Order of the Eastern Star book sale well attended

The Order of the Eastern Star volunteers are pleased their spring semi-annual book sale was a success again this year. They made a profit of $2,000.00 from three days of book sales last week.

They send sincere thanks to the owners of 922B Island Hwy. for the use of their space as well as everybody who kindly donated books.

Get busy reading the piles of books you found at last week’s sale – the next one is in October, after Thanksgiving.

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Cheerleaders, quilts and blankets at the Art Gallery

Join artists Vivienne Pearson and Siobhan Doherty at an opening reception on Friday, April 16 from 7:00pm-9:00pm as they celebrate the opening of their new exhibits at the Campbell River Art Gallery.

Pearson’s “No Place Like Home” offers textiles on a large scale. Blankets and quilts are the focus as they interpret how community, our environment and sense of belonging all connect to our feeling of “home” and what it means to each of us.

This exhibit is sponsored by Poppy Steele and Hans Op de Beek of Royal Lepage Advance Realty.

In the Discovery Gallery is “More Hot Cheerleaders”. Siobhan Doherty gives us 30 miniature wax sculptures of these well-known pop culture icons. Come by and explore the parallels to The Little Fourteen Year Old Dancer by Degas.

Both exhibits are on display for your viewing pleasure until May 21, 2010.

Admission is by donation. The Campbell River Art Gallery is at 1235 Shopper’s Row, across from the library and in the same buildling as the Visitor’s Centre. The Art Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday from noon until 5pm.

The Gallery appreciates the support of its members and volunteers, the Campbell River Arts Council, the Friends of the Campbell River Art Gallery, Marna Disbrow, the City of Campbell River, Shaw Cable, Moeller and Co. Chartered Accountants, Areas B, C, and D of the Strathcona Regional District, as well as the BC Gaming Commisson, the BC Arts Council, Canadian Heritage, and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada.

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Eastern Star sale offers book bounty

Hot on the heels of the museum’s annual book sale is a three-day book event sponsored by the Chas Maria Star Charitable Society, aka the Order of the Eastern Star.

This year’s sale is set for April 15, 16, and 17 (Thursday through Saturday) starting at 10am each day.

The new location is 922B Island Hwy., beside The Bargain Shop and across from the foreshore.  Note that each day has a different closing time: On Thursday it’s 5pm, Friday it’s 6pm, and things wrap up on Saturday at 3pm.

For anybody who’s even remotely into reading, make the time to stop by. I’ll be found in the kid’s section, on the hunt for a couple of Artemis Fowl books. Thanks to lots of hours by a myriad of volunteers, the books are meticulously arranged. It will be simple for me to know if the two Artemis books on my list are for sale. Browsing is of course encouraged too.

Donations of good quality used books are welcome. Please give Margaret a call at 250-923-1760 or Joan at 250-923-0840 to arrange pick up. And starting today, Monday April 12, you can drop books off at the site of the sale. Parking is available across the street at the foreshore.

Proceeds from the sale go towards supporting Eastern Star’s cancer projects. Earlier in 2010, the Order of the Eastern Star, in conjunction with the BC Cancer Agency, which benefits from funds raised by Eastern Star, were jointly honored by BC Lieutenant Governor Steven Point for their efforts in the fight against cancer.

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Plethora of plants soon looking for new gardens

Over the next couple of weeks I’ll be welcoming spring in one of my favorite ways: visiting plant sales. I’m looking to add a couple of perennials to my north-facing container garden and possibly something house-plant related too. Even if I don’t see anything that screams out, “Take me to Chateau Gina, take me to Chateau Gina”, it’s a pleasure to not only browse but chat with fellow gardeners. I always come away from plant-related events having learned something.

The first of the events, the annual Plant, Jumble Sale and Auction  is this Saturday, April 12 at the Community Centre on 11th Ave. Be there for the 9am start time for the best selection. It finishes at noon. Not only is this an excellent opportunity to add to your garden inventory but you can shop for garden accessories as well as homemade baking and crafts. And don’t forget the “jumble” portion of the day - there will be lots of miscellaneous to choose from too.  I particularly look forward to this event every year as a way to keep myself supplied in comfy handknit slippers since my knitting skills go no further than scarves.  By this time, last year’s slippers are pretty worn out and sad looking.

Another event worth making time for is the Campbell River Garden Club’s sale on Saturday, April 24, from 9am to noon at the Bethany Lutheran church. That’s at the corner of Birch Street and 2nd Avenue.

I’ve got my spiffy new gardening gloves ready and I’m looking forward to putting them to good use after both events. See you there!

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Art as remedy to indifference

Public land that sits idle, devastated by abuse and neglect, affects they way we view our community.  The Campbell River Art Gallery will host an illustrated talk on Wednesday night, March 31 at 7:00 pm at the Gallery by land artist Oliver Kellhammer. He’ll discuss his restoration of public property ravaged by industrial activity and neglect. 

“Kellhammer is a gifted speaker,” says Gallery Director Jeanette Taylor. “His work is both uplifting and inspiring, a model for positive solutions to our current environmental crisis.”

Kellhammer will describe a number of the sites he’s worked on, bringing an artist’s sensibilities to the transformation of difficult cityscapes like a three-acre site in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Kellhammer led the process of transforming a place littered with weeds, pet carcasses and needles into a lush community garden. This and other projects have impressed Kellhammer with nature’s surprising ability to rebound.

Oliver Kellhammer is a graduate of the Ontario College of Art, Bainbridge Graduate Institute and the University of British Columbia’s Masters of Fine Arts program. He has taught all over North America. His talk at the Gallery will appeal to not only art lovers but those interested in social values, landscape renewal and community action.

The Gallery also extends an invitation to the public to attend their Annual General Meeting, which precedes Kellhammer’s talk at 6 p.m.  Gallery staff and board will give a fast-paced preview of plans for the coming year, followed by an election of officers.  Attendance at the AGM is free. It costs $5 to attend Kellhammer’s talk if you’re not an Art Gallery member.

Campbell River Art Gallery is in Tyee Plaza, across from the Tidemark theatre. The current exhibitions are open by donation on Tuesday through Saturday from Noon to 5:00 pm. Call 250-287-2261 for more info.

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Kit Pearson’s imagination intensifies Words on the Water

Campbell River bookies (those who read, not those who take bets) congregated in droves at the Maritime Heritage Centre on the weekend for the ninth annual Words on the Water literary festival.

The line up, as usual, was stellar: Andreas Schroeder (thanks for signing Renovating Heaven, which I’ve started reading, and Shaking it Rough, which I haven’t), Annabel Lyon, Susan Musgrave, Gabor Mate, Ronald Wright, Colin Angus, Kit Pearson, and current Haig-Brown writer in residence Harry Thurston, whose poetry left me breathless.

Every year there’s at least one author who I particularly look forward to seeing. This year it was Kit Pearson. Her talk on Saturday afternoon focused on imagination, something I got an extra dose of when it was being doled out. For Kit, playing pretend was a huge part of her after school life, especially the Knights of the Round Table, a theme that made its way into her book A Perfect Gentle Knight.

She also spoke about the positive aspects of imagination – how it can fuel characters and plot in later life – but also how it can overshadow your life if taken to an extreme. This is shown in clear relief in Gentle Knight, particularly in the character of 14 year old Sebastian…

The world of make believe is one Kit knows first hand. When she was 12, the family returned to Kit’s birth place of Edmonton after several years in Vancouver. Leaving her friends and a city she loved was tough on the young girl. Her way of coping with the changes was to retreat into a world of fantasy and reading even more – an escape from reality when the real world was too overwhelming.

I was enchanted to hear Kit read from her Guests of War trilogy. It’s a perfect example of high quality kid’s lit. Set throughout WW II, the books trace the experiences of brother and sister Gavin (and his elephant friend, Creature, who my sock monkies now want to meet) and Norah as they are sent from their home in Kent, England, to live with the well-to-do Ogilive sisters in Toronto. They are beautifully developed characters set against an era I’ve always been interested in. I first read the series some years ago when I borrowed them from the library. I’m now the owner of all three – The Sky is Falling, Looking at the Moon, and The Lights Go On Again – and only two days after the end of this year’s event, they’ve all been read again. But not for the last time.

Scope out Kit’s website at www.kitpearson.com.

“I write because I like to make things up”. What a wonderful reason, Kit. I know the feeling.

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Non-profits benefit from local financial support

Local non-profits are under increased pressure these days provide enhanced levels of service on budgets that don’t stretch as far as they did in years past. Enter the Campbell River Foundation! It offers the opportunity for funds to contribute to meeting local needs.

The Foundation is accepting grant applications until Friday, April 2 to partially fund projects, programs and events in our area.

Visit their website at www.crfoundation.ca to review the grant criteria on the CR Community Foundation’s website. After you’ve done that, application forms are available on the ‘Net or in person at Seymour Pacific Development, #105-300 St Ann’s Road, on the corner of Alder and St. Ann’s.

Contact Cheryl Mailman via email at cherylmailman@aol.com if you have questions that aren’t answered through the website.

Approved grants will be distributed the week of May 24, 2010.

Campbell River Community Foundation strives to use the income from the funds entrusted to serve the Campbell River region in the areas of education, health and welfare, culture, environment, youth and seniors. Community volunteers are involved in the grant approval process.

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Annual awards bring together aquaculture friends

The aquaculture industry gathered in Campbell River on Saturday night to honour its own and celebrate the industry at the eleventh annual awards gala sponsored by Positive Aquaculture Awareness.

Aquaculture Business of the Year went to Walcan Seafood, the largest employer on Quadra Island. The other two finalists in this category were AKVA Group North America and Aztec Freight.

German Campos of Mainstream Canada, Grant McCreathe of Creative Salmon and Marine Harvest’s Ryan Gregoire were the finalists for the Leadership Award. The award, sponsored by JLH Consulting,  went to Ryan Gregoire.

Creative Salmon’s Morris Meikle was recognized as Outstanding Employee. Jean-Luc Williams from Grieg Seafood and Melissa St. Louis from Mainstream Canada were also in the running.

The Environmental Award is sponsored by the BC Centre for Aquatic Health Sciences and was presented by Paula Galloway. She congratulated Skretting Canada on its win.

Outstanding Performance by an Area Manager is always a hotly contested category. This year’s nominees were Brock Thomson from Mainstream Canada, John Mills from Grieg Seafood, and Marine Harvest’s Kelly Osborne. The award went to Brock Thomson.

The Long Term Recognition Award is an opportunity to honour an individual who has contributed to the development of the aquaculture industry over an extended period. This year, Dave McKirgan from Aquametrix Research, was recognized. Dave began his career in the industry in 1994. Peter Gibson from Grieg Seafood and Scott Garside from Sea Roamer Marine Services rounded out the three finalists. Special mention was made of Peter’s upcoming retirement and his contributions to aquaculture since joining the industry in 1997.

The Rookie of the Year category recognizes an individual who has been in the aquaculture industry for less than five years. This year, Nick Schoenfelder from Marine Harvest, Ray Anderosov from Mainstream Canada, and Lauren Edgar, also from Marine Harvest, were the three finalists. Lauren Edgar came away with this award.

The top quality dinner was again provided by Rose’s Country Catering and featured both farmed salmon and black cod. The cod, donated by Sablefish Canada, was prepared with a maple syrup and sake glaze. It melted in your mouth.

The ever popular and entertaining Heads and Tails fundraiser was again a hit. Dustin from Sea Roamer Marine Services won first prize – $2,000 in travel from The Travel Place. Melissa St. Louis from Mainstream took second prize – $600 in travel, also donated by The Travel Place. Proceeds went towards the PAA donations to the Campbell River Salmon Foundation and the BC Centre for Aquatic Health Sciences in conjunction with Quinsam Hatchery.

A variety of silent auction items were donated by industry, including pottery, clothing, tool kits, and gift certificates. It raised about $1,700.

Entertainment was again provided by Fish Farmer Overdrive, a band made up of industry members from a variety of companies including Grieg Seafood, Walcan Seafood, and Power Serve. This year’s members were Ian Roberts, Blair Billard, Clare Backman, Wayne Jacob, Tom Skillman, and Stefan Schendler.

Thanks to Cory Percevault, Leanne Brunt, and Ian Roberts for their huge volunteer efforts in putting together such an enjoyable evening.

Positive Aquaculture Awareness was created in 1998. Its mission is to promote positive awareness of the aquaculture industry through public education and community involvement.

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City survey seeks input

In advance of annual budget deliberations scheduled for later this month, the City wants to know not only which services are  particularly valuable to you and your family but where you think  cuts could be made. 

With this in mind, a survey is available on-line at http://www.campbellriver.ca (look on the left side of the home page,  click on What’s New and then scroll down to “Tell us what you think - Campbell River Community Services Survey”).  A paper version was  in the newspaper last Friday, February 5.

The survey took me 10 minutes. Do your part and make time for it  before the deadline at noon on Friday, February 19.

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Words on the Water offers wealth of words

The days are longer, bulbs are beginning to poke their green heads through the cool soil in some lucky gardens, and Christmas is off the radar for another year. For this avid reader, that combination means only one thing: it’s soon Words on the Water time again. This year’s event is Friday, March 19 and Saturday, March 20 at the Maritime Heritage Centre.

This year’s lineup  promises to be another winner. Campbell River is fortunate to welcome the following authors:

* Annabel Lyon,  author of The Golden Mean, which was a finalist for the 2009 Rogers Writers’  Trust Fiction Prize, the 2009  Scotiabank Giller Prize, and also in 2009, the Governor General’s Literary Awards – Fiction. The interview I heard on CBC Radio in the fall was compelling and I’m so looking forward to hearing about Aristotle and Alexanders the Great from the writer who brought them to life. Oh yeah – The Golden Mean won the Rogers Writers’  Trust for fiction.

* Gabor Mate, author of In the Realm of the Hungry Ghost – Close Encounters with Addiction. It was published in 2008.  He’s a doctor at a harm reduction facility in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

* Children’s author Kit Pearson, who wrote the brilliant Awake and Dreaming as well as the Guests of War trilogy that tells the story of Nora and Gavin, a brother and sister pair who are sent from England to live in Canada during WW2. I can’t wait to meet her.

* Andreas Schroeder has been a freelance writer for more than 40 years. He’s published poetry, literary critcism, and and and. His most recent book is Renovating Heaven.

* Current Haig-Brown Writer-in-Residence Harry Thurston, whose most recent book is A Place between the Tides, A Naturalist’s Reflections on the Salt Marsh.

* Ronald Wright is the author of What is Amerca, a BC Book Prize finalist. He’s published in more tan 15 langueas. His first novel, A Scientific Romance, was a Globe and Mail Book of the Year.

This ninth annual event gets underway on Friday night. Throughout Saturday, enjoy readings by all the authors and ask questions. Books will be available for sale and you can have them signed too! (I love that).  Saturday night is always tons of fun – it’s the literary cabaret, featuring  the guest writers, music by local musicians, laughter, and gourmet appies.

Be sure to get your Early Bird Pass quickly – they’re bound to sell out. At $65, it gets you into all events and is a terrific deal. They go on sale at the Tidemark theatre Tuesday, February 2. Find out more at www.wordsonthewater.ca . Get ready for a literary bounty that Campbell River hasn’t seen since last year’s Words on the Water!

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