Community Updates (11) - February 28, 2014

1) Reminder - Community Engagement Sessions - Cariboo Regional District

Have your say and join the discussion. In Williams Lake the date is March 1st from 1 - 4 (presentation at 2:30 pm) at the Cariboo Regional Districts Board Room. Visit cariboord.bc.ca, or online at facebook.com/caribooregion or call for more information.

2) Free Family Skate - Sunday Mar 2nd from 2:45 - 4:15 pm

Sponsored by the Williams Lake Lions Club

3) Survey Input Appreciated - Accessibility Committee's wheelchair accessible taxi feasibility

Increasing taxi services for people with accessibility issues is an endeavor that requires information on how many people need it, would use it and how often. Your input is greatly valued so please visit http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/WLtaxisurvey or fill out a hardcopy available at City Hall and the Recreation Complex until March 31/14

4) Alzheimer Society - Workshops - begin March 11th from 9 am - 5 pm

A five session series for family members who are caring for a person with dementia and covers: Understanding Dementia, Understanding Communication, Understanding behavior, Planning for the future and self-care for caregivers.  Tuesday March 11th from 9 am - 5 pm at the Williams Lake Seniors Village Education room (basement) by donation. Pre-registration is required - call Elizabeth at 250-305-3191 or email ejelks@retirementconcepts.com

5) Cariboo Regional District Library - events for March 2014

Toddlers Too (& Caregivers): Drop-in. Improve literacy skills as we learn letters, words, numbers, colours, sharing and singing with books, puppets and interactive activities to encourage learning. March 5th & 26th from 10:30 - 11 am

Baby & Me (& Caregivers): Drop-in. Learn about language right from birth with or “just right for baby time” as we use songs, board books, nursery rhymes, letter knowledge and new technology to explore pre-literacy skills together. March 5th & 26th from 11:15 - 11:40 am

All ages themed storytime: Drop-in. More stories, puppets, songs, poems and crafts based on seasonal theme.  Children under three must be accompanied by an adult. March 7th from 10:30 - 11:15 am, and Mar 28th from 10:15 - 11:45 am

Teen Drop-in Nights - Just for youth aged 14 to 18. March 4th & 25th from 6 - 8 pm (Note - volunteers (especially males) are needed for these - please contact the Library for more information).

Meet the Author Event - Come meet Sigmund Brower of Nashville.  Acclaimed author of books for children, young adults and adults.  Everyone Welcome. March 6th from 3:30 - 5:30 pm

For more information on any of these events please call 250-392-3630 or email wlake@cariboord.bc.ca

6) "Parenting is Tough... we have a Class for That" Program

This Child Development Centre program offers participants a non judgmental and interactive environment in which to explore parenting strategies. This course also offers individuals exposure to various community supports and offers interaction with Child & Youth Care and other parenting professionals. This program encourages and supports feedback and values the perspectives of all participants. Five week course offering - Tuesdays from 10 am - 12 pm  with an option ongoing portion that will take place bi-weekly. Contact Coleen Onofrechuck for more information at 250-392-4481 ext 208.

7) Child Development Centre's Infant Development Programs - services for children up to age 36 months Services for children up to age 36 months provide education and support to encourage overall development and include:

-Infant Massage (up to 8 months of age)

-Rockin Baby Tunes (up to 18 months)

-Rockin Toddler Tunes (over 18 months and can also include their younger siblings)

-Pre-Natal Class for expecting mothers (this class is lead by registered Nurses and there is an $80 fee - if you or someone you know is unable to afford this program please contact the Development Centre). For more information contact Colleen at 250-392-4481 ext 208.

8) Good Food Box - service from the Womens Contact Society

Join up, tell a friend or donate to someone you know (or don't know). This program delivers a box of fresh produce once a month in two sizes $10 or $15 with delivery the third Monday of every month (you must place your order by the 2nd Wednesday of the month). Call the Women's Contact Society for more information at 250-392-4118

9) Be Wild this Spring Break at Scout Island Nature Centre - Mar 19 - 21

Nature Exploring and Art in Nature for Ages 6-13 from March 19-21 - Don't sit at home bored ---Join us for the Spring Break Program that will have you outside exploring, playing games and having adventures every day.  Join us between 9:30-3:00 each day.
                       
We will be outdoors as much as possible actively exploring and playing. Each day will be different, so you will want to be part of the fun all three days: Spring birds, Animal tracks, Signs of spring, Carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores using skulls and more, Using microscopes, You feed the Nature House animals, and Finding Art in nature
 

The cost is $25 a day. Call 398 8532 or shemphill@netbistro.com to register.

10) Boys & Girls Club's afterschool's Spring Break Program - taking reservations

Spots arre filling up quickly so please contact the club for more information at 250-392-5730.

11) Seedy Saturday - May 10th - call for vendors

Our 6th Annual Seedy Saturday is approaching and the Williams Lake Food Policy Council is looking for interested vendors!

ANYONE selling or trading seeds, seedlings - BOTH veggie and flowers, homegrown flower arrangements etc. please attend as a vendor! We are also looking for people selling/trading natural garden amendments (ex. manure), as well as information tables on growing/raising your own food/flowers. To sum up, if it relates to growing/raising your own food and flowers, we want you as a vendor. If you are unsure if you fit the criteria, please do not hesitate to ask.

When: Saturday - May 10th from 10 am - 2 pm (setup starts at 9 am)

Where: Memory Garden Community Garden on Carson Drive.

Details: Bring your own table & tent (if you do not have access, please let me know 1 week prior to the event so I can help make arrangements for you.

We chose to hold Seedy Saturday in the Community Garden this year to celebrate and draw attention to this beautiful new community space. Many years of hard work have been invested into the garden, and the Food Policy Council is proud to showcase it's achievements!  We are also looking forward to being able to hold a number of hands-on growing demonstrations as we will all be in the garden;  growers, producers and other gardening experts will be on hand to answer questions and demonstrate techniques first hand.

If you would like to be a vendor or have any questions, please RSVP to this email, call the phone number below, or visit us on Facebook: facbook.com/WLFPC

Thank you and we look forward to seeing everyone at this exciting event to open our Gardening Season!

Michelle Daymond, Food Action Coordinator

250-302-5000 or foodpolicycouncil@hotmail.com

Community Updates (8) – Feb 21, 2014

1) Social Planning Council's Monthly Meeting - this Monday Feb 24th

2) What is your organization planning over the next month?

3) Communities that Care's - Positive Action Word of the Week

4) Project Comeback's - Community Meeting - Feb 24th from 5 - 9 pm

5) Performances in the Park - call for submissions

6) Womens Contact Society  (WCS) - updates below:

a) Honouring Children Workshop

b) Annual Children's Festival Booth

c) Rhyme & Rolls - Interactive Literacy Enhancement

d) Women’s crafting night

e) Just for fun Ladies vocal group

f) International Women’s Day Event

7) Community Engagement Sessions - Cariboo Regional District

8) From the Williams Lake Wanderers Group - March 2014 schedule

1) Social Planning Council's Monthly Meeting - this Monday Feb 24th

Being held at the new Academy of Learning's Williams Lake Campus. Join us for lunch and learn more about the facility at the start of the meeting. Please see the attached agenda and minutes from last month's meeting for your review. Hope to see you there!

2) What is your organization planning over the next month?

If you send us updates (or bring a hardcopy to the monthly meetings) your organizations events & project developments will be distributed to the Social Planning Networks. Do you have a project idea you want to start, need community input, are hosting events or anything else related to community well being just email spc-coordinator@xplornet.com and press send!

3) Communities that Care's - Positive Action Word of the Week

The Positive Action word of the week for Feb 24th is: Love: To show unconditional caring.

If you would like more background information about Positive Action please contact Carla Bullinger at 250-267-8249 or email comthatcares@sd27.bc.ca

4) Project Comeback's - Community Meeting - Feb 24th from 5 - 9 pm

Please find attached a poster about the Project Comeback “reporting and Exploring” Community Meeting on Feb. 24 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Central Cariboo Art Centre (the old fire hall, next to City Hall).

The City of Williams Lake and the BC Rural Network (BCRN) launched Project Comeback in April of 2013. The project is meant to determine barriers to retention of skilled and professional workers, make recommendations for community initiatives and develop a successful local approach to ensure rural communities, specifically Williams Lake, can attract and retain the work force we need to be successful. In the fall of 2013, the City of Williams Lake completed a survey targeting young adults under 35. The results are in and action is required!

We would like to invite you to join other community members at “Project ComeBack Reporting and Exploring” on the evening of February 24th, 2014. We encourage you to bring a friend or a co-worker that may be “new” to the community (moved or returned to Williams Lake in the last five years) and under the age of 35! Join us for dinner, share why you love Williams Lake, explore survey results, brainstorm local project ideas and provide input for the initiation of a local project and action plan!

Please see the poster for more information and how to RSVP. For more information, please contact Anne Burrill at aburrill@williamslake.ca or at 250-392-8480.

5) Performances in the Park - call for submissions
Presented by the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society, the City of Williams Lake and the Cariboo Regional District.

The Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society is happy to announce that Performances in the Park, the outdoor free summer concert series, will begin on Thursday, July 3rd at 6:00pm and will continue each Thursday evening at the same time at the Gwen Ringwood Theatre in Williams Lake’s Boitanio Park until August 21st. Once again, with the support of the City of Williams Lake and the Cariboo Regional District, the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society will be presenting this event under the management of Angela Sommer of Angelkeys Music Studio.

The concert series will feature two acts each week; one at 6pm to showcase performances including youth, theatre, dance, musical and fashion shows, followed by a headline act from 7:00 – 8:00 pm. All acts will be family friendly.

We are currently looking for performers of every type to fill these performances. Application forms can be downloaded from the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society’s website http://www.centralcaribooarts.com/events/performancespark.html  or you can also receive an application by emailing Angela Sommer at performances@centralcaribooarts.com

Submissions can be made by mailing or dropping off completed applications to: Performances in the Park, c/o Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society, 90 Fourth Avenue North, Williams Lake, BC V2G 2C6, or by emailing completed forms to performances@centralcaribooarts.com by April 15, 2014 at 4:00 pm.

This well attended, free event, is fun for the whole family and we look forward to seeing familiar and new faces in the crowd!

For more information, sponsorship opportunities, or for interviews please contact:

Angela Sommer

performances@centralcaribooarts.com
250-305-4784
http://www.centralcaribooarts.com

6) Womens Contact Society  (WCS) - updates below:

For more information on any of the below please contact the WCS at 250-392-4118

a) Women's Contact Society's (WCS) Workshop - Wed Feb 26th. Honouring our Children workshop - Safe Sleep for Babies is being held from 6 - 7:30 pm on Wednesday Feb 26th. For more information contact the WCS at 250-392-4118

b) Annual Children's Festival Booth - pre-registration for May 25th. Reserve your booth for this year's annual Children's Festival in Boitanio Park Sunday May 25th. Call the Womens Contact Society to pre-register your booth at 250-392-4118.

c) Rhyme & Rolls - Interactive Literacy Enhancement on Tuesdays at 10:30 am. At the Women's Contact Society join the weekly Rhyme & Reason interactive sessions on Tuesdays from 10:30 - 11:30 am for parents & children ages 0 - 5 years. Call 250-392-4118 for more information.

d) Women’s crafting night – The last Monday of every month – the next one will be on Feb 24^th – up-cycling t-shirts

e) Just for fun Ladies vocal group – Fridays 7.30-9.00 PM  United Church (free child minding)

f) International Women’s Day Event - Saturday March 8^th 2014 at 5:30 pm at TRU cafeteria - Film Showing MissRepresentation (and light refreshments).

7) Community Engagement Sessions - Cariboo Regional District

Mark your calendars to have your say and join the discussion on the 2014 budget and Financial Plans. In Williams Lake the date is March 1st from 1 - 4 (presentation at 2:30 pm) at the Cariboo Regional Districts Board Room. Visit cariboord.bc.ca, or online at facebook.com/caribooregion or call for more information.

8) From the Williams Lake Wanderers Group - March 2014 schedule

This group has been formed for people of all ages to engage in activities that provide physical health and appreciation of the natural world. We support a friendly, non-competitive atmosphere where one can seek physical fitness at a pace suitable to the individual. We welcome new members at any time.

Membership: There is an annual fee of  $10 person.  A membership card will be issued. Group activity information will be sent to members via email, posted at the Cariboo Memorial Complex and on Facebook,  as well as on the activewilliamslake.com site.

To join this group, come to the Cariboo Memorial Complex at 9:15 am on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. We always begin our outings at 9:30 am from there, so you can fill out a membership form and pay your $10 annual fee. Once you're a member, you will receive emails with schedule and schedule changes. Schedules and updates are also on our Facebook.

By the middle of the month, we have scheduled only walking/hiking in anticipation of Spring!! Check your schedule daily.

March 2014

Tues Mar 4: SPCA snowshoe

Wed Mar 5: Bull Mountain ski

Thurs Mar 6: Mardi Gras walk to Scout Island  (Mardi Gras colours are gold, purple, green: wear your celebration beads!)

Tues Mar 11: Bull Mtn. ski

Wed Mar 12: Borland Creek walk

Thurs Mar 13: Esler Cow Trails snowshoe

Tues Mar 18: River Valley walk

Wed Mar 19: Mission Road walk

Thurs Mar 20: Beacon Road walk

Tues Mar 25: Eagleview Road walk

Wed Mar 26: Signal Point walk

Thurs Feb 27: English Road walk

All of these activities are subject to change according to weather conditions, so keep an eye on your email/Facebook.

Members' Monthly Breakfast Social: Our no host breakfast get together for conversation & new ideas for outings will be Mar. 11th, at 8 am at Denny's.

Club contacts: Bette McLennan 250-392-6423, Gail Peterson 250-392-4705 and Joanne Wright 250-398-7624

Community Updates (16) – Feb 14, 2014

1) Empty Bowls Fundraiser - Valentine's Day Feb 14th

2) Free Family Skate - Sat Feb 15th1 - 2:30 pm

3) Heritage Silent Auction Fundraiser for the Child Development Centre

4) Backyard Bird Count - Citizen Scientists Wanted - Sunday Feb 16th

5) Environmental  Monitoring  and Reclamation At Mount Polley Mine - Presentation Feb 19th

6) Celebrate Louis Riel day - Dinner & Film Monday, February 17, 2014 6:00pm

7) Project Comeback's - Community Meeting - Feb 24th from 5 - 9 pm

8) Touring Prague with Chris Harris and Rita Giesbrecht

9) Spicing Up the Cariboo - Book Sale & Samples Feb 18th

10) News From The BC Poverty Reduction Coalition

11) Reminder Tea & Tissues - Grief recovery group starting Feb 19th
12) The next Social Planning Council Meeting - Monday Feb 24th  at 11:30 am

13) Film Screening - Genetic Roulette - Wed Feb 19th at 7 pm

14) Seniors Activity Centre's Annual General Meeting - Feb 20th

15) 23rd Annual Daybreak Rotary's Used Book Sale - Feb 15 - 22nd

16) Reminder - School District No. 27 - Policy Review - send your feedback online

1) Empty Bowls Fundraiser - Valentine's Day Feb 14th

The Cariboo Potter's Guild will be raising proceeds for the Williams Lake Salvation Army's foodbank with their Empty Bowls Fundraiser on today, Friday Feb 14th from 11 am - 2 pm at the Gibralter Room. For $15 visitors will be served a delicious lunch of soup and bread and get to keep the locally crafted pottery bowl it comes in!

2) Free Family Skate - Sat Feb 15th1 - 2:30 pm

Bring the family this Saturday from 1 - 2:30 pm for the free skate at the Recreation Complex sponsored by Sutton Cariboo Realty.

3) Heritage Silent Auction Fundraiser for the Cariboo Chilcotin Child Development Centre

Win four tickets for the 2014 Tim Horton's NHL Heritage Classis March 2nd at BC Place Stadium. Pace your bids at the CDC's front desk at 690 Second Ave. North (250-392-4481). Starting bid $850 and closes Friday Feb 21st at 4pm (winner announced by 4:30pm). All proceeds go towards the Child Development Centre.

4) Backyard Bird Count - Citizen Scientists Wanted - Sunday Feb 16th

Williams Lake Field Naturalists and the Young Naturalists Club's Free Family Event at Scout Island Nature Centre. Julianne Trelenberg will lead a birding walk and the data collected will be added to Cornell University's international checklist. All families are welcom - kinds need to bring an adult. For more info call 250-398-8532 or email J_Trelenberg@hotmail.com.

5) Environmental  Monitoring  and Reclamation At Mount  Polley Mine - Presentation Feb 19th at 7:30 pm

On Wednesday February 19 at 7:30pm there is a free Presentation at Scout Island Nature House presented  by  Colleen  Hughes, EP  environmental  Coordinator  Mt. Polley Mining Corp.

Environmental  Technicians  are  responsible  for  environmental monitoring  and  so  much  more.  This  presentation  will  include  a  review  of  current monitoring methods for surface and groundwater, vegetation, soils, air, climate, and wildlife.   It  also  provides  information  on  employee  education  for  spill  response, wildlife  awareness, and sensitive  habitat  identification.  The  presentation  also includes information on the reclamation research and planning that is ongoing at the mine site. For More information 398 8532 or shemphill@netbistro.com

6) Celebrate Louis Riel day - Dinner & Film Monday, February 17, 2014 6:00pm

Celebrate Louis Riel day with Dinner and the award winning film: GOLD FEVER and Yummy Mexican food by Juanita, Share-back of the Tsilhqot'in Dance Ceremony,  Update on FISH LAKE

Childcare provided - $10 $30 suggested (but no one turned away!!) Money raised goes to Mayan Communities in Guatemala

Gold Fever is a documentary of cinematographic beauty and hard-hitting truths. The film unveils the realities of people in a community where a Vancouver-based mining company comes to operate, and serves an international call to attention in the process. Find this event on face book at https://www.facebook.com/events/600639640004125/?ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular

7) Project Comeback's - Community Meeting - Feb 24th from 5 - 9 pm

Please find attached a poster about the Project Comeback “reporting and Exploring” Community Meeting on Feb. 24 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Central Cariboo Art Centre (the old fire hall, next to City Hall).

The City of Williams Lake and the BC Rural Network (BCRN) launched Project Comeback in April of 2013. The project is meant to determine barriers to retention of skilled and professional workers, make recommendations for community initiatives and develop a successful local approach to ensure rural communities, specifically Williams Lake, can attract and retain the work force we need to be successful. In the fall of 2013, the City of Williams Lake completed a survey targeting young adults under 35. The results are in and action is required!

We would like to invite you to join other community members at “Project ComeBack Reporting andExploring” on the evening of February 24th, 2014. We encourage you to bring a friend or a co-worker that may be “new” to the community (moved or returned to Williams Lake in the last five years) and under the age of 35! Join us for dinner, share why you love Williams Lake, explore survey results, brainstorm local project ideas and provide input for the initiation of a local project and action plan!

Please see the poster for more information and how to RSVP. For more information, please contact Anne Burrill at aburrill@williamslake.ca or at 250-392-8480.

8) Touring Prague with Chris Harris and Rita Giesbrecht

Williams Lake, BC - The Cariboo Regional District announced today that Chris Harris and Rita Giesbrecht will be making a photographic presentation of their recent trip to Prague at the Williams Lake and 100 Mile Branch libraries.

Harris and Giesbrecht visited Prague during the carnival season. Harris is a renowned local photographer who has published several books of photography of the Cariboo Chilcotin including Flyover : British Columbia's Cariboo Chilcotin Coast: an aviation legacy (2012) and Motherstone : British Columbia's volcanic plateau (2010).

The couple wanted a unique trip experience; something completely different than their usual travel as wilderness photographers and back-country trekkers.

“Along with the artistic richness of Old World Europe, Prague overwhelms the senses as one of the most intact and protected cities architecturally and physically,” stated Harris. “Having survived destruction and razing by invading armies from the beginnings of human history, through the glory days of the Roman Empire and the Hapsburg regime, Prague is a glorious feast of rare Gothic, Baroque, and every other kind of building right up to its most recent history as a Soviet-dominated communist country.” 

The evening will include a slideshow presentation, with commentary from Harris and Giesbrecht as well as a Question and Answer segment. Admission for this event is free, but patrons should arrive early as seating is limited.

The dates of the presentations include: Friday, Feb. 14, 7-8:30 p.m. at the Williams Lake Branch. Call 250-392-3630 or email wl@cariboordbc.ca for more information.

9) Spicing Up the Cariboo - Book Sale & Samples Feb 18th

The authors of Spicing up the Cariboo: Characters, Cultures & Cuisines of the Cariboo Chilcotin will be at the library selling cookbooks on February 18th from 10:00am to 3:00pm. Cindy from the Bean Counter will also be cooking up a full lunch of recipes from the book, so be sure to stop by.

10) News From The BC Poverty Reduction Coalition

BC's provincial government recently announced that they will host the Increasing Accessibility for People with Disabilities Consultations (http://engage.gov.bc.ca/disabilitywhitepaper/) a series of public sessions to hear from communities about the challenges people with disabilities face, in preparation for issuing a "white paper," a report that will serve as the basis for a provincial summit on the issue later in the year.

Please join us in calling for a raise of PWD benefits to $1200 and establishing a shelter allowance like the seniors SAFER program.

For more information, check out the report "Overdue: The case for increasing the Person with Disabilities (PWD) Benefit in BC" (http://www.bccpd.bc.ca/dwpnetwork.htm) that the BCCPD published in partnership with SPARC BC, Community Legal Assistance Society (CLAS), Inclusion BC and Canada Mental Health Association (BC Division).

BC's current disability benefit rate of $906/month (in red on the graph below) is completely inadequate and falls short of all poverty measures, including the most stringent possible. In comparison, Alberta's PWD rate is now $1588.

Please also join us in calling for an end to the clawback of child support payments from PWD benefits. 

Again, we're partnering with the BCCPD and BC ACORN on this issue, as well as First Call, WestCoast LEAF, and CLAS Currently, child support is taken off dollar for dollar from the income assistance benefit. The provincial government is depriving children of their right to child support by taking that money away from children who live in lone-parent families on assistance – some of the most vulnerable children in the province.

You can make your voice heard by submitting your comments at http://engage.gov.bc.ca/disabilitywhitepaper/participate/ or attend one of the community consultations running until February 26, 2014.

11) Reminder Tea & Tissues - Grief recovery group starting Feb 19th
Bring life back into focus with the grief recovery group, "Tea and Tissues"  on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of every month in the Fireside Room, 782 9th Ave North, (starting February 19th) at 5:30 pm for 1 hour.  For more information call John 398-5642.

12) The next Social Planning Council Meeting - Monday Feb 24th  at 11:30 am

The next Social Planning Council meeting is on Monday February 24th from 11:30 - 1:00 pm at The new Academy of Learning Facility with a presentation by the Regional Employment Coordinator for Community Living BC. Light lunch will be served (donations appreciated but not required). Another reminder and agenda will be send out next week (as well as directions).

13) Film Screening - Genetic Roulette - Wed Feb 19th at 7 pm

A film by Jeffrey M. Smith and a production of the Institute for Responsible Technology: Never before seen evidence points to genetically engineered foods as a major contributor to raising disease rates in the US population, especially among children. Showing is taking place at the Williams Lake Regional Library at 7 pm.

14) Seniors Activity Centre's Annual General Meeting - Feb 20th

The AGM for the Seniors Activity Centre is taking place on Feb 20th at 1:30 pm at the Centre (176 Fourth Ave. North). For more information contact Glenda at 250-392-7946.

15) 23rd Annual Daybreak Rotary's Used Book Sale - Feb 15 - 22nd

Between Feb 15th and the 22nd on the upper level of Boitanio Mall find the annual giant used book sale. Donations are also accepted. Call 250-392-4498 for more information. All proceeds will be used to support Daybreak Rotary and it's community projects.

16) Reminder - School District No. 27 - Policy Review - send your feedback online

At its December meeting, the SD 27 Board of Education made a motion to adopt the revised policy at the 25 February 2014 open meeting of the Board.  The Board is seeking public input or comment on the proposed policy.  Feedback is open until the 17 February 2014.  Revisions to this policy are extensive, and will affect all users of school facilities.  One of the major changes is that the Board is looking at charging every user group, except those directly linked to the school, a rental rate that will be based on an average of market rates in OMH, WL, and rural communities.

There are concerns this policy will create barriers to families and the community accessing positive, healthy, and skill building activities and programs that take place after school.  User groups will have to pass on these additional costs to families, and this will definitely limit the participation of many families, particularly our low income families.  Schools directly benefit when children and families have opportunities to engage in positive activities. Individuals are encouraged to follow the link and complete the survey: http://www.sd27.bc.ca/board-education/policies-and-bylaws