Island Voices – Island Talk

  September 15th 2017.  B.C. Seniors Advocate Isobel Mackenzie released provincial results of her office’s survey of publicly subsidized residential care homes today. This is the most extensive survey of residents’ quality of life ever conducted in Canada. “For the first time in this province, we have heard the collective voices of some of our most…

What? Why? How? When someone close to you suffers a stroke, you suffer too … groping for answers to questions you never expected to ask. Some questions go without answers, but many of the answers are out there just waiting to be found. When my dearest friend and partner suffered a stroke eight years ago…

With BC’s Finance Minister and a new provincial government looking for economic opportunities the Salish Sea Trust is pointing to global interest in the ‘Blue Economy’ as a viable and attractive option. “We’ve written Minister James, and the Minister of Environment and Climate Change,” states the Interim Director of the Salish Sea Trust, “recommending investment…

Get Out & Enjoy Canada’s Waters on the Labour Day Long Weekend. The Salish Sea Trust is calling out to Canadians, inviting them to go for a swim, stroll in the shallows or a walk along a coastal beach, river or lake – to “get into” their heritage on the last long weekend of summer….

Words are powerful. Our words change the world.

Adele was called into the Principal’s office to discuss her twelfth grade son. She was not surprised. He had been in two fights and had been acting strange. She supposed he would be expelled if his behavior did not improve. Deep down Adele feared there was another problem, but she chose not to acknowledge it….

Breathe in the sunsets at Berry Point; Reduce your stress and take a leisurely Kayaking tour on a summer’s evening amongst Salish Sea; Attend the incredible Gabriola Theatre Festival: fantastic entertainment August 18 – 20th; Respectfully explore approx. 80 petroglyphs carved in rock, thousands of years old; Swim in the beautiful clear water off Sandwell…

When people have dementia, the short-term memory suffers the most. A person may easily recount an incident that happened thirty years ago, but will not remember what you said a few seconds ago. This is a source of great distress to the affected person and it is very frustrating for caregivers and family members trying…

In light of all the discussions around Canada opening her doors to refugees and in this year of celebration of Canada’s 150th anniversary, I submit this small memoir piece of my own experience of being a refugee. In 1957 after the Hungarian Revolution I escaped with my parents, spending 6 months in Refugee camps in…

Whew! If you’ve ever had a mammogram, you know that feeling of relief when that letter arrives in the mail saying your results are ‘normal.’ Most women exhale and then toss the letter in the garbage. But we ask, hold on! You’ve done great going for your mammogram, but you need to do one more…