qathet Living April 2025

Living Lightly

Help is Here

“Everyone deserves to live free from the fear of sexual assault and to live in communities that support their safety.”

- Ending Violence Association of BC

The Sexual Assault Support (SAS) program is a free and confidential service for survivors of any age, any gender and sexual orientation who have experienced a sexual assault. The SAS program is a program of the charity qathet SAFE, located above the public library at 6975 Alberni Street. The SAS Coordinator and can provide emotional support for survivors, options for

reporting, referrals to other community agencies, resource navigation such as help with getting medical attention or understanding the legal system, advocacy and empowering the survivor to find their own unique version of healing. The survivor’s voice and needs are at the forefront of the service.

For survivors that are curious about support, or for any questions from community members about healthy relationships, consent or sexual assaults, please call 604-414-8125 or email sassprogram@ telus.net

To all the survivors reading this, your voice matters and you are not alone.

Look for a copy of ZEST, the annual magazine/ directory published by qathet Living. Pick up a free copy at our office, download it at qathetliving.ca, or scan the code above.

Gallant

by Victoria E. Schwab

Finspan

A Wingspan Game Age 10+ / 1-5 Players / 45-60 minutes

Olivia Prior has grown up in Merilance School for girls. All she has of her past is her mother’s journal. A letter invites Olivia to come home to Gallant. When Olivia arrives, no one is expecting her. Olivia knows that Gallant is hiding secrets, and she is determined to uncover them. Olivia has always wanted to belong somewhere. Will she take her place as a Prior, protecting our world against the Master of the House? Or will she take her place beside him?

Books,

Crystal

Tarot

Decals,

Essential

As a marine researcher you are seeking to find and observe aquatic life in the Sunlight, Twilight and Midnight Zones of the oceans. Fish you find will generate a series of benefits as you dive deeper in the ocean. Each dive allows you to grow your collection of fish, discover freshly laid eggs or hatch eggs. The winner is the player with the most points gained from fish, eggs, young, schools, and achievements.

We will order almost anything for folks. We have ordered clothes, wallets, car parts, patio umbrellas, etc.

Our only rule is it must be able to be carried in the door - so no couches, appliances, etc.

Special order charge is $5.00.

Pobody’s Nerfect

Last month’s issue dished out a load of humble pie for your local publisher and his editor/owner.

The case of the missing zeros has been solved and it served my ego well that it was pretty much entirely Pieta Woolley’s fault (see Page 62 for the full explanation).

But the truth is I should have caught it, too. I had a quick glance at the magazine after she inadvertently assassinated the double 0s, but at that point, I was looking for missing and jumbled pages or dropped fonts, not counting digits. Still, I’d like to think I would have caught it, had I been at the top of my game. Not quite four days out of surgery, I was not at the top of my game.

that more people could do well to experience. From keyboard warriors to politicians, admitting that you got it wrong would go a long way towards creating more amicable conversations.

PUBLISHER’S MESSAGE

SEAN PERCY

Those of us who work in jobs where our errors are on display for all to see (from publishing to paving) learn quickly to digest big slices of the pie of humility, despite the sour flavour.

The aftertaste, however, is, something

Learning from our mistakes is great; learning from the mistakes of others is even better. With this year’s herring spawn low in qathet (Page 14), hopefully fisheries managers are learning from the mistakes of decades ago. Similarly, as efforts to protect jewels like Stillwater Bluffs focus on species at risk (Page 16), hopefully these plants and creatures remind us of past mistakes that should not be repeated. And as the Trotter family will tell you (Page 43), qathet can also learn from the mistakes of the City of Squamish not too many years ago.

So when you (inevitably) get dished up that humble pie, dig in, learn a lesson, and come out better for it.

Woolley editor@qathetliving.ca

Publisher Sean Percy sean@qathetliving.ca

Suzi Wiebe suzi@qathetliving.ca Office

Lauren Diemer office@qathetliving.ca

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The world breaks everyone, then some become strong at the broken places.

– Cindy Neufeld, Page 28.

”

APRIL’S CONTRIBUTORS

TERESA HARWOOD-LYNN is an artist who transforms waste metal into jewellery and small sculpture. Her inspiration comes from rethinking discarded metal as a creative, valuable resource. See Teresa’s art story on Page 27.

PADDY LE FLUFY moved to qathet in March 2023. He has recently joined the boards of qathet Community Voices and qathet Climate Alliance and is a member of the qathet climate writer’s group. See Paddy’s story, Carpool, on Page 25.

ROBERT HACKETT is a member of the qathet Climate Alliance writers’ group and a member of the qathet Climate Alliance board. See Bob’s story, Food Security in Cuba, on Page 21.

DAVID HARRIS is a journalist and climber who retired to Powell River to enjoy the forests, trails, beaches, and cliffs of the Sunshine Coast. See David’s story, At-risk at Stillwater Bluffs, on Page 16.

BARBARA LAMBERT has lived South of Town for 50+ years. She has published nine books on local history, including “Paradise Wolves at my Back Door.” See Barbaras’s story, Teen Builds a Dam, on Page 39.

Jessica

Green Party of Canada

Jessica is a fierce advocate for human and civil rights and, as a lawyer, she defends those rights against corporate greed and government overreach. She comes from a long line of men and women on both sides of her family who have stood up for Canada and their communities. Jessica is a devoted mother, wife, and friend. She loves to sing and work out, and is a terrible gardener. She lives in Comox with her family.

Why you’re running in this election

Jessica • For our children – while their voices are still too small to be heard, I can lend them mine. And when they grow up, they will know that there were ordinary people who were doing everything they could to secure a healthy and safe future for them.

Why you chose to run with the Greens, as opposed to the other parties

Jessica • The Greens are the only party who fully appreciate that climate change is a global emergency that requires all of us working together.

Your party’s three greatest achievements since 2015 – in your opinion

Jessica • Legislative Impact – Elizabeth May has successfully passed multiple private member’s bills, proving that Greens can work across party lines and deliver

Jennifer Lash

Liberal Party of Canada

real results.

Leading the Way for Proportional Representation – The Green Party has consistently advocated for electoral reform, pushing for a system that would make every vote count.

Winning Across the Country – Greens are making historic gains at all levels of government. We are a growing political force that delivers real change.

The three biggest challenges facing this riding, that Ottawa can solve

Jessica • Affordability and Cost of Living – Ottawa must take real action, including investing more in public housing, supporting local food supply chains, and expanding health care.

Climate Adaptation – Extreme weather is making life more expensive for everyone. Ottawa needs the courage to stand up to big oil and make Canada a world leader in clean energy and climate-readiness.

Electoral Reform & Democracy – Our first-past-the-post system means that voters often vote out of fear. Ottawa must implement proportional representation. We deserve a system that reflects what they really want.

April is qathet Living’s “Green” issue. What will you be contemplating on Earth Day, April 22?

Jessica • This Earth Day, we will be reflecting on the climate emergency and the Green plan for fighting it.

Jennifer grew up in Toronto, Ontario. She moved to BC in 1992, first to Nanaimo and then to Sointula, where she has lived for 27 years, building her career and raising her family.

Jen is an entrepreneur and is the founder of two not-for-profit organizations and a consulting business. More recently, she was a Senior Advisor to the federal government.

Throughout her career she worked at the intersection of the economy, conservation, climate change, and reconciliation, giving her a strong understanding of how these issues are connected.

Why you’re running in this election

Jennifer • I love this riding. Raising my family here was one of the best decisions I have ever made. But I also understand the challenges and I want to do what I can to help our communities thrive.

Why you chose to run with the Liberal Party, as opposed to the other parties

Jennifer • A Liberal government led by PM Mark Carney will ensure a strong, healthy economy while addressing important issues like climate change and reconciliation. And with the threats to our economy and sovereignty from the US, I am glad I chose the party that has the right leaders to steer us through the storm.

Your party’s three greatest achievements since 2015 – in your opinion

Jennifer • Social programs, such as the Canada Child Benefit, make life easier for so many households.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions to the lowest they have been in 27 years. Repairing our relationship with Indigenous nations through reconciliation. There remains much more to do, but we are in a better place today than a decade ago.

The three biggest challenges facing this riding, that Ottawa can solve Jennifer • Support for logging, fishing, aquaculture, and other industries facing uncertainty due to US tariff threats.

Help with affordability through programs that support housing, dental care, pharmacare, childcare, and more.

Increase the number of healthcare workers to address the inadequate services, especially in rural communities.

April is qathet Living’s “Green” issue. What will you be contemplating on Earth Day, April 22?

Jennifer • On Earth Day, I’ll be contemplating how we can work together to sustainably protect the natural beauty of our environment against climate change. A vote for Jennifer Lash is a vote for a healthy environment and against Pierre Poilievre!

Wegg

Two April Elections A

thousand conversations

qathet School District By-Election

General Voting Day: April 12

Candidate Q&As on Page 11

• Number of students: ~3000 total, 1/3 of those are Partners in Education (PIE), so not necessarily on campus (and then generally 20% of PIE students are local, but see below for specifics).

• Number of students in PIE (who are living in qathet and outside qathet – two numbers): 1022 PIE students (so ~1/3 of total), 200 live in qathet (so about 20% of 1022).

• Number of teachers: Approximately 177 active full time equivalent (FTE) teachers (does not include teachers on call (TTOCs)).

• Number of other staff: 213 FTE other staff (principals, CUPE staff such as education assistants, maintenance, operations, etc., and exempt staff). Total FTE staff at qathet school district is 390 (213 + 177 teachers).

• Total operating budget for 2024-2025 year: Budget Bylaw of $54.5 million

Numbers supplied by qathet School District

Canadian General Election

General Voting Day: April 28

Candidate Q&As on Page 6, 8, and 9

Votes in the North Island-Powell River 2021 Federal Election: NDP 39.5%; Conservative 36%; Liberal 13%; Green 6.1%. Voter turnout in 2021: 65.3%

Federal responsibilities include: Trade • Fisheries • Indigenous Relations • Bor der Security • National Security • Parks Cana da • Employment Insurance • Old Age Security & Guaranteed Income Supplement • Canada Child Tax Benefit • Health Canada • National Childcare • Veterans • Canada Council for the Arts • CBC • Firearms • CMHC • Heritage • Ports and Airports • Passports • Federal courts • Taxation • Tariffs • Statistics Canada • VIA Rail

• Natural resources & much more.

Did you know? The North Island-Powell Riv er riding includes Island communities north of Comox but not Courtenay (it is with Port Alberni). The NIPR riding also doesn’t include Lasqueti Island, even though Lasqueti is part of the qathet Regional District.

Note: qL reached out to the People’s Party of Cana da to include their candidate for North Island-Pow ell River, Paul Macknight. At press time, neither the party nor the candidate had responded.

Election and Campaign events

Friday, April 4

Rally for Conservative candidate Aaron Gunn 6pm to 8pm, Cranberry Seniors Centre.

Comox • Green Party Reception & Fundraiser with party leader Elizabeth May 7pm. With NIPR candidate Jessica Wegg. Contact northislandgreens@gmail. com for more.

Wednesday, April 9

Advance Voting for the qathet School District by-election

Between the hours of 8 am and 8 pm at the School Board Office (Board Room), 4351 Ontario. Through April 9.

Saturday, April 12

General Voting Day

• qathet School District by-election

Open to qualified electors of School District No. 47

(qathet) on Saturday, April 12, 2025 between the hours of 8 am and 8 pm at the School Board Office (Board Room), 4351 Ontario.

Tuesday, April 15

Federal Election • All Candidates Meeting 7 pm, Cranberry Seniors Centre. Hosted by the Westview Ratepayers Society.

Thursday, April 17

All-Candidates Meeting: Federal Election

Doors at 5:30pm, event from 6pm to 8pm, Evergreen Theatre. Hosted by the Chamber of Commerce.

April 18 to 21

Federal Election: Advance Voting Days See elections.ca for more.

Tuesday, April 22

Federal Election: Last day to vote by mail See elections.ca for more.

Monday, April 28

General Voting Day: Federal Election See elections.ca for more.

Aaron Gunn Conservative Party of Canada

You don’t need to make an appointment. Drop in whenever you like with your tax information to our new office! Grab a ticket from our kiosk, take a seat, and we will call you to one of the desks when we’re ready for you! We’ll get you checked in, and let you know when we expect your taxes to be ready!

Don’t wait until the last minute!

Aaron Gunn is a lifelong advocate for taxpayers and common sense.

A former Army reservist and Canadian Taxpayers Federation spokesperson, he’s since built B.C.’s largest political following through viral documentaries. Whether it’s advocating for resource workers or victims of crime, Aaron has dedicated his films to uncovering the truth and investigating the issues facing Canadians.

A proud Campbell River resident, Aaron’s running to defeat the Liberal-NDP coalition and represent you: the people of this riding.

Why you’re running in this election

Aaron • I’m tired of seeing hardworking Canadians falling further behind, while elites in Ottawa become richer and more powerful. I am running to restore common sense, to stand up for Powell River and to fight for Canada.

Why you chose to run with the Conservatives, as opposed to the other parties

Aaron • The NDP sold out workers and voted to prop up Justin Trudeau more than 200 times. Together, they have doubled the debt, doubled housing costs and increased crime. The Conservative Party is now the only party advocating for workers, fiscal responsibility, and common sense.

Your party’s three greatest achievements since 2015 – in your opinion

Aaron • While in Opposition, the Conservatives have been relentless in exposing the corruption of the Liberals, including the SNC-Lavalin and We Charity scandals. If elected, we look forward to delivering on our platform of good jobs in safe neighbourhoods and homes you can afford, while rebuilding our military and standing up for Canada on the international stage.

The three biggest challenges facing this riding, that Ottawa can solve

Aaron • Fix the revolving-door justice system by introducing jail not bail for repeat, violent offenders while leaving hunters and sports shooters alone.

Get inflation and housing costs under control by axing the Liberal carbon tax (for good), bringing common sense caps to immigration, and incentivizing the fast-tracking of new home construction.

Bring more good-paying jobs back to Powell River and the North Island by lowering taxes and supporting our incredible resource sector.

April is qathet Living’s “Green” issue. What will you be contemplating on Earth Day, April 22?

Aaron • On Earth Day, I will be thinking about green technology and new, innovative ways to address real environmental concerns without imposing punitive taxes on everyday people.

Tanille Johnston

New Democratic Party of Canada

I’m Tanille Johnston, born and raised in Campbell River, and member of the WeWaiKai Nation. I am the first First Nation member to ever take a seat on Campbell River Council.

I work as a Primary Care Manager with the First Nations Health Authority. I have my Masters and Undergrad in Social Work. I have recently been published for the first time with an essay in a book and have been involved in politics for over 15 years. I’m ready to go to bat for North Island-Powell River in Ottawa!

Why you’re running in this election

Tanille • I’m deeply rooted to this riding. Hearing the division and negativity of the Poilievre Conservatives and his pro-America, Donald Trump Agenda, I felt compelled to do everything I could to stand up for the people of North Island-Powell River, to protect our free public health care, make your life more affordable, and make sure those at the top pay their fair share.

Why did you choose to run with the NDP, as opposed to the other parties

Tanille • Over the last four years, the New Democratic Party has delivered great things for Canadians and residents of North Island – Powell River, including dental care, child care, and free birth

Class 5 / 7

Cars, vans, trucks, construction, utility vehicles and motorhomes.

Class 4 Restricted

Taxis and limousines, ride-hailing, ambulances, and vehicles up to 10 people.

control and diabetes medication. I know that with the NDP, people in our community get ahead.

We also know a vote for the Liberal candidate here guarantees a Conservative victory. The Liberals haven’t even come second here in 25 years. The Conservatives represent an anti-choice and binary ideology that I could never support and will fight against every day.

Your party’s three greatest achievements since 2015 – in your opinion

Tanille • National School Food Program, National Pharmacare Plan for Diabetes, $10/day Child Care, and the National Dental Program.

The three biggest challenges facing this riding, that Ottawa can solve

Tanille • Canada needs to work as a team. We need to enable healthcare professionals to practice country-wide; build homes people can actually afford; and implement taxation that is truly equitable, where the ultra-rich pay their fair share.

April is qathet Living’s “Green” issue. What will you be contemplating on Earth Day, April 22?

Tanille • I want North Island-Powell River to become a leader in sustainable resource development and energy sources, creating a vibrant economy and well-paying jobs.

Class 4 Unrestricted

Buses with a max of 25, including school buses, and everything in Class 4 Restricted.

Class 3

Dump trucks and large tow trucks, truck cranes, & more.

Class 1

Coming soon!

Tractor-trailer and Air Brakes course.

Shawn Swanson

School Attendance: Every Day Matters

As students return from a well-deserved break, they are settling back into their routines and reconnecting with friends and teachers. With just under three months left in the school year, each lesson, discussion, and experience contributes to their success. Given that youth spend a significant amount of time in school, it’s no surprise that their school experiences play a crucial role in shaping their cognitive development, as well as their physical and mental well-being. Research shows that consistent attendance is essential not only for strengthening academic performance, but also for cultivating emotional connections. Students who feel connected to their school are more likely to develop strong emotional bonds and increased self-confidence.

Understanding Barriers to School Attendance

Regular school attendance helps students build life skills, friendships, and develop a love for learning. While some students may face barriers to attending school, such as anxiety, social challenges, or other difficulties — there is support available to help find a solution. By working together, families and schools can create an environment where students feel supported and excited to learn. If a student is struggling with attendance, asking the right questions can help uncover the underlying issue:

How do they feel about school?

Are certain subjects or environments causing stress?

Are they facing social challenges, like making friends or feeling left out?  Are they feeling overwhelmed academically?

How is their mental and emotional well-being? Are there family or home-related factors affecting attendance?

Do they feel supported by their teachers and school staff?

Sometimes, even small issues can feel big to kids. Understanding the challenges that they are facing is the first step to finding solutions that can help them feel more motivated to attend school regularly.

The Power of Collaborative Support

When schools, families, and communities work together, attendance improves, students feel more engaged, and academic success increases. Recognizing that some families face challenges such as food insecurity, mental health concerns, or transportation difficulties, qathet School District staff are there to support. There are services offered such as open-access food programs and the district’s partnership with qathet’s Integrated Child & Youth team — there to support.

Learn more at sd47.bc.ca

Building Strong Attendance Habits

You can help your student develop lifelong attendance habits by:

• Establishing consistent bedtimes and morning routines

• Encouraging responsibility for missed school work

• Keeping open, on-going communication with teachers

• Addressing school-related stress before it escalates

• Sharing and/or seeking out best practices from other parents/families/ guardians

• Seeking support from school staff or community programs

— whenever needed!

“The positive impacts of regular attendance at school cannot be underestimated. From connection and brain development right through to employability and overall health, each day at school matters – now and in the long term” - Vianne Kintzinger, Interim Superintendent.

Every Single Day Counts! Regular school attendance sets a foundation for lifelong success. When schools, families, and communities work together to create a culture of belonging and engagement, students develop habits that set them up for lifelong achievement. If challenges exist that make attendance difficult, help is available — please reach out! We want every student to graduate with dignity, purpose, and many exciting options for their future.

Filling Hill’s shoes

Guy Chartier

Originally from Montréal, I pursued a career in education and worked in Canada, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. In 2010, my spouse Calico and I relocated to the qathet region to raise our family. In 2013, I completed a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and joined the qathet Division of Family Practice in the role of Executive Director. Our two sons, Gabriel and Samuel, have been students of qathet School District since Kindergarten.

Why did you decide to run for School Board?

Guy • Passionate about governance, I believe good governance leads to strong and resilient organizations, fulfilled and dedicated employees and ultimately, in the context of qathet School District, positive and nurturing environment for students. I am therefore excited about the prospect of contributing to the qathet Board of Education.

What are the three most important issues qathet schools are facing right now?

Guy • From my research to further my understanding of key local issues, it seems as if the top three recurrent issues are recruitment and retention of staff, capital funding as well as inclusive education support. Such issues are experienced by many other rural school districts and require not only a strong advocacy approach to ensure adequate support from Ministry of Educa-

School Board Trustee Rob Hill stepped down in December, triggering this by-election.

One of the candidates below will join chairperson Jaclyn Miller, vice-chair Maureen Mason, and trustees Kirsten Van’t Schip and Dale Lawson for the remaining term, which ends in the fall of 2026. That’s when we’ll vote in a new School Board, City Council, and Regional District.

If you’re 18 and over, a citizen, and a resident of qathet, you can likely vote in this election (the rules get a little complicated if you own property here but are not living here currently. See sd47.bc.ca for more). General voting is on Saturday, April 12, from

tion and Child Care but also ongoing innovative collaboration to meet the needs of our students, now and in the future.

As a trustee, what do you see as your role in addressing these challenges?

Guy • First, these challenges must be the agreed upon focus of the whole Board of Education with the support from the Superintendent. Then, our role as trustees is to ensure that we have a plan in place to tackle these challenges.

What else should voters know, before they head to the polls?

Guy • I bring 11 years of governance experience, which includes onboarding two Chief Executive Officers, overseeing multi-million-dollar budgets and ensuring that strategic plans deliver on priorities.

Gretchen Conti

8 am to 8 pm at the School Board Office, 4351 Ontario Avenue. Advance voting is on Wednesday, April 9, 8 am to 8 pm, same place.

What will they actually do? Under the Provincial Schools Act and the Ministry of Education, they are the local representatives who: set local policy for the effective and efficient operation of schools; employ the staff necessary for school district operations; establish conditions of employment for employees; prepare and approve the school district’s operating budgets and capital plans; and hear appeals from parents and students, according to the BC School Trustees Association.

I am a mother of two with 20 years of experience in education, the last 10 of which have been in BC public schools. I have been an Education Assistant in qathet for five years and have worked with students in every school except Texada. In addition to volunteering and engaging with several organizations in qathet, I am an active member in the Westview Parent Advisory Council (PAC) and their current representative at District PAC.

Why did you decide to run for School Board?

Gretchen • The same impulse that led me to work in education with some of the most vulnerable students has led me to run for School Board Trustee: the desire to help. I have first hand knowledge of the barriers and challenges and I’ve seen what works.

What are the three most important issues qathet schools are facing right now?

Gretchen • 1. Academics: Accommodating individual learning needs while providing opportunities for rigorous academics and critical thinking skills is foundational to a robust system. 2. Social Emotional Learning: In our ever changing world, students are dealing with unprecedented pressures. Continuing to educate on self regulation, healthy relationships, and emotional connections to one’s own learning is critical to a meaningful education. 3. Digital Literacy:

Youth today live in competing realities–physical and virtual. Teaching students how to navigate online spaces safely and with purpose will help cultivate a confident and resilient generation.

As a trustee, what do you see as your role in addressing these challenges?

Gretchen • I will work to bridge the classroom and boardroom and reflect the unique student needs in our community through policy, planning, and priorities.

What else should voters know before heading to the polls?

Gretchen • If I am successful in my campaign, I will resign from my position as an EA and will devote myself to fulfilling the role of a trustee and making myself accessible to the community.

Lower

DELICIOUS MEMORIES: Above, ošil Betty Wilson at 32 Lakes Café and Bakery, with her book Herring to Huckleberries, illustrated by Prashant Miranda. It will be released on April 15. Oceanside Entertainment, Pollen Sweaters and Pocket Books will sell the ayajuthem-English book, published by HighWater Press. Right, illustrations from the book, which features qathet in the early 1950s.

BY PIETA WOOLLEY

Betty ošil Wilson will never write another book. This one, her first and last, a mere 40 pages, took three years, from idea through publication. Her personal, family stories were scrutinized by a team during the editing process. It wasn’t bad, she said. It was just, well, a lot.

“I wrote it in ayajuthem first, and the language patterns are different,” she explained. “My editor was very gentle [when translating it into English.] ‘What if we say it this way?’ Also, I didn’t realize children’s books can only have a certain number of pages. I had to leave so much out!”

You’d never guess there was so much drama behind the scenes, because the book itself is a polished, delightful read featuring engaging illustrations by Lund-based artist Prashant Miranda – who was also the instigator of the book, motivating Betty to write down her many stories.

“He just kept pushing,” she reported. “It didn’t take me very long.”

Herring to Huckleberries, which will be released April 15, is about a young Betty and her grandparents gathering, processing and enjoying food each

season, next to the Salish Sea. It’s also about how close her family was – and how clean and abundant the local food supply was in the early 1950s. It’s a book about an ecosystem, in other words, of plants and animals, love, responsibility, and community.

“We pass the houses where my family all lives in a row,” Betty writes about walking to Scuttle Bay. “… I’m free to wander in and out of the houses with the other kids. I always know what’s happening with everybody.”

Over lattés, Betty reveals that she lobbied her grandparents to keep her out of school to let her harvest with them, always. Her grandmother refused, arguing that she had to go to learn how to read, so she could read the letters sent to her grandparents.

They were just pretending to need her, she said. They could read perfectly well.

It turned out that Betty loved reading and books. Although she wasn’t al-

lowed to visit the Powell River Public Library as a young girl because she is Tla’amin, her teachers at day school brought her piles of library books each week. As long as she returned them, they kept coming. No one was surprised when Betty eventually became a teacher.

Now, she’s a grandmother. As much as anything, this is a book about the power of grandparenting.

“When grandparents are a really significant part of children’s lives, the whole family benefits,” she said. “It was being on the land with my grandparents, and having them love me through the hard times, that gave me my sense of strength and my sense of confidence,” she said.

“Here in Tla’amin,” the book ends, “I have everything I need. I have food from the land and sea, and family and friends to gather close and share it with. All is well.”

What “green” means

qathet Living’s annual Earth Month issue kicks off with a new illustrated book by Tla’amin Elder Betty Wilson and Lund-based artist Prashant Miranda that recalls this region’s abundant foodscape of the early 1950s. It hits the streets on April 15.

“Green” can mean hope, vision, and hard work.

Page 16: Rare and at-risk flora and fauna at Stillwater Bluffs

Page 20: All hands on deck to battle invasive species

Page 21: Learning about food sustainability from Cuba

Page 25: Carpooling comes to qathet – formally

Page 26: Found and natural pigments

Page 27: Renew Art Faire

Page 29: They axed the carbon tax

Page 30: The glory of gardening returns

Open Fri-Sat-Sun-Mon the remainder of April, then starting May 1 open every day except Wednesday

This was not a bumper year for herring spawn near qathet

Normally by now, the big herring spawns have come and gone from the Salish Sea. This year, Tla’amin Guardian Watchman Andrew Timothy reports, there was a very small spawn at Black Point, a small spawn on the south tip of Savary, and another one on the south tip of Cortes. But here in qathet, the waters have been mostly empty of the milky-white event.

That’s something Tla’amin Nation is working to change.

“A lot of the work we’re doing as Watchmen lately is restoring the estuaries out in front of the Nation,” said Andrew in a phone interview. “Canada geese eat the grasses in the estuaries, which has been a big hiding place for herring and small fish fry. We’re doing work with a woman from Pender Harbour at a bull kelp farm. That’s another big place for herring – they spawn on the bull kelp.”

Andrew noted that herring spawn were common around qathet before the 1980s, when the commercial fishery decimated the food fish. There have been a few hopeful years in the past decade; 2025 wasn’t one of them.

He remembers, as a child, setting cedar boughs into the ocean with his parents to collect herring eggs. Pulling out the boughs, he loved to peel the eggs off the cedar and eat them raw.

“It [the roe] gets the taste from the cedar. I’m not sure how to explain it. It’s kind of bitter. You can boil it in a soup. Or fry it. I prefer it raw myself.”

Escape to Nature and visit Haywire Bay!

Opening Day is Friday, May 2 for the 2025 season. Gates open at noon.

HABITAT: Prashant Miranda’s colourful illustrations of Betty Wilson’s early 1950s memories of gathering herring with her grandfather. The fatty little fish were a significant food source for this region before the commercial fishery nearly wiped them out in the 1980s.

Nestled along the picturesque southeast shore of Powell Lake, Haywire Bay Regional Park & Campground offers a serene retreat for nature lovers and outdoor enthusiasts alike.

The park features 49 individual RV and tent campsites, two group campsites, a cabin, piped drinking water, dry pit toilets, showers, a boat ramp, and two swimming beaches.

The park is operated and maintained by the qathet Regional District, with an onsite caretaker responsible for managing the campsite.

If you have questions, please contact our park caretaker at 604-483-1097 during the camping season or Operational Services during the off-season at 604-485-2260. You can also email us at haywirebaypark@qathet.ca.

For more information, scan this QR code or visit our website at qathet.ca/haywire-bay-regional-park-campground

SCAN ME

HERRING

A little shared inspiration at the film festival, and voila. A book.

Prashant Miranda grew up in Bangalore and studied at India’s National Institute of Design. After moving to Canada in 1999, he designed children’s animated shows for TV in Toronto.

He now spends his time in qathet, where he travels and documents his life through his watercolour journals, animates films, teaches visual art, illustrates children’s books, and paints murals.

Why did you choose to take on Herring to Huckleberries?

Prashant • I’ve known Betty for over 10 years now, and have heard many of her wonderful stories. In 2021, while we were watching an Indigenous film as part of our film festival, I proposed to Betty, that if she wrote a book of her stories, I would illustrate it. That night I did a little watercolour of Betty as a child picking clams on the beach.

Betty started writing, and very quickly she knew it had to be written in ʔayʔajuθəm. I then made a proposal and sent it off to publishers, as for me this book would have socioanthropological and ethnographic relevance, and would be very important for the preservation of the language.

ON SABBATICAL: Lund-based artist Prashant Miranda is currently doing a residency in Jingdezhen, China, learning about porcelain. He illustrated Herring to Huckleberries

When Portage and Main / Highwater Press approached us, Betty and I knew that they were the right publishers for us, and I was excited to take on this project.

What was similar about your own childhood and Betty’s? What was different?

Prashant • Growing up in India, there was a great sense of family and community, and with it was always great food! Festivals were always celebrated with family, friends, and neighbours sharing food. That is very similar to Betty’s

childhood, too.

I’d say the loss of language and culture that happened with settler colonization in Betty’s realm was far more drastic than what was taken away from our culture growing up in south India.

Why are children’s books important?

Prashant • Children are our future. What they see and learn at an early age has immense impact on the way they see the world. As a child, children’s books had a huge influence on my imagination and creativity, that led me to illustrate many children’s books as an adult. If a book can make a child smile, or pique their curiosity, who knows how that could influence their lives in later years?

What are you doing overseas?

Prashant • This is my seventh year after moving to Tidal Art Centre in Lund, and it was time for me to take a sabbatical and explore the world again.

I started this year with an artist residency in Lisbon, Portugal in January, and now I’m in the historic and cultural district of Jingdezhen, China, which is the ceramic capital where blue and white porcelain was made and exported to the rest of the world during the Ming and Qing dynasties. I’m doing a ceramic residency at Taoyang Alley International Studio for three months here.

What’s your favourite page from this book, and why?

Prashant • I think my favourite is Betty and her grandparents sleeping under the stars on  ʔagayqsən Island. I had done a rough illustration of this for the book proposal, when Betty told me that her grandmother made blankets out of old used woollen coats. It is a special one!

Celebrating 25 Years of Excellence in Construction

Twenty-five years ago, Wes Brown returned to his hometown and launched WB Contracting in Powell River. His team has been giving homeowners across the region a new look for a quarter century, so in 2025, it was time for the business to have a new look, too. Watch for this new WB Contracting logo out and about in the community. It’s a new look, but the meaning is the same – quality construction you can trust.

BY THE BLUFFS: These species live in the sensitive, unprotected ecosystem at Stillwater Bluffs. This page, from top: Northern alligator lizard hosts baby ticks on its scales, which feast on its blood. If these ticks have Lyme disease, the lizard’s blood will cure them of it.

Gnome Plant. A plant that contains no chlorophyl cells, which is what most plants use for fuel. These plants eat from the local mycorrhizal network, that in turn gets nutrients from other plants roots. Giant green anemone. One of many cool tidepool creatures along the Bluffs.

Trees and moss.

Lily of the valley. Just starting to grow.

The Red-legged Frog is on the provincial Blue List. It is designated as a species of special concern federally. The Redlegged Frog is protected in that it cannot be killed, collected, or held in captivity without special permits.

Not a park. Despite its parklike appearance, the Bluffs are currently owned by a logging/development company.

Opposite page: Coralroot orchid, one of five known species of orchid at the Bluffs. There may be a sixth species, can you find it? If you do, document it with iNaturalist.

Photos by Jason Addy

Rare and at-risk flora and fauna at Stillwater Bluffs

Vulnerable

BY DAVID HARRIS

In the beginning

Coastal British Columbia has a long, long, history. We do not know the details of much of that history, but it is clear that the First Nations have lived here for close to 15,000 years.

Through all that time, what we now call Stillwater Bluffs stayed much as it had always been – an ancient coastal forest overlooking the Salish Sea – until about 125 years ago, when the huge old trees began to feel the bite of axes and saws.

Fortunately, logging in that era left many standing trees, and the modern practice of clearcutting right down to the ground and replanting huge areas with a single species was still in the future. This allowed the Bluffs to regrow naturally and avoid becoming the monoculture we see in modern tree farms.

Today

Because of that natural regrowth, when you walk among the trees and along the cliffs and shoreline of Stillwater Bluffs today, you may feel that you have gone back in time to an untouched land. It is not just the age and variety of the trees that makes you feel as though you had stepped into a real, natural forest, but also the variety of other life – a huge mixed bag of fungi, insects, plants, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals all living together in a way that is rare in the “forests” grown by the logging companies. That combination of real mixed forest, and the sea cliffs and beaches below, is what makes Stillwater Bluffs worth preserving and why the Friends of Stillwater Bluffs Association (FOSBA) was formed almost twenty years ago to fight for that preservation.

Tomorrow

But what, you might ask, is this “fight for preservation” talk about? That natural regrowth has al-

NOT BLUFFING, THEY’RE AT RISK: Spreading wood fern. Ferns and mosses carpet the forest floor at Stillwater Bluffs. Crab Spider. Well hidden on a Yarrow flower, it has the ability to change colour to match the flower it is on. It hunts insects, not with a web, but with camouflage, and a deadly venom. Fly agaric. A type of amanita mushroom. A very poisonous mushroom, it is also used as a medicine. Yes, it has killed people. Pacific tree frog. No need to turn the paper sideways. This frog’s photo was captured at the top of a climb on Sunshine Corner at Stillwater bluffs. Vertical, plutonic, dioritic. Turkey vulture. Lots of these guys around to keep the area clean as they eat primarily dead animals. I have seen columns of them in groups of 25 or more circling around and up in a thermal. What luggage do they bring to the airport? Just carrion.

lowed Stillwater Bluffs to perfectly preserve itself, right? So why worry?

Why? Because Stillwater Bluffs is not a protected park. It is what is called in BC “Privately Managed Forest Lands,” controlled by a logging company that could start cutting down the trees tomorrow, and then, once the trees are gone, sell the land to a real estate developer.

FOSBA was created to protect the ecological integrity of Stillwater Bluffs, while allowing low-impact public access. We want to show local, regional, and provincial governments how much the community wants Stillwater Bluffs as a park or protected area.

Why Stillwater Bluffs?

For the foreseeable future we will still need wood, and we will still need more housing. Given this reality, not every area can be protected from logging and real estate development. So why choose to protect Stillwater Bluffs rather than any other site? There are several reasons:

Accessibility: Stillwater Bluffs is as close to a “real” forest as most people in this area can get to without spending hours driving up rough logging roads and then more hours hiking into the mountains. See the map on the fosba.org website for directions.

Biodiversity: The forest at Stillwater was never clearcut and replanted with a monoculture. It has regrown naturally, and is home to a richly diverse ecosystem. FOSBA has so far documented over 200 separate species of plant and animal life, and we encourage you to download the iNaturalist app, and add to that total on your next visit to the Bluffs. For more on iNaturalist, see the box on the facing page.

Beauty: The “bluffs” in Stillwater Bluffs are the rocky sea cliffs stretching for over a kilometer along the shore, separating the forest from the ocean. There are gorgeous views out over the Salish Sea, and easy access in several places to the shoreline below.

Strong local support: To guide it in developing a “Parks and Greenspace Acquisition Strategy”, the qathet Regional District commissioned a survey two years ago to understand the priorities of the Dis-

Photos by Jason Addy

ROUGH SKINNED NEWT: Don’t eat this guy as he is full of the neurotoxin tetrodotoxin, the same one that is in Puffer Fish. The good news is that tetrodotoxin is effective against cancer-related pain and can be synthesized in a lab.

trict’s residents (including the city of Powell River).

Regarding potential new parks, Stillwater Bluffs was the overwhelming choice.

See it for yourself

If you have never visited Stillwater Bluffs, you owe it to yourself to make your first visit. All you need is a comfortable pair of shoes and a couple of hours. See the Friends of Stillwater Bluffs website at fosba.org for all the information you will need.

And when you return from that first visit you will understand why over 500 of your neighbours have already joined FOSBA to show their support for the preservation of this unique place.

How can you help?

The Friends of Stillwater Bluffs Association is a registered non-profit society whose mission is to see the Bluffs permanently protected through the purchase of the land by an entity that will ensure that this beautiful place will not be logged or developed as real estate, and that the public access to it will be preserved for future generations.

There are many ways you can help us achieve this goal.

• Visit the Bluffs (map and directions on our website at fosba.org). Tread lightly, stay on the trails, and pack out what you pack in.

• Learn more about the history of the Bluffs and FOSBA. Read the historical timeline on our website.

• Watch our short video. It’s on the website, or you can watch it on YouTube (just search for “save Stillwater Bluffs”).

• Join FOSBA. It’s easy – go to fosba.org and click on “Get Involved”

• Donate to our acquisition fund. You can read more about this on the website, and donations over $20.00 receive a charitable tax credit.

iNaturalist and the Stillwater Bluffs BioSearch

In June 2021, the Friends of Stillwater Bluffs (FOSBA) launched the “Stillwater Bluffs BioSearch” as a way to compile an inventory of plant and animal species at Stillwater Bluffs and show what an ecological treasure the place is.

The BioSearch, hosted on the iNaturalist website, allows individuals to add information to a scientifically recognized database. Within one year the database contained over 100 different species – well over the required minimum of 50 entries to qualify a defined area for official recognition.

Now, as summer 2025 approaches, the total is over 200! This gives FOSBA a broad catalogue of important ecosystem information which may help to preserve the Bluffs for future generations.

So, what is iNaturalist and how does it work? Just download the free iNaturalist app to your phone and use it to take photos of any plant, animal, bird, reptile, or fungus. The app then does two things: first, it immediately helps identify whatever is in the photo, and second, it creates a record that includes the photo, the species, and the date, time, and location.

So, if you go for a hike on Stillwater Bluffs, and use the app to photograph some interesting flower or bird or mushroom, iNaturalist will automatically add your observation to the Stillwater Bluffs BioSearch. You can also open a map on your iNaturalist app and see coloured dots that indicate an observation, and then click on any dot to see what it is and when it was observed. Or you could search for “red-legged frog” and see observations recorded near you. So go ahead, download the app and get started. Although it is not a science project itself, iNaturalist is a platform for science and conservation efforts, providing valuable open data to research projects, land managers, other organizations, and the public.

Chop and Drop &

Repair damaged retaining walls, level out your stepping stones, fix and stain fences, benches, decks, sheds, trellises, window boxes and raised beds

Photo by Jason Addy

Manufactured right here in Powell River

You already know we build designer cabinetry Did you know we use eco-concious materials?

From NAF-rated plywood to low-VOC finishes and adhesives, we carefully select materials that promote a healthier indoor environment while minimizing environmental impact.

Matt and Nicole Bordignon elementalmillwork.com (604) 414 - 0933

Do you provide health services in qathet?

Contact Sean Percy before September 5 to get your free listing in ZEST magazine/directory. sean@qathetliving.ca or 604-485-0003

BYE BYE, BROOM: Scotch broom is a highly-flammable, aggresive invasive species that chokes out native plants. Each year, about 700 BC volunteers cut it.

How to make friends and influence invasives

Ivy Pulls

Kate Sutherland organizes these open-invitation social events regularly. Upcoming is Sunday, April 27, 3-4:30pm. Meet at the main parking lot for Valentine Mountain. To RSVP for this or future ivy pulls, contact Kate at kate@emergecollab.com

Sturdy footwear is recommended. Please bring gardening gloves and gardening clippers if you have them. There will be extras available.

Broom Busters

Starting in early May, Terry Peters organizes these group cuts through broombusters.org. To be part of a volunteer crew, contact him at terryrpeters63@ gmail.com. Cutting on your own? The Resource Recovery Centre accepts invasive plant material for free through May: broom, blackberries, morning glory, holly, and more.

BY ROBERT HACKETT

How well would we in qathet cope with ongoing electrical outages, disruption of our supply chains, and climate change-related floods, storms, and drought making our food supply more precarious and our lives more difficult?

Empty grocery shelves during the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted our isolated region’s vulnerability. Perhaps we should pay more attention to our food security – a stable and reliable supply of diverse and high-quality food for the population.

That’s one reason my partner Angelika and I decided to join an exceptional immersive tour of Cuban organic farms. Led by Ron Berezan, farm manager of Blueberry Commons in Wildwood, and Ottawa-based agro-ecologist Naomi de Ville, we joined a group of twenty-one, including seven from qathet.

Our visit was bookended by stays at two socially-progressive religious institutions – the Centro Cristiano de Reflexión y Diálogo (CCRD) in the working-class town of Cárdenas, and Convento Santa Brígida in old Havana. In between, we were warmly welcomed at two botanical gardens and 18 farms, from small urban plots (organopónicos) to medium-sized fincas. We ate superbly, better than at most tourist hotels – fresh farm produce, including a rich range of vegetables. We also visited former sugar plantations, reminders of Cuba’s tragic history of slavery and colonialism.

For a city-bred boy who can barely tell a turnip from a tulip, it was a steep learning curve. Here are my main takeaways:

Crisis as the mother of invention

Although Cuba’s socialist revolution dates from 1959, food security wasn’t really on the policy agenda until the Soviet Bloc collapsed in 1991, ending guaranteed markets for Cuban sugar, and supplies of oil and food.

Since then, Cuba’s enormous economic and social challenges have been both an incentive to aim for food security, and obstacles to achieving it. They include the ongoing US embargo, isolating Cuba from international credit and trade; the devastating and

Food Security

Earth Month inspiration from Cuba

LEARNING FROM CUBANS: Group from qathet at urban farm Finca El Estadio: Farmer Alberto, Ron Berezan, Lot Sparham, Ika Hackett, Bob Hackett, Jody Jankola, Aaron Mazurek, Farmer Joaquín, Darcy Kaltio.

Photo by Naomi de Ville

lingering impact of the pandemic on tourism; global inflation driving up the cost of agricultural inputs; mass emigration, decimating the workforce and separating families; shortage of farm labour, as most young people aren’t interested; and increasingly destructive hurricanes fuelled by global warming.

To all that, add recent crippling electricity outages, due to surging oil prices and breakdowns in aging thermal power plants. Our group spent about half of our sixteen tour days in blackouts, an inconvenience for our cell phones – but what about our hosts?

That’s their lives.

Food security needs supportive policy

Driven by necessity, the Cuban government has enacted economic and agricultural reforms. It has supplemented the historically export-oriented, carbon-intensive and monocrop state sector with co-operative and small-scale private farms.

These now account for about 80% of Cuba’s domestic food production, with about 68% of the agricultural land surface, according to our group’s accompanying expert, Jesús “Chucho” Iglesias.

Agriculture is the only economic sector where non-state management predominates, through the system of “usufruct.” The government retains formal ownership, but allocates land plots to farmers who commit to keeping them productive.

Through flexible long-term contracts, the government takes a substantial portion of the produce at a low fixed price. Some portion often goes to local social services such as daycare

and seniors’ centres.

Farmers can feed their families and sell the rest through markets, hotels and restaurants.

It’s certainly not without problems. Farmers often wait for months for payment, said Jesús, and a shortage of start-up funds and willing workers is typical.

Restrictive contracts, the absence of a national market, and the state’s control over imports of farm machinery are other challenges, says the CCRD’s Juan Arnaldo Pérez.

But usufruct ensures that land is available, at no upfront cost, for people who want to farm it.

According to agro-ecologist Leidy Casimiro Rodríguez, 100,000 farms like her family’s Finca del Medio could enable Cuba to feed itself. And with time and effort, it’s doable.

Social and cultural change from below

The Cuban government – centralized, bureaucratic, authoritarian – is wearing thin with many of its citizens. Many Cubans want a more “open” economy, though perhaps with unrealistic expectations about markets’ benefits.

Even now, social inequality is increasing, says sociologist María de los Ángeles Álvarez.

Still, the post-1990 reforms enabled ordinary people with extraordinary vision and hard work to establish farms from scratch, often confounding skeptics who had called them crazy.

Take Fernando Funes. With a background in agricultural research, Funes convinced himself and his wife Claudia to put knowledge into practice.

After fifteen years of experimentation and growth, Finca Marta (named after his late mother) is now a magnificent spread and a marketing, research, and knowledge hub for about 80 farms in his territory. (See the knowledge.ca program “Island Diaries” on Cuba.)

And Lisi Delgado López. Trained as a chemical engineer, she would gaze from her office over a barren urban field, dreaming of what it could be. Lisi is now head of “Nature with a Woman’s Face,” a farm providing fresh food to her community, with twelve employees – all men!

Lisi aimed (successfully!) to preserve Cuban standards of feminine beauty, to inspire women who might otherwise be deterred by agriculture’s grimy image.

Resilience, determination, resourcefulness, ingenuity

These words recurred in our group’s discussions on what we had seen.

Facing material scarcity, broken implements are jerry-rigged. Seeds are saved. Experimentation is ongoing. Well-digging continues even without machinery. Farmers in areas hard-hit by blackouts arise at ungodly hours during ‘electricity windows’, whether to power the pumps for water, or cook for their Canadian guests. The invasive marabú shrub becomes fencing, biochar, or cattle feed. Animal manure becomes fertilizer or biogas.

Families

Another recurring theme – patrimonio – natural and cultural heritage. Some of the farmers are carrying on several generations of family tradition, in some cases returning to land they cultivated before the Revolution. Multi-generation families work the land together.

Co-operation, collaboration, community

Cuban farmers support and learn from each other. Profit is important, but not a primary goal. Transforming the land, life, and food culture of a community, and the whole country, is.

Taking care

Originating in Australia in the 1970s, permaculture found a natural home in Cuba. It’s as much a philosophy – of care for humans, Earth, and future – as a set of techniques.

Many farmers we visited had originally followed conventional approaches, but went organic after concluding that chemicals harmed the soil. Thus, rather than chemical pesticides, a farmer in the fabled cigar region of Pinar del Río uses deceptively tasty bacteria that tobacco-eating worms devour and then die.

Many of the farms are gorgeous, decorated with flowers or works of art. Love of animals is evident, too.

tanille.ca  Tanille.Johnston@ndp.ca   fb.com/ndptanille  @votetanille @tanille-tanille.bsky.social   @votetanille

FEMINIST FARM CULTURE: Lisi Delgado López with bounty from her farm “Nature With a Woman’s Face”.

Photo by Ika Hackett

One farm favoured hand-milking over its milking machines because it keeps the cows happier, and oxen over its tractor because the plodding beasts are kinder to the soil.

Even stray cats and dogs in the cities were treated kindly.

Takeaways for qathet?

What did local urban farmers take from this experience? For Aaron Mazurek, owner and manager of Terra Nostra south of town, the most powerful impression was seeing his permaculture knowledge put into widespread practice. The visit confirmed small-scale organic farming as central to food security.

Ron Berezan applauds Cuba’s usufruct system, possibly unique in the world, for making land (if not sufficient resources) available to farmers. He also commends Cuba’s growing cultural respect for farming, and its modest successes and ambitious plans for replacing the hard-pressed electricity grid with solar power.

And it’s a reminder of our own vulnerability.

“Nobody expected the Cuban food system to collapse so quickly” in 1991, says Ron.

Fifteen years ago, a study found that qathet grows only about 4% of its food. We are too dependent on California’s uncertain bounty, which could literally dry up with climate change, irrigation disputes, or mass deportation of migrant farm workers – not to mention the trade war and tariffs.

Given the inflation of recent years, many Canadians already experience food insecurity.

Together, Ron and Aaron offer a grocery basket of steps we could take locally:

• Expand local production, with the support of local and provincial governments.

• Build a second farmers’ market to supplement the one in Paradise Valley.

• Subsidize local organic producers, at least to the level of the big players.

• Provide City land for small plots. Provide food education in schools, and agricultural programs at the local university campus.

• Support City Council’s request to the BC government to renew the Farmers’ Market Nutrition Coupon program, supplying fresh local food to low-income families and seniors.

• Develop a local food storage hub, and organic waste recovery facilities; currently local farms buy fertilizer from elsewhere, while qathet’s waste is shipped to Sechelt.

• Adopt food security as an official goal.

Our group left Cuba deeply moved and inspired. Our departure brought tears.

But what did we deliver in return? Most obviously, many suitcases of useful household, musical, electronic, and farming items difficult to obtain in Cuba. A commitment to raise funds for well-digging machinery for the Bombino family – a couple with three children on a hardscrabble farm currently irrigated only by a thin nail-punctured hose connected to an external water supplier.

Perhaps most important, says Berezan, we brought to Cuban farmers recognition of their work’s global significance. We help them replace the dream of emigrating, with one of building a future in their own country. They are pioneers of food security, and they aren’t walking alone.

WELL DUG: The Bombino family’s well hole, dug by hand with these tools until they hit solid rock. Photos by Courtney Lake and John Shinnerer. The qathet group successfully fundraised for them to hire well-digging equipment.

qathet carpool

A community project to help decrease transport emissions

BY PADDY LEFLUFY

Since moving to qathet from England a couple of years ago, I have really enjoyed settling into the area – the incredibly picturesque coastline, the rugged mountains, the thriving cultural scene, and the lovely community are all wonderful.

But one of the few disappointments I have had is just how car-centric life here can be. I miss the convenience of easily walkable towns, and I’m saddened by the carbon emissions from all the driving.

So, in association with qathet Climate Alliance and funded by a grant from First Credit Union, I am launching a new community project: qathet community carpool.

The idea of a carpool is that when a few people are all driving in the same direction, they may as well go in as few cars as possible, rather than everyone driving themselves. Of course, this already happens among friends to some extent. The carpool project aims to make it much more common by making it much easier to organise. The website, qathetcarpool. ca, gives access to the software developed by another excellent non-profit website, Carpool World.

You just type in your journeys, whether they are regular or one-off, and how much of a detour you are willing to make. Then Carpool World connects you with other people making similar journeys. Easy!

By decreasing the number of car journeys we collectively take, carpooling can significantly decrease our transport emissions.

We really need to do this: the UN’s IPCC calculates that a responsible personal carbon footprint is about

two tonnes of emissions a year, which works out as about 17 litres of gas a week. So if you’re spending more than $35 a week on gas, you’re going over your entire responsible carbon budget just with the gas you put in your car – before considering food, heating, purchases, and holidays.

There are loads of other positives of carpooling too: it will give more options for people who can’t drive or don’t have a car; it’s cheaper as less is spent on gas; and it will provide another way to connect people in the community. In short, by carpooling you can make friends, cut pollution, and save money. It’s a win-win-win idea.

So let’s get carpooling, qathet! Head to qathetcarpool.ca and sign up now!

Planned power outage

Powell River and surrounding communities

We realize there’s never a good time to have an outage, however a planned 12 hour power outage is needed for the Powell River and surrounding area. The work is part of the Jervis Inlet and Agamemnon Channel Power Line Replacement Project and includes major upgrades to the transmission system. Our crews will also undertake required transmission line maintenance to maintain electricity reliability to Powell River and the surrounding area. To safely complete the work, we need to switch off power in your region for about 12 hours.

Where: Powell River, Lund, Cortes Island, Texada Island, Saltery Bay.

When: Sunday, September 14 from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

For more information on the project work please visit: bchydro.com/jervisagamemnon.

SWIMMING UPSTREAM IN THE CARPOOL: qathet Community Justice volunteer Tammy Siddall enjoying a rideshare with her friend Barbara Sherriff.

Iqathet colour, an invocation

n this exhibition of artwork made with pigments from natural and locally-found colour sources: ochres, botanicals, and metals, Annie will share her paintings which are a dialogue with the land and her identity as a mother, living in a climate crisis, on stolen land. Working from her home studio in tiskwat

/ Townsite, Annie’s artwork uses art therapy drawing methods to visually express embodiment and land-based colour sources to learn history, practice reciprocity, and connect with the qathet community. The show runs May 10 to 18 at Tidal Art Centre. See more in the May issue of qL

LOCAL COLOURS: Left, wild colour ink painting made with pigments from qathet. Centre, Annie painting with marigold pigment in Finn Bay, Lund, Klah ah men. Above right, verdigris pigment made from a copper pipe found on the qathet shoreline.

SMART. NOT SLICK.

Leeman I use silk fabric, sometimes new, sometimes discarded garments from friends, or finds in thrift stores. By combining fine merino fibres and/or discarded sweaters with a little soap and water, I create unique textures and one-of-a-kind pieces of wearable art.

Teresa Harwood-Lynn

My work is consistently influenced by the materials themselves. Recycled metals serve as my inspiration, with every bend and twist in the metal determining the form and essence of the final piece. It’s a conversation between the remnants of their past and my imagination.

TWO ECO-ART SHOWS

Renew Art Faire: 10am to 4pm, Saturday April 26, at qathet Art Centre (above the Library). Artist demonstrations and art for sale. Displays with a focus on environmental sustainability.

qathet Colour, an invocation: May 10 to 18 at Tidal Art Centre, by Annie Robinson. See Page 26.

Katherine Woodman Anderson

My rag bags are my creative answer to the plastic shopping bag of yesterday. Unique and multipurpose with a high degree of attention to artisanal standards. My bags are the go-to choice no matter what the need.

I started out handcrafting rugs and then added another interpretation and expansion of my commitment to eliminate plastic from our lives. My bags are made from 100% recycled materials!

Renew Art Faire is April 26

BY TERESA HARWOOD-LYNN

Junkery to Jewelry started as a metal-detecting hobby for Teresa. Her pieces swiftly became ubiquitous symbols of qathet’s innovative waste-diverson aesthetic.

This show, Renew Art Faire, came from me wanting to show some of my work in a way that I could explain what it’s made from. When I exhibit work in stores or galleries, people will come in and look and say, “Oh that’s nice.” It isn’t until people learn it’s made from an old accordion, say, that they get excited.

So I thought, there must be other artists who do upcycling who want to have an oportunity to speak about what they do.

Come prepared for this to be very interactive. Some artists will do demonstrations throughout the day. I hope all the artists will be able to talk to people about what they make, what they make it from, how it has been diverted from the waste stream, and encourage guests to look at things at home and how they might be reused or diverted.

I hope people will re-envision what they think art is or what beauty is.

To me, beauty in terms of art is what it invokes within you.

Anne

Phone for flowers

Just in time for Mother’s

Cindy Neufeld

The world breaks everyone, then some become strong at the broken places. I bring new life to lost, broken, or unnoticed things. (Keeping stuff out of the landfill is a perk.)

Eunoia

@bloomtherapyflowers

NOW YOU CAN: dial for dahlias call for callas ring for roses talk for tulips holler for hellebores buzz for bouquets ... or you can still use our website! Join us at the Spring Market on April 19+20

Eunoia in the Townsite Public Market is dedicated to creatively slowing down the global trade textile waste stream caused by fast fashion. We transform existing natural fibres into one of a kind garments, reimagining table cloths into dresses, wool blankets into coats and honouring the incredible lace, embroidery and artisanal handiwork from a previous era. We deconstruct and reconstruct, over dye, needle felt, eco print, hand paint, all to create garments with an individual narrative. We are the Original Rebels.

My woodworking is about the conversation between the material and the maker. Electric tools force the material to comply with the noise and power. With hand tools I ask the wood what I would like it to do, and it tells me the best way we can work together to make it happen. It’s quiet and peaceful, and results in greater strength and beauty that can be enjoyed for generations.

qathet Flax to Linen

As an essential skill for humanity our “Seed to shirt in Local Dirt” project invites hands – on learning for textile artists, organic gardeners, and wisdom collectors keen on slow fashion and textile sovereignty.

Jennifer Stevens

I’m a rag rug creator, sourcing my material from second hand shops

and hand me downs from friends and family, all in the name of reducing waste to create something both useful and ridiculously cool!

I make assemblages from found or recycled objects. I write poetry to hopefully add to the enjoyment of the piece. It’s fun to combine humble materials to make something new from something old.

Beach glass art is the ultimate in recycling. Sand, found in nature, is recycled by man into glass. It’s recycled again by nature, the sea, into beach glass. Sandy recycles it again into works of useful art for your enjoyment.

Trish Greenwood

I use glass dishes, light shades or other glass fixtures from thrift stores or friend’s cupboards. It is fun balancing light, shape, colours and textures to create unique pieces that will never be repeated. Cracked, chipped, or crooked all have a place to create something beautiful.

Jo Forrest

Sandy McCormick

Laurel Dahill

WE’RE GOING DOWN!: These were the prices on gas and diesel at the Shell station on Joyce, March 18. If everything else stays steady, that $1.89.9 should become $1.72.3, and that $1.99.9 for diesel should fall to $1.78.5. The repeal of BC’s carbon tax is the reason for the decline in prices.

Photo by Sean Percy

Gasoline and diesel prices to fall by 17+ cents a litre April 1

BY PIETA WOOLLEY

And just like that, on March 7, Prime Minister Mark Carney repealed the federal carbon tax on gasoline: 17.6 cents per litre. BC doesn’t pay the federal tax, because the province has charged one since 2008. So, following in Carney’s footsteps, on March 31 BC Premier David Eby completely repealed the provincial carbon tax on fuels: 17.61 cents per litre. If your vehicle consumes 200 litres of gas a month, you’ll save about $35.

On diesel, the carbon tax of 21.39 cents a litre has been repealed – for a savings of about $42 a month.

BC charged 12.38 cents a litre on propane and 15.3 cents on natural gas. Both are being repealed as of April 1.

This is no April Fools joke. With a federal election just four weeks away, removing these vastly unpopular taxes should put everyone in a good mood. Or, a mood that says, “Hey! Elections matter!” Or, a more cynical mood: “Politicians. Dammit.” Or, “Uh oh. Sounds like an economic shock is coming…”

Here are some notes about these taxes:

• If prices at the pumps here don’t plummet April 1, you can complain to the BC Utilities Commission, which regulates energy in this province: bcuc.com.

• The federal carbon tax was set to rise from 17.6 cents per litre in 2024 to 20.9 cents in 2025 – and incrementally to a whopping 37.4 cents per litre in 2030.

• The carbon tax at least partially came back to most households through quarterly rebates. One might ask why a government would take money out of people’s pockets, and then redistribute it in a complicated way though a large bureaucracy, and how this serves the planet… but that seems too Musk-y to ask right now.

• qathet’s ongoing issue of mysteriously-higher-than-elsewhere gas pricing remains. On March 26, regular unleaded was about $1.88 here; in Comox it was about $1.77; in Sechelt, $1.82; and in Vancouver, $1.79 (although Vancouver pays an additional 12.5 cents a litre to TransLink, so it’s really $1.67-ish.)

IN THE KNOW! Help protect yourself and your community by signing up to the Community Notification System to receive important emergency notifications and alerts.

TODAY in 3 easy steps:

Go to qathet.ca/emergency-preparedness or scan the code at left.

Click on ‘Enroll in the Community Notification System Here’

Complete the registration form, providing your contact information and preferences

“And don’t think the garden loses its ecstacy in winter. It’s quiet, but the roots down there are riotous.”

- Persian poet Rumi, one of Jennifer Burry’s favourite quotes

A GROWING CONCERN

A full life, with flowers

Like many locals with a lot of passions, you may know Jennifer Burry from one of her many careers. She’s a bookkeeper with Heather Bookeeping. She’s a farm hand at Terra Nostra Farm, with Aaron Mazurek. And, as Juniper Gardens, she usually sells the gorgeous bouquets of flowers grown in her garden through the summer months, at her stands at Terra Nostra, at the 32 Lakes Cafe and Bakery, and on social media – although this year, she’s giving that a rest.

The former florist and her partner Peter Milner, a firefighter with the BC Wildfire Service, own a cozy home in central Westview. They bought it during the pandemic, ripped down the unfriendly hedge in front, and made plentiful beds, a vast berry patch, a greenhouse and much more in both the front and back yards.

Inside, lush potted plants decorate the livingroom. The couple has re-purposed their front entryway into a seed starting workshop.

In March, their yard was just about to pop.

How did you start gardening? How did you learn to do it?

Jennifer • The women in my family were always gardening. Not necessarily for food. It was more about flowers. And I’ve always had outdoor labour jobs. I was a landscaper, then a florist in Squamish. That’s really when I got interested in growing my own flowers. I sold some of my cut flowers to florist shops. My jobs have had more and more to do with plants. I love to see how they are all different, and how they grow, what their needs are.

Gardening gives me hope. You plant a seed. Even on the farm in the middle of winter when everything looks dead, there’s so much to look at. But the roots are alive.

Tell us about your current garden.

Jennifer • The front is all perennials, and established plants. The back has a big plot in the middle that is farmed into rows. On the sides I have a berry patch and a greenhouse. I like to grow things that you can dry: straw flowers, craspedia, ornamental grasses, interesting seed pods. Plus, unique flowers, such as poor man’s orchid. And, most of all, snapdragons. They’re a memory for me of my childhood – you can squeeze the sides and it looks like a dragon.

What have been your biggest gardening successes? What are you most proud of?

Jennifer • Just being able for multiple years to grow enough flowers to sell 10+ large bouquets a week through the summer, out of my yard.

5 things Jennifer Burry will be doing in her garden in April

1. Seeding and taking care of my seedlings.

2. Pruning perennials.

3. Prepping my beds with compost and solarization – putting black tarps on my beds to warm the soil and reduce weeds.

4. Cleaning up dead foliage.

5. Not buy any more plants. (I will buy more plants.)

What are your greatest gardening challenges?

Jennifer • Time and energy. Always wanting more time and energy. Pests, and their unpredictabiity. I never saw leafhoppers before, and then the whole front was infested with them. Last year I lost hundreds of ranuculus corms to the hard winter and slugs. I came out with one ranunculus bloom.

What kinds of gardening stuff do you invest in?

Jennifer • Things that can be used repeatedly. If it’s plastic, I want to be able to use it over and over again. In everything I try to use organic practices.

I buy quality tools.

I invest in seeds and seed starting: lights, heat mats. If plants don’t start well, it impacts them for the rest of their life. And irrigation – because it gives me time. Everything in my yard is irrigated and on timers. I couldn’t do it without irrigation. That was Peter. He did it all. In the summer, I don’t even have to think about watering the garden. Which is good, because I don’t have time to stand out there with a hose.

What do you do with the things you grow?

Jennifer • This year I’ll just enjoy them!

Advice for new gardeners?

Jennifer • Just try it. You’re going to fail, but you’re also going to succeed. The most experienced gardeners are going to fail every year. There are so many things that go into the success of a plant. The joy you’ll feel at your successes will outweigh any failures.

Also, don’t lean on Instagram for gardening advice. Learn from real people and pay attention to what they do. Pay attention to your plants – they will lead you.

YEAR-ROUND BEAUTY: This page, from top, dried flowers and grasses make an elegant wall hanging – with feathers from a turkey Jennifer Burry harvested. Hellebores, triumphant in winter. Farm-style fencing offers walkers a peek into the perennial yard. Indoors plants warm up every nook. The backyard in late winter. Jennifer with one of her summer bouquets, as Juniper Gardens. Opposite page, seed starting in the entryway. Jennifer with buds.

It’s garden season!

Saturday, April 26

St. David & St. Paul annual Plant Sale

10 am to noon, 6310 Sycamore St. Visit for starter plants for your home gardens. Plant purchases help continue to provide fruit plants, shade trees, and a beautiful common space for our neighbours.

Sunday, May 4

Annual Plant Sale: Powell River Garden Club

Noon til 2:30 pm, Curling Club. Back again for another year!! The Powell River Garden Club’s annual Plant Sale. The sale is open to the public. On sale: a wide variety of plants including all types of vegetable seedlings, perennial flowers, annual flowers, herbs, and even shrubs and trees. Payment methods: cash and (new this year) credit or debit. Also new this year

a food truck on location!

Sunday, June 8

Garden Tour

$20/ticket can be purchased at Mother Nature Nursery and Spring Time Nursery. We have no website. For info, email boxwoodcottage@shaw.ca

GCS YARD MAINTENANCE

qathet Living ’s 10th annual

Best of qathet Contest

Share your insider knowledge of why this place is so great for a chance to win a Pollen Sweater and other prizes!

Drop off your completed form at the qathet Living office, take a picture of it and send it to editor@qathetliving.ca, scan the QR code here, or fill it out online at prliving.ca/bestof by May 31, 2025.

Civic Pride

Best neighbourhood in the City of Powell River

Best neighbourhood in qathet (but outside the City)

Best common enemy

Best politician

Best use of tax dollars

Best place to learn

Best extracurricular – kids & youth Best volunteer Best coach

Best place to blow off steam

Most missed store or service

Best dressed person

Best yard – garden or art

Best storefront

Best reason your family & friends come to visit you here

Best reason to move here

Best reason to stay away

Advice for Visitors

Best must-see attraction

Best annual event

Best hotel or B&B

Best campground

Best disc golf course

Best local product to take camping

Best way to get around town

Best local flora

Best local fauna

Best beach

Best hike (under an hour)

Best trail to cycle for beginners

Best trail for the fearless rider

Best thing to do with kids

Best souvenir – paid

Best souvenir – free

Best realtor

trades

Best mechanic

Best builder

Best electrician

Best plumber

Best HVAC

Arts

Best book by a local author

Best visual artist

Best local band / musician

Best crafter or artisan

Best craft event

Best piece of public art or mural

Best art gallery

Best live theatre from the 2024-2025 season

Best place to experience live music

Best Christmas lights display street

Food & Restaurants

Best take-out / delivery

Best coffee / espresso bar

Best coffee scene

Best meal for under $10

Best pizza

Best fish & chips Best burger

Groceries & Home Products

Retail

Best gas station

Best gardening store

Best clothing

Best thrift store

Best hairdresser

Best mani/pedi

Best financial institution

Best financial advisor

Best home cleaner

Best non-profit

vegetarian or vegan

Best mental health practitioner

Best GP or wellness practitioner

Best massage therapist

Best pharmacy

Best work-out

Best yoga

Best free thing you do to keep yourself mentally and / or physically healthy

Best spiritual experience

How will you celebrate this Easter?

With local faith leaders

Father Camillus Temba ALCP/OSS Assumption Westview and Sacred Heart Tla’amin

In the Catholic Church, Easter is the celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection. This is marked by a special vigil or Holy Saturday, followed by the Easter Sunday Mass. Both filled with readings, prayers, and the celebration of Sacraments. Easter is the celebration of Forgiveness. Our wounds will be healed through forgiveness. Mother Teresa of Calcutta said, “If we really want to love we must first learn how to forgive and forgive others. Not because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace”.

Happy Easter, may the Risen Lord Bless You.

Pastor Mike Martinig

Kelly Creek Community Church

Rev. David Wulkan

Powell River Reformed Church

I will celebrate with riotous joy!

In the face of the sorrow, trouble, and evil of this world, I will sing, pray, and meditate on God’s Word with heartfelt thanksgiving. Easter Sunday is the day that Jesus, executed on a Roman cross for all our sins, rose from the grave, passing through death into resurrection life thus breaking the power of sin, death, and evil.

When he returns, he will grant glorious resurrection life for all who believe in him and to his good creation. Therefore, my soul rests secure in Jesus. I will celebrate wholeheartedly because God is faithful and good! Glory be to God forever and ever! Amen!

Pastor Sam Verghese

Foursquare Living Water Church

To me, Easter is a weekend for remembering and celebrating the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. On Friday, April 18th, I will be joining with other Christians from across the qathet Regional District at Evangel Church which is hosting a multi-Church Good Friday service at 6 pm. Then on Sunday, April 20th at 10 am, I will celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ with my church family at the Evergreen Theatre. If you are free on either of those days and either love Jesus and want to celebrate with me or are simply interested in finding out more about Him then please feel free to join me.

With family & friends, we will gather and share time and a meal in remembrance of the resurrection of Jesus. I’m very grateful for the redemptive power of Jesus.

A classic definition of redemption is “the deliverance of the people of God from the bondage of sin by the perfect substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ and their consequent restoration to God and His heavenly kingdom.” Jesus tells us this in His own words in Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Rev. Mary White

Powell

River United Church

This is an interesting question. But I wonder how, due to attempts at occupation, those who are forced into refugee camps, will spend their Easter? For mothers needing to feed their children, many are too busy and worried with regards to where their next meal will come.

There is no thought of resurrection because hope seems to be lost. Lost to the necessity for basic human sustenance. Yes, Easter is a time for Christian celebration and celebrate we will, but let us not forget our sisters and brothers who more than ever require our love and support.

• April 13, at 11am

• April 18, at 11am

11am

Crofton • 604-485-5724 Everyone is always welcome at our regular craft groups, social circles, pasta dinners, meditation groups, men’s groups, seekers groups, 11am Sunday worship and more.

Rev. Lauren Dahill

St. David and St. Paul Anglican Church

Given the volume and intensity of current events, this Easter I’m emphasizing hope, and the power of love to overcome adversity and oppression. When all seemed lost, and it appeared that Jesus was crushed, we discover that he was not.

Jesus returns to be with us in our grief and in our perplexity. He returns not simply to display his divine nature, but to encourage us to continue what he taught. As his disciples, our role in the world is to be hope for one another. Easter celebrates the primacy of care over callousness. That’s my Easter celebration this year.

Evangel Pentecostal Church

The celebration of Easter is one that causes us to look back, look up, and look forward. On Good Friday we look back at the greatest display of love the world has ever seen — the selfless act of our loving God taking the penalty of sin upon Himself while dying on the cross, uttering the words, “Father forgive them!”

On Easter Sunday we look up because He overcame death through His resurrection, which serves as an authentication of His authority, deity, and victory over sin and the grave.

We also look forward because He has promised to return, fulfilling His promise to renew all things. In looking back, up, and forward the person of our gaze remains the same: Jesus.

Lead Pastor Oskar Arajs Westview Baptist Church

Easter for a pastor, just as Christmas, is an extremely busy time. Preparations for worship are always ramped up as we try our best to communicate the incredible story of the death and resurrection of Jesus. It will be wonderful to gather together in a multi-church service on Good Friday. And I am looking forward to Easter Sunday when we celebrate the greatest event in history – the resurrection of Jesus. There is always something to ponder during Easter.

At the cross, where grace and justice meet, the wisdom of God is in full display. I will forever praise the God who took on my punishment so that I could receive forgiveness and grace.

Juliette Jarvis Sacred Living Mentor

As an earth-based spiritualist outside of the Christian community, Easter isn’t part of my observations. Spring celebrations with powerful themes of renewal, however, begin for me back in February on Imbolc and continue through to the Vernal Equinox.

Seasonally abundant eggs, widely regarded as a symbol of new life, make for a great shared commonality between us.

I’ll enjoy the weekend as another opportunity to work with my intentions, focusing on projects I’d like to grow and dreams I’d like to come to fruition, while colouring eggs with plant-based dyes and offering gratitude for the blessing of another Springtime.

Pastor Lucas Mitchell, with Pastor Lisa Mitchell

98 YEARS AGO, EXPORTS WERE A HOT TOPIC TOO:

This 1927 Brooklon Block shop window in Townsite shows a diorama demonstrating the importance of Canadian exports, with a map of Canada in the background, the then-Canadian flag on the right, and a roll of local paper stock.

At the time, the Powell River Digester reported, less than 10% of Canadian newsprint was consumed

in Canada. The rest was exported.

Before the 1880s, Canada’s paper making industry was tiny and diffused. Just 40 years later, this country had become the world’s biggest producer of newsprint and wood-fiber paper – doubling production again by the 1930s.

The USA had the highest per-capita consumption of newsprint in the world, followed by Australia,

Great Britain, and Canada. By 1951, the Digester reported, 85% of all newsprint manufactured by the Powell River Company was exported to the USA. “The Powell River area… is practically dependent on the continuous operation of the mills,” it reads.

Concept, photo and research courtesy of Devan Gillard the qathet Museum & Archives

25 words for 2025

Learn these words and more to help celebrate 10 years of the Treaty between Tla’amin Nation, the Province of BC, and the Government of Canada in 2026.

How many of these common ayajuthem words do you already know?

❏ Tla’amin Language • ʔayaǰuθəm • aya-ju-them

❏ Thank you • ʔimot • e-mot

❏ Welcome • čɛčɛhaθɛč • che-che-hath-ech

❏ My name is… • ... kʷət̓ᶿ nan • ... kwuth nun

❏ People • qayumɩxʷ • ka-yo-mew

❏ Tree / Relative • ǰɛǰɛ • jeh-jeh

❏ Elders • ƛaχay • klux-eye

❏ Young • čʊy • chewy

❏ Us • nɛmoɬ • neh-moth

❏ Spring or Chinook Salmon • θat́ᶿəm • thut-thumb

❏ Bear • meχaɬ • meh-hath

❏ Orca • nənqəm • nun-kum

❏ Rain • č̓ɩɬ • chith

❏ Sun • t̓əgəm • tug-ghum

❏ Ocean • sinkʷə • sink-wah

❏ Canoe • nuxʷɛɬ • nook-weth

❏ Gathering Together • qat̓ᶿaymixʷ • kot-thigh-mews

❏ To Bring Together • qat̓ᶿət • kawt-thet

❏ School • tɩwšəmawt̓xʷ • ti-sha-maut

❏ Powell River • tiskʷət • tees-kwat

❏ Milky Waters from Herring Spawn • t̓išosəm • tee-show-sum

City of Powell River 2024

❏ Willingdon Beach • ʔahʔǰumɩχʷ • ah-joo-mew

❏ Savary Island • ʔayhos • eye-hos

❏ Lund • Kla-ah-men • kla-ah-men

❏ Saltery Bay • Skelhp • skelp

With Alisha Point, Tla’amin Nation Language Teacher.

Is your business, agency or initiative locally-owned?

Here’s how to show everyone!

Supporting each other in this region is crucial to the wellbeing of all of us. Especially given the looming trade war with the USA, shopping at each other’s stores, buying locally-made products, investing in each others’ skills – this is how we strengthen the local economy, and our local social fabric.

To honk this horn, qathet Living commissioned a series of logos from local artist Jenny Allen Taves.

The logos all include the Canadian Maple Leaf, and two uniquely–local symbols: a harbour seal and the sunset over the Salish Sea.

We welcome anyone to use these logos to promote your own local cred. Put them on your ads. Run them on your social media. Use them on your packaging or your products. You are local – show it!

If you’d like these emailed to you, for free, contact sean@qathetliving.ca, or call us at 604-485-0003.

A teenager builds a dam on Myrtle Creek

BY BARBARA ANN LAMBERT

The great rivers, their tributaries and watershed, lakes and streams on the West Coast, are an integral part of the traditional territories of First Nations, who for thousands of years, have harvested spectacular runs of migrating salmon for their winter food.

Two hydroelectric power dams, one very big and the other small, were built in qathet regional district in the 1930s. The largest was built by the Powell River Company on Lois (Eagle) River for industrial purposes to bring additional power to the Powell River Company pulp and paper mill.

The smallest, at Myrtle Creek, was designed and built by a teenager, Stuart Lambert, a graduate of Brooks Technical School (1932), to bring power to the Lambert goat dairy farm in Paradise Valley.

The damming of Lois (Eagle) River

The traditional lands of shíshálh Nation includes Lois (Eagle) River and Palm Beach. The Nation had a well-established summer/fall fishing camp at Palm Beach. In 1900 the BC Government passed legislation for a 60-acre First Nations Reserve by the Lois River estuary. Every year, members of the shíshálh (Sechelt) Band Lands, on the Lower Sunshine Coast, travelled by canoe to the Lois River estuary for the great salmon runs.

In 1929 the BC Government, under the Water Act, sold the water rights on Lois River to the Powell River Company for a large hydroelectric power dam. The Powell River Company sent a notice of intent to the shíshálh Nation and the homesteaders of Horseshoe Valley, regarding their intention of damming

Lois River.

For the shíshálh Nation it meant the loss of one of the largest salmon runs on the coast; for the homesteaders, it meant the flooding and loss of their Horseshoe Valley farms.

The giant logs for the crib dam were cut down by loggers using two-handed cross saws on nearby stands of Douglas fir trees around the Gordon Pasha (Lois) Lakes. This was physically hard work, accomplished by skilled loggers from Scandinavia.

Powell River Company Digester (1929):

“The quality and magnitude of the Douglas fir logged along the shore of the Gordon Pasha Lakes has never been surpassed in the history of logging in B.C.”

It would take 400 construction workers to build a temporary wooden crib dam on Lois (Eagle) River and a powerhouse at Stillwater (1930). Additional hydroelectricity from the Lois Lake Dam allowed the Powell River Company pulp and paper mill to start up #7 paper machine and increase production.

In 1941, construction of the Lois Lake concrete dam began, now renamed the Scanlon dam. Seven years later, the dam was raised another 20 feet. With additional power the Powell River Company started up #8 paper machine, and this raised the mill’s annual production capacity to 226,000 tons.

Myrtle Creek

The traditional name for Myrtle Rocks is Kwethayskin, meaning “little island at the mouth of the bay.” Tla’amin Nation, for thousands of years, had a summer/fall camp at Myrtle Rocks in order to catch their winter food supply from the migrating salmon in the Myrtle Creek estuary.

GOAT POWER: Top, Stuart Lambert sits atop his crib dam in 1933 – technology he built himself to power his family’s Paradise Valley goat farm. Above, the Lambert’s Shire horses, Prince and Duke.

Photos courtesy of Barbara Lambert’s personal collection

It was early logging practices along the foreshore of Myrtle Bay which killed off hundreds of migrating fish in the Myrtle Creek estuary and reduced the size of the salmon runs.

In the 1880s, horse and oxen logging outfits started felling the giant trees near the foreshore area of Myrtle Point. The spawning stream bed quickly silt-

ed up when the logs were taken out by horse and oxen trails on either side of Myrtle Creek.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the logging practices of the Bloedel, Stewart and Welch Locie (locomotive) Logging Company further curtailed the salmon runs.

Bloedel, Stewart and Welch found the migrating fish a “nuisance.” The salmon runs interfered with their tidewater camp logging operations and, from their perspective, “polluted” the fresh creek water they required for their camp.

Bloedel, Stewart and Welch took the following actions to reduce the Myrtle Creek salmons runs:

• Changing the mouth of the creek from the bay at Myrtle Point to Pebble Beach

• Building a dam, with spikes on, across the stream

• Allowing the camp pigs to drink water and forage in the estuary

• Building a culvert under the road which was too high for the fish to reach

After a disastrous fire (1918) which destroyed large stands of trees in Paradise Valley, Bloedel, Stewart and Welch moved their logging operations from the valley to Duck and Haslam

Lakes. They kept their tidewater camp at Myrtle Point.

After the fire, homesteaders moved into Paradise Valley. The first homesteader was Herbert Padgett (1919); Padgett Road is named after him.

The last homesteader in the valley was John Lambert. John obtained water rights on Myrtle Creek (1923) for his 56-acre pre-emption.

The Lambert family established a large goat dairy (1926-36), with 100 milking goats, in the valley. The milk was sold to the economic hub of the area, the Powell River Company Townsite.

Stuart Lambert’s dam

John’s grandson, teenager Stuart Lambert, built a crib dam across Myrtle Creek to produce hydroelectricity to run the goat dairy farm. Stuart and his father Tom used a Royal Chinook two-handed cross saw to fell trees on one of the few remaining stands of Douglas fir on their farm. The trees were moved to the dam location by Tom’s big shire horses, Prince and Duke.

Stuart’s dam was only a partial success due to the drastic reduction of the water levels on Myrtle Creek, after the

village of Westview tapped into Hammil (West) Lake for its water supply (1930s).

Two water wheel projects on the Myrtle Creek watershed provided electricity for two dairy farms – the Melville farm (1940s) and the Parsons’ farm (1950s).

In the late 1950s, when power from the grid came to Myrtle Point and Paradise Valley, all local hydroelectric power projects were abandoned. Farmers needed a year-round, reliable source of energy for their dairy farms.

In the late 1960s, I walked with my husband, Stuart Lambert, across our farm pasture to Myrtle Creek. The crib dam had collapsed; all one could see was the rocky outcrop it had originally been built on.

Update

One hundred eagles no longer fly high in the sky over the historic salmon runs on Lois (Eagle) River.

The Scanlon dam continues to produce hydroelectricity.

shíshálh Nations continue to administer their lands at Palm Beach – leasing off waterfront lots to cottage owners near Lois (Eagle) River.

Myrtle Rocks is a Regional Park in qathet Regional District.

In the late 1960s I walked with my husband, Stuart Lambert, across our farm pasture to Myrtle Creek. The crib dam had collapsed, all one could see was the rocky outcrop it had originally been built on.

- Barbara Lambert

Myrtle Creek Stewards, a voluntary organization, helps preserve the Myrtle Creek wetlands.

Myrtle Creek continues to have a wild salmon run.

HOW TO INTERACT WITH COUNCIL

The purpose of Council meetings is for Council to conduct their business in an open and transparent manner.

Council’s Procedure Bylaw helps to keep meetings on track so that Council are able to get through all the items that they need to discuss, make decisions on and provide direction to staff.

While public participation in Council’s meetings is limited, public input is always encouraged and possible through correspondence to Mayor and Council. Additionally you can request in person meetings with individual council members.

Write to Council

Council welcomes your input. You can write to Council at any time with with questions, comments, views and observations.

Via email: info@powellriver.ca addressed to Mayor and Council. Individual email addresses can be found by searching ‘directory’ on the City’s website.

Via letter: Write a letter addressed to Mayor and Council to: 6910 Duncan Street, Powell River, BC V8A 1V4

To learn more about Corresponding with Council please scan the QR code or search ‘correspondence’ on the City’s website.

In person at: Committee of the Whole & Council Meetings

Public Input Period (2-minute time limit)

The purpose of the public input period is to provide an opportunity for the community to provide comments for Council consideration before Council makes decisions in the meeting.

Statements can be made to Council regarding items on the agenda of that meeting under: Legislative Matters, Committee Recommendations or New Business only.

A maximum of 3 people may speak per meeting unless Council unanimously decide to allow more speakers.

Delegation (5-minute time limit)

Public Clarification (2-minute time limit)

This is an opportunity to ask questions to clarify items discussed during the meeting.

Apply to be a delegation in advance to speak at a meeting for the purpose of providing information on a topic of municipal interest or concern.

Applications are required by 11am on the Tuesday of the week prior to the meeting.

Scan the QR Code for more information and the application form or search ‘delegation’ on the City’s website.

AARON GUNN

From Sing Lee, to HBC, to Townsite Market

The address 5831/5833 Walnut Avenue, now home to the Townsite Market, has played a central role in Powell River’s history since the town’s early days. Over the years, the site has been home to several significant businesses, making it an important community landmark.

The story begins with the Sing Lee Building, the first of its kind in Powell River. Sam Sing, a recent Chinese immigrant who arrived in Powell River sometime between 1907 and 1909, purchased the land from the mill and built a block of buildings, called the Sing Lee Building, perhaps the most famous of which was his general store. Interestingly, a 1941 article mentions that the upstairs of the Sing Lee Building was used to house mill workers in the town’s early years.

As Powell River’s first non-company-owned grocery store, the Sing Lee General Store provided an alternative to the company-run store in the Central Building, offering residents more shopping options.

In 1923, the company bought back the land and building and renamed it the Brooklon Block. They took over the general store, turning it into a second location for their department store. Meanwhile, Sam Sing expanded his business ventures, operating several buildings—including a store and laundry—at

the Shingle Mill on Powell Lake.

In 1941, the original Sing Lee Building was demolished and replaced with the current structure. The first tenant of the new building was Powell Stores, another company-run department store. In 1955, when the Powell River Company’s new partner, MacMillan-Bloedel, was divesting the Company of properties, the Hudson’s Bay Company acquired the store and in 1961, the building was sold again and transformed into a mall.

Over the years, the building has housed a variety of businesses. Long-time residents may recall iconic establishments, such as the Avenue Shop, Cellar Cabaret, and many others. Today the building is known as the Townsite Market, a vibrant space which is home to several independent local businesses.

THE STORES: Above, the Sing Lee Company Building in 1920. Below, the Hudson’s Bay Company building in 1960. Photos courtesy of the qathet Museum & Archives

Like the old, better Squamish

The Trotter family; you’ll probably find us in the woods or on the water. We love to adventure and be immersed in nature.

Juliette loves to climb, bike, and spend afternoons creating art or reading. She is also training most days as a member of the competitive gymnastics team. William loves to dirt bike with his friends and is an avid mountain biker and Air Cadet.

Matt and Sara will almost always be on an adventure on two wheels or working around the house.

Why did you choose to move to qathet?

Sara • We were looking for a slower pace of life that didn’t compromise on beauty or a sense of community. We have always enjoyed visiting Powell River and it was definitely on our list of “places we would like to live”.

When? Where from?

Sara • 2023 from Squamish. It was an excellent place to own a business, but the tourism that supported that was also what made living there undesirable.

What surprised you, once you moved here?

Sara • How quickly it began to feel like home

What made you decide to move here?

Sara • We had a number of close friends who were very community-minded make the move and after we sold our business, the boat-anchor was gone and the decision was a no-brainer. This is the greatest place in Canada—its natural beauty, coastline, trails, outdoor recreation, and independent spirit—this is what we value in a community. It wasn’t just a move, it was a reset back to why we chose Squamish so many years ago.

Where is your favourite place in qathet?

Sara • That’s a hard one. But if I had to choose, I’d say our home south of town. It feels like we are living where we would want to vacation. Otherwise, anywhere in the woods or on the water.

How did you first hear about qathet?

Sara • My husband came here on a mountain biking trip with his friends in 2017, it was a highlight for him and he came home telling stories of the epic trails and beaches.

What would make this a nicer community?

Sara • It’s already a nice community. Everyone is helpful and welcoming.

What aspect of your previous community do you think would benefit qathet?

Sara • I think our previous community got a lot of things wrong, especially as it related to tourism and housing development and contributions from developers back to the community. The one asset Squamish has is passionate, community-minded outdoor enthusiasts and they would be a benefit to this region (or any region).

What challenges did you face in trying to make a life for yourself here?

Sara • Like many people who move here, it was building a social network from scratch in a tight-knit place. But once the kids were enrolled in school and programs they made fast friends. Our real estate agent Meaghan [Westie] was incredibly helpful in helping us source the best contractors and service providers.

If you were mayor, what would you do?

Sara • Powell River has some great community services, but the taxes are prohibitively expensive for many people and this should be kept in check. I would focus on reducing the administrative overhead of the district/city. I would also ensure that the Community Forest Reserve Fund continues to go towards the support of local not for profits and projects like the infrastructure development for QRCA.

What are qathet’s best assets?

Sara • It’s the people. Hands down. The scenery is stunning, but it’s the community that gives it heart. There’s a spirit of collaboration and resilience here that you don’t find everywhere.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Sara • Time. Giving myself permission to slow down, take long walks, linger over coffee, or spend a day completely unplugged—that’s the real luxury.

Which talent or superpower would you most like to have?

Sara • To know exactly where the fish are, because my husband can never seem to find them.

WE CLICKED: Matt, Sara, William, and Juliette Trotter found exactly what they were looking for here.

Garden & Landscape Supply

C A L L F O R

yard pick up hours or delivery schedule

BUSINESS AFFAIRS SEAN

Uptown completed

Crowne Pacific Development Corporation says it has completed its Uptown project, and handed it over to Veyron Properties Group. The two builings of luxury apartments on Joyce Avenue and Edgehill Crescent near the hospital include Micro, one-bedroom and two-bedroom suites. There are 141 units, with rents starting at $1,450, and it is about 75% full. For rental info, visit veyronproperties. com. Crowne Pacific is now working on its next project, Evo, on Franklin Avenue near the qathet Living offices. It will have 40 units.

tiskwat returns to Tla’amin

The traditional village site at the tiskwat mill will be returned to Tla’amin Nation. The Nation issued a joint press release with Domtar on March 17. (Domtar is the rebranded conglomerate of Paper Excellence, which owned the mill, combined with Resolute Forest Products, and Domtar Corporation, which Paper Excellence acquired for $4 billion in 2021. The organization rebranded as Domtar in October. The company renamed the mill site tiskwat in 2021, then curtailed operation, and closed the mill in 2022.) The deal gives Tla’amin 120 acres of the total 300 acres at the site. It includes a number of non-contiguous parcels of land, which primarily front the river and ocean and are among the least industrialized areas at tiskwat. Officials from Domtar and Tla’amin signed the agreement at a ceremony at the Tla’amin Governance House.

“Reconnecting with this place—once the original commercial hub of our territory, a center of trade and prosperity for thousands of years—is deeply emotional. We look forward to once again exercising our responsibilities to these lands,” said Tla’amin hegus John Hackett.

Lana Wilhelm, director of Indigenous relations at Domtar, said, “I raise my hands in deep respect for the Tla’amin Executive Council and their staff for their incredible work in negotiating this generational acquisition. Equally, I’m very proud to be working with colleagues and leadership at Domtar who had the integrity to do the right thing with this site. It has not been a journey without challenges, but what an inspiring one it is when ev-

eryone paddles in the same direction.” Powell River MLA and Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, Randene Neill said, “Today’s announcement is not just a welcome home for Tla’amin Nation. It’s also an exciting new beginning for tiskʷat, the Tla’amin, and the entire community.”

Domtar says other parts of the mill lands will be sold to one or more third parties that will engage in industrial redevelopment, and negotiations with those buyers are underway.

Contractor ready to reno

General contractor/carpenter Ryan Armstrong recently moved to qathet, bringing with him his renovation and remodelling company, Elco Contracting. He says he recently finished constructing his wife’s garden in their new home, with raised beds, a cold frame and fencing. So now he’s allowed to take on jobs in the community. He mostly does residential custom renovations, including kitchen, bathroom, interior and exterior, as well as flooring and custom finishing. Visit his website at elcocontracting.com or email elco.co.contracting@gmail.com.

Muth become M-Con

Nate Muth of Muth Construction has incorporated and is rebranding into M-Con Enterprises Inc. The general contractor has a new website at mconenterprisesinc.ca. M-Con offers everything from design and drafting services to new construction and renovations.

Life coach back at it

Silvana Hernandez is relaunching her life coaching practice, Silvana Hernandez Coaching, after a detour and some time off to focus on personal health. Having grown through her own healing journey, Silvana is passionate and more committed than ever to supporting clients to overcome their inner obstacles to reach their goals. Silvana uses the Enneagram system, calling it a “personalized GPS” that helps clients navigate their path toward greater self-understanding and transformation. “Whether you’re feeling stuck, uncertain or ready for change, I want to work with you to find your path forward, with clarity, zest and confidence,” she said. Silvana Hernandez Coaching offers 1-on-1 personal development coaching as well as group workshops on the Enneagram system. For more information, contact Silvana at 604-414-4587 or silvanahern@gmail.com.

|| sean@qathetliving.ca

Marathon shuffles on

On April 27, 325 determined souls will tackle the 27-kilometre route on the Sunshine Coast Trail for the 32nd annual Marathon Shuffle. This free event “sold out” in just three days – with 58 more fit folks on the waiting list.

This Shuffle leans female, with about 50% more women running than men. Most participants are between 40 and 60 years old, with just three over-70 and five under 19. The majority – two thirds – have never been in a Marathon Shuffle before. Three 2025 runners have tackled 10 or more – Karin Cummings, Joel Nordman, and Shuffle manager Ean Jackson.

The volunteer-run event, which draws people from the US and across BC, is still in need of help. Ean explains:

“It’s hard to put on a free event for over 300 people when buses cost $350 each and we’ll need a whack of them, plus food, portable toilets, and a free beer for everyone at the end.

“We can’t do it without sponsors and can always use more. Any leftover cash goes to qPAWS for trail maintenance.”

Learn more about sponsorship at sunshinecoasttrail.com/events/marathon-shuffle/ sponsors/.

qPAWS, which maintains the Sunshine Coast Trail, is also looking for new members and volunteers. Visit sunshinecoasttrail. com/get-involved/about-paws.

Watch for a shorter, family-friendly event on National Trails Day, June 7.

4

Friday

Poet Cynthia Sharp

5 pm, Library. Celebrate nature in an eco-conscious theme, with Cynthia Sharp, who will present her uplifting and award-winning book Ordinary Light. For info mmerlino@prpl.ca

Borderland painting show begins Tidal Art Centre, Lund. 9971 Finn Bay Road. Show on until April 13. See story on Page 57.

Comox • Green Party Reception & Fundraiser with party leader Elizabeth May 7pm. With NIPR candidate Jessica Wegg. Contact northislandgreens@gmail. com for more.

Rally for Conservative candidate

Aaron Gunn 6pm to 8pm, Cranberry Seniors Centre.

5

Saturday Treaty Day

Uptown Market

10 am to noon, outside Dr. Varma’s office on Joyce. Chamber of Commerce

Awards Dinner

Dwight Hall

Cran Hall Presents: Aleksi Campagne

7 pm, Cranberry Hall. Aleksi (son of folk icon Connie Caldor and Paul Campagne of bilingual band Hart Rouge) received the 2024 Canadian Folk Music Award for francophone artist of the year on his debut album. Aleksi’s music blends folk songwriting (in French and English) with an edgy, multi-layered sound that uses haunting vocals, astonishing violin, and looping effect pedals. Be sure to get tickets early. ($25/$30) info@cranhall.org and The Nutcracker Market on Marine.

THE TARTAN SHUFFLE: Frank Wemberley of North Vancouver pipes opened the 2024 Marathon Shuffle on the Sunshine Coast Trail. This year’s Shuffle is on April 27, and Tartan Day is on April 6.

Photo by Travor Hallam

An Evening of Classical Music

7:30 pm, James Hall. Arthur Arnold, Cello & Dr. Moira Hopfe-Ostensen, Piano. Both known as dynamic and sensitive musicians, they bring a balanced and demanding program of works for cello & piano by R. Strauss, Vaughan-Williams, Romberg and Shostakovich. See ad on Page 58 and powellriveracademy.com for $30 tickets.

Borderland Opening Reception: painting on Ukraine

4 to 7 pm, Tidal Art Centre in Lund. Barbara Langmaid. Show on until April 13. See story on Page 57. Nevaeh Dyson in concert

Singer-songwriter. The Wishing Well.

6

Sunday Tartan Day

Powell River Farmers Market

12:30 to 2:30 pm, Paradise Exhibition Grounds, inside the quonset hut.

Pushing creative boundaries

Magic the Gathering

Commander night

6 pm, High Tide Games. Bring your best Commander deck and be prepared to defend your creatures.

Home Routes

Concert with Cassidy Mann

Door 6:30 pm, show at 7 pm. For tickets, see homeroutes.ca/artists/ cassidy-mann-apr25/

7

Monday

Board Game Night

6 pm , High Tide Games. Use one of High Tide’s or bring your own and play the night away.

INNOVATIVE NEW DANCE COMPANY BRINGS IT: auTour Dance Company was founded in 2024 by Arts Umbrella. It features 15 remarkable emerging dancers “who embody the next generation of virtuosity and power,” according to the media release. “The company is known for its dedication to innovative choreography, bringing together works from internationally renowned choreographers that push the boundaries of contemporary dance.” auTour performs April 26 at The Evergreen Theatre, at 7:30pm. See more on Page 16.

9

Wednesday

Vimy Ridge Day

Advance Voting for the qathet School District by-election

Between the hours of 8 am and 8 pm at the School Board Office (Board Room), 4351 Ontario. Through April 9. See Page 7 & 11 for more details.

Dungeons & Dragons night

6 pm High Tide Games. Come to watch or start a character and jump right in on the adventure.

10

Thursday

Town Centre Job Fair begins 9:30 am to 5:30 pm each day to April 13. Winners, Shoppers Drug Mart, Save On Foods and Smili Dental are all hiring. See Page 49 for more.

THE OFFICIAL STUDENT HOSTS OF THE TOWNSITE JAZZ FESTIVAL: Brooks

Vocal Jazz Ensemble is a 21-member group of talented students who have successfully auditioned to be part of this elite ensemble. Under the expert direction of Paul Cummings, the ensemble has achieved remarkable milestones, including an inspiring trip to Havana, Cuba in 2024. Along with the Brooks Jazz Band, they are the official student hosts at the Townsite Jazz Festival April 10 to 12 (see story and schedule on Pages 55-56).

WorkBC Centre

Powell River Job Fair

2 pm – 3:30 pm, Recreation Complex (Cedar Room) off the upper foyer. We’ll have a mix of employers from a variety of industries. Light refreshments, bring your resume, and be ready to connect.

2025 VIU YearEnd Celebration & 50th Anniversary

11:30 am—2 pm, VIU. Our annual celebration of student success .This year’s celebration will also mark the closing out of our 50th Anniversary festivities. There’ll be ceremonies, food, and entertainment as well as a number of special guests in attendance.

VIU Alumni Event

Led by VIU Anthropology professor, Dr Marie Hopwood, “The Archaeology of Beer” will be a fun, informative event exploring ancient beer recipes (including a Mesopotamian beer recipe that we will be reproducing in an exclusive taster for all attendees!). Details coming soon.

Townsite Jazz Fest begins Through April 12. See above, and more on Page 55 & 56, the ad on Page 53, and at townsitejazz.com.

Townsite Jazz • Ben Wayne Kyle Trio • opener: Brooks Vocal Jazz Noon, Shinglemill Pub & Bistro. All ages, $25+fees.

Townsite Jazz • Laura Crema Quartet 5 pm, Shinglemill Pub & Bistro. All ages $25

Townsite Jazz • Two Much Guitar • Opener: Brooks Jazz Band

7:30 pm, Max Cameron Theatre. Adults $25+fees. Students $15+fees. 0 to 5 years, free.

11

Friday

Brooks GSA / YouthCAT clothing swap

5 pm, Library. Bring your good condition, gently-used clothes and leave with a whole new wardrobe.

Town Centre Job Fair

9:30 am to 5:30 pm each day to April 13. Winners, Shoppers Drug Mart, Save On Foods and Smili Dental are all hiring. See Page 49 for more.

Museum Speaker Series: Richard McIntosh on diving the S.S. Capilano

3 pm to 4 pm, qathet Museum & Archives. Travel vicariously with Richard McIntosh as he recalls diving on the wreck of the S.S. Capilano. The Capilano sank in the fall of 1915 off the coast of Savary Island. In 1971, Richard McIntosh and the late Bob Briggs discovered the wreck during a dive. Almost 100 years after the vessel sank, many items from the ship were donated to the qathet Museum & Archives and are currently on display. $5 at the door. To pre-register visit: qathetmuseum.ca/ event/speaker-series-diving-on-the-s-s-capilanowith-richard-mcintosh.

Townsite Jazz • Sharon Minemoto Quartet • Opener: Oak Bay High Combo Noon, Shinglemill Pub & Bistro. All ages $25+fees. Townsite Jazz • Jazz & Appys, a fundraiser featuring the Steve Carson Quintet • Opener: Oak Bay High Vocal Jazz 5 pm, Brooks Hall. Adults $40 + fees, Students $30+fees, Table of 8, $320+fees.

Scholarships

Each year Powell River Community Forest offers three (3) scholarships of $3,000 each to Powell River students entering (or already enrolled in) a forestry or natural resource management university program or in forestry-related occupational trades and training programs.

May 31 is the deadline for applications.

More information on how to apply can be found on our website: prcommunityforest.ca

Get it done.

We all have one . . . lurking in a closet, jamming up a drawer . . . an unfinished project that we keep meaning to get back to. Now’s the time!

JOIN THE UFO CLUB - Unfinished Objects

Free, drop-in. Everyone welcome! Monday, April 14 1:30 - 3:00 pm

Here’s the strategy:

Bring any project that is portable: knitting, crocheting, scrapbooking, sewing, mending, collage, your unfinished novel, embroidery — your creativity is the limit!

Bring the related supplies, too. (Please no loud tools or strong fumes.)

Meet with likeminded creators, get encouragement from them, and get inspired to complete that longneglected item!

POWELL RIVER PUBLIC LIBRARY

IN THE WUWOOM ROOM: Last year’s festival included Sherman Pallen’s raven dance with drummer Travis Billy. Helping in the kitchen were Shelley Chaney, Chris Weekes, Patricia Luaifoa, Cyndi Pallen, Gillian Reyes, Sherman Pallen, and Alex Reyes (missing from photo). Right, organizer Cyndi Pallen, with Jessa Billy and Cathy Paul.

APRIL EVENTS

Townsite Jazz • Karen Flamenco

• Opener: Brooks Vocal Jazz

7:30 PM, Max Cameron Theatre. Students $15+fees. 0 to 5 years, free.

Townsite Jazz • The Deadly Nightshades

• Opener: Reynolds Secondary Vocal Jazz

9:30 PM, The Blue Room, Rodmay Hotel. All ages $25+fees.

ʔaǰɩmɛt Harm Reduction Circle

info afternoon

1 pm Library. Come and learn about harm reduction and harm reduction resources, FTIR drug checking (and watch a demo!), fentanyl and benzo test strips, and attend a drop-in naloxone training. You can also bring your expired naloxone kit to exchange for a new one. This event offers awareness and information for everyone!

ʔaǰɩmɛt Harm Reduction Circle is a community and peer led, culturally based harm reduction team in tišosəm, Tla’min Nation.

The Secret Beach in concert

Doors, 7 pm. The Alley powered by Persephone. Adults $15-$20. Teens $10. Kids $5.

12

Saturday

General Voting Day

• qathet School District by-election

Open to qualified electors of School District No.

47 (qathet) on Saturday, April 12, 2025 between the hours of 8 am and 8 pm at the School Board Office (Board Room), 4351 Ontario.

Uptown Market

10 am to noon, outside Dr. Varma’s office on Joyce.

Town Centre Job Fair

9:30 am to 5:30 pm each day to April 13. Winners, Shoppers Drug Mart, Save On Foods and Smili Dental are all hiring. See Page 49 for more.

Top Out Climbing Co-op Climbathon Fundraiser

8 am-8 pm Sat and 8 am to 6 pm Sunday, Townsite Market. Friendly competition to raise funds for the gym. Registration is at the door: $20 members and $25 non members. Categories are U5, U10, U18 and adults, beginner, intermediate, and advanced. After party at 6 pm Sunday, with awards.

Townsite Jazz • Soul Jazz • Opener: Reynolds Secondary Vocal Jazz

12:30 pm, The Blue Room, Rodmay Hotel. All ages $25+fees.

Townsite Jazz

• qathet School

District Alumni

Quintet • Opener: Oak Bay High Vocal Jazz

4 pm, The Blue Room, Rodmay Hotel. All ages, $25+fees.

Townsite Jazz

• Gala Dance featuring the Julio Ávila Cuban Band• Openers: Brooks Jazz Band, Capilano University Combo

7:30 pm, Dwight Hall. Adults $30+fees, students $20 + fees, 0-5 years free, Table of 8, $240+fees.

Second Saturday Sale

1:30 to 4:30 pm, Cranberry Seniors Centre.

Pollen Sweaters

annual Franken Sale

See ad on Page 51.

Memorial of Jesus’ Death

7:45 pm and 9:30 pm, Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 4946 Manson Ave. Commemorate the death of Jesus with the Lord’s Evening Meal. Everyone welcome.

Photos courtesy of Cyndi Pallen

13

Sunday Palm Sunday First Day of Passover Palm Sunday Services

11 am, Powell River United Church

10 am Eucharist, St. David and St. Paul Anglican Powell River Farmers Market

12:30 to 2:30 pm, Paradise Exhibition Grounds, inside the quonset hut.

Palm Sunday Full Moon

Pollen Sweaters

annual Franken Sale

See ad on Page 51.

Town Centre Job Fair

9:30 am to 5:30 pm each day to April 13. Winners, Shoppers Drug Mart, Save On Foods and Smili Dental are all hiring. See Page 49 for more.

An Afternoon of Classical Music

2 pm at the Evergreen Theatre. A tribute to the BBC Proms, with the qathet Symphony Orchestra. By donation. Enjoy a selection of classical music, including traditional pieces from the “Last Night of the Proms” with audience participation. Come listen to YOUR orchestra play music by Copland, Bach, Bizet and many more, and join us by singing and clapping along!

Everyone is invited to the 14th annual Wuwoom

Festival

a multicultural evening of music & dance

The Wuwoom Festival is a multicultural showcase and yearly fundraiser open to the community. “Wuwoom” means singing. It will be held at Tla’amin Salish Gym, April 19, from 5:30pm til 9 pm.

Our goal is to celebrate cultural diversity through songs, dance, and food. We are seeking artists who wish to share their cultural background through songs or traditional dance or simply play an instrument. We are inviting Scottish bagpipers, Zumba, Danish singers, and a couple of local choirs.

To begin the evening, our Tla’amin drummers and singers will procession in, opening the evening with traditional songs of the Tla’amin people. We will also have songs from Lillooet and Squamish singers joining us for this special evening.

This evening will be filled with performers from all walks of life sharing musical acts, songs and dance, from their cultural background.

Entry is $25 and includes an Indian Taco, if you purchase your ticket ahead of time. Contact Cyndi Pallen, WuWoom organizer at 604-414-3874. Entry is $15 at the door. Tacos are $15.

Climbathon Fundraiser

8 am-8 pm Sat and 8 am to 6 pm Sunday, Townsite Market. Top Out Climbing Co-op’s friendly competition to raise funds for the community-owned gym. Registration is at the door: $20 members and $25 non members. Categories are U5, U10, U18 and adults, beginner, intermediate and advanced. After party at 6 pm Sunday, with awards.

Magic the Gathering Commander night

6 pm, High Tide Games. Bring your best Commander deck and be prepared to defend your creatures.

APRIL EVENTS

14

Monday

Coho Clipping Program begins: needs volunteers

Through May 2. If you can give three hours of more to the Powell River Salmon Society, contact Terry at clippingprsalmon@gmail. com or call 604-483-9440. Board Game Night

6 pm , High Tide Games. Use one of High Tide’s or bring your own and play the night away.

15

Tuesday

Federal Election • All Candidates Meeting

7 pm, Cranberry Seniors Centre. Hosted by the Westview Ratepayers Society. Herring to Huckleberries is published See Page 12 for more. Last day to submit art to the Wishing Well’s Mycelium Show Show opens May 1. Email wishingwellqathet@gmail. com.

16

Wednesday

Dungeons & Dragons night

6 pm High Tide Games. Come to watch or start a character and jump right in on the adventure.

3:30-5:30 pm, Cranberry Seniors Centre Really listening to each other brings healing and change. We’ll use the LivingroomConversations.org process — small groups (of 3-5) that give us an opportunity to really hear from each other and come to know each other’s humanity. To RSVP or for more info, email kate@emergecollab.com

National Canadian Film Day: Free!

1:30pm Reel Injun, 7pm Strange Brew, both free, both at The Pat.

17

Thursday

Maundy Thursday All-Candidates Meeting: Federal Election Doors at 5:30pm, event from 6pm to 8pm, Evergreen Theatre. Hosted by the Chamber of Commerce.

Two Block Diet

6:30-8:30 pm at qathet Art Centre (above the library). How can we grow more food and more community at the same time? This is for you if you’d like to bring people in your neighbourhood together. Free entry. More info and to RSVP: kate@emergecollab.com.

Maundy Thursday Services

4 pm, St. David and St. Paul Anglican Church

7 pm, Powell River Reform Church

7 pm Mass of the Lord’s Supper, Assumption Westview, confession to follow

Boardwalk re-opens Iconic Lund restaurant reopens for the season. See ad on Page 13.

National Canadian Film Day: Free!

1:30 pm I Like Movies and 7 pm Paying For It, both free, both at The Pat.

18

Friday Good Friday Good Friday Services

11 am, Powell River United Church

10 am St. David and St. Paul Anglican

9 am to 10 am, Confessions, Assumption Westview

3 pm, Solemn Liturgy of the Passion, Assumption Westview

Federal Election: Advance Voting Day

See elections.ca for more.

19

Saturday

WuWoom Festival

5:30 to 9 pm, Salish Centre. An evening of cultural exchange, featuring songs and dance! Everyone is invited to share a song representing their ethnic background. $25 advance (Indian taco included). Tickets at the door, $15. Indian tacos, $15. Live entertainment and vendors on site.

Holy Saturday Services

11 am to noon, Confessions, Assumption Westview. 8:30 pm, Easter Vigil, Assumption Westview.

S pring Market

Saturday April 19th • 11-3 &

Daily Easter Egg Hunt sponsored by 460 Realty

Cocktails in the Garden

Photo Booth Sessions Food Zone

in the Garden

Follow @springtime.gardencentre or fb.com/SpringtimeGCPR for market announcements

The secret to a great fire? A

Saturday (cont)

Springtime Market

11 am to 3 pm, Springtime Garden Centre. See ad on Page 50.

Easter Egg Hunt

At Springtime Market (see above), sponsored by 460 Realty.

Egg Hunt, Crafts, & Petting Zoo

10 am, noon and 2 pm on the 19th and 20th, Family Farm B&B at 2590 Oxford Rd. Tickets required for each child participating in the egg hunt. Join us on an egg hunt, participate in Easter-themed crafts, and visit with cute farm animals. Please arrive on time, as the egg hunt will commence shortly after arrival. If you are late, you may miss the egg hunt, but there will still be crafts, the playground, and the petting zoo available. Unfortunately, this is not a pet-friendly event. familyfarmbnb.com/easter-egghunt. See ad on Page 35.

Uptown Market

10 am to noon, outside Dr. Varma’s office on Joyce.

Federal Election:

Advance Voting Day

See elections.ca for more.

20

Sunday

Easter Sunday

Last Day of Passover 420

Easter Sunday Services

9 am Kelly Creek Community Church

10 am, Mass, Assumption Westview

11 am, Powell River United Church

10 am Eucharist, St. David and St. Paul Anglican

10 am, Living Water Foursquare Church

10:30 am, Powell River Reformed Church

Noon, Mass, Sacred Heart, Tla’amin

Putters Easter

Egg Hunt

11 am to 1 pm, $5 per hunter, finding a golden egg enters you into a grand prize draw.

Springtime Market

11 am to 3 pm, Springtime Garden Centre. See ad on Page 50.

Easter Egg Hunt

At Springtime Market (see above), sponsored by 460 Realty.

Powell River Farmers Market

12:30 to 2:30 pm, Paradise Exhibition Grounds, inside the quonset hut.

Magic the Gathering Commander night

6 pm, High Tide Games. Bring your best Commander deck and be prepared to defend your creatures.

Egg Hunt, Crafts, & Petting Zoo

10 am, noon and 2 pm on the 19th and 20th, Family Farm B&B at 2590 Oxford Rd. Tickets required for each child participating in the egg hunt. Join us on an egg hunt, participate in Easter-themed crafts, and visit with cute farm animals. Please arrive on time, as the egg hunt will commence shortly after arrival. If you are late, you may miss the egg hunt, but there will still be crafts, the playground, and the petting zoo available. Unfortunately, this is not a pet-friendly event. familyfarmbnb.com/easter-egghunt. See ad on Page 35.

Federal Election:

Advance Voting Day

See elections.ca for more.

21

Monday

Easter Monday Stat

Easter Monday

Potluck Dinner

5 to 8 pm, The Gathering Place at Powell River United Church. Everyone welcome.

Board Game Night

6 pm , High Tide Games. Use one of High Tide’s or bring your own and play the night away.

Federal Election:

Advance Voting Day

See elections.ca for more.

Garden Club meeting

• Turning your lawn into a garden 7 pm, Cranberry Seniors Center. Speaker Sarah Bacon. Doors open at 6:30 pm. All welcome.

Federal Election: Last day to vote by mail See elections.ca for more.

23

Wednesday

Lyrids Meteor Shower Dungeons & Dragons night 6 pm High Tide Games. Come to watch or start a character and jump right in on the adventure.

24

Thursday Spilled Ink Poetry Night The Wishing Well, Townsite.

Compassionate Friends meeting

Refreshments starting at 6:30 pm and meeting at 7 pm. A support group for bereaved parents. Please contact us for exact location or more information at powellrivertcf@gmail.com

25

Friday Spring Cabaret: Songs from the Jukebox 7:30 pm, James Hall. Enjoy a lively variety show featuring Jukebox hits from the 1950’s - 1970’s performed by a live band and talented vocalists. There will be a bar, 50/50 fundraiser raffle, and feel free to bring your own snacks! See ad on Page 58 and powellriveracademy.com for tickets.

22

Tuesday Earth Day

Lyrids Meteor Shower 55th annual Earth Day

26

Saturday auTour Dance Company,

NATIONAL CANADIAN FILM DAYS: On April 16 & 17, enjoy free screenings of (clockwise from top left) Strange Brew (7 pm on the 16th, “A Canadian comedy classic, that follows lovable hosers Bob and Doug McKenzie on an epic adventure”), Reel Injun (1:30 pm on the 16th, “Takes the audience on a trip through time to explore the history of the ‘Hollywood Indian’ and offers a refreshing, candid and personal analysis,”), I Like Movies (1:30 pm on the 17th, “An awkward and anxious 17-year-old cinephile believes that he is on the path to a legendary filmmaking career”), and Paying For It (7:30 pm on the 17th, “Sook-Yin Lee’s adaptation of Chester Brown’s

presented by the BC Movement Arts Society

7:30pm, Evergreen Theatre. $14 to $34, tickets at The Recreation Complex: 604-485-2891. See more at bcmovementarts.com, and on Pages 16 and 46.

ReNew Art Faire

10 am - 4 pm, qathet Art Centre above the library. Artist demos and art for sale. Displays with a focus on environmental sustainability. See Page 27 and 60 for more.

Uptown Market

10 am to noon, outside Dr. Varma’s office on Joyce.

Film • Freedom Express

2 pm, The Patricia. Beer and brats with CJMP.

Keeping it Bluegrass: Scout Mountain

6 pm, Legion.

Chamber Music Concert

– Ensembles in Action

3 pm at the Cranberry Seniors Centre main hall. By donation. qathet Symphony Orchestra and qathet Concert Band present small ensembles drawn from their members in a program of mostly classical chamber music, with something for everyone. String, brass, wind and mixed ensembles will be featured for your listening pleasure.

Kiwanis club book sale.

10 am to 1 pm, 4943 Kiwanis Ave. It’s a major fundraiser for Gavin Warman and Saphire Mitchell who are both

autobiographical 2011 graphic novel is a movie only Lee could make… because it’s her story, too”), all at The Patricia.

The qathet Film Society’s Peg Campbell and Gary Shilling write, “National Canadian Film Day gives us a chance to get together and celebrate films made in Canada, by Canadians, screening Canadian films coast to coast. At the Patricia Theatre, we like showing Canadian films so much we’ve expanded CanFilmDay to two days.

“This year our line-up of films has a focus on humour and quintessential ‘Canadiana’ as influenced, and affected, by our American neighbour. “ - PW

down at BC Children’s Hospital. Grab a bag for $8, bring your own grocery bag or we will provide a brown paper bag. Let’s help the local children.

St. David & St. Paul

annual Plant Sale

10 am to noon, 6310 Sycamore St. Visit for starter plants for your home gardens. Plant purchases help continue to provide fruit plants, shade trees, and a beautiful common space for our neighbours.

27

Sunday New Moon

Powell River Farmers Market

12:30 to 2:30 pm, Paradise Exhibition Grounds, inside the quonset hut

Marathon Shuffle

27 kilometres along the Sunshine Coast Trail, ending at The Shinglemill. See Page 45 for more.

Ivy Pull

3-4:30pm. Meet at the Valentine Mountain parking lot. To RSVP for this or future ivy pulls, contact kate@emergecollab.com

Kiwanis club book sale

10 am to 1 pm, 4943 Kiwanis Ave. It’s a major fundraiser for Gavin Warman and Saphire Mitchell who are both down at BC Children’s Hospital. Grab a bag for $8, bring your own grocery

• Cups

• Soup cups

• Salad bowls

• Straws

• Bags

• Cutlery

• and more…

fibre.

bag or we will provide a brown paper bag. Let’s help the local children. Magic the Gathering Commander night

6 pm, High Tide Games. Bring your best Commander deck and be prepared to defend your creatures.

Eagle Eyes – Eagles Tribute 7:30 pm, Evergreen. $49.95 on Eventbrite.

28

Monday

General Voting Day: Federal Election

See elections.ca for more.

Board Game Night

6 pm , High Tide Games. Use one of High Tide’s or bring your own and play the night away.

30

Wednesday

Top Ten Reasons To Wear A Pollen Sweater

No pop bottles were hurt making Pollen Sweaters. You’ll be helping sheep stay cool in summer. e pure wool stays warm even when wet. Non-itchy, and soft enough to wear next to sensitive skin. Machine washable and dryer safe at moderate temperature. We put the label on the inside where it belongs. Designed to layer smoothly under or over other garments. No o shore sweatshops. Ours is here at home. If it ever wears out compost it. Makes you 50 to 90% more handsome. (results may vary)

Dungeons & Dragons night

6 pm High Tide Games. Come to watch or start a character and jump right in on the adventure.

Three pieces of music you’ll hear at the fourth annual Accordion Fest

BY KARINA INKSTER

The 4th annual qathet Accordion Fest returns May 2 and 3, 2025, at the Powell River Academy of Music. This year’s celebration of one of the world’s most versatile instruments features 11 performing artists, two main concerts (tickets at accordionfest.com), two hands-on workshops, an open mic session, and Accordion 101 for beginners. Whether you’re a seasoned player or just curious, there’s something for everyone!

This year’s Accordion Fest is serving up a genre-bending musical feast. Here’s a taste of three standout pieces:

Gymnopédie No. 1

Originally from a 3-part series of piano pieces composed by Erik Satie in 1888, you’ll hear a fresh version of this tune at the Accordion Fest on entirely different instruments.

The name Gymnopédie references an ancient Spartan festival at which young men danced and competed against each other. This might be a droll reference on Satie’s part, as the piece itself is anything but combative—dreamy, calm, and gently meandering. Featuring Fest co-directors Walter Martella and Karina Inkster on accordions, you’ll first hear Gymnopédie No. 1 in its classical form, before we reinvent it as a jazz waltz.

You’ll hear improvised solos on accordion and guitar, as well as the familiar main melody played in a different style.

CHANGE Vote

QATHET’S QOOLEST GANG: Terry Martyniuk on drums, with qathet Accordion Festival co-founders Walter Martella (on accordion) and Karina Inkster (on the didgeridoo.)

ACCORDION FESTIVAL

When & Where: May 2 & 3, Powell River Academy of Music

Tickets & full schedule: accordionfest.com

Fracanapa

Fracanapa is an energetic tango composition by the renowned Argentine composer and bandoneón (same instrument family as the accordion) virtuoso Astor Piazzolla.

Written in the 1960s, the piece exemplifies “nuevo tango”, a genre blending tango and jazz, spearheaded by Piazzolla. The title “Fracanapa” is derived from an Italian street carnival marionette character, usually dressed in a tailcoat and a wide hat. He’s witty and sociable, enjoys good food and wine, and aims to make people smile.

Fracanapa is one of the tracks on our album Aria di Tango, to be released at the Accordion Fest! Walter and I recorded the album this past summer at En-

clave Studio in Gibsons, with Terry Martyniuk (percussion), Budge Schachte (guitar), and Boyd Norman (bass).

The five of us will be performing Fracanapa at our Accordion Cabaret on the second night of the Fest. Come join us for dancing, a dessert and savoury bar, an opening act by a 10-piece accordion band from Victoria, cash bar, and general merriment.

Paint It Black

Originally released by The Rolling Stones in 1966, Paint It Black quickly became one of their most iconic tracks. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, the song marked a turning point in rock music with its fusion of Eastern and Western influences—most notably the use of a sitar played by Rolling Stones founder Brian Jones.

At the Accordion Fest Opening Night Concert, you’ll hear a unique reinterpretation of this song for didgeridoo, accordion, djembe, guitar, and bass. In the spirit of the Stones’ original cross-cultural sound, we’re bringing together instruments from three continents: Africa, Australia, and Europe. Our piece is fully improvised, so no two performances are ever the same. Anything can happen!

CRUSHING ON MUSHROOMS: The above chanterelle painting is by Noelle Blue Moon, acrylic on canvas 8”x8”. Mycelium Art Shop opens May 1 at The Wishing Well Gallery (bottom of the Rodmay). Submissions open through April 15.

ART SHOWS COMING UP

April 4 to 13

Borderland: Painting on Ukraine

Tidal Art Centre. Opening Reception: April 5, 4 to 7 pm. Barbara Langmaid. See story on Page 57. Barbaralangmaid.com.

April 26

ReNew Art Faire

10 -4, qathet Art Centre above the library. Artist demos and art for sale. Displays with a focus on environmental sustainability. See Pages 27 and 60 for more.

May 1

Mycelium Art Show opens Wishing Well in Townsite. Submit art until April 15 to wishingwellqathet@gmail.com.

May 4

David Tudor’s Rainforest IV project

1-5 pm qathetART Centre. An interactive public event exploring the resonant qualities of sound projected through sculptural objects. Presented by Giorgio Magnanensi.

May 10 to 18

qathet Colour: an Invocation

Tidal Art Centre. Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 3-5, and by appointment, email hello@annierobinson.art. Opening reception: Saturday, May 10, 7-9 pm. Group Art Therapy Workshop: Saturday, May 17, 1-4 pm. Artist talk and closing reception, Sunday, May 18, 3 pm. See Page 26 for more.

To June 6

The Skies Photo Competition

The Library is hosting its annual photo competition with the theme as “the skies.” Submit by the deadline of June 6. For information about contest rules and prizes visit prpl.ca.

Through May

Lisa Hau exhibit Library.

First

Drop in during the market - FCFS

Follow me on Instagram for pop-ups and events schedule

Ask about booking a party

@foundstone_jewelry_art_decor

Our Lives

In qL’s Our Lives section (Page 59), anyone can share important news from their loved ones’ lives: births, graduations, weddings, job changes, anniversaries, retirements, obituaries, ‘in memoriam’ notices, and more. Because sharing this kind of news is so important in a community, qL offers free small notices for births, weddings and obituaries: a 1/18th size, for locals, when the event happened in the three months previous to publication.

Bigger sizes and other announcements:

150 words & photo: $150

300 words & photo: $300

600 words & photo: $500

750 words & photos: $750

Send your info to ourlives@qathetliving.ca, call 604-485-0003, or drop in to 7053E Glacier Street.

It’s

a hard knock life

At 7 pm, May 1 to 3, the qathet School District Musical Theatre Program takes the stage at the Max Cameron to perform the much-loved musical, Annie Jr.

A cast of 28 grades 3 to 7 students from Kelly Creek Community School, Westview, Edgehill, Henderson, and James Thomson are directed by Megan Skidmore, assistant directed by Emily Dunn, and choreographed by Charlotte Koopman-Gough and Hayden Mallery.

50% off thank-you advertisements

It’s simple: advertise your event with qathet Living, then get half off your thank-you ad after the event.

It’s just our way of saying thank-you to the wonderful folks who organize and support the many great events that happen in our community.

A PEEK AHEAD TO MAY EVENTS

May 1

Mycelium Art Show opens Wishing Well in Townsite.

May 1 to 3

Annie 7 pm, Max Cameron.

May 2

Haywire Bay opens qathet Regional District campground opens for the season. See Page 14 for more.

May 2/3

4th Annual qathet Accordion Fest

Opening concert 7:30 pm on Friday, all day Saturday. Visit accordionfest.com.

May 3 & 4

Farmers Market goes outside for the summer

And starts up for both Saturdays (10 am to noon) and Sundays (12:30 pm to 2:30 pm).

May 4

David Tudor’s Rainforest IV project presented by Giorgio Magnanensi 1-5 pm qathetART Centre. Vinyl Flip Cranberry Hall.

May 8

Emergency test 2 pm. Test of the qRD’s Community Notification System. See Page 29 for more.

May 10 to 18

qathet Colour: an Invocation Tidal Art Centre.

May 11

Mother’s Day

Tuesday, May 13

Cranberry Senior’s Centre Annual General Meeting Noon, complimentary luncheon, AGM to follow at 1 pm.

Determined to find her parents, Annie takes on the scheming Miss Hannigan and finds a new home with billionaire Oliver Warbucks, his kind secretary Grace Farrell, and the lovable dog, Sandy.

Audiences can look forward to classic songs like Tomorrow, Maybe, and You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile. Don’t miss this delightful production full of hope, laughter, and unforgettable tunes!

May 14

Cran Hall Presents: Gordie Tentrees and Jaxon Haldane. 7 pm. Tickets at The Nutcracker.

May 16

Dancing with Addiction – reading 4 pm at the Library.

May 19

Victoria Day Food Bank Ride 2 pm, meet outside Lordco.

May 21 & 22

Understanding Dementia Library. To register for either or both workshops, contact Mark at mmerlino@prpl.ca

May 22 to 25

School of Rock – The Musical by the Brooks Secondary Theatre Department 7 pm Thursday to Saturday nights, 2 pm Sunday, Max Cameron.

May 23

Choosing to Be Nomads in Retirement 3 pm, Library.

May 31

Surviving the Holocaust 2 pm, Library.

Forest Scholarship Deadline

See Page 47 for more on the Powell River Community Forest scholarship.

Passion in Townsite

Musicians, dancers,

and

the audience create flamenco together

When it comes to choosing artists for the Townsite Jazz Festival (TJF), artistic director Paul Cummings is a try-before-you-buy kind of guy.

“I hope that if I’m inspired by something and I like it that it’ll meet the standard of most other people that come in to watch the concerts as well,” he says.

After a trip to Vancouver last October to watch the members of Karen Flamenco perform in-person, inspired he was. Cummings knew he had to bring this 10-piece group to the qathet region, but he wasn’t quite sure how he was going to describe the show to ticket-buyers before they got here.

“It’s just such a feast for the senses,” he recalls.

Beyond the colourful costumes and clacking castanets, there’s more to flamenco than meets the eye. And who better to explain it than Karen herself – Karen Pitkethly, that is – the dancer, choreographer, and teacher behind Karen Flamenco.

We caught up with her in advance of the group’s performance on April 11 at the Townsite Jazz Festival, 7:30 pm at Max Cameron Theatre.

For audiences who have never experienced flamenco before, how would you describe the energy and emotion

KAREN FLAMENCO

When & Where: April 11, 7:30pm, Max Cameron Theatre

What: Part of the Townsite Jazz Festival (see full schedule, next page), Karen Flamenco, a young and innovative dance company, intertwines masterful story telling, passionate music, and spirited dancing to capture the thrill of flamenco in front of a live audience.

Tickets: $25 adults, $15 students (plus fees), 0 to 5 free. townsitejazz.com.

of your performances?

Karen • For a first-time audience member in attendance, be prepared to be affected emotionally through the passion, the excitement, and the intensity of flamenco music and dance.

Audience members often yell out “jaleos” – vocal encouragements or shouts of praise and excitement, used to cheer on performers during a performance, with common phrases including “olé,” “eso es,” and “guapa”.

Can you walk us through a bit of what happens on stage – how the music, dance, and vocals interact?

Karen • I like to explain a flamenco dance as a passing of the torch. The guitarist will have his time with the torch, during which

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the dancer and singer will give him the spotlight and accompany him.

He then passes the torch to the singer where now the spotlight is fully on her and the dancer and guitarist will accompany her the best they can.

Then over to the dancer where the guitarist and singer will focus on her feet to find the correct rhythm and stay anchored throughout.

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This torch can be passed back and forth throughout the dance, keeping all musicians and dancers connected. There is a conversation that happens between all three without saying a word. This conversation is told through particular movements or musical cues. It is not the same as dancing to a recorded track. There is so much more freedom to play.

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Under the trees south of town on Nassichuk Road Plots available For information, call Wendy Larkin 604-485-9268

Townsite Jazz Festival Schedule

Thursday, April 10

Ben Wayne Kyle Trio

• Opener: Brooks Vocal Jazz

Noon, Shinglemill Pub & Bistro. Powell River’s own Ben Wayne Kyle is a guitarist, composer, and singer. His Vancouver-based trio is inspired by Bill Frisell, Grant Green, and Pat Martino, blending jazz, funk, folk, and rock. All ages $25+fees.

Laura Crema Quartet

• Opener: Martella-Worthen Duo

5 pm, Shinglemill Pub & Bistro. Vancouver-based singer Laura Crema’s rare gift brings new depth to old standards. All ages $25+fees.

Two Much Guitar

• Opener: Brooks Jazz Band

7:30 pm, Max Cameron Theatre. Beloved Canadian jazz guitarists Oliver Gannon and Bill Coon duke it out with an all-star rhythm section, blending standards and originals with verve. Adults $25+fees. Students $15+fees. 0 to 5 years, free.

Friday, April 11

Sharon Minemoto Quartet

• Opener: Oak Bay High Combo

Noon, Shinglemill Pub & Bistro. An active musician since the age of 16, Vancouver’s Sharon Minemoto has wowed audiences worldwide with her piano style and hip original tunes. All ages $25+fees.

Jazz & Appys, a fundraiser featuring the Steve Carson Quintet

• Opener: Oak Bay High Vocal Jazz

5 pm, Brooks Hall. qathet School District alumnus Steve Carson, a rising saxophonist now based in Toronto, returns for a fundraiser supporting Brooks Secondary’s music program. Adults $40+fees, Students $30+fees, Table of 8, $320+fees.

Karen Flamenco

• Opener: Brooks Vocal Jazz

7:30 pm, Max Cameron Theatre. A true feast for the senses that blends storytelling, passionate music, and spirited dance. Adults $25+fees. Students $15+fees. 0 to 5 years, free.

The Deadly Nightshades

• Opener: Reynolds Secondary Vocal Jazz

9:30 pm, The Blue Room, Dwight Hall basement. Groove to southern-fried music ( R’n’B, soul, blues, and funk) from some of Vancouver Island’s hottest musicians. All ages $25+fees.

Soul Jazz

Saturday, April 12

• Opener: Reynolds Secondary Vocal Jazz

12:30 pm, The Blue Room, Dwight Hall basement. Gospel and Blues inflected hard-swinging bebop from some of Vancouver Island’s hottest musicians. All ages $25+fees.

qathet School District Alumni Quintet

Both jazz and flamenco are known for their ability to convey a wide range

•

• Opener: Oak Bay High Vocal Jazz

4 pm, The Blue Room, Dwight Hall basement. With Walter Martella (piano/trumpet), Steve Carson (saxophone), Ben Wayne Kyle (guitar/vocals), Mark Antolovich (bass), Adam Robertson (drums). All ages, $25+fees.

Gala Dance featuring the Julio Ávila Cuban Band

• Openers: Brooks Jazz Band, Leishman-Mulder Quartet

7:30 pm, Dwight Hall. The Julio Ávila Cuban Band, a 10-piece Afro-Cuban powerhouse led by bass virtuoso Julio Ávila, energizes audiences with a vibrant mix of Son, Salsa, Bachata, and Boleros. Adults $30+fees, students $20+fees, 0-5 years free, Table of 8, $240+fees.

- Karen Pitkethly

NOT YET A FAN OF FLAMENCO?: Karen Flamenco, the performance group coming from Vancouver, will change that. They’re at the Max Cameron, April 11.

Do you see connections or parallels between flamenco and jazz?

Karen • Yes! Both jazz and flamenco have deep roots in the musical traditions of marginalized communities: Afro-Americans for jazz and Andalusian Gypsies for flamenco. Both genres place a high value on improvisation, allowing musicians to express themselves freely and creatively.

Both jazz and flamenco are known for their ability to convey a wide range of emotions, from joy and passion to sadness and melancholy. The fusion of flamenco and jazz is not new, with artists like Paco de Lucía experimenting with jazz, Afro-Cuban, and Middle Eastern music.

What do you hope audiences take away from a Karen Flamenco performance?

Karen • An appreciation for the art form and the culture of flamenco. I hope that the audience will walk away feeling moved, emotionally. The songs, music, and movements all work together to convey different feelings. Some dances/ songs can be quite sad or deep and some are very upbeat and happy.

I come from a ballet background and remember when I first fell in love with flamenco. It was the mystery behind the close connection between the musicians and the dancers that intrigued me.

I think the beauty is the live aspect. There are unexpected stops and starts that happen throughout a dance. You think it is over but then it comes back in and can take you by surprise.

A lament for Ukraine, Europe’s borderland

qathet artist Barbara Langmaid calls on locals to witness and contemplate the meaning of this war – and take action.

I[Barbara Langmaid] was born and raised in California. In 1992, I immigrated to Canada. I am a grandmother, I have a lovely dog, my cat just died. I am worried for the world. My country of birth frightens and embarrasses me. I am grateful to live in Canada. Beyond grateful!

I’ve lived in Powell River for 33 years and never get tired of waving to people I know. I love my children and my grandchildren more than anything. I’m grateful for my clever husband.

I’ve painted for over 50 years. I am stubborn, quiet, a reader, an observer. I listen to a lot of podcasts. Mostly politics and history.

Poetry and meditation are good. Mystery is also good.

What motivated you to start painting these images?

Barbara • What’s the thread? My interest in Ukraine began with Trump’s first election. I immigrated to Canada from the US in 1992 but admittedly, I was oblivious to politics in general. With Trump’s unlikely election I had an awakening. Ukraine entered the picture a few years later and although I had started reading about Russia, at that point I began to also dig into Ukraine.

I watched the documentary Winter On Fire – Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom. It is a profound film and it made me wonder, would I be willing to die for my country’s freedom? Would the complacent West be willing to fight?

When Russia invaded in Feb 2022 (and not for the first time), I watched this disastrous invasion every day. I still do. I began to pull images off the internet of bombed-out buildings, explosions and the wreckage of the landscape. It resembled any country that has been at war, or one that has been ravaged by floods, a tornado, an earthquake. I began to take these images and paint them.

PAINTING POLITICS: Above, “Coastal Ukraine” 28”x 42” Acrylic on paper 2024. Right, “House 1” 42” x 54” Acrylic on Paper 2023.

BORDERLAND

When & Where: April 4 to 13, Tidal Art Centre in Lund (9971 Finn Bay Road)

What: qathet Artist Barbara Langmaid’s exhibit of 13 paintings about the war in Ukraine. She is also selling reproductions to raise funds to support the people of Ukraine.

Opening Reception: April 5, 4 to 7pm.

What is your connection to Ukraine?

Barbara • I have no familial connection to Ukraine. I’ve never been there. It’s my love and admiration for a country fighting off a brutal dictatorship.

Ukrainians are dying, cities and villages are being razed to the ground. Children kidnapped, women, men and children raped and tortured. Much like Gaza, Syria, Chechnya, and not coincidentally, all these atrocities were aided and perpetrated by Putin’s regime.

And yet, Ukrainians still make coffee. Still laugh. Are still in the fight.

Zelensky is the strongest leader I have ever witnessed in my long life. Unflagging support for his people, for his country, for the culture and the future of Ukraine.

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What were your thoughts and feelings while painting these images?

Barbara • Thoughts and feelings don’t occupy me while I’m painting. They occur while I’m watching videos and images on the internet.

As a visual person, I see a haunting beauty in these images. A profound discomfort. And I want to draw the viewer in and take note.

Where do you get your news from?

Barbara • Twitter and YouTube, also The Guardian and Ground News. And now Bluesky.

I follow a lot of Ukrainians and people who support and are knowledgeable about Ukraine and Russia. I also listen to historians: Timothy Snyder, Stephen Kotkin, Anne Applebaum, just to name a few.

As

- Barbara Langmaid

How might we be thinking about Canada and the US, if we reflect on Russia and Ukraine, what might we learn?

Barbara • I think we should all be taking notice of what is happening in the US now, and probably has been happening over the last few decades. Education has declined, critical thinking has declined. Russia has stoked division in order to weaken the West.

Do you know that in Finland there is a Critical Thinking Curriculum? Finland was invaded by Russia in 1939. Finland beat Russia off, but lost territory.

Timothy Snyder, an American historian of Central and Eastern Europe, quickly put out a small book, On Tyranny – 20 Lessons for the 20th Century, following Trump’s election in 2016. The US did not pay heed to his wise words. We should.

Education. History. Kindness. He has a new book called, On Freedom. It is a map.

I am proud of Canada for standing up to Trump. I think witnessing what is happening in the US is a window into what could happen, what has happened.

What do you hope will come out of this show?

Barbara • Awareness. I hope people will contribute to Ukraine financially and otherwise. I have a friend who is over there now helping. He is mechanical and can repair vehicles critical for evacuation of injured soldiers. I am

HORROR AND HOPE: Top, “Mariupol Theatre” 42” x 53” Acrylic on Paper 2024. Above, Barbara Langmaid with her newest grandchild, Rhodes, when the family was gathered in Okeover at the dock last spring, 2024.

selling small images of my paintings, also signed posters. All proceeds will go to Ukraine.

What didn’t I ask that I should have?

Barbara • My lament is that more people are not paying attention. Keeping your head down is understandable, but I believe Russia’s invasion was and is an historical pivot. Allies shifting, roiling markets, war. And now with Trump’s second term, we are at the forefront of his authoritarian designs. Imagine! Canada the 51st state? Elbows up! By the way, I named my show Borderland because the word Ukraine means borderland.

“It is an appropriate name for a land that lies on the southeastern edge of Europe, on the threshold of Asia, along the fringes of the Mediterranean world, and astride the once important border between sheltering forests and the open steppe.“ Ukraine – A History, by Orest Subtelny

In Loving Memory of

Myrna Gullette

July 13, 1935 to March 9, 2025

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our mother Myrna Gullette (89) on March 9, 2025.  Myrna is survived by her children, son Shawn, daughter Stacy (Scott), daughter Shelly (Owen) and son Shannon. Five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

Myrna was predeceased by her husband of 52 years Wayne and her beloved dog Lily.

Born July 15, 1935 in Bellingham, Washington. Myrna is survived by her brother Bob Pike and was predeceased by sisters Pinky and Bonnie.

Mom was an avid supporter of Dad’s adventures, moving from the US to Northern BC to build a log home and live off the land. Mom was guided through her life by her faith and love for Jehovah God. Mom was a medical stenographer, librarian, head cook in logging camp and managed seniors residential buildings.  She taught us a love of reading and to use our good common sense to work through life’s challenges.

Stacy and Shelly would like to acknowledge the loving care and devotion provided by our brother Shannon to Mom for the past 20 years. To honour her wishes there will be no service and flowers are gratefully declined.

Donations can be made to the Kingdom Hall if you wish.

In loving memory of

Robert George Lacey

December 15, 1935 – February 19, 2025

With grieving hearts, we announce that Robert (Bob) Lacey passed away at the age of 89 years with his chosen family at his bedside.

Robert resided on Fairmont Street (Westview), his lifelong home. His parents built the house in the late 30’s and the three of them resided together until each predeceased the other. Robert was an only child of George and Elsie LACEY, who died in 1970 and 1988, respectively.

Robert chose to remain a bachelor. He had a full lifetime career serving BC Hydro. He loved to travel. Among his many international travels, Robert forged a lifelong friendship with a royal couple in Germany.

Robert was especially fond of Cortes, and Lund. He had dear friends in both places who he often visited after his retirement. He was most enamoured with nature, boats, fishing, and the sea.

Robert was known to many in the community of Powell River, including young and old alike, as well as their pets (dogs and cats). In later years Robert could be found visiting at the Harbours, his favorite shops and coffee stops, and walking daily down Marine Avenue to Willingdon and back home - again making multiple stops to chat or offer a dog cookie.

He was a fierce though friendly ambassador to Powell River and qathet, regarding it all as paradise on earth. Throughout his many adventures and travels, he loved the Salish Sea, his modest home, and enjoyed many acquaintances, friends, and neighbors. He generously donated to many local charities and causes his entire life.

Robert’s legacy will live on in the minds of those blessed to know him, and especially in the hearts and memories of his kinship family.

Deeply missed, he will never be forgotten.

At Robert’s request, he was laid to eternal rest in the Powell River Regional Cemetery (Cranberry), next to his mother, on April 3, 2025.

Robert was a humble, practical, private, and quiet man; no formal service will be held.

Our Lives •

A beautiful baby girl has been born!!!

Lilith Sweet

Came into the world on March 4, 2025 weighing 8lbs 11oz.

The proud, ecstatic parents are Jeremiah Sweet & Jordan Bowen-Sweet.

William Michael Richman

March 16, 2015

William passed from this life into the kingdom of God and his forever home on March 16, 2025. Born in Toronto to Melville Richman and Grace (Dowling), Bill was married to Hazel (Hinds) since 1971. He was the proud father, father in law, and grandfather to Michael (Deanne deceased) and their son Matthew, Edward ( Jaime ) and their children Macen & Kendell, and Nicholas (fiance Thaila) and his son Lochlan. The oldest brother to Bruce, Barry (deceased) (Diana), Brian (Annie), Bonnie (Ron) Reynolds, and Robert (deceased) (Monique.)

Bill had a lifelong love of aircraft. He served in the Royal Canadian Air force as a certified airplane technician, deck hand on BC Ferries, followed by a long career at MacMillan Bloedel, which became Catalyst. Whatever he tackled in life, he wanted to do with excellence. He was an avid fisherman and gardener, and enjoyed sharing with others. Off-grid camping with family and friends or road trips was the good life.

In 2006, Bill and his wife opened a local non-profit society called Healing Rooms. A man of faith and compassion, he and Hazel had a heart for those struggling with life’s issues and wanted to help them find the answer, whether they were emotional, physical or spiritual in nature. Bill was respected for having a gift of listening and encouraging others. Bill’s quiet ways, wisdom, sense of humour, moral convictions, and integrity will be remembered and missed by many. Thank you to Dr. Andrea, Dr. Allman and the nursing staff for the care Bill received.

A Celebration of life will take place May 10, 2025, 12:30 pm at Evangel Church on Manson Avenue.

In lieu of flowers donations can be made in his honour to Healing Rooms.

Direct e-transfer: ecpowellriver@gmail.com or cheque to: Healing Rooms. (Income tax receipts will be issued at year end, please include an address. )

Let’s speak plainly here, many of us are feeling rather shaken or ungrounded these days. Be it on the larger global, national, or community scale, something within our own personal lives, or maybe even all of it, it’s likely there’s some level of unrest niggling at, or fully disrupting our wellbeing.

you look

To book your print ad that doesn’t work, contact Sean at 604-485-0003 or sean@qathetliving.ca or Suzi at 604-344-0208 or suzi@qathetliving.ca today!

We may be well versed in navigating such things generally, but every once in a while it can come with an extra surge of intensity.

If you’ve been feeling this way, just know that Springtime often brings its own challenges, but it also shows us remedies for rooting into wellness too.

With its bursts of first flowers and newborn critters, we’re welcomed sweetly with warm, mood-lifted days and joyful birdsong. But we don’t often talk about how much energy this time of year requires.

The first radicle needs to push through a tough seed coat, wee chicks meet exhaustion when poking through shells to freedom. For us too, we might find the season asking a bit more of us.

Suddenly it’s garden planning and planting time, Summer commitments begin forming, repairs or building held up by Winter’s cold urgently wait to be addressed; now toss in all that feels insecure or unjust both inside and outside of ourselves too.

To support, the natural world encourages us to:

• Get our hands and feet literally on the ground. Search for bugs, buds, and blossoms.

• Let vitamin D laden sunshine touch our skin, even if it’s through a window.

• Take breaks for rest when tackling stressful things.

• Release our hopes, prayers, grief, and praise out of us through song or chanting.

• Flock together in community to share news, games, and stories.

• Nest. Spring clean, purge a closet, fix a broken something.

• Nap when tired. Stretch often. Eat fresh greens. Sniff the air.

Even if things feel ugly and hard, marvel at beauty too. That persistent dandelion growing in cracked pavement, the glorious Sunrise, the smile of a passerby.

Caring for our nervous systems, physical bodies, and mental health in these ways grows fortitude while actively tending to what we can see, touch, and do. It may sound trite, but these acts become powerful proofs against those big rough things that we can’t directly affect or change.

***

604-223-8030 btccleaningltd@gmail.com tidy-t-cleaning.com

• Visualize rooting deep into soil and drawing nourishment into our bodies.

If you’d like to read more; archives, books, & guides can be found at juliettejarvis.com or subscribe to juliettejarvis.substack.com

CAN YOU FIND THESE WORDS FROM THIS ISSUE IN THE PUZZLE ABOVE?

ACCORDION

ALLIGATOR

ANEMONE

ANNIE BEST

BLUEBERRY

BLUFFS

CANDIDATE

CAREER

CARPOOL CONTEST

EASTER

ELCO EVO

FLAMENCO

FOOD

GARDEN

GASOLINE

HERRING

HUCKLEBERRY

HUDSONS

LAMBERT

LIZARD

MARATHON

MYRTLE

NEWT

ORCHID

OUTAGE

SEAL

SECURITY

SHUFFLE

SING

SMOKE

SQUAMISH

STILLWATER

TETRODOTOXIN

TISKWAT

UKRAINE

UPTOWN

VITAMIN

WUWOOM

ZERO

MARCH COUNTRY ROADS PUZZLE

LAST WORD

PIETA WOOLLEY

So here’s what happened

At the very end of last month, just a couple of hours before we went to press, I did a final check of the March qL. It was a lonely afternoon. Publisher Sean Percy, who wears the IT hat in this office (when he’s not selling ads or brewing Earl Grey), was just out of hernia surgery, so I was on my own that week to wrap up the magazine. In my 12 years with qL, I’d never done this part of production before.

On Sean’s extensive list of instructions were several searchand-destroy missions in the text of the mag. Hyphens that should have been en-dashes get searched and replaced. So do full spaces before am or pm; they’re replaced with a short space. And the clincher: colon-zero-zero gets replaced with nothing, as in, “1:00pm” should be, according to qL style, “1pm.” The colon and zeros take up room and add bulk to the reading experience, so we nix them.

Instead of doing that, I just searched and destroyed all the “00”s. Shortly after, I saw my error, and couldn’t reverse it. So I hurriedly went through the document and changed as many as I could find, in my panicked state. And then I hit “send.” March 2025 was a wrap.

This all happened long after the fiercely-competent Ann Nelson, Roberta Pearson, and Lauren Diemer copy-edited the 56page document. Tis not their fault. Tis 100% mine.

Famously, now, on the front of the magazine, “100% Locally-Owned” became “1%” Locally-Owned.

The good news: I flagged this error on social media, hoping to get ahead of it. Although the comments were priceless and the post attracted lots of attention, the office still received calls and visits from dozens of folks who hadn’t seen the online post and wanted to alert us to our mistakes. That tells us that there are a lot of careful readers out there, and lots and lots of folks who are not stuck to social media. Eureka, paper wins!

The bad news: I’d much rather have used this space to write a column about why, during this election period, we’re obsessed with federal party leaders (and their personalities and hypocrisies) like they’re the Kardashians, and why we’re under-focusing on the actual federal issues that impact us most directly. But instead, you’re stuck with this litany of last month’s mistakes. || editor@qathetliving.ca

So many missing zeros

Page 1: According to our March 2025 cover, and Page 4, the magazine is 1% locally owned. (In fact, the other 99% is also locally owned. We just don’t feel the need to brag about it all the time. Yes, we are still 100% locally owned.)

Page 6: The Powell River Salmon Society hopes to clip the adipose fins of 300,000 tiny coho, not 3,0. To reach this goal, they have to clip 20,000 fish per day for three weeks. Past efforts clipped 60,000 at most. If they reach that goal, it will make this the largest volunteer clipping effort in BC history. More than 100 people have reached out to possibly help and the first week of clipping is mostly booked, but organizer Terry Peters is still looking for volunteers to work three-hour shifts from April 21 to 25 and April 28 to May 2. Volunteer clippers need to average about seven fish per minute, which Terry says it is totally doable. Experienced clippers can do 14 per minute. Contact Terry at clippingprsalmon@gmail.com or call 604-483-9440.

Page 27: Homes that sold for $400,000 in previous years were priced at $650,000 and selling for $800,000 with no conditions – in cash.

When the mill closed, we didn’t see 200 homes hit the market all at once, as some anticipated. (We may have seen more than the “2” we printed.)

Page 29: Meaghan Westie reported that sellers who purchased at the peak and need to sell now could experience losses exceeding $100,000. (Not 1,000, as they might have wished.)

Monica Peckford started brokering mortgages in 2001. (Not when she was 21.) We also want to clarify that if the house you want to buy is under $500,000, you can buy with just a 5% downpayment. (If your house is only $50, as we printed, we recommend paying cash in full.)

Page 30: Rachelle Ford showed that, depending on their mortgages, some could be looking at increases of $600/month in their payments. (We expected most homeowners wouldn’t be as worried about a $6 per month increase that we printed.)

Page 32: Our Blast from the Past should have noted that the ball park on Manson Avenue was renamed after Larry Gouthro in 2005. (Our museum records mostly don’t go back to 25 AD, and Larry was around for a long time, but not THAT long!)

Page 35: BarBurrito opened its first store in Toronto in 2005. (Again, we don’t think

anyone was eating burritos in Toronto in 25.)

The new Winners store will be 25,000 square feet. (A little bigger than the 250 square foot closet we reported they would be operating out of.) The BC Liquor Store has grown by 1,900 square feet. (We wouldn’t have bothered mentioning it if it were only 19 square feet, as we printed.)

Page 35: The Mid-Level connector from the complex to Townsite is getting a $450,000 contribution from the City’s Active Transportation Fund. (If it had been the $450,0 that we printed, we suspect it would be a lot less controversial.)

Jane Waterman has been working in restorative justice since 2004. (Impressive, but we made her look like she had been at it for a couple millennia.)

Fellow Coronation Medal recipient Doreen Point attended the Native Education Centre up to the early 2000s. (That makes more sense than the early 20s, right?)

Page 36: The present Nancy’s Bakery was built in 2004. (We said 24, but that’s just silly. Blackberry cinnamon buns are legendary among millennials, but not FOR millennia.)

ProFuel Propane Ltd will fill almost all sizes of propane tanks. (But we meant 100lb tanks, not 1lbers, as we printed. You’re on your own filling those tiny tanks – that’s way too sketchy for a reasonable business to do.)

Page 46: Big Tall Garden Greg Thomson got good at drums with 10,000 hours of practising. (After 100 hours, he was probably only mediocre.)

Page 50: Retired RCMP officer Rod Wiebe served, among other communities, in 100 Mile House. (That is, we calculated, 99 miles from where we reported he served.)

Page 54: The clipping goal is 300,000 adipose fins, not 3,0. (Yeah, we know!)

Throughout the magazine: The qathet Living office phone number is 604-4850003. We’re glad we disguised that for the March issue, or we would have had even more calls than we did telling us how bad we screwed up!

Were there more? Maybe. But it seems the community delighted in pointing them out, so we think we’ve been alerted to most of them. But it’s possible we missed some. Feel free to give us a call and let us know. We’ve got thick skin.

- Sean Percy

The Community Wood Smoke Reduction Program provides rebates to residents who remove non-EPA certified wood-burning appliances and replace them with new, lowemission heating options.

Please contact us to find out more information about program requirements. Call 604.485.2260 , email environmentalservices@qathet.ca, or visit qathet.ca/community-wood-smoke-exchange-program to learn more.