Council calls community groups to defend their tax exemption requests, A Rupert resident gets a second term on the Northern Health Board and Mayor Mussallem's review of the windstorm gets posted to the CBC website, some of the items of note from our news files from Friday.
The Northern View
Community groups asked to defend tax exemption request -- Groups and organizations seeking tax exemption status have been requested to attend the next council meeting to defend their requests (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Prince Rupert Kids will have gifts under the tree -- Prince Rupert's Harley Riders once again have shown that community spirit is alive and well in the city (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Northern Health Appointees -- Prince Rupert's Cam McIntyre gets a second term of three years on the Board of Northern Health (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Six candidates in running for Kitimat council seat -- The number grows to six of those seeking a seat in Thursday's by election for Kitimat's city council (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Rosswood windstorm -- TV 7 looks at the aftermath of last weekends windstorm in the Rosswood area near Terrace (see article here)
CFTK TV 7
Smithers Homelessness -- TV 7's review of the homeless situation in the Bulkley Valley (see article here)
CFTK TV 7
Bulkley Valley Grow Op in Burns Lake -- Another take down of a Grow Op in the Northwest as RCMP members in Burns Lake shut down an operation in the city (see video report here)
Terrace Standard
Jobless rate steadies out -- A review of the jobless numbers in the northwest for September (see article here)
Terrace Standard
Not everyone happy with minimum wage hike -- Some in the business community in Terrace aren't enthused at that city council's support of an increase in the minimum wage (see article here)
QCI Observer
MIMC meeting date turns controversial-- Just the prospect of setting a date for the next Moresby Island Management Committee has proven to be problematic (see article here)
CBC News Northern BC Daybreak North
Windstorm havoc-- Mayor Jack Mussallem's review of the Thanksgiving windstorm (listen to audio report here)
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.
The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here
Showing posts with label 2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2010. Show all posts
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
It's the economy (Tuesday, July 20, 2010)
Energy advice from Oliver Stone, Double dip fears again and when Economists disagree, some of the items of note for Tuesday July 20,2010
Globe and Mail-- Porter Airlines chief sues Air Canada
Globe and Mail-- U.S. should nationalize oil: Oliver Stone
Globe and Mail-- Western farmers see hope in wheat prices
National Post-- Why isn’t the market collapsing?
National Post-- Oil sands campaign a smear
National Post-- European banks last hurdle for markets
Vancouver Sun-- Surrey housing complex now Western Canada's largest solar power development
New York Times-- Greek Rail System’s Debt Adds to Economic Woes
New York Times-- E.U. Test May Need to Fail Some Banks
New York Times-- BP Kept Drilling After Report of Leak, Worker Says
USA Today-- Airports pitch sites as all-purpose transport hubs
USA Today-- Apple's net income jumps 78% on iPhone, iPad sales
Guardian UK online-- Double dip fears as bank loans dry up
Guardian UK online-- Royal Mail workers warned against strike
Guardian UK online-- William Hill finds World Cup glory
The Independent-- Look across the Irish Sea for a glimpse of where our economy may be headed
The Independent-- Farnborough: big orders and a vision of the future
Telegraph UK online-- Krugman versus Ferguson: Round Two
Telegraph UK online-- Double dip in the Baltic
Telegraph UK online-- China knocks US off top energy use spot
Melbourne Herald Sun-- Enough debt for now - Stevens
Melbourne Herald Sun-- Inflation figure to decide rates
Sydney Daily Telegraph-- Disabled worker's pay of $2 an hour 'predatory'
People's Daily-- US welcomes China's GPA offer
People's Daily-- Chinese CEOs to focus on global vision
China Daily-- China dismisses IEA analysis of it being world's top energy user
China Daily-- Pilot project to help farmers struck by natural disasters
Times of India-- Rupee at six-week low against dollar
Times of India-- FM plays down IMF outlook, pegs growth at over 8.5%
Globe and Mail-- Porter Airlines chief sues Air Canada
Globe and Mail-- U.S. should nationalize oil: Oliver Stone
Globe and Mail-- Western farmers see hope in wheat prices
National Post-- Why isn’t the market collapsing?
National Post-- Oil sands campaign a smear
National Post-- European banks last hurdle for markets
Vancouver Sun-- Surrey housing complex now Western Canada's largest solar power development
New York Times-- Greek Rail System’s Debt Adds to Economic Woes
New York Times-- E.U. Test May Need to Fail Some Banks
New York Times-- BP Kept Drilling After Report of Leak, Worker Says
USA Today-- Airports pitch sites as all-purpose transport hubs
USA Today-- Apple's net income jumps 78% on iPhone, iPad sales
Guardian UK online-- Double dip fears as bank loans dry up
Guardian UK online-- Royal Mail workers warned against strike
Guardian UK online-- William Hill finds World Cup glory
The Independent-- Look across the Irish Sea for a glimpse of where our economy may be headed
The Independent-- Farnborough: big orders and a vision of the future
Telegraph UK online-- Krugman versus Ferguson: Round Two
Telegraph UK online-- Double dip in the Baltic
Telegraph UK online-- China knocks US off top energy use spot
Melbourne Herald Sun-- Enough debt for now - Stevens
Melbourne Herald Sun-- Inflation figure to decide rates
Sydney Daily Telegraph-- Disabled worker's pay of $2 an hour 'predatory'
People's Daily-- US welcomes China's GPA offer
People's Daily-- Chinese CEOs to focus on global vision
China Daily-- China dismisses IEA analysis of it being world's top energy user
China Daily-- Pilot project to help farmers struck by natural disasters
Times of India-- Rupee at six-week low against dollar
Times of India-- FM plays down IMF outlook, pegs growth at over 8.5%
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Podunk Below the Masthead (Friday, June 25, 2010)
Prince Rupert Grain receives its award, the RCMP seek a suspect in an east side assault and Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District goes on the defensive over its comments policy.
Daily News front page headline story
PRINCE RUPERT'S YOUNGEST TEACHER -- Kids are always good for circulation numbers and Friday's Daily News mines that vein of gold with a story on a project at Pineridge School called Roots of Empathy which tracks the various facets if life for a baby.
Prince Rupert Grain receives its award, as the Canadian Wheat Board acknowledged the local grain elevators success as Grain Handler of the year.
And Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District defends its controversial policy limiting questions from the public during the course of their meetings.
The Sports section features a look at the mid season tournament of the Kaien Island Slowptich League.
(Daily News Archives for Friday June 25, 2010)
Prince Rupert's Youngest teacher
PRG presented with award
NDP backing Liberals on tankers
Twenty-four MLAs on the HST hit list
Kristoff defends SQCRD decision
The Northern View
Prince Rupert RCMP release sketch of man involved in assault of 17-year old girl -- Prince Rupert RCMP release details of an early morning assault of a girl on the city's east side, included in the story is a sketch of a possible suspect in the attack (see story here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Open Fire Restrictions Imposed in Northwest --Areas east of the North coast Forest District have new fire restrictions in place as of this weekend (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Prince Rupert Teenager shaken up but not harmed -- Some background on an assault on the city's east side early Wednesday morning. (see article here) Sahar Nassimdoost also filed this report for CFTK (see report here)
CBC News Northern BC, Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.
The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Prince Rupert's youngest teacher
By Monica Lamb-Yorski
Staff Writer
Prince Rupert Daily News
Friday June 25, 2010
He’s cuddly, cute and changing by the moment.
Not usually the words to describe a teacher, but in this case it’s true. For the last ten months Baby Nicholas Cresswell has been a teacher to children in a kindergarten class at Pineridge Elementary School. He’s been leading them through a program called Roots of Empathy.
Nicholas has visited once a month and around each visit the students have learned about safety, sleep patterns, growth and more.
“Three times a month I come into the classroom and work with the students,” said Pineridge principal Kathy Dann, who is one of two facilitators trained to assist with the program in School District #52.
“We prepare for the baby’s visit, he visits us, and then we follow up. His mom is prepared ahead of time, too, so she can answer the children’s questions,” explained Dann.
The program focuses on brain connections between babies and children. It was developed by educator Mary Gordon of Toronto in 1996 to help reduce levels of aggression among schoolchildren by raising social/emotional competence and increasing empathy.
It is geared for children from kindergarten to Grade 8, but in the last few years there has only been the funding to deliver the program to kindergarten children in Prince Rupert.
Pineridge had two babies come into classrooms last year and Dann said she can’t wait to bring another one into the classroom next year.
“It’s a fabulous program. The babies don’t necessarily have to be from the school community, but we’ve found that the children see the baby more often when they are.
“They see the baby when he comes to the school with his mom to the Strongstart Program or to pick up her son. They see him a lot and make wonderful connections,” said Dann.
Crystal and her husband Rob have enjoyed being part of the program. Rob always took his lunch hour early so that he could attend the sessions.
“Nicholas is our third and final child and being part of the program gave us time to recognize his growth and changes, which we might not have done because he is our third. It’s been nice,” Crystal said.
On Thursday the students, representatives from the school district, teachers and staff attended the program’s final session at Pineridge.
Several of the students carefully helped Dann lay out a bright green fleece blanket to cover the floor.
Lucas, who was sitting against the wall, realized for the first time that one of the boys in his class was Nicholas’s big brother.
“Nice”, Lucas told Christopher.
Going around the room, Dann asked the students what they’d enjoyed the most about the program. The majority of the students said they liked watching Nicholas develop.
It took a few visits for Nicholas to notice.
Daily News front page headline story
PRINCE RUPERT'S YOUNGEST TEACHER -- Kids are always good for circulation numbers and Friday's Daily News mines that vein of gold with a story on a project at Pineridge School called Roots of Empathy which tracks the various facets if life for a baby.
Prince Rupert Grain receives its award, as the Canadian Wheat Board acknowledged the local grain elevators success as Grain Handler of the year.
And Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District defends its controversial policy limiting questions from the public during the course of their meetings.
The Sports section features a look at the mid season tournament of the Kaien Island Slowptich League.
(Daily News Archives for Friday June 25, 2010)
Prince Rupert's Youngest teacher
PRG presented with award
NDP backing Liberals on tankers
Twenty-four MLAs on the HST hit list
Kristoff defends SQCRD decision
The Northern View
Prince Rupert RCMP release sketch of man involved in assault of 17-year old girl -- Prince Rupert RCMP release details of an early morning assault of a girl on the city's east side, included in the story is a sketch of a possible suspect in the attack (see story here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Open Fire Restrictions Imposed in Northwest --Areas east of the North coast Forest District have new fire restrictions in place as of this weekend (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Prince Rupert Teenager shaken up but not harmed -- Some background on an assault on the city's east side early Wednesday morning. (see article here) Sahar Nassimdoost also filed this report for CFTK (see report here)
CBC News Northern BC, Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.
The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Prince Rupert's youngest teacher
By Monica Lamb-Yorski
Staff Writer
Prince Rupert Daily News
Friday June 25, 2010
He’s cuddly, cute and changing by the moment.
Not usually the words to describe a teacher, but in this case it’s true. For the last ten months Baby Nicholas Cresswell has been a teacher to children in a kindergarten class at Pineridge Elementary School. He’s been leading them through a program called Roots of Empathy.
Nicholas has visited once a month and around each visit the students have learned about safety, sleep patterns, growth and more.
“Three times a month I come into the classroom and work with the students,” said Pineridge principal Kathy Dann, who is one of two facilitators trained to assist with the program in School District #52.
“We prepare for the baby’s visit, he visits us, and then we follow up. His mom is prepared ahead of time, too, so she can answer the children’s questions,” explained Dann.
The program focuses on brain connections between babies and children. It was developed by educator Mary Gordon of Toronto in 1996 to help reduce levels of aggression among schoolchildren by raising social/emotional competence and increasing empathy.
It is geared for children from kindergarten to Grade 8, but in the last few years there has only been the funding to deliver the program to kindergarten children in Prince Rupert.
Pineridge had two babies come into classrooms last year and Dann said she can’t wait to bring another one into the classroom next year.
“It’s a fabulous program. The babies don’t necessarily have to be from the school community, but we’ve found that the children see the baby more often when they are.
“They see the baby when he comes to the school with his mom to the Strongstart Program or to pick up her son. They see him a lot and make wonderful connections,” said Dann.
Crystal and her husband Rob have enjoyed being part of the program. Rob always took his lunch hour early so that he could attend the sessions.
“Nicholas is our third and final child and being part of the program gave us time to recognize his growth and changes, which we might not have done because he is our third. It’s been nice,” Crystal said.
On Thursday the students, representatives from the school district, teachers and staff attended the program’s final session at Pineridge.
Several of the students carefully helped Dann lay out a bright green fleece blanket to cover the floor.
Lucas, who was sitting against the wall, realized for the first time that one of the boys in his class was Nicholas’s big brother.
“Nice”, Lucas told Christopher.
Going around the room, Dann asked the students what they’d enjoyed the most about the program. The majority of the students said they liked watching Nicholas develop.
It took a few visits for Nicholas to notice.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Podunkian Brunch, Sunday May 23, 2010
While Nervous investors watch the stock markets bounce up and down (mostly down the last week or so) and wonder what's next, the financial abyss for some may be closer than others. Greece which seems to have been the kindling for the current financial conflagration is trying to right its financial house with cash inflows from the European Union, all designed to try and bring some stability to a rather unstable situation. If anybody was to ask (and no one seems to be inclined) Argentina offers up some advice, all apparently is lost for Greece and perhaps a few other countries in the short term. True Slant offers up the Argentinian advice.
Friday's Daily News provided a fairly positive spin on the Tourism industry in BC and Prince Rupert in particular, with Prince Rupert Port Authority’s Cruise Director Phil Westoby, painting a fairly positive picture of the industry and its impact on the North Coast. The Tyee examines the other side of the cruising industry, with a report from the Vancouver Observer which profiles the industry's impact on the environment and local economies, as well as touching on employment conditions on the ships and the relationships between the cruise industry and the communities that they call on.
The American Cable News wars have taken another prisoner, as Campbell Brown host of the CNN's prime time news program that bears her name announced that she was leaving the program. In a rare bout of honesty from the media, Brown described her reason for departure as this: "The simple fact is that not enough people want to watch my program," she writes in her statement, "and I owe it to myself and to CNN to get out of the way so that CNN can try something else.". Her candor and class in leaving her own show has spurred on a number of thoughts as to what her next move might be, with even the thought that she might make a step into politics, though considering her ability for clear thinking and honesty, we somehow doubt that the political life would be one that would make her happy.
Technology seems to change by the hour these days and nowhere more than through the internet and how we utilize it for video and audio streaming purposes. Google announced yet another new twist in the Information highway this week, a move towards music streaming that may make your iPod the next big thing to gather dust in a forgotten corner of a bookshelf (remember books and bookshelves?) Slate offers up the review of the Google options and how they will change much of what we do today.
It wasn't so long ago that the British Media was making much merriment with our Olympic experience, picking apart pretty well every aspect of the Vancouver Games and suggesting that we had unleashed one of the worst games ever on the world. Well as time would eventually show that wasn't quite a particularly lucid nor correct view of the Vancouver Games and by the time we extinguished the flame most had pretty well dismissed the British view as not much of merit, nor credibility. However, those that throw stones must always remember that sometimes they bounce back and break your own windows, a helpful reminder for old Blighty as England unveiled the official mascots to the 2012 London Summer Olympic Games and the reaction has been less than favourable from many quarters. With the British media's ugly side still ringing in their ears, the National Post weighed in on the British mascots with some venom that would make a Fleet Streeter proud.
Speaking of strange animals, residents of Northern Ontario are wondering what in the hell has washed up on the lake shore of Big Trout Lake. Local First Nations Elders call the critter the ugly one. Suggesting that it's arrival is an omen of bad news. It's the kind of story that is the main trade of radio shows like Coast to coast with George Noory, and with it's discovery comes no shortage of theories as to what it once was, though the mysterious nature of its appearance and the discussion it's bringing forward should make for yet another northern Canadian legend.
Our Podcast selection of the week comes from American Public Radio, where KCRW in California offers up some interesting examination of the issues of the day with Left, Right and Centre
And we wrap up this edition of the Brunch with a Happy Birthday to Robert Allen Zimmerman, better known to us all as Bob Dylan, who will turn 69 on May 24th. Born in 1941, Dylan would change folk and rock music through the sixties and became the face of the sixties and all the social upheaval that the decade brought . The Syndicated radio show Little Steven's Underground Garage is featuring Dylan this weekend with two hours of his music and those he influenced, you can get the online audio affiliates here, for now we take you back to the day he moved the folk era into the electric guitar era with Like a Rolling Stone.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Podunk Below the Masthead (Tuesday, May 18, 2010)
Local youth engaging in fisticuffs may wish not to record their efforts for posterity, the School District feels a backlash from their staffing ideas and the Group Addictions program continues to expand in the city, some of the items from the Tuesday news cycle.
Daily News, front page headline story
LOCAL TEACHER'S BOOK OF STORIES AND PLAY HAS BEEN PUBLISHED -- A look at local teacher Pansy Collison who has had her book "Haida Eagle Treasures" published, providing a selection of Haida stories which will receive their offical launch on May 28 at Rainforest Books, those wishing to pick up an autographed copy can drop by for the book signing from 7 to 9 pm.
Prince Rupert's Group Addictions program continues to grow, having moved from its early days at Fishermen's Hall to its current location in the Ocean Centre, where the program has expanded where the eight week program features four sessions a week. The Daily examines the program's success so far and what the future may hold for it.
The current economic recession is impacting hardest on First Nations residents, that as the data from a Statistics Canada survey provides information that First Nations residents living off reserve are suffering the hardest from the ongoing troubles with the economy.
The Sports section features a review of the debut of the softball season, with results from the weekend's Icebreaker tournament
(Daily News archives for Tuesday, May 18, 2010)
Local Teacher's book of stories and plays has been published
Addictions program continues to evolve
She's already a-hootin'
Stats Canada numbers show Aboriginals hit hardest by recession
Where in the world is Miss Prince Rupert?
The Northern View
PRDTU protests, says relationship with district diminishing -- Prince Rupert's labour movement is throwing its support behind the Prince Rupert District Teacher's Union in their labour woes with the District (see article here)
The Northern View
Council plans community meetings-- Following up on community concerns over vandalism, recreation services and downtown revitalization, city council is planning for a number of community meetings this fall to move those concerns forward with constructive ideas and solutions (see article here)
The Northern View--
Council working to keep school-- The latest details on plans in Port Edward to keep their school open as the District seeks out funding solutions for their quest (see story here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Fight Club-- Prince Rupert RCMP have stepped in to bring to an end some recently posted fight videos to YouTube, the fights which took place somewhere in one of the city's parks have resulted in at least one charge of assault in connection to the posted fights, CFTK's Sahar Nassimdoost provided this report for TV 7
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.
The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Local teacher’s book of stories and plays has been published
By George T. Baker
Staff Writer
Prince Rupert Daily News
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Eight years have gone by and two letters of rejection were endured , but it has all been worth it for Pansy Collison.
Collison has reached her triple score. The elementary school teacher at Roosevelt Park Elementary School has finally done what she set out to do when she was younger – become a teacher (check), earn a Masters Degree (check) and write a book (done). She has finally had her book, ‘Haida Eagle Treasures’ published. She can relax now.
Crafted from the stories told to Collison when she was a child by her grandmother, the personal narratives of her own life and her mother’s life stories, Collison has painted a lyrical picture of Haida history with her words.
“What we are sharing right now is our stories so that people can learn about us,” said Collison.
Smiling and sitting in her Kindergarten classroom, on tiny colourful plastic chairs, Collison discussed the reasons she was inspired to write about the Haida stories.
It was obvious that she is very pleased with how the book turned out. “It was very important to pass on the stories my grandmother told me – to record them, so that we can pass them on to a new generation.”
When it comes to culture, stories are at the heart of any society. The Haida, who are experiencing a small political renaissance on the Canadian political scene, must have their stories to tell so that title and jurisdiction make sense.
But Collison is careful to add that this book is not political. It doesn’t hurt to have the heightened politics of their times in the background, but this book really is about education.
The book is written with the teenager to university student crowd in mind, but stories and plays included in Haida Eagle Treasures are easily accessible to an elementary school base as well.
Stories such as ‘How the Haida People were Created’ and ‘The Haida Woman and the Bear’ are meant for an elementary school audience.
Plays such as ‘Tow and Tow-Ustahsin’ featuring Tow - the famous Haida icon for whom Tow Hill on northern Graham Island is named - and his brother, is also best enacted by elementary students.
“The oral stories tell us our history, of our crests, of our land and of our people. It validates who we are,” said Collison.
Collison draws on a vast knowledge of her community as a Haida cultural ‘insider’, documenting her own participation in two cultures: her place within the Haida traditions and her role as teacher in mainstream culture.
“This book is a labor of love. I have accomplished my three goals and now I hope my book will create a better understanding and appreciation of Haida heritage through my voice.”
‘Haida Eagle Treasures’ will be officially launched on May 28 at Rainforest Books on Third Ave. West. Collison will be there to sign those books from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Daily News, front page headline story
LOCAL TEACHER'S BOOK OF STORIES AND PLAY HAS BEEN PUBLISHED -- A look at local teacher Pansy Collison who has had her book "Haida Eagle Treasures" published, providing a selection of Haida stories which will receive their offical launch on May 28 at Rainforest Books, those wishing to pick up an autographed copy can drop by for the book signing from 7 to 9 pm.
Prince Rupert's Group Addictions program continues to grow, having moved from its early days at Fishermen's Hall to its current location in the Ocean Centre, where the program has expanded where the eight week program features four sessions a week. The Daily examines the program's success so far and what the future may hold for it.
The current economic recession is impacting hardest on First Nations residents, that as the data from a Statistics Canada survey provides information that First Nations residents living off reserve are suffering the hardest from the ongoing troubles with the economy.
The Sports section features a review of the debut of the softball season, with results from the weekend's Icebreaker tournament
(Daily News archives for Tuesday, May 18, 2010)
Local Teacher's book of stories and plays has been published
Addictions program continues to evolve
She's already a-hootin'
Stats Canada numbers show Aboriginals hit hardest by recession
Where in the world is Miss Prince Rupert?
The Northern View
PRDTU protests, says relationship with district diminishing -- Prince Rupert's labour movement is throwing its support behind the Prince Rupert District Teacher's Union in their labour woes with the District (see article here)
The Northern View
Council plans community meetings-- Following up on community concerns over vandalism, recreation services and downtown revitalization, city council is planning for a number of community meetings this fall to move those concerns forward with constructive ideas and solutions (see article here)
The Northern View--
Council working to keep school-- The latest details on plans in Port Edward to keep their school open as the District seeks out funding solutions for their quest (see story here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Fight Club-- Prince Rupert RCMP have stepped in to bring to an end some recently posted fight videos to YouTube, the fights which took place somewhere in one of the city's parks have resulted in at least one charge of assault in connection to the posted fights, CFTK's Sahar Nassimdoost provided this report for TV 7
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.
The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Local teacher’s book of stories and plays has been published
By George T. Baker
Staff Writer
Prince Rupert Daily News
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Eight years have gone by and two letters of rejection were endured , but it has all been worth it for Pansy Collison.
Collison has reached her triple score. The elementary school teacher at Roosevelt Park Elementary School has finally done what she set out to do when she was younger – become a teacher (check), earn a Masters Degree (check) and write a book (done). She has finally had her book, ‘Haida Eagle Treasures’ published. She can relax now.
Crafted from the stories told to Collison when she was a child by her grandmother, the personal narratives of her own life and her mother’s life stories, Collison has painted a lyrical picture of Haida history with her words.
“What we are sharing right now is our stories so that people can learn about us,” said Collison.
Smiling and sitting in her Kindergarten classroom, on tiny colourful plastic chairs, Collison discussed the reasons she was inspired to write about the Haida stories.
It was obvious that she is very pleased with how the book turned out. “It was very important to pass on the stories my grandmother told me – to record them, so that we can pass them on to a new generation.”
When it comes to culture, stories are at the heart of any society. The Haida, who are experiencing a small political renaissance on the Canadian political scene, must have their stories to tell so that title and jurisdiction make sense.
But Collison is careful to add that this book is not political. It doesn’t hurt to have the heightened politics of their times in the background, but this book really is about education.
The book is written with the teenager to university student crowd in mind, but stories and plays included in Haida Eagle Treasures are easily accessible to an elementary school base as well.
Stories such as ‘How the Haida People were Created’ and ‘The Haida Woman and the Bear’ are meant for an elementary school audience.
Plays such as ‘Tow and Tow-Ustahsin’ featuring Tow - the famous Haida icon for whom Tow Hill on northern Graham Island is named - and his brother, is also best enacted by elementary students.
“The oral stories tell us our history, of our crests, of our land and of our people. It validates who we are,” said Collison.
Collison draws on a vast knowledge of her community as a Haida cultural ‘insider’, documenting her own participation in two cultures: her place within the Haida traditions and her role as teacher in mainstream culture.
“This book is a labor of love. I have accomplished my three goals and now I hope my book will create a better understanding and appreciation of Haida heritage through my voice.”
‘Haida Eagle Treasures’ will be officially launched on May 28 at Rainforest Books on Third Ave. West. Collison will be there to sign those books from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Podunk Below the Masthead (Monday, May 17, 2010)
The Health report is released, Cosco adds a port call and Prince Rupert leads the province in unemployment, some of the items of interest in the Monday news cycle.
Daily News, front page, headline story
NORTHERN HEALTH REPORT ON COMMUNITY VERY ENCOURAGING-- The data has been compiled from Northern Health's consultations of 2009, examining a number of issues of concern tot he community at that time. Many of the items of concern have been addressed since then, but the snapshot from the consultation provides an interesting look at Health care in the Northwest, with some of the key points examined in Monday's paper. The full report can be found on the Northern Health website (click here)
The Fairview Container pot will receive one more visit this summer as COSCO adds a port call as part of the return voyage of their Express route, with container ships returning to Prince Rupert after a stopover at Long Beach California. The first trip of the expanded routing takes place with the arrival of the Cosco Longbeach which arrives in Prince Rupert on May 24 and will return to the city on June 5 before it begins its voyage back to Asia.
Rumours that the Recylcing Depot will be curtailing its Saturday hours seem to have been proven true, as a letter from the Superintendent of Waste Managment at the Centre is exploring the prospect of reducing weekend hours in order to reduce costs. In addition to the potential reduction of hours on Saturday to 10 am to 1:45 pm, reductions in salaries, benefits for a full time employee who would be move to part time status.
The Sports section featured a look at golf with updates on both the Port City Open and the recent High school zones held at the Centennial golf course.
(Daily News Archives for Monday, May 17, 2010)
Health report on community very encouraging
PRPA increases its numbers
Recycling depot may reduce hours
Prince Rupert to play host to youth conference next year
Private bill submitted to contain open net fish farming
Northern View
Northwest leads the province in unemployment -- It's a list that the city probably doesn't want to be leading on, but for the city's unemployed the latest statistics won't be a surprise as Prince Rupert leads the province when in comes to the unemployment rate. (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Woman's Body Found Near Smithers-- The RCMP and the BC Coroners Service continue their investigation into the discovery of a woman's body near Smithers on Friday afternoon. (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Homecoming preparations-- With the big weekend but a few days away, the last minute preparations are taking place to bring together Homecoming 2010, Sahar Nassimdoost provided a report for TV 7's Monday newscast (see report here)
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.
The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Northern Health report on community very encouraging
By Monica Lamb-Yorski
Staff Writer
Prince Rupert Daily News
Monday, May 17, 2010
Northern Health’s Community Consultations 2009 report described the public meeting held last November in Prince Rupert as “lively”.
Seventy-two people attended the meeting in Prince Rupert, compared to 208 in Kitimat and 34 in Terrace.
Locally, people arrived with many issues on their minds and a sizeable contingent was there specifically to raise concerns about the changes/reductions to the local Healthy Heart Program, cited the report.
Six months after the meeting, many of the issues raised at that time have been addressed, and plans are afoot to tackle those that remain a concern.
The Healthy Heart Program, was relocated to the hospital from the Ocean Centre Mall.
Patients have been visiting the program at the hospital, but will only begin using the new workout space on a group basis at the Earl Mah Aquatic Centre next week. Up until now, there have been a few individuals accessing the exercise room.
Fitness instructor and lifeguard, Ann King, said Wednesday, that classes begin next week, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.
“I have sixteen people on the list and two or three more names have been recently added. We’ve had a few coming here that are part of the Healthy Heart program, going in the water and using the recumbent bikes,” King explained.
A number of other concerns raised at the public meeting centered around the need for a drug and alcohol treatment program.
Health Services Administrator, Sheila Gordon-Payne, told the Daily News a day treatment program is currently in place at the Ocean Centre Mall. Previously it was held in the Fishermen’s Hall near Overwaitea Foods.
“Four mornings a week people meet as a group, or they can request individual appointments. We had a report at our last Community-to-Community Forum from Regional Manager Beth Ann Doerksen, and she said that someone from every community in our area has been using the programs. The youngest person was sixteen years old. The program is open to meeting the needs of everyone,” Gordon-Payne said.
A lack of family physicians was another issue raised at the forum, but since then the new primary health clinic has opened where the Greene Clinic was located previously. The clinic is helping to alleviate the shortage.
Presently there are three physicians and one nurse practitioner on staff and a fourth doctor and additional nurse practitioner are being pursued.
Gordon-Payne is hopeful they will be in place by August.
According to Gordon-Payne, the second nurse practitioner will be available to visit Hartley Bay, Kitkatla and Lax Kw’alaams, working right in the communities.
When the primary health care clinic first opened its doors there was a waiting list of 500 patients. Every one of those people has been attached to a family physician and the latest tally is 700 with doctors.
“We are advertising for more people to seek out the clinic’s services,” confirmed Gordon-Payne.
When asked if the clinic has had an effect on the number of visits to the hospital’s emergency department, she said some days it seems like it has and other days it doesn’t.
“It’s too early to see how it has impacted the lab and X-ray departments. We’re finding that even patients with doctors continue to visit Emergency.”
As stated in the report, there were people waiting five hours in Emergency only to fill a prescription.
Another issue of grave concern was access to mammograms, because in November patients were having to travel to Kitimat to have one.
Since that time, said Gordon-Payne, the physical space at the mammogram station has been adjusted to make it easier for technicians to conduct the screening and an additional staff member has been trained.
“We realized, through all of that, it was problematic to only have one trained person,” she added.
In reference to mammograms in Prince Rupert, the wait-times for appointments listed on the B.C. Cancer Society’s website are up-to-date for Prince Rupert, confirmed Papinder Rhency of the society.
“The average wait time is six weeks, and the wait time in Prince Rupert is about two-and-a-half weeks. Women in the program receive reminder letters to book an appointment close to the time when they are due to have their screening mammogram, to enable them to attend in a timely fashion.”
Doreen Bond has continued to be the Tobacco Cessation coordinator and, along with other Health promotion staff, has been relocated from the Ocean Centre Mall to the hospital’s fourth floor.
“It was our hope that patients could access staff that can deal with a range of health issues. I’ve heard really positive feedback about the move. We’ve got meeting rooms that are booked and as the program is located in the old ECU, we saved the kitchen so people can go to cooking meetings, if they are learning about healthy diets.”
In addition to Bond, there are four nicotine intervention counsellors at the Health Unit downtown and another five more Health Promotion staff will be trained in the future.
“It’s all about them being able to deal with a number of issues, such as heart attacks, smoking and diet. Instead of seeing three people, one person deals with it all. This way people develop a relationship with one person who knows them well,” Gordon-Payne explained.
Over the last few years there continues to be concern about the lack of an Audiologist for Prince Rupert, but Gordon-Payne said the clinic at the hospital is presently serviced by locums.
“Hopefully, by the end of the summer there will be someone in place to service the Northwest region. In the meantime, we have visiting Audiologists regularly. At the new primary health clinic, staff has been able catch small children with hearing issues that didn’t have a family physician and could not be recommended. Now that’s happening.”
Criticism about staffing levels at Acropolis Manor, also raised by people at the meeting, have also been addressed.
“We have increased levels twice since the meeting,” Gordon-Payne commented. “At the meeting we explained that we had extra hours we could access, but were trying to figure out how to best allocate them. Angela Szabo at the manor has put additional staff in place. She’s not finished yet, but in the process we have sixteen additional hours of care a day, which puts us above the Ministry of Health’s 2.8 hr. rate. We know we’re above the bench mark.”
Daily News, front page, headline story
NORTHERN HEALTH REPORT ON COMMUNITY VERY ENCOURAGING-- The data has been compiled from Northern Health's consultations of 2009, examining a number of issues of concern tot he community at that time. Many of the items of concern have been addressed since then, but the snapshot from the consultation provides an interesting look at Health care in the Northwest, with some of the key points examined in Monday's paper. The full report can be found on the Northern Health website (click here)
The Fairview Container pot will receive one more visit this summer as COSCO adds a port call as part of the return voyage of their Express route, with container ships returning to Prince Rupert after a stopover at Long Beach California. The first trip of the expanded routing takes place with the arrival of the Cosco Longbeach which arrives in Prince Rupert on May 24 and will return to the city on June 5 before it begins its voyage back to Asia.
Rumours that the Recylcing Depot will be curtailing its Saturday hours seem to have been proven true, as a letter from the Superintendent of Waste Managment at the Centre is exploring the prospect of reducing weekend hours in order to reduce costs. In addition to the potential reduction of hours on Saturday to 10 am to 1:45 pm, reductions in salaries, benefits for a full time employee who would be move to part time status.
The Sports section featured a look at golf with updates on both the Port City Open and the recent High school zones held at the Centennial golf course.
(Daily News Archives for Monday, May 17, 2010)
Health report on community very encouraging
PRPA increases its numbers
Recycling depot may reduce hours
Prince Rupert to play host to youth conference next year
Private bill submitted to contain open net fish farming
Northern View
Northwest leads the province in unemployment -- It's a list that the city probably doesn't want to be leading on, but for the city's unemployed the latest statistics won't be a surprise as Prince Rupert leads the province when in comes to the unemployment rate. (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Woman's Body Found Near Smithers-- The RCMP and the BC Coroners Service continue their investigation into the discovery of a woman's body near Smithers on Friday afternoon. (see article here)
CFTK TV 7 News
Homecoming preparations-- With the big weekend but a few days away, the last minute preparations are taking place to bring together Homecoming 2010, Sahar Nassimdoost provided a report for TV 7's Monday newscast (see report here)
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.
The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Northern Health report on community very encouraging
By Monica Lamb-Yorski
Staff Writer
Prince Rupert Daily News
Monday, May 17, 2010
Northern Health’s Community Consultations 2009 report described the public meeting held last November in Prince Rupert as “lively”.
Seventy-two people attended the meeting in Prince Rupert, compared to 208 in Kitimat and 34 in Terrace.
Locally, people arrived with many issues on their minds and a sizeable contingent was there specifically to raise concerns about the changes/reductions to the local Healthy Heart Program, cited the report.
Six months after the meeting, many of the issues raised at that time have been addressed, and plans are afoot to tackle those that remain a concern.
The Healthy Heart Program, was relocated to the hospital from the Ocean Centre Mall.
Patients have been visiting the program at the hospital, but will only begin using the new workout space on a group basis at the Earl Mah Aquatic Centre next week. Up until now, there have been a few individuals accessing the exercise room.
Fitness instructor and lifeguard, Ann King, said Wednesday, that classes begin next week, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.
“I have sixteen people on the list and two or three more names have been recently added. We’ve had a few coming here that are part of the Healthy Heart program, going in the water and using the recumbent bikes,” King explained.
A number of other concerns raised at the public meeting centered around the need for a drug and alcohol treatment program.
Health Services Administrator, Sheila Gordon-Payne, told the Daily News a day treatment program is currently in place at the Ocean Centre Mall. Previously it was held in the Fishermen’s Hall near Overwaitea Foods.
“Four mornings a week people meet as a group, or they can request individual appointments. We had a report at our last Community-to-Community Forum from Regional Manager Beth Ann Doerksen, and she said that someone from every community in our area has been using the programs. The youngest person was sixteen years old. The program is open to meeting the needs of everyone,” Gordon-Payne said.
A lack of family physicians was another issue raised at the forum, but since then the new primary health clinic has opened where the Greene Clinic was located previously. The clinic is helping to alleviate the shortage.
Presently there are three physicians and one nurse practitioner on staff and a fourth doctor and additional nurse practitioner are being pursued.
Gordon-Payne is hopeful they will be in place by August.
According to Gordon-Payne, the second nurse practitioner will be available to visit Hartley Bay, Kitkatla and Lax Kw’alaams, working right in the communities.
When the primary health care clinic first opened its doors there was a waiting list of 500 patients. Every one of those people has been attached to a family physician and the latest tally is 700 with doctors.
“We are advertising for more people to seek out the clinic’s services,” confirmed Gordon-Payne.
When asked if the clinic has had an effect on the number of visits to the hospital’s emergency department, she said some days it seems like it has and other days it doesn’t.
“It’s too early to see how it has impacted the lab and X-ray departments. We’re finding that even patients with doctors continue to visit Emergency.”
As stated in the report, there were people waiting five hours in Emergency only to fill a prescription.
Another issue of grave concern was access to mammograms, because in November patients were having to travel to Kitimat to have one.
Since that time, said Gordon-Payne, the physical space at the mammogram station has been adjusted to make it easier for technicians to conduct the screening and an additional staff member has been trained.
“We realized, through all of that, it was problematic to only have one trained person,” she added.
In reference to mammograms in Prince Rupert, the wait-times for appointments listed on the B.C. Cancer Society’s website are up-to-date for Prince Rupert, confirmed Papinder Rhency of the society.
“The average wait time is six weeks, and the wait time in Prince Rupert is about two-and-a-half weeks. Women in the program receive reminder letters to book an appointment close to the time when they are due to have their screening mammogram, to enable them to attend in a timely fashion.”
Doreen Bond has continued to be the Tobacco Cessation coordinator and, along with other Health promotion staff, has been relocated from the Ocean Centre Mall to the hospital’s fourth floor.
“It was our hope that patients could access staff that can deal with a range of health issues. I’ve heard really positive feedback about the move. We’ve got meeting rooms that are booked and as the program is located in the old ECU, we saved the kitchen so people can go to cooking meetings, if they are learning about healthy diets.”
In addition to Bond, there are four nicotine intervention counsellors at the Health Unit downtown and another five more Health Promotion staff will be trained in the future.
“It’s all about them being able to deal with a number of issues, such as heart attacks, smoking and diet. Instead of seeing three people, one person deals with it all. This way people develop a relationship with one person who knows them well,” Gordon-Payne explained.
Over the last few years there continues to be concern about the lack of an Audiologist for Prince Rupert, but Gordon-Payne said the clinic at the hospital is presently serviced by locums.
“Hopefully, by the end of the summer there will be someone in place to service the Northwest region. In the meantime, we have visiting Audiologists regularly. At the new primary health clinic, staff has been able catch small children with hearing issues that didn’t have a family physician and could not be recommended. Now that’s happening.”
Criticism about staffing levels at Acropolis Manor, also raised by people at the meeting, have also been addressed.
“We have increased levels twice since the meeting,” Gordon-Payne commented. “At the meeting we explained that we had extra hours we could access, but were trying to figure out how to best allocate them. Angela Szabo at the manor has put additional staff in place. She’s not finished yet, but in the process we have sixteen additional hours of care a day, which puts us above the Ministry of Health’s 2.8 hr. rate. We know we’re above the bench mark.”
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Podunk Below the Masthead (Friday, March 26, 2010)
Shared celebrations bring a gift, the Daily News outlines its findings on the Roosevelt Condo story and some YouTube viewing for those wanting to learn more about the Northwest Transmission project, some of the items of note for the news cycle of Friday.
Daily News, front page, headline story
ANOTHER 100 YEAR CELEBRATION - THE NAVY'S AS OLD AS PRINCE RUPERT -- Avast mateys, the Navy has pulled into town to provide salutations to the population on their centennial celebration. The Canadian Navy has joined in on the celebration of Prince Rupert's 100th anniversary, presenting council with a loan of a symbol of some maritime history. The Canadian Navy, which is celebrating it's 100th anniversary as well, provided the city with a bell off of the namesake ship of the city, HMCS Prince Rupert which served in the Atlantic theatre during World War Two, primarily on convoy escort duties, the vessel was sold off out of the navy in 1947. Council will be displaying the bell in council chambers until the end of June.
Some more background on the court proceedings underway between local owners of condo units in the Roosevelt Heights apartments and the Vancouver based developers of the project, which include a high profile real estate specialist, Ozzie Jurock, known for his radio and television appearances in the Greater Vancouver area. As we reviewed on the blog back on March 19 , the local owners have taken the condo developers to court over concerns that there were misrepresentations on the condition of the buildings provided to would be buyers at the time of the sale. Lawyers for the property developers have vowed that their clients take the charges very seriously and will spare no expense in defending their reputations in court. As we examined in our blog piece of the 19th, the transition to condo development at the Roosevelt Heights complexes at the time made for a controversial debate at City council.
The discussion over suitable building materials for Prince Rupert's rather damp climate at times continued on in City Council chambers this week as a local contractor explained some of the challenges he believes the current city regulations on the use of Hardie Board provide. The Daily surveyed a number of local contractors for their opinions on the nature of building material options for the North coast.
The Sports section featured an indepth look at Aboriginal Sport in British Columbia, with a new society that is hoping to pick up the torch from the exciting days of the Cowichan games in 2008 and build upon it for the next Aboriginal Games of 2011 scheduled for Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
(Daily News Archive items for March 26,2010)
Another 100 year celebration - the Navy’s as old as Prince Rupert
Class-action suit against previous condo owners
The ‘Hardie Board’ debate
Sign up for Block Stock 2010
Call for excellence in initiative nominees
The Northern View
No new items were posted to the Northern View website for Friday
CFTK TV 7 News
Online Video Released on Northwest Transmission Line Project -- An online Video outlining the impact of the Northwest Transmission Line has been released, designed to provide an overview of the project and the importance to the region that it could provide (see article here)
Video presentation is below:
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
No new items were posted to the Daybreak North website for Friday.
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now. The most recently posted items for this week can be found on the weekly archive for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Another 100 year celebration - the Navy’s as old as Prince Rupert
By George T. Baker
The Daily News
Friday, March 26, 2010
A link to Prince Rupert’s history and involvement in the Canadian military will be on display in the City’s Council Chambers until the end of June.
A bell that once belonged to the HMCS Prince Rupert has been loaned to the city by the Canadian Navy as part of an effort to reacquaint Canadian communities with their namesake warship during the Navy’s centennial year.
Capt. Alex Rueben, Chief of Staff Maritime Forces Pacific, presented the bell to Mayor Jack Mussallem at Monday’s city council meeting.
“I would like to congratulate Prince Rupert on your centennial just as the Navy is celebrating its centennial, which is equally important,” said Rueben.
Appropriately, the ceremony included participation by members of Prince Rupert’s Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps., Captain Cook, who marched in with the bell hanging from a paddle.
The bell was hung on a custom-made display stand on the north side of the room, after which the cadets rang the historic icon. A commemorative plaque of the HMCS Prince Rupert was subsequently presented to the mayor.
The HMCS Prince Rupert, commissioned on August 30, 1943, had an illustrious career on the wartime seas, helping win the Battle of the Atlantic against Nazi Germany by being employed on Convoy duties.
She paused only for refit and maintenance throughout the war, until victory came to Europe.
The ship was sold by the Canadian government in 1947.
“I am sure that the City of Prince Rupert, which played an important role during the Second World War, would be proud of her namesake ship,” said Rueben.
Councillor Sheila Gordon-Payne asked Rueben about increasing the presence of the Navy in Prince Rupert. Naval ships have visited less frequently in recent years, which Rueben explained was due to budget constraints.
“We would like to do more visits to Prince Rupert. I see a cutback, however, in the number of deployments to Prince Rupert in the next year, but I cannot give an accurate count,” explained Rueben.
Rueben did confirm that a naval ship would not be able to visit Prince Rupert during Seafest this year, because it coincides with the Navy’s International Naval Review.
“But the Navy would like to remain involved in the future,” commented Rueben.
Daily News, front page, headline story
ANOTHER 100 YEAR CELEBRATION - THE NAVY'S AS OLD AS PRINCE RUPERT -- Avast mateys, the Navy has pulled into town to provide salutations to the population on their centennial celebration. The Canadian Navy has joined in on the celebration of Prince Rupert's 100th anniversary, presenting council with a loan of a symbol of some maritime history. The Canadian Navy, which is celebrating it's 100th anniversary as well, provided the city with a bell off of the namesake ship of the city, HMCS Prince Rupert which served in the Atlantic theatre during World War Two, primarily on convoy escort duties, the vessel was sold off out of the navy in 1947. Council will be displaying the bell in council chambers until the end of June.
Some more background on the court proceedings underway between local owners of condo units in the Roosevelt Heights apartments and the Vancouver based developers of the project, which include a high profile real estate specialist, Ozzie Jurock, known for his radio and television appearances in the Greater Vancouver area. As we reviewed on the blog back on March 19 , the local owners have taken the condo developers to court over concerns that there were misrepresentations on the condition of the buildings provided to would be buyers at the time of the sale. Lawyers for the property developers have vowed that their clients take the charges very seriously and will spare no expense in defending their reputations in court. As we examined in our blog piece of the 19th, the transition to condo development at the Roosevelt Heights complexes at the time made for a controversial debate at City council.
The discussion over suitable building materials for Prince Rupert's rather damp climate at times continued on in City Council chambers this week as a local contractor explained some of the challenges he believes the current city regulations on the use of Hardie Board provide. The Daily surveyed a number of local contractors for their opinions on the nature of building material options for the North coast.
The Sports section featured an indepth look at Aboriginal Sport in British Columbia, with a new society that is hoping to pick up the torch from the exciting days of the Cowichan games in 2008 and build upon it for the next Aboriginal Games of 2011 scheduled for Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
(Daily News Archive items for March 26,2010)
Another 100 year celebration - the Navy’s as old as Prince Rupert
Class-action suit against previous condo owners
The ‘Hardie Board’ debate
Sign up for Block Stock 2010
Call for excellence in initiative nominees
The Northern View
No new items were posted to the Northern View website for Friday
CFTK TV 7 News
Online Video Released on Northwest Transmission Line Project -- An online Video outlining the impact of the Northwest Transmission Line has been released, designed to provide an overview of the project and the importance to the region that it could provide (see article here)
Video presentation is below:
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
No new items were posted to the Daybreak North website for Friday.
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now. The most recently posted items for this week can be found on the weekly archive for Daybreak North click here
Daily News, front page, headline story
Another 100 year celebration - the Navy’s as old as Prince Rupert
By George T. Baker
The Daily News
Friday, March 26, 2010
A link to Prince Rupert’s history and involvement in the Canadian military will be on display in the City’s Council Chambers until the end of June.
A bell that once belonged to the HMCS Prince Rupert has been loaned to the city by the Canadian Navy as part of an effort to reacquaint Canadian communities with their namesake warship during the Navy’s centennial year.
Capt. Alex Rueben, Chief of Staff Maritime Forces Pacific, presented the bell to Mayor Jack Mussallem at Monday’s city council meeting.
“I would like to congratulate Prince Rupert on your centennial just as the Navy is celebrating its centennial, which is equally important,” said Rueben.
Appropriately, the ceremony included participation by members of Prince Rupert’s Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps., Captain Cook, who marched in with the bell hanging from a paddle.
The bell was hung on a custom-made display stand on the north side of the room, after which the cadets rang the historic icon. A commemorative plaque of the HMCS Prince Rupert was subsequently presented to the mayor.
The HMCS Prince Rupert, commissioned on August 30, 1943, had an illustrious career on the wartime seas, helping win the Battle of the Atlantic against Nazi Germany by being employed on Convoy duties.
She paused only for refit and maintenance throughout the war, until victory came to Europe.
The ship was sold by the Canadian government in 1947.
“I am sure that the City of Prince Rupert, which played an important role during the Second World War, would be proud of her namesake ship,” said Rueben.
Councillor Sheila Gordon-Payne asked Rueben about increasing the presence of the Navy in Prince Rupert. Naval ships have visited less frequently in recent years, which Rueben explained was due to budget constraints.
“We would like to do more visits to Prince Rupert. I see a cutback, however, in the number of deployments to Prince Rupert in the next year, but I cannot give an accurate count,” explained Rueben.
Rueben did confirm that a naval ship would not be able to visit Prince Rupert during Seafest this year, because it coincides with the Navy’s International Naval Review.
“But the Navy would like to remain involved in the future,” commented Rueben.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Podunk Below the Masthead, (Friday, March 19, 2010)
Shames Mountain's early closure stirs up discussion, No time like spring to talk Christmas carols and the Mayor's honour is defended by the ANBT chairman, some of the items of note from the Friday news cycle.
Daily News, Front page,headline story
LATE IN THE SEASON SNOW IS A SHAME FOR SHAMES MOUNTAIN SKIERS-- Shames Mountain shut down for the season on March 14 (as we outlined here on the blog on March 10 ), and with the early end to the ski season there are rumblings that it may have be the final season for the Northwest ski hill. With the General Manager of Shames saying that's not so, the Daily News put George T. Baker and Patrick Witwicki on the file to find out more.
Coming up on the first day of Spring seems like an interesting time to introduce the topic of Christ and Christmas into the local schools, but such was the case at the recent gathering of School District 52. George T. Baker reviews Catherine Hague's desire to see more Christianity in the School Christmas shows and Christmas classroom sessions. Hague a substitute teacher in the School District is seeking to challenge the Ministry of Education policy on the issue of Christian Christmas Carols in the schools and at Tuesday's School District meeting found some support to her position that the policy of the Ministry was an uneven guideline. Baker's article gained him his second mention in recent days in the Vancouver Sun's education blog.
Mayor Mussallem's absence at the All Native Basketball Tournament's opening ceremonies gets another lookover, this time as the Tournament Chairman offered up some background on the circumstances surrounding the now controversial no show. Peter Haugan, admits that the Mayor was not provided with a "formal invite" to the ceremonies, a case of misplaced delegation, that he has decided to take ownership of. Wrapping up his review of the events of those days, Haugan re-affirmed that in his belief, Mussallem has been one of the biggest supporters of the All Native Tournament at City Hall.
Hawkair sought out the Daily News to clarify what it calls misinformation about its current ownership situation. Under the headline "The correct information concerning Hawkair", the Daily News on Friday provided a forum for Hawkair officials to explain that Central Mountain Air has not purchased Hawkair, but that all three airlines are all partners within the same group.
For some the concept may be akin to splitting hairs on the terminology reflecting partnership and ownership, and it doesn't quite reflect what was said in the Hawkair press release when the story first broke on the local scene. As we recounted on the blog on March 16th, Hawkair's press release stated: "Hawkair would like to announce that effective March 15, 2010 the control and ownership of the Company has been purchased by a British Columbia corporation which currently owns and operates Northern Thunderbird Air and Central Mountain Air.".
Regardless of the terminology, for the most part Rupertites are just glad that Hawkair will still be operating out of the city, whether as a stand alone airline or as part of a consortium of three separate airlines.
The Sports section featured a review of Thursday night's battle of the high school hockey teams, the annual clash of the school saw PRSS eke out a 5+4 victory over cross town rival CHSS at the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre's Arena.
(Archive for Daily News articles for March 19, 2010)
Late in season snow is a shame for Shames Mountain skiers
Putting the ‘Christ’ back in carols
ANBT president wants to ‘clear the air’
The correct information concerning Hawkair
Centennial Round Table brings industry and local government together
Popular performer returns
The Northern View
No new articles were posted on the Northern View website on Friday
CFTK TV 7 News
No new articles were posted on the Northern View website on Friday
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
A Significant Saikuz Loss-- Daybreak interviews Wil Fundal regarding the passing of Saikuz elder and healer, Sophie Thomas. (listen to interview here)
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now. The most recently posted items for this week can be found on the weekly archive for Daybreak North click here
The Daily News, headline, front page story
Late in season snow is a shame for Shames Mountain skiers
By George T. Baker and Patrick Witwicki
The Daily News
Friday, March 19, 2010
Pillowy snow, covering long tracks of ski and snowboard terrain was not enough to keep Shames Mountain open until Easter this year.
Unlike most years, Shames Mountain closed for the season on March 14 at the conclusion of Spring Break, leading to speculation that it was closed for good and that North Coast slopes enthusiasts would be forced to make the long carve from Prince Rupert to Smithers whenever they wanted to ski.
Not so, says Laird Carmichael, Shames Mountain General Manager, who just concluded his first season on the job.
“I’m definitely back for another year,” he said. “And the support from the community is unbelievable.
“We’re not going to work on mother nature … we’re going to work on the corporate side of things and continue to provide a good product.”
That said, El Nino wreaked havoc on the “product” this season, with unseasonably warm temperatures throughout January and February, which meant “early season” conditions at Shames never really improved.
Until Spring Break, that is, when snow finally began falling regularly up at Shames, and is still continuing to fall right now. Yet, Carmichael said they had no choice but to call it a season on March 14.
“Normally we go into the first weekend of April,” he said.
“But we’re trying to protect our assets so we can keep our mountain open for next year.”
Marc Page, owner of local skateboard and snowboard shop, Loaded Sports, said that he predicted another return to the northwest ski hill next winter.
Page was conducting his annual ‘Throwdown’ freestyle board and ski event on the Shames park area, where a handful of children younger than 12 competed for the first time in a freestyle event. Page said he felt Shames would host at least one more year of competitions.
“It’s not closing. I don’t think so,” said Page.
However, others were not so sure.
Matt Demelo, 15 of Terrace, was snowboarding on the mountain last Sunday. He theorized that the closing was a false one because of the numbers of skiers and boarders on the hills. He was sure that the mountain would open again the next weekend and run until the snow dried up.
But he was less optimistic about the Shames Mountain Ski Corporation, who have listed the mountain resort for sale at the stately price of $1.5 million.
“It will be rough on a lot of the kids in the North if it closes. There is nothing to do in the winter for the kids who don’t play hockey,” explained Demelo.
“But the economy is hurting. I can’t get a job. My dad’s electronics store is probably at the worst we’ve seen.”
Indeed, while the weather certainly didn’t help with skier visits, the economics of the region haven’t helped either, said Carmichael.
“It’s been a very abnormal snow-pack, and we haven’t had enough ski visits,” he said. “The economics has a huge impact on how we did this season … how much disposable income do we have?”
A sales and marketing representative for Oakley was on hand and said he was certainly concerned about the mountain's long term future. Andrew Sharp said that he has made the trip to Terrace from the Okanagan at least once per winter for the past six years because of the preferable conditions the sparsely populated mountain provides.
"It's steep. No one's here. You might get that on the hills of Whistler, but it would be only one run," said Sharp.
Shames Mountain enjoyed three consecutive years of heavy snow packs, including the record-breaking winter of 2006-07.
But 2009-10 is, unfortunately, being compared to the mild winter of 2005-06, where a very rainy and mild December kept Shames from opening until January.
Still, that year, the snow eventually did pick up. In 2010, that didn't happen until the first week of March.
"The mountain used to have a quote "We put everyone to Shame(s)',. Well now it is a shame", opined local DJ and City bylaw office,r Derek Kormendy.
But Carmichael is adamant that Shames will be open next season, and they are beginning their early-bird season campaign as of April 1st.
"Despite what mother nature gave us, everyone had a good season," he said.
Daily News, Front page,headline story
LATE IN THE SEASON SNOW IS A SHAME FOR SHAMES MOUNTAIN SKIERS-- Shames Mountain shut down for the season on March 14 (as we outlined here on the blog on March 10 ), and with the early end to the ski season there are rumblings that it may have be the final season for the Northwest ski hill. With the General Manager of Shames saying that's not so, the Daily News put George T. Baker and Patrick Witwicki on the file to find out more.
Coming up on the first day of Spring seems like an interesting time to introduce the topic of Christ and Christmas into the local schools, but such was the case at the recent gathering of School District 52. George T. Baker reviews Catherine Hague's desire to see more Christianity in the School Christmas shows and Christmas classroom sessions. Hague a substitute teacher in the School District is seeking to challenge the Ministry of Education policy on the issue of Christian Christmas Carols in the schools and at Tuesday's School District meeting found some support to her position that the policy of the Ministry was an uneven guideline. Baker's article gained him his second mention in recent days in the Vancouver Sun's education blog.
Mayor Mussallem's absence at the All Native Basketball Tournament's opening ceremonies gets another lookover, this time as the Tournament Chairman offered up some background on the circumstances surrounding the now controversial no show. Peter Haugan, admits that the Mayor was not provided with a "formal invite" to the ceremonies, a case of misplaced delegation, that he has decided to take ownership of. Wrapping up his review of the events of those days, Haugan re-affirmed that in his belief, Mussallem has been one of the biggest supporters of the All Native Tournament at City Hall.
Hawkair sought out the Daily News to clarify what it calls misinformation about its current ownership situation. Under the headline "The correct information concerning Hawkair", the Daily News on Friday provided a forum for Hawkair officials to explain that Central Mountain Air has not purchased Hawkair, but that all three airlines are all partners within the same group.
For some the concept may be akin to splitting hairs on the terminology reflecting partnership and ownership, and it doesn't quite reflect what was said in the Hawkair press release when the story first broke on the local scene. As we recounted on the blog on March 16th, Hawkair's press release stated: "Hawkair would like to announce that effective March 15, 2010 the control and ownership of the Company has been purchased by a British Columbia corporation which currently owns and operates Northern Thunderbird Air and Central Mountain Air.".
Regardless of the terminology, for the most part Rupertites are just glad that Hawkair will still be operating out of the city, whether as a stand alone airline or as part of a consortium of three separate airlines.
The Sports section featured a review of Thursday night's battle of the high school hockey teams, the annual clash of the school saw PRSS eke out a 5+4 victory over cross town rival CHSS at the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre's Arena.
(Archive for Daily News articles for March 19, 2010)
Late in season snow is a shame for Shames Mountain skiers
Putting the ‘Christ’ back in carols
ANBT president wants to ‘clear the air’
The correct information concerning Hawkair
Centennial Round Table brings industry and local government together
Popular performer returns
The Northern View
No new articles were posted on the Northern View website on Friday
CFTK TV 7 News
No new articles were posted on the Northern View website on Friday
CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
A Significant Saikuz Loss-- Daybreak interviews Wil Fundal regarding the passing of Saikuz elder and healer, Sophie Thomas. (listen to interview here)
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now. The most recently posted items for this week can be found on the weekly archive for Daybreak North click here
The Daily News, headline, front page story
Late in season snow is a shame for Shames Mountain skiers
By George T. Baker and Patrick Witwicki
The Daily News
Friday, March 19, 2010
Pillowy snow, covering long tracks of ski and snowboard terrain was not enough to keep Shames Mountain open until Easter this year.
Unlike most years, Shames Mountain closed for the season on March 14 at the conclusion of Spring Break, leading to speculation that it was closed for good and that North Coast slopes enthusiasts would be forced to make the long carve from Prince Rupert to Smithers whenever they wanted to ski.
Not so, says Laird Carmichael, Shames Mountain General Manager, who just concluded his first season on the job.
“I’m definitely back for another year,” he said. “And the support from the community is unbelievable.
“We’re not going to work on mother nature … we’re going to work on the corporate side of things and continue to provide a good product.”
That said, El Nino wreaked havoc on the “product” this season, with unseasonably warm temperatures throughout January and February, which meant “early season” conditions at Shames never really improved.
Until Spring Break, that is, when snow finally began falling regularly up at Shames, and is still continuing to fall right now. Yet, Carmichael said they had no choice but to call it a season on March 14.
“Normally we go into the first weekend of April,” he said.
“But we’re trying to protect our assets so we can keep our mountain open for next year.”
Marc Page, owner of local skateboard and snowboard shop, Loaded Sports, said that he predicted another return to the northwest ski hill next winter.
Page was conducting his annual ‘Throwdown’ freestyle board and ski event on the Shames park area, where a handful of children younger than 12 competed for the first time in a freestyle event. Page said he felt Shames would host at least one more year of competitions.
“It’s not closing. I don’t think so,” said Page.
However, others were not so sure.
Matt Demelo, 15 of Terrace, was snowboarding on the mountain last Sunday. He theorized that the closing was a false one because of the numbers of skiers and boarders on the hills. He was sure that the mountain would open again the next weekend and run until the snow dried up.
But he was less optimistic about the Shames Mountain Ski Corporation, who have listed the mountain resort for sale at the stately price of $1.5 million.
“It will be rough on a lot of the kids in the North if it closes. There is nothing to do in the winter for the kids who don’t play hockey,” explained Demelo.
“But the economy is hurting. I can’t get a job. My dad’s electronics store is probably at the worst we’ve seen.”
Indeed, while the weather certainly didn’t help with skier visits, the economics of the region haven’t helped either, said Carmichael.
“It’s been a very abnormal snow-pack, and we haven’t had enough ski visits,” he said. “The economics has a huge impact on how we did this season … how much disposable income do we have?”
A sales and marketing representative for Oakley was on hand and said he was certainly concerned about the mountain's long term future. Andrew Sharp said that he has made the trip to Terrace from the Okanagan at least once per winter for the past six years because of the preferable conditions the sparsely populated mountain provides.
"It's steep. No one's here. You might get that on the hills of Whistler, but it would be only one run," said Sharp.
Shames Mountain enjoyed three consecutive years of heavy snow packs, including the record-breaking winter of 2006-07.
But 2009-10 is, unfortunately, being compared to the mild winter of 2005-06, where a very rainy and mild December kept Shames from opening until January.
Still, that year, the snow eventually did pick up. In 2010, that didn't happen until the first week of March.
"The mountain used to have a quote "We put everyone to Shame(s)',. Well now it is a shame", opined local DJ and City bylaw office,r Derek Kormendy.
But Carmichael is adamant that Shames will be open next season, and they are beginning their early-bird season campaign as of April 1st.
"Despite what mother nature gave us, everyone had a good season," he said.
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