Meeting Minutes draft - SPC
Monthly Meeting
Jun 22, 2015 - 11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Location:
Canadian Mental Health Association Office (51 - 4th Ave South)
In
Attendance (from sign-in sheet): Diane Wright, Monica Lamb-Yorski, Joanne
Meyrick, Rosanna McGregor, Jan Fichtner, Shannon Thom, Sharon Taylor, Laurie
Walters, Sue Zacharias, Diana French, Darrell Garceau, Deb Webster, Larry
Stranberg, George Atamanenko, Margaret Anne Enders, Leah Selk, Matt Neufeld,
Bruce Mack, Kathie Vilkas, Monica Johnson, Jessica Knodel and Beulah Munson
Accept Minutes
& Agenda:
· Reviewed meeting minutes
from May 25, 2015
MFSC to accept minutes as
presented
· Review meeting agenda for
Jun 22, 2015
Add Margaret- Anne Anti-racism
initiative
Add Gang Violence update from
last week's meeting at City Hall
MFSC to accept agenda as amended
· Revisit action items from
last meeting
The City sent updates on the projects Love the Puddle, Project Comeback,
and Love Williams Lake.
Guest Speaker - Donna Barnett, MLA
Donna started by giving
encouraging words regarding the diverse SPC network, and that it is her
pleasure to be here. The City of Williams Lake has lots going on, including the
new Autism Centre and Interior Health partnership lead by Dr. Fedor and Nancy
Gale.
In regards to fire season,
everyone is encouraged to follow general rules such as don't break bottles,
don't throw out cigarette butts and extinguish camp fires. The local Fire
Centres are doing a wonderful job, and the resources are currently in place.
Provincial Emergency planning resources are available for free and include
"In It Together: Neighbourhood Preparedness Guide".
New Rural Advisory Committee
(RAC) update - This
group consists of 14 people from all over the Province including Haida Gwaii,
Agassiz and as far as the Kootneys. It is a consensus building table where
everyone feels comfortable discussing similar issues.
One current initiative the RAC is
exploring is dividends for rural communities. This is a very complex issues
with no consensus yet.
A second mandate is building
capital for investments for small communities who are not municipalities (e.g.
Lone Butte is not an official municipality therefore little help available). In
that community there is not much left to pursue except an Abattoir and
Slaughter facility.
Building a Community Venture
Capital Corporation for people who have wanted to invest in RRSP's, instead can
invest in this corporation which makes people care more about the success of
the operation. Venture Capital is hard to get without initiatives like this.
The RAC meets again next in October.
Hospital
Reno update - no further progress has yet been made in expediting the hospital
renovation planning for Cariboo Memorial Hospital.
Robert
Hallpenny & Catherine Wittman, both "Champions for the Cause" are
leaving their positions which is concerning. Donna is now our champion and she
encourages everyone to keep sending letters because pressure from the community
helps move things forward. Letters sent to Donna get printed and distributed at
Caucus meetings for increased political pressure to move this initiative along.
George Atamanenko
pointed out the concept plan was supposed to have been completed by this
spring, but it is now summer. Donna agreed to look into this.
Mount Polley Mine Update - Meetings are taking place in
Williams Lake at the Recreation Complex this Thursday (and in Quesnel on
Wednesday) regarding permits to re-open. A long term management strategy is
being presented. Mount Polley remains positive that a decision will be made to
re-open soon.
Extras Updates (From Donna) - At the Tourism Discovery Centre this
Thursday there will be an announcement regarding Hwy 97 upgrades near WL Indian
Band. A new ferry is something Donna will not give up on because you cannot put
a price on scenery and wildlife viewing.
Donna tells the group to please
contact her if you need anything.
GP for Me initiative update -
Laurie Walters
"A
GP for Me" is a province-wide initiative funded jointly by the
Ministry of Health and Doctors of BC (formerly the BC Medical Association). The
initiative aims to:
- Enable patients who want a family doctor to
find one.
- Increase the capacity of the primary health
care system.
- Confirm and strengthen the continuous
doctor-patient relationship, including better support for the needs of
vulnerable patients.
It also includes funding to
Divisions of Family Practice over three years to:
- Conduct research to evaluate the number of
people looking for doctors in their community, the needs of the local
family physicians, and the strengths and gaps in local primary care
resources.
- Develop a community plan for improving local
primary care capacity, including a mechanism for finding doctors for
patients who are looking for them.
The Central Interior Rural
Division is currently in the Implementation phase of the initiative. Our
project team works on initiatives that identify vulnerable unattached patient
groups in our towns and will be a collaborative effort with local health authorities,
First Nations, and community groups. Ultimately this will help redefine patient
care delivery systems within the Cariboo-Chilcotin region.
Laurie's current focus is getting the community linkages made and
gathering local information for the database on the webpage FETCH (visit
http://www.fetchbc.ca - currently
Nanaimo's database is a good example to browse). The launch date for our local database will be sometime this
fall. Afterwards, it will be maintained by the Rural Division of Family Doctors.
There is the opportunity to have a full brochure of services available attached
to your listing in the database. For more information please visit
https://www.divisionsbc.ca/cird/agpforme or contact Laurie Walters at lwalters@williamslake.ca
Action - Invite
Laurie back to discuss this initiative again.
Emergency Preparedness Plan
In light of
dry conditions and high risk of forest fires, discussion about Emergency
Preparedness Plans for the region. Joining the discussion in additional to
Donna Barnett is Williams Lake Fire Chief, and City CAO Darrell Garceau.
The June
rainy season has not been wet enough to make up for the driest spring on
record. A common misconception is that after lots of rain, the fire risk is
significantly lowered, but this is not true. After an overnight
"downfall", within four hours
this water is gone.
The
Local Fire Plan incorporates the area from Deep Creek North to 140 Mile
House. Education is given each year
including Firesmart programs for new construction.
An
Emergency Operations Centre is being setup this week. ALL residents are
encouraged to have supplies for up to 72 hours because there will always be a period of time when no help
is available.
Recently
an agreement was signed between the communities of 100 Mile, Williams Lake,
Quesnel, Wells and the Cariboo Regional District for a free emergency broadcast
service - for mass notifications of emergencies. Residents must self register
for this service (ALL of your numbers and contact information can be registered
including your children's school). Everyone is encouraged to sign up for this
free notification service. It is for ALL residents living within the major
Cities and those who live in the CRD.
Question - What
does self-sustaining for 72 hours mean? There are people who require oxygen or
home care for example - what emergency planning is required of them?
Answer - The
same as others need to do. Having an extra medications, medical supplies and a
plan for assistance (e.g. family member). If people do not have any access to
supports, they are encouraged to contact the Fire Department 250-392-4321 for
advise and to make planning arrangements. If there is a vulnerable person, the
Fire Department and emergency services can help but arrangements must be made
in advance.
Question - what
about evacuations that require people to leave immediately. What would people
without access to transportation do?
Answer -
Evacuation plans have been in place since 2010 (the City is now zoned into 12
zones for this purpose). There is an agreement in place for people without
transportation (e.g. contract with bussing company that runs the mining buses).
People want to always fall back on government, but people must be prepared to
look after themselves. Planning for transportation in the event of an emergency
evacuation notice is something everyone should do.
There
is also an ERSS (Emergency Response & Social Services Team) and emergency
social services plan too in agreement with the Red Cross and Salvation Army.
The Province also has emergency planning in place and the following resources:
Find
the Provincial "In It Together: Neighbourhood Prepardness Guide" at gov.bc.ca/PreparedBC so you know exactly
what to do before, during and after a disaster. You can also connect online at
the links below.
Web: www.EmergencyInfoBC.gov.bc.ca for
alerts
Facebook: BC Forest Fire Information
Twitter: @EmergencyInfoBC for alterts,
@PreparedBC for readiness advice, @BCGovFireInfo for wildland fire updates or
@DriveBC for road conditions.
If you
do not have access to the internet please call 1-800-O-Canada (1-800-622-6232).
Question - What
are the Evacuation routes and where is this info available?
Answer - the
emergency response system (for initial notification mainly) and will refer
people to the appropriate numbers to call and information required.
Question - there
is also a moral issue here. If you are responsible for a building, and there
are special needs people within this building. It is your responsibility to help these residents?
Answer - Yes
(Authorities can only help if able, and if they are made aware their help is
required in advance).
Comment -
earlier discussions would be more valuable than reacting if something happens.
Can businesses and others be told in advance of what to do? Little too late if
it happens.
ACTION - SPC
to send out the information shared today and links to resources.
Anti-Racism initiatives -
Margaret Anne Enders (CMHA)
Welcome
to the Canadian Mental Health Association office!
Margaret
works within the Multiculturalism program, which is trying to highlight and
celebrate the diversity in the community. When we appreciate, we are a richer
community for it. E.g. "Spicing Up the Cariboo Cookbook" project last
year (copies are still available!), promoted the positive side of a diverse
community. It is becoming commonly aware that racism within our region is an
ongoing issue that is not going away. Therefore, CMHA wants to put some effort
into this and have been talking to organizations for potential program and
strategy ideas such as forums, community workshops etc. The problem with this
type of outreach is that only the already converted usually attend, not
necessarily others who need to be reached as a target audience.
Innovative
and creative ways to get the message out with local businesses, schools etc. Is
now being sought. Funding is required to implement new idea. The SPC could help
with Letters of Support and others area also encouraged to get involved.
ACTION - The SPC
will write a LOS for the CMHA's multicultural initiatives as required.
Comments:
This
subject needs a strong "Champion" to start and continue the
discussions.
Early
Education as part of the school curriculum is key. When you understand there is less chance you will
act in this manner. Cheif Sophie Pierre (leader of the table in the Kootneys)
is an example of a Champion in our Province. Cheif Anne from WLIB contacted
Darrell again to ask where we can start.
There
is a good chance for change in our community, in the spotlight of the Truth
& Reconciliation Commission work.
From
the perspective of an Aboriginal, who lives on the Sugar Cane Reserve, they
feel the tension daily. This is occurring because facts are not properly shared
via the media coverage of events. E.g. the process of Mt. Polley reopening;
Natives are all portrayed as stopping the progress of growth and the economy
but are only posing the question... what
other commodities could be developed to stimulate the economy, besides our
Natural Resources?. It is very important to ensure the proper facts are given
in the media. A general quietness about things is also not good. E.g. the City
and RCMP need to be open and proactive about sharing information regarding the
recent gang violence (rather than letting rumors and misconceptions fester).
There
are increasing number of immigrants from places such as Korea, and the
Phillipines who also face the same issues many Aboriginals face. A common name
many are even called is "Timmigrants" (because many work in the fast
food industry).
The
City of Williams Lake (with the Williams Lake Indian Band) is meeting with a
consultant this week to look into new industry options/diversification of our
region including agriculture . This is also part of a broader discussion regionally in conjunction with Quesnel, 100 Mile and
even Wells.
To
address the specific comment that the City did not share enough information
with the public right away (after the high speed chase, and shooting last
week), Darrell noted that the City asked
the RCMP to release more facts, but could not interfere with their
investigation and/or decisions on what they release to the public.
It was
also noted, the facebook group "Speak out WL" is not a place to have
proactive community conversations. It is a "free for all" place where
people say whatever they want with often no regard for others, or facts. The
environment of that group is typically very negative and mostly uninformed.
The
spirit of our City is amazing, but the media coverage lately does not showcase
any of this. The local RCMP are doing a great job and have attended over 6500
calls for service this past year alone.
Monica
mentioned that in regards to published articles in the Tribune newspaper, the
positive stories (e.g. grad ring found, lottery winners) get read more "hits
online" than crime stories (statistically).
Donna
commented that multicultural initiatives belong to everyone. From her personal
experience, the solution is simply engaging each other, and talking to your
neighbours etc. In the "good old days" (30 plus years ago) everyone
in our region felt as "one" and we can get there again someday by simply interacting with each other
more.
Anti-gang violence meeting -
update
Many
people at the SPC meeting attended meeting(s) that were held at City Hall last
week in response to the recent gang activity, and high speed chase and shooting
in WL. The people who organized last week's meeting are new to the community,
and not associated directly with any local community groups.
Question - Can
anyone at this table please explain what this meeting's purpose was?
Answer - The
presentation's intent was apparently to propose some solutions to gang
voilence. Rather it felt misguided to the specific needs of our community; an
ex-member of a Biker Gang spoke about his experiences. Finger pointing was
prevalent from the start and there was distorted negative media attention
(including on CBC radio). Matt Neufeld from the Boys & Girls Club was one
person wrongly singled out. This public display of promoting mis-information
was not considered appropriate or appreciated by many around the table.
Comment
- This was NOT a City Sanctioned event. It was organized in a very short period
of time and took on a life of it's own. It was only held in the Chambers
because the group became too large to fit in the community boardroom
downstairs. The City had no idea with was going to be presented at this
meeting, and in summary "Lessons were learned".
Question - Is
there a way to coordinate an accurate dissemination of facts to the public on a
regular basis?
Answer - Statistics
have shown that acts of racism are lessening in our community. Speaking out
loud against it is the next steps everyone needs to take.
Roundtable Updates
With such a
full agenda, there was not time for roundtable updates. Instead, updates were
sent out via community updates.
