESS IT IS DEPOSITED AT THE ADDRESS OF THE OFFICE OF THE COMPANY AT 2601 RECPLACE, PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. V2N 0G2 NOT LESS THAN TWENTYFOUR (24) HOURS (EXCLUDING SATURDAYS, SUNDAYS, AND HOLIDAYS) BEFORE THE TIME FIXED FOR THE MEETING, OR IS DEPOSITED WITH THE CHAIRMAN OF THE MEETING ANY TIME PRIOR TO THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE MEETING.

DATED in the City of Prince George, B.C. this 10th, day of June 2020. BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

PRINCE GEORGE GOLF AND CURLING CLUB LTD.

Per:

Dan Martin, PRESIDENT

IT Support Technician

Bandstra Transportation Systems – Smithers, BC

Interested in a job with Bandstra Transportation?

We are a family owned and operated transportation company, providing LTL & TL, van and deck service and across Western Canada. With more than 60 years of service, we have developed a well-known and solid reputation for providing unparalleled service to our customers. With the experience that comes from servicing everything from the largest mines and manufacturers to the smallest local business, our team is equipped to handle almost any transportation project.

Our people are the key to our success! This is why we have been recognized by Trucking HR Canada as a Top Fleet Employer. From the clerk to the President, each person plays an important role in the overall supply chain, ensuring our customers receive their goods in the time frame they expect. We have a strong commitment to safety, as verified by our COR certification. We operate new equipment, which is continually maintained to the highest standard.

Join our team today – apply now!

JOB DESCRIPTION: We are currently accepting resumes for an experienced IT Support Technician for our Smithers, BC operations.

Job ID: 245-20

Start Date: As Soon As Possible

Nature & Scope of Position: Reporting to the IT Manager, the IT Support Technician will join a collaborative in-house IT Team to provide front line day to day technical support and troubleshooting to Bandstra’s terminal staff across its network as it relates to computer hardware, peripherals and business software. This position will also have the opportunity to take on special IT projects as they come up.

Responsibilities:

• Provide frontline helpdesk support, install, configure, and maintain workstation computers, printers, laptops, phones, office software and all related equipment.

• Support the implementation of new technology and the ongoing support as it relates to computers, servers, phones and specialized software.

• Assist and take on the implementation of IT Projects.

• Ensure IT documentation is up to date and maintained.

• Support the planning, testing and implementation of any upgrades to ERP systems.

Skills & Experience:

In order to be qualified, applicants must meet or exceed the following:

• Strong computer problem solving skills.

• Proficient in Microsoft technologies, certified candidates given preference.

• 2 to 5 years of related work experience with a preference to being A+ certified or working towards this certification.

• Experience working in a ticketing system with detailed note taking skills.

• Excellent English communication skills both written and verbal.

Requirements:

• Applicants MUST be in Canada and legally entitled to work

• On call rotation required for after-hours emergency support.

• Travel to other offices may be required from time to time.

Remunerations:

• Salary based on skills and experience

• Complete Group Health & RRSP plan

Bandstra is always looking for talented individuals who thrive in challenging environments. If you feel that you are the right person for this job, please forward your resume to careers@bandstra.com

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Career Training

Management/Administration

The Phoenix Medical Building is seeking an assistant building manager. After a training period the assistant building manager will alternate weeks of work and call with the experienced building manager. Annual salary is $30,000 based on 100 hours per month. Opportunity exists for advancement to role of Building Manager on a part-time or full-time basis. Diverse physical maintenance and repair skills are required in addition to basic administrative skills. The services of a book keeper will be provided separately. A detailed job description will be provided on request. If interested, please email garnetfraser@shaw.ca.

Professional Help

MONUMENTALVENDING

LOGISTICANALYST

Analyzedeliveryandsupply chainprocessesofvending equipmentandhighly perishablefoodproductsto optimizeefficiencyand minimizecosts.Manage routeactivitiesandmaintain databasesoflogistics information.Requirements: MinB.ScSupplyChain Management+6months experience).Sendappsto MonumentalVendingInc., 11800TrolleyLane, Beltsville,MD20705. 301-477-1316 luann@monumental markets.com www.monumental markets.com

Trades Help

PEACEVALLEY

INDUSTRIES(2016)LTD

HEAVYDUTYTRUCK TRANSPORTMECHANIC HeavyDutyTransport MechanicWantedin ChetwyndB.C. Musthaveknowledge withcomputersfor diagnosticproblems. Mustbecertified,have8 -10yearsexperienceand mustbemotivated.Shift workavailable Emailresumeto: peacevalley @uniserve.com

Apartments / Condos-For Sale

Duplexes for Sale

2220 & 2226 UPLAND ST. 2 bdrm duplex w/ 2 bdrm finished suite each side. Good revenue property, in good shape. $450,000 250-614-6667 or 250568-2338

260 & 264 RUGGLES. 4BDRM, c/w appliances, fenced, $2650/mo revenue. $398,000. 250-5682338, 614-6667

Houses for Sale

garage & more. Great neighborhood. $203,100. 250-992-5752 House for sale at Nukko Lake 3 bdrm, basement, 6 acres. No phone calls after 6 pm (250-5622891) 2740 PETERSEN RD (Peden

Property For Sale

Mixed forest. 100% reliable water source. Log cabin attached to mobile home. Water line and hydro. Easy access. Mountainscape views. Private. 250-479-5545

45.5 ACRES Corner of Upper Fraser Rd & Beaver Forest Rd. with good driveway & building pad. $155,000.

Lots & Acreages for Sale

1.148 AC. LOTS 35 & 36, Birchill Cres. 16 W., city limits. No GST. (250)563-7414

12 ACRES of commercial zoned land, 1400 ft of Hart Hwy frontage $150,000 per acre. 563-6985 or 981-1950. Will consider partial trades.

2.186 ACRE, 9341 Birchill Cres, close Hwy access, no gst. (250)563-7414

BUILDING Lot 8091 Flamingo Rd. 80’X135’ with city sewer & water. Allows mobiles as well. $85,000. 563-6985, 981-1950

HART Area, 400’ frontage X 100’ deep, serviced $300,000. 250565-4888

LARGE Res. lot, serviced, green belt on back, Oak Ridge Cres, Hart hwy. $89,900 obo 250-5623886

LOT for Duplex, 4-plex or apartment/condo. Fully zoned. Ready for permit. Near Multiplex & Walmart. 250-961-6786

Recreational Property

1000sq m building lot, #L72NCorintoPearleco-development Honduras. Contact Recap Investments, Toronto 1-888-212-8584 for more info and owner 250-5634999 $35,000 Canadian Cluculz; Meier Rd, 11.26 acres sub-lakeshore with lake access, and top location $299,000. 604908-0313

Crea

BEAR LAKE GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

2x70.0

R0011818657

Land Act: Notice of Intention to Apply for Disposition of Crown Land

Take notice that Vincent Cocciolo from Grasmere, B.C. has applied to the Ministry of Forest, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development (FLNRORD), Omineca Region, for a Licence of Occupation for Commercial Recreation / Adventure Tourism situated on Provincial Crown land located at unsurveyed crown land in the vicinity of Bills Creek, Panty Lake, Easter Lake, Chuchinka Creek and Tacheeda Mtn.

The Lands File for this application is 7405128. Written comments concerning this application should be directed to Chris David, Land Officer, Omineca Region, FLNRORD, at 5th Floor 499 George Street, Prince George, BC V2L 1R5 or Chris.David@gov. bc.ca Comments will be received by FLNRORD up to July 9, 2020. FLNRORD may not be able to consider comments received after this date.

Please visit the website at: https://comment.nrs.gov. bc.ca/applications#splash for more information.

Be advised that any response to this advertisement will be considered part of the public record. For information, contact the Freedom of Information Advisor at Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development’ Office in the Omineca Region

What type of fruit should you grow?

Fruit-bearing trees, shrubs and plants are easy to grow and can add visual interest to your yard with their vibrant foliage and flowers. Here’s what to plant based on various preferences.

IF YOU WANT A HARVEST THIS SUMMER

To enjoy your fruit within a few months, opt for fast-growing plants. A few examples include strawberries, raspberries, ground cherries, cantaloupes and watermelons.

IF YOU WANT LONG-LASTING PRODUCERS

If you’re willing to be patient, plant a perennial tree or shrub that has a long life but only bears fruit after a few years. Apricot

trees and blackberry bushes take about two years to produce fruit. For blueberries, pears and apples, you’ll need to wait three years. Plum trees take six years.

IF YOU WANT UNIQUE BUT DELICIOUS BERRIES

If you want to plant fruit that’s a little out of the ordinary, try black currants, Arctic kiwis or Saskatoon berries. These berries are great for making mouth-watering jams.

Keep in mind that some trees and shrubs only bear fruit if there’s a second plant nearby to pollinate it. If you want to grow apples, for example, you’ll need to plant two trees.

3 benefits of having a white roof

Is it time to update your roof? If so, you may want to use light-coloured shingles or switch to a white membrane. Here are the three main benefits of having a white roof.

1. You’ll save money. While dark surfaces absorb light, white ones reflect it. This means that in warm temperatures, a white roof will remain cool, thereby saving you money on air conditioning. Furthermore, because the roof doesn’t heat up as much, the material stays intact longer, prolonging the lifespan of your shingles.

2. You can create a green space. If you cover your flat roof with a white membrane, you’re one step closer to

having a space that can accommodate a vegetable or flower garden. Since the surface won’t reach extreme temperatures, it can be converted into a rooftop patio.

3. You’ll help the environment. Having a white roof helps to reduce the urban-heat-island effect, making it an especially good choice in cities and large towns. What’s more, if you choose a recyclable white membrane, it’s an eco-friendly option.

If you’re looking for roofing that’s good for the environment, can save you money and enables you to convert the space into a garden, a white roof may be the right choice for you.

How to spot and remove mould

Mould can grow out of microscopic spores floating in the air and thrives in humid environments and mild temperatures. If left untreated, it can cause structural damage to your home and a number of health issues including headaches, coughs and respiratory problems. To avoid these issues, it’s important to learn how to spot mould and eliminate it right away.

SIGNS

These are the most common indicators of mould:

• Black or dark green stains on walls, ceilings and other surfaces

• White or discoloured spots on walls

• Peeling or cracked paint or wallpaper

• A musty odour

REMOVAL

If the contaminated area is small, you can clean it yourself. Wear protective gloves, glasses and a mask and use an all-purpose cleaner or diluted bleach to thoroughly wash away the mould. If it reappears after this treatment, it means that the affected area is larger than you first thought or that the fungus is multiplying. In this case, it’s best to hire a mould remediation specialist to remove it completely.

If there’s condensation in your windows, it could mean that your home is too humid and consequently an ideal breeding ground for mould. Fans, air exchangers and dehumidifiers can help lower the humidity level in your home.

Give old items a second life with upcycling

Upcycling is the process of turning something unwanted into a beautiful and useful object. While the term may be new, the concept isn’t. People have been repurposing things forever. Not only does it keep items out of landfills, it also gives you an outlet to show off your personal style.

There are two ways to upcycle: you can give something a makeover while preserving its original use, or you can change its intended purpose altogether. Almost anything can be upcycled, including furniture, used clothes and items you’d normally throw out like tin cans and glass jars.

If you don’t have anything around the house you can use, check out local second hand shops or flea markets.

Remember that whatever you’re using will retain its properties, meaning that if the dresser you’d like to paint is falling apart, a new look won’t change that. You may need to repair items before upcycling them.

PROJECTS TO TRY

Are you excited to start upcycling but not sure where to begin? Here are a few ideas:

• Old chairs can be given new life with a coat of paint and colourful cushions.

• Jam jars can be painted to create pretty storage for the bathroom or to create one-of-a-kind light fixtures.

• Old wooden ladders can be sanded and used to hang blankets or become rustic bookshelves.

• Tin cans can be covered in fabric and used as pen holders in an office. For more inspiration, browse online. With a little time and imagination, you’ll be on your way to becoming an accomplished upcycler.

How to liven up grey-painted rooms

Grey is a common wall colour because it works well with most home decor styles. However, sometimes painting a room this colour can make it look cold and sterile. Here’s how to ensure your grey-painted interior is warm and inviting.

USE THE RIGHT MATERIALS

Introduce warmth and depth to a grey room by styling it with items made of natural materials. Choose rattan, wicker, wool and linen for your furniture and decorative items. Wood is a good choice for tables, chairs and floors. Including plants will add life and colour to the space.

PLAY WITH ACCENT COLOURS

In order to add interest to your grey interior, choose one or two accent colours. If you prefer a soft look, opt for pastel tones such as blush pink, butter yellow or sky blue. If you prefer to make a statement, consider neon or jewel tones. When used minimally in an otherwise neutral room, they won’t be overwhelming.

Lastly, be sure to choose a neutral grey with no warm or cool undertones. This will guarantee that your walls match everything, allowing you to change your decor without repainting.