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January 27, 2016 edition of the Houston Today
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By Chris GareauBlack Press
The Bulkley Valley School District 54 board decided to ac-tivate a 60-day con-sultation period on closing Lake Kathlyn Elementary School on the outskirts of Smithers at its meeting last Tuesday.
The decision came after continued low enrollment. A � nal de-cision on whether or not to close the school this June will be made at a special meeting at Lake Kathlyn school on Apr. 12 at 6:30 p.m.
The number of stu-dents attending Lake Kathlyn has dropped 42 per cent since 1998,
despite bussing in 29 kids from outside the catchment area. More
students from inside the catchment are be-ing bussed out, howev-
er, with 87 kids bussed into Smithers due to parent preference for programs like French Immersion at Muheim Elementary.
That means the school loses a net 58 students from parent preference. The cur-rent enrollment is at 81, 38 per cent of the 215-student capacity.
A facilities review report says closing the school would save the district a conservative-ly estimated $350,000 per year.
The District recom-mended reviewing the use of Lake Kathlyn school at last April’s annual facilities re-view. The school was built in 1961 and had
a wing added to ac-commodate a then-growing population in 1994.
That review also highlighted major is-sues at Silverthorne Elementary School in Houston. It listed chal-lenges there as build-ing envelope issues, exterior upgrades, the
Water leak investigations
Schools face declining enrolment and aging infrastructure
By Xuyun ZengHouston Today
Public works staff from the District of Houston are trying to � nd out the cause of a higher-than-normal demand for water.
Starting last Wednesday, staff have been shutting off wa-ter supply to certain parts of town where they suspect there might be a water leak in the pipes.
“We’re in the pro-cess of doing some searching through town to look for any additional water leaks that may be occurring which are causing this additional water pro-duction at our treat-ment plant.”
A report from man-ager of engineering and operations Don Hounsell presented at council showed that last month, the town pumped 7.1 million litres of water, com-pared to 2.9 million li-tres in December 2014.
Public works staff
repaired a leak in front of the medi-cal centre two weeks ago, which Hounsell said has helped lower water output, but he said that there might be several other small leaks.
Staff will go to dif-ferent parts in town where they think there might be problems or where there have his-torically been prob-lems.
“We can’t really
““Last month, the town
pumped 7.1 million litres
of water, compared to 2.9 million in Dec. 2014.”
““Please give us ideas how we can save money”
- School Board
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SPORTS: Ringette players going to Winter Games
PAGE 11
Submitted photoSLEDTOWN HonoursOn Saturday, January 16, Houston gathered at Dungate Meadows to celebrate its Sledtown victory. At the celebration, a number of people were recognized for their dedication and hard work with the Houston Snowmobile Club: Melvin Haftner, Pete Bodnar, and Hank Buursema (one of the original founding members in 1971). The personal sacrifices these gentlemen and their families have made helped put the club in the position it enjoys today. A big thanks to all those involved with the Houston Snowmobile Club and those who voted in the Sledtown competition.
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See LEAK on Page 2
See SCHOOL on Page 15
NEWS2 www.houston-today.com Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Houston Today
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Other possible causes for water demandpredict where we’re go-ing to be working at any one time,” said Hounsell.
He said residents who have lost water service will have it re-stored within two hours. Investigations will run between 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays only, and can last another two weeks unless they find a leak early.
Hounsell also point-
ed to other causes for the above-normal de-mand for water.
“We can’t confirm that there’s a leak,” said Hounsell. “It could be a series of things. Any system has a certain amount of loss to exfil-tration through pipes, so it could be exfiltration through pipes, through exfiltration at valves.”
“I can’t speculate what it is until we find what the issue is, and
that’s why we are in the process of doing a series of tests.”
He asks for patience from all residents.
“And if anyone in the District finds large amounts of water com-ing to the surface, please notify the District of Houston,” he added. “We did have one break earlier this winter over by the [Pearson Road] apartments which were reported by citizens.”
LEAK from Page 1
By Xuyun ZengHouston Today
Two bylaws that will rezone a lot at Pearson Road and Sullivan Way have passed second readings.
If adopted, Zoning Amendment Bylaw 1074-2016 and Official Community Plan amendment Bylaw 1075-2016 will change 2080 Sullivan Way from a medium-density resi-dential zone to a public and institutional zone, allowing CityWest to place a permanent structure there.
Council needs to invite the public for comment before third readings can com-mence. They initially set the date for the Jan. 19 council meeting, but after a gaffe in adver-tising the date as Jan. 19, 2015, have reset the date for Feb. 2.
According to the rezoning application, CityWest wants “to place a permanently mounted brown co-loured modular com-munications equipment building housing a fibre
cable distribution sys-tem.”
“I also mentioned the building should be monotone in co-lour, so it doesn’t stick out,” explained District chief administrative officer Michael Glavin of his discussions with CityWest.
The building, mea-suring 11.5 feet wide, 20 ft long and 10.3 ft high will sit in the com-pound, surrounded by a slatted three-metre high chain-link fence with barbed wire on top.
“They want to put slats in the fence for privacy, they have no issues with that,” said Glavin.
It will also house a backup generator that the application said will be “environmental-ly protected and acous-tically quietened.”
Further, Glavin re-vealed that CityWest have agreed to meet with the District’s de-velopment committee and “accept whatever design is expected of them.”
In reply to Coun.
Council update Jonathan Van Barneveld’s question on whether CityWest really needs to have that specific lot, Glavin revealed that the lot is in a telecommunica-tions corridor.
“It’s been selected because they are going to be leasing the con-duit from Telus,” said Glavin. “So it is stra-tegically necessary for them to use this lot.”
Glavin also fur-thered that he does not like the idea of spot zoning, but defends this as a “low-key applica-tion” that Houston will benefit from.
“You don’t want to put a pub in a residen-tial area, for reasons of noise, traffic and so forth,” said Glavin. “I would have a prob-lem if it was going to be some other kind of commercial business and such, but being that it’s a trunk line and [there is going to always be] one vehicle for the serviceman when he’s in town, and it’s going to be connec-tions … for high-speed internet, that won’t give you a lot of traffic up there.”
“It’s not going to
be a disruption to the community and it’s go-ing to be an asset for the community by us having another service in town to give us fibre optics.”
Council will also renew their janito-rial contract to Mike’s Cleaning, a local com-pany for $36,000 an-nually. They beat out another local company, D&P Janitorial, by $6,000, and a Burns Lake company by $9,500.
“I’ve done my due diligence, I’ve went through references, I even did some check on the other jobs that individuals had that weren’t listed, and I’m comfortable that, based on my research, that — Mike’s Cleaning — I recommend they get the contract,” said chief administrative of-ficer Michael Glavin.
Compared to the previous contract, the District will save $12,000, according to Glavin.
Noting the large disparity in costs be-tween Mike’s Cleaning and the other quotes, Coun. Rick Lundrigan expressed caution, ask-
ing Glavin if Mike’s Cleaning knows that the Community Hall can result in a lot of un-planned work should there be a lot of rentals.
Glavin said he be-lieves “the contract’s very clear.”
“We’ve provided them with the history for the last three or four years of the com-munity hall,” replied Glavin. “I’m as com-fortable as any other contract we’ve done, councillor.”
Council will also apply for the Canada Summer Jobs grant. The grant will go to-wards half the cost of hiring full-time stu-dents, at minimum wage, for six to 16 weeks.
“We applied for three students and we were awarded with one last year,” said Glavin. “We always budget for all three, and if we get the extra money, this offsets our costs.”
Lundrigan asked Glavin if the District will continue to hire past summer employ-ees who have proven themselves, to which Glavin confirmed they will get priority.
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By Xuyun ZengHouston Today
N o r t h w e s t Community College’s Houston campus has seen a reduction in students applying for its adult upgrading courses.
This comes after last January’s deci-sion by the provincial government to pull funding from colleges. In NWCC’s case, stu-dents looking to at-tend courses that go towards fulfilling high school graduation or GED requirements had to start paying out of pocket.
“It’s affecting the adult basic education, what we call Career & College Prep,” said re-gional director Regina Saimoto. “In the past, Career & College Prep was exempt from tuition, and now we are charging for the courses.”
Students now have
to pay according to their course-load.
“Starting in September, the charge will be based on whether you attend in different categories,” she said.
Students could at-tend school at one-eighth full-time all the way to full-time, and the fees goes up by hourly increments.
In a press release, the provincial gov-ernment justifies this change in subsidy as a means to ensure “adult students who have the means to do so are expected to contribute to the cost of the upgrad-ing needed for further studies and entry into the workforce.”
The change in funding model has forced the NWCC to start charging fees, ac-cording to Saimoto.
“With a change in funding they gave post-secondary insti-
tution an option to charge tuition but in reality, for us to be able to recover the cost of providing up-grading, we have to charge now because we are not getting the same level of fund-ing,” she said.
The province is of-fering adult upgrading grants with an income ceiling that changes based on the number of family members. A single person quali-fies if he or she earns $23,647 or less, while a family with seven or more has it capped at $62,581.
“But for people that don’t qualify, we are doing fundrais-ing activities,” said Saimoto. “Our second annual golf tourna-ment on May 18 and those fundraising ac-tivities are utilized to help establish an en-dowment for bursaries and scholarships.”
On the ground,
NWCC’s Houston spokesperson Mark West wants to dispel any notion that the Houston campus has become empty as a result.
“We have some stuff going on,” he said. “In classrooms,
we have programs, then the program fin-ishes then it appears like we’re empty until we wait for the next program,” said West.
“I wouldn’t say it’s completely dead, but we do need to find more programming.”
NWCC adult education programs sees lower attendance
blackpress.ca ◆ bclocalnews.com
SPORTS REPORTERHouston Today Newspaper is accepting applications for part-time casual and on-call position of Sports Reporter.
We are looking for an individual who has a passion for sports. Quali� ed individuals will have pro� ciency in photography.
Quali� cations include:
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We expect all applicants to have a valid driver’s licence and own a reliable vehicle. This position requires weekend and evening work.
Please submit your resume and cover letter to:
Attention: Publisher Houston Today Newspaper P.O. Box 899, Houston, B.C. V0J 1Z0
or email to: [email protected]
In our opinion:
OpinionPublished by Black Press Ltd. 3232 Hwy 16 W, Upstairs Houston Mall P.O. Box 899, Houston, B.C. V0J 1Z0
Phone: 250 845-2890 • Fax 250 845-7893 News: [email protected]
or: [email protected]: [email protected]
Going well in B.C.I’m embracing the “sunny ways” of our
new federal government and seeking op-timism in these fragile times.
For starters, we have a building boom going on in the southwest. Here in Victoria, cranes dot the skyline as new residential-commercial projects emerge from bedrock, and hardhats are mostly on construction workers, scratched and backwards, rather than shiny and forward on politicians.
Shipyards are busy, with Royal Canadian Navy work and cruise ship refits to reduce their emissions, plus work on ferries, tugboats and barges.
Most of the activity is private investment, much of it in a hot housing market. Surrey has just recorded its second-highest total for build-ing permits in history, a value of $1.46 billion nearly matching the pre-recession peak of 2007.
Thousands of provincial employees get a small raise in February, based on stronger than forecast economic growth in 2014. It works out to $300 a year for a medical technologist and $346 for a teacher.
Health care costs are rising less dramatical-ly. Health Minister Terry Lake announced last week that the province is increasing funding for a promising program in cancer research, using genetic analysis to improve targeting for drugs to treat the hundreds of different cancers diag-nosed in B.C. patients each year.
Outside the urban regions, where retail sales and real estate mainly drive the economy, sunny ways are harder to find. The mining and natural gas sectors are in the grip of a slump in commod-ity prices, with more temporary mine closures expected. The forest industry is being helped by the low Canadian dollar and a steady recovery in the U.S. economy, and tourism is expected to have another strong year as Americans take ad-vantage of a discount on visits to B.C.
Central 1 Credit Union broke down the re-gional employment numbers for B.C. in 2015, and found job growth in every region except the Cariboo. Province-wide employment grew 1.2 per cent last year, ahead of the national rate. That may not sound like much, but compared to Alberta’s oil-dependent economy, it’s pretty good.
Construction of a new dam on the Peace River is expected to ramp up this year, bringing workers home from Alberta, and the federal gov-ernment is planning to fast-track its promised in-frastructure spending to create work across the country.
Energy and Mines Minister Bill Bennett was in Toronto last week to ring the opening bell at the stock exchange with B.C. mining industry representatives.
The Conference Board of Canada has fore-cast that B.C.’s economy will “lead the country by a wide margin over the near term,” with un-employment declining in 2016.
We’re at the mercy of global forces, but things could be a whole lot worse.
-Tom Fletcher, Black Press
Children and youth in hotels studyBy Jeff Nagel
Black Press
A new report shows 117 children and youth in care in B.C. were placed in hotels in a recent 12-month pe-riod despite government claims the practice was rare and repeated orders that it happen only in extreme situations.
The joint review of hotel placements by Representative for Children and Youth Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond and the Ministry of Children and Family Development came in response to a high-pro-file death last September.
Alex Gervais, an 18-year-old in care, fell or jumped to his death from the fourth floor of an Abbotsford Super 8 hotel, where he had been housed by the ministry after his group home was shut down due to poor conditions.
At that time, Children and Family Minister Stephanie Cadieux sug-
gested just one or two youths were thought to be in hotel placements.
Turpel-Lafond sus-pected the number was closer to 50 and said the count of 117 children from November 2014 to October 2014 – more than double her estimate – shows how pervasive the problem remains.
Some of those chil-dren were placed in ho-tels multiple times dur-ing the year, as a total of 131 placements were recorded.
Most hotel stays are short – just a day or two – and Cadieux said it’s usually because of the need to urgently relocate youth until a conven-tional placement can be found, often on evenings or weekends.
But Gervais was an extreme case.
He spent 49 con-secutive days in the Abbotsford hotel prior to his Sept. 18 death, the most recent of multiple hotel stays.
“The best guess we
have is that Mr. Gervais spent close to 100 days in hotels over the pe-riod of his time in care,” Turpel-Lafond said.
A further review of his case is underway and the ministry is required to report by March 31 or consent to an investiga-tion by Turpel-Lafond’s office.
“His death is a trag-edy,” Cadieux said. “It’s a young life lost well too soon.”
The South Fraser and North Fraser re-gions of the Lower Mainland recorded the highest use of hotels – 32 and 27 placements respectively – followed by 14 in Vancouver/Richmond and 12 by the Fraser Valley Aboriginal Children and Family Services Society.
The hotel placements make up two per cent of B.C. children in care, but that rose to six per cent in the North Fraser area.
Turpel-Lafond char-acterized the recurring
use of hotels in those areas as “a stop-gap in lieu of having adequate placements.”
But Cadieux said she believes better coordina-tion of the placement options that exist could go far to reducing hotel use.
Cadieux said hotel stays remain an option of last resort and while she doesn’t believe it’s good practice she would set no target date for ending it.
Manitoba has banned all use of hotels but Cadieux said that comparison isn’t ap-propriate because that province was using them systemically.
Turpel-Lafond said she would like to see a complete ban because of the harm hotel stays do but agreed it is not realistic.
“The pressures on the staff are such that they are not able to find alternative placements to hotels at this time.”
Ministry staff must
now report to the rep-resentative’s office when any child is kept in a hotel longer than three days.
Social workers must get approval for hotel placements, which has been granted in all re-cent requests. Reports on hotel placements are to be made public every six months.
Cadieux said she also intends to bring a bud-get request to cabinet to provide more residential resources for emergency placements, particularly in the Fraser areas.
She indicated she may also propose in-creased remuneration or incentives to recruit or retain foster families.
“We want to elimi-nate hotel placements entirely,” Cadieux said. “But government can’t achieve that alone. We need more people to step up, get trained and work with us to provide kids in care with the sta-ble homes that they need and that they deserve.”
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Allisa Henderson
“Playing outside and having fun; playing hockey and going
sledding.”
Julieana Maciel
“Sledding, skiing and hot chocolate.”
Karlene George-Sampson
“Mine is to build igloos and go skating… because I wanted to join hockey.”
Miah Gage
“Skiing and snowboarding. It’s just fun.”
Smart meter system finishes under budget
The B.C. govern-ment is planning to catch up on its long-standing nursing short-age by hiring 1,643 full-time Registered Nurses by the end of March.
Health Minister Terry Lake and B.C. Nurses’ Union presi-dent Gayle Duteil an-nounced Tuesday they have reached a staff in-crease agreement that has been the main ob-stacle to signing a new contract. The previous deal expired nearly two years ago, and the dis-pute over staf� ng was headed for arbitration.
Duteil said the last
BCNU contract in 2012 contained a com-mitment to � ll these positions, but more than 1,600 have not been.
“To the nurses working 16-hour shifts today, to the nurses working short in the emergency department and operating rooms across B.C., to com-munity nurses with overwhelming casel-oads, this agreement means relief is on the way,” Duteil said.
Lake said the � rst priority is to offer full-time positions to some of the 7,000 ca-sual nurses working
in B.C. Nurses from other provinces would be the next choice, and international recruiting would take place after that.
“I think there will be a pool of nurses who may be moving back with their families to British Columbia, given the economic downturn in Alberta,” Lake said.
By region, the plan targets recruit-ing of 400 nurses for Fraser Health, 300 for Interior Health, 290 for Island Health, 100 for Northern Health, 235 for Vancouver Coastal Health, 238 for
the Provincial Health Authority and 80 for Providence Health Care, which runs St.
Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver.
Fraser Health CEO Michael Marchbank said each nursing po-sition costs the health authority about
$100,000 a year, and the new positions can be accommodated from existing budgets.
NDP health critic Judy Darcy questioned whether that many nurses can be hired in little more than two months, after the origi-nal 2012 promise to
hire more than 2,000 nurses has only result-ed in about 500 up to now.
“We know that the long waits for hip re-placement, knee re-placement, you name it, has been due to shortages, including nursing shortages,” Darcy said. “We’ve been paying incred-ible overtime. Huge burnout, high injury rates, wait lists, hallway medicine, all of those things are a conse-quence not having met this promise.”
Duteil said 16-hour shifts have become “the new normal” for
many RNs, and the agreement is a relief. She urged casual nurs-es in B.C. to contact the union by email immediately at [email protected] to express interest.
““The B.C. government is...hiring 1,643 full-time Registered Nurses by the
end of March.”
B.C.Views
Tom Fletcher
What is your ideal WinterFest
activity?
On theStreet...
OpinionHOUSTON TODAY “Member, B.C. Press Council”Published by Black Press Upstairs Houston MallP.O. Box 899, Houston, B.C. V0J 1Z0
Phone: 250 845-2890 • Fax 250 845-7893News: [email protected]
or: [email protected]: [email protected]
Houston Today Wednesday, January 27, 2016 www.houston-today.com 5
By Tom FletcherBlack Press
BC Hydro’s wire-less grid system was of� cially complete at the end of 2015, with a total cost the Crown utility now projects to be $777 million.
That’s $153 mil-lion below the origi-nal budget, said Greg Reimer, executive vice president, transmis-sion, distribution and customer service for BC Hydro. It includes all the elements re-quired by the B.C. government when it
ordered the installa-tion of the smart me-ter system as part of its Clean Energy Act in 2010.
Reimer said in an interview the system has also exceeded the $70 million in savings projected for the � rst three years of opera-tion.
“We’ve realized about $100 million in bene� ts during that time, particularly from operational sav-ings,” Reimer said. “Customers are get-ting more accurate bills. We’ve reduced
our manual meter reading reads and our bill estimates. Meter reading and billing is automated through the system.”
The smart grid had its severest test at the end of August 2015 when a windstorm brought down thou-sands of drought-weakened trees, leaving 700,000 cus-tomers on southern Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland without electricity.
Power was re-stored to all areas in � ve days, which was
half the time it took to recover from the December 2006 wind-storm that � attened trees in Vancouver’s Stanley Park, Reimer said. The 2006 storm blacked out only half the number of homes of the 2015 event.
Reimer said the ability to test an en-tire power line after one break is repaired means the crew doesn’t have to drive the rest of the line, and can move to the next con-� rmed problem when repairing storm dam-age.
BC Hydro has de-fended its power theft savings after NDP en-ergy critic Adrian Dix questioned them. In a recent letter to BC Hydro CEO Jessica McDonald, Dix said the company’s esti-mate of power theft by marijuana grow-ers was “magically” in� ated by then-en-ergy minister Rich Coleman in 2006, then increased again in the utility’s 2011 business case for the wireless system.
Reimer said the business case projected
a 75 per cent reduction in power theft, and the reduction for this � s-cal year is projected at 80 per cent, as the smart grid detects ac-tual power consump-tion and compares it to billed amounts.
While it’s of� cially complete, the smart grid requires ongoing maintenance and an-nual testing of meters to meet federal accu-racy regulations. BC Hydro also plans to install more than 4,000 meters that use com-mercial cellular phone networks to send in
readings.Those are for loca-
tions with concrete basement meter rooms that can’t reach the grid, or rural areas where it is too expen-sive to extend the BC Hydro wireless grid, Reimer said.
There are still 13,320 BC Hydro cus-tomers who have re-fused to accept smart meters, opting to pay a monthly fee for man-ual meter reading of a mechanical meter or a wireless meter with the radio transmitter turned off.
B.C. aims to hire 1,600 more nurses
By Xuyun Zeng
Meghan Williams
“Everybody doing outdoor activities like
sledding and tobogganing and hot chocolate.”
Lexi Larson
“You could paint on the snow or ice, and you
could make snowmen.”
By Xuyun ZengHouston Today
Jonathan Jaspers is leaving Houston for a long, long time.
“I’m OK with it – it’s getting out there and exploring the rest of Canada and the world – because Houston’s pretty small,” he said.
The army cadet decided last April that he wanted to become a combat engineer with the Canadian Forces and will leave Feb. 4 for a swearing-in ceremony in Victoria before heading off to CFB Saint-Jean, near Montreal, for his basic military quali� cations (BMQ) training two days later.
Jaspers will stay there in camp for three months. His hair is going to go as part of his initiation and he will get shouted down by his drill sergeant.
“[Cadet camp in] Vernon has kind of prepared me for it ..., but I have no idea, actually,” said Jaspers on preparing for the mental pressures. “We get to go out on weekends on the fourth week, but it all depends on how we do,” he said.
BMQ will be a humbling experience for Jaspers. The Cadets master warrant of� cer will become a Canadian Forces private, with the
eventual goal of working up the ranks as a non-commissioned member (NCM).
“It would be interesting going from the top in Cadets to the bottom in the Forces,” he said.
But what Jaspers is really looking forward to is his specialization.
“In Cadets, we went to Edmonton to the First Combat Engineer Regiment, and we did a
lot of stuff with them, and the stuff they do is really cool and I just wanted to do that too,” he said.
Jaspers explained that he will get to build bridges, handle explosives and operate heavy machinery. He especially enjoys the
part about “blowing stuff up.”
“Mine disposal, mine placement, getting rid of air� elds and roads, and
obstacles,” said Jaspers when asked where he would get to do that.
Jaspers added that he signed up as an NCM because he prefers working on the front lines.
“I want to be able to do things, be in the � eld, whereas of� cers hang back and not do as much.”
Jaspers said his family feels “OK with it,” although he later revealed that different members have different feelings.
“My mom’s been dealing with it. I’m her � rst kid to leave home so she’s a little bit anxious about it, but she’s OK with it,” he said.
On the other hand, Jaspers’ sister Mackenzie can’t wait.
“She’s OK with it, she’s happy that I’m leaving,” he chuckled.
After passing BMQ, Jaspers will head out to Gagetown, N.B. for combat engineer training. Thereafter, he will live and work on a Forces base. Eventually, he will get deployed where the Forces need him, which could include tours in the Middle East.
He sometimes worries about the risks involved in his line of work but has come to terms with it.
“I think it’s worth it for serving the country,” he said.
Featuring the spirit of the local people
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCooooooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnnnnnnniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitttttttttttttttyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiillllllllllllllllllddddddddddddddddddeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrsssssssssssssss
CourageousBattles
HumanInterest
AthletesPioneers
Achieving
Serving the communities of...
Houston
Brought to you by your MLA John Rustad
John Rustad, MLANechako Lakes
Box 421183 First Street, VanderhoofTel: 250-567-6820Fax: 250-567-6822
Toll Free: 1-877-964-5650Email: [email protected]
Website: www.johnrustadmla.bc.ca
“It is worth it... for serving the country”
“
6 www.houston-today.com Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Houston Today
Jonathan Jaspers took part in a four day kayak tour of the Southern Gulf Islands as one of many adventures in the 2015 Regional Cadet Expedition.
Regional Cadet Support Unit (Pacific) photo
“I’m OK with it – it’s getting out there and exploring the rest of Canada and the world –
because Houston’s pretty small,” - Jonathan Jaspers
Houston Today Wednesday, January 27, 2016 www.houston-today.com 7
For information on any WinterFest events, please contactDawn Potvin at (250) 845-1291 or Sally Sullivan (250) 845-9321
The weekend will be FILLED with fun activities... something for EVERYONE!
Houston ACT (Acti on Changes Things) Committ eeHouston ACT INVITES YOU TO...
Houston’s 3rd Annual
WINTERFESTFebruary 5th-8th, 2016
NEW!
NEW!
NEW EVENTS
THIS YEAR!
NEW!
NEW!
NEW!
FRIDAY, February 5:6 – 8 pm Houston WinterFest 2016 Kick-Off Hill behind HSS Sledding party – free crazy carpets, hot dogs, hot chocolate and FUN!
Geocaching Poker Run will begin from here – ask us for details!
+ FIREWORKS!!!!
SATURDAY, February 6:10 am – 1 pm Houston Link to Learning Family Literacy Brunch Houston Community Hall
Continue with Geocaching Poker Run all weekend!
12 – 3 pm Free Bowling – Pleasant Valley Plaza
1 – 3 pm Beginner Snowshoeing Workshop 4 Seasons Park - Free Rentals **shuttle service provided!
9 am – 11 pm Adult Drop In Curling & Social - no minors Houston Curling Rink
SUNDAY, February 7:10 am – 12 pm Jam Pail Curling for Kids Houston Curling Rink Please bring clean shoes, helmets and gloves!
1 – 3 pm Intermediate Snowshoeing Workshop Free snowshoe rentals! Morice River Trails **shuttle service provided!!
3 – 5 pm Salmon in the Snow! Walking tour of Streamkeepers Salmon Project Houston Leisure Facility
3 – 5 pm Free Public Swim - Houston Leisure Facility
MONDAY, February 8:10 am – 4 pm Family Ski Day! Morice Mountain Nordic Ski Trails **shuttle service provided! Warm chalet, hot chocolate and goodies, free trail use, rentals available, races, lessons and tons of fun!
11 am – 1 pm 9th Street Hockey Shinney Game 9th Street SafeGrad 2016 will be selling hamburgers and hot dogs! Sponsored by Finning
1 – 3 pm Free Public Skating Sponsored by Canfor, Finning and Bulkley Valley Credit Union Claude Parish Memorial Arena
3:30 – 5:30 pm Guns & Hoses Charity Hockey Game RCMP vs Fire Department Claude Parish Memorial Arena
SHUTTLESERVICE
...for any participants that
need a ride!!!
For events like the Literacy Brunch,
Snowshoeing and Cross Country Skiing.
8 www.houston-today.com Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Houston Today
District of HoustonNewsletter ~ January 27th, 2016 edition
What’s Happening...
Phone: 250-845-2256email: [email protected]
Website:http://houston.bclibrary.ca
Houston Public Library
NID Lego Club – Fri, Feb. 5 from 1 to 3 p.m. for kids ages 7 and up.
Game Night for Grownups! – Thurs, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. Admission is by donation. Adults are welcome to drop in and play board games, cards games and RPGs. Junk food is included.
Book Club – Thurs, Feb. 25 from 7 to 9 p.m.
Mark Zagwyn Photography – Fri, Feb. 26 from 11:30 a.m to 4:30 p.m. Mark will be on hand to take passport photos. Prints of his photography will also be on display.
Leisure Facility Programs
Where the welcome is warm and the
wilderness beckons!
Burning PermitsRequired
All open burning within the District of Houston requires a Burning Permit all year round. To obtain a permit contact the
Fire Department at 250-845-2250
Upcoming Council Meetings:Tuesday, February 2Tuesday, February 16Finance Committee Meetings:Wednesday, February 17Wednesday, March 2 & 16The above meetings are held at 7:00pmin Council Chambers, 3367 – 12th Street.
The Agendas can be viewed on the District’s website: www.houston.ca
Business Licences Required
Pursuant to District of Houston “Business Licence Bylaw No. 776, 1998” an owner or operator of a business within the boundaries of the District of Houston must hold a valid annual business licence for carrying on business. Temporary displays of goods or products for the purpose of sale also require daily business licenses.
Business licences must be renewed annually and are valid from January 1st to December 31st each year. Current licence holders have been sent and invoice for 2016. Should you have any changes to your business information or have any questions on how to obtain a business licence, please contact the Municipal Offi ce at 250-845-2238.
Snow & Ice RemovalPlease help the Public Works crews to keep the
streets clear if snow. Snow removal operations start at 5:00 am, seven (7) days per week as required.
As members of the community, you can help the crews by:
• keeping parked vehicles off roadways and streets while crews are clearing snow in the area;
• bringing in your garbage receptacle as soon as possible after pick-up. While snow clearing crews are careful, damage may occur to a toter cart. Please be aware that the District is not liable for any damage that may occur to a toter cart while snow clearing work is being done; and
• A reminder that it is each resident’s responsibility to ensure that snow and ice are cleared from sidewalks adjacent to your property.
Non-Tendered Equipment& Contractor Registration
The District of Houston is inviting equipment owners to register their equipment which can be hired for casual work on an as needed basis. To register or for more information, please contact the Municipal Offi ce at 250-845-2238 to obtain a registration form.
The following is required prior to being added to the list of contractors/equipment: a) current District of Houston business licence;
b) WorkSafe BC account in good standing unless exempt by WCB; and c) Liability insurance.
Dungate Community Forest
Dungate Community Forest is accepting applications from non-profi t groups and organizations. Applications can be obtained at the Chamber of Commerce, District of Houston Municipal Offi ce and the Bulkley Valley Credit Union in Houston. For more information contact [email protected]
Extended NID Public Swimming Fri, Feb 5 - Open 6am-8pm
Circuit TrainingEarly Bird 6:00-6:45am Circuit Training 9:00-9:30amTues/Thurs, Feb 23 to March 17$51.50
Boot Camp Mon/Wed, Feb 22 to Mar 166:00 -6:45pm $64.00
Evening Power Fit Mon/Wed, Feb 29 to April 67:00 -7:45pm $52.50
New District of Houston Website
The District of Houston is looking forward to the launch of its new website this Spring @ www.houston.ca.
Additional Toter Carts
For those consumers with additional service requirements, the District of Houston offers a “Tag-a-Cart” service. “Tag-a-Cart” is a waste collection service permitting the service user to set out additional toter carts beyond the one-cart limit prescribed by the District provided that the service user attaches a tag for which a fee has been paid to the District for each additional toter cart used. The cost for this service is $2.50 per toter cart (plus applicable taxes).
Notice to all Dog OwnersPursuant to the “Pound & Animal Regulation
Bylaw” all dogs over the age of six (6) months must be licenced. 2016 licence tags are now available at the Municipal Offi ce and must be attached to your dog effective January 1, 2016. Please note the following Early Bird Rates are offered prior to January 31st only.
House NumbersIs your house number clearly posted on your
home? In order to assist emergency response by fi re, ambulance or police to locate your residence; it is very important that your house number be placed in an area that is visible from the street (day or night).
For your safety, please take the time to ensure that your house number is clearly visible.
Website: www.houston.caPlease visit the website for info on:• Council Meeting Agendas• Pool Schedule• Arena Schedule• Important Public Notices• Tenders & Job Opportunities• Lost Dogs
Municipal Of� ce HoursThe Municipal Office located at
3367 – 12th Street is openMonday to Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm
(closed on statutory holidays)
Email: [email protected] Phone: 250-845-2238 Fax: 250-845-3429
For Public Works Emergencies
(example: water main break)Call the Municipal Office
@ 250-845-2238 for a recordedmessage with the contact number
of the person on call.
Pool & Gym Phone: 250-845-7420 Email: [email protected]
Arena Phone: 250-845-7432
Houston ACT (Acti on Changes Things) Committ eeINVITES YOU TO...
Houston’s 3rd Annual
WINTERFESTFebruary 5th-8th, 2016
Lots of great free events for the whole family!• Sledding party • Geocaching Poker Run• Family Literacy Brunch • Bowling• Snowshoeing • Curling • Family Ski Day• Street Hockey • Public Skating• Salmon in the Snow • Public Swim• Guns & Hoses Charity Hockey Game + more!
For info please contact Dawn Potvin at (250) 845-1291 or Sally Sullivan (250) 845-9321
COMMUNITYHouston Today Wednesday, January 27, 2016 www.houston-today.com 9
ON N
OW A
T YO
UR B
C CH
EVRO
LET
DEAL
ERS.
Che
vrol
et.c
a 1-
800-
GM-D
RIVE
. Che
vrol
et is
a b
rand
of G
ener
al M
otor
s of
Can
ada.
Offe
rs a
pply
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ase
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201
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uze
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ited
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purc
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es. L
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gist
ratio
n, a
dmin
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tion
fees
, dea
ler f
ees,
PPS
A an
d ta
xes
not i
nclu
ded.
Dea
lers
are
free
to s
et in
divi
dual
pric
es. L
imite
d tim
e of
fers
whi
ch m
ay n
ot b
e co
mbi
ned
with
oth
er o
ffers
, and
are
sub
ject
to c
hang
e w
ithou
t not
ice.
Offe
rs a
pply
to q
ualif
ied
reta
il cu
stom
ers
in B
C Ch
evro
let D
eale
r Mar
ketin
g As
soci
atio
n ar
ea o
nly.
Deal
er o
rder
or t
rade
may
be
requ
ired.
* Of
fer v
alid
to e
ligib
le re
tail
less
ees
in C
anad
a w
ho h
ave
ente
red
into
a le
ase
agre
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t with
GM
Fin
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nd a
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t del
iver
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et
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. Gen
eral
Mot
ors
of C
anad
a w
ill p
ay o
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onth
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ase
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o bi
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fined
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the
leas
e ag
reem
ent (
incl
usiv
e of
taxe
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fter t
he fi
rst m
onth
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see
will
be
requ
ired
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ake
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emai
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sch
edul
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aym
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r the
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leas
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PPSA
/RD
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ot d
ue. C
onsu
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may
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requ
ired
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ay D
eale
r Fee
s. In
sura
nce,
lice
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and
app
licab
le ta
xes
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nclu
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Add
ition
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ondi
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lim
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GM
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right
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odify
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See
dea
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ased
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a pu
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stom
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km, $
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re fr
ee to
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indi
vidu
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rices
. Lim
ited-
time
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hich
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com
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ith o
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offe
rs. S
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our d
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otor
s of
Can
ada
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men
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term
inat
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is o
ffer,
in w
hole
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n pa
rt, a
t any
tim
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ithou
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r not
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^
Offe
r ava
ilabl
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qua
lifie
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tail
cust
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Can
ada
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les
deliv
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wee
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ffere
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app
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edit
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D Au
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Par
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ates
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ary.
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cos
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ary
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am
ount
bor
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clud
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vidu
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. Lim
ited
time
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r whi
ch m
ay n
ot b
e co
mbi
ned
with
cer
tain
oth
er o
ffers
. GM
Can
ada
may
mod
ify, e
xten
d or
term
inat
e of
fers
in w
hole
or i
n pa
rt at
any
tim
e w
ithou
t not
ice.
Con
ditio
ns a
nd li
mita
tions
app
ly. S
ee d
eale
r for
det
ails
. ®Re
gist
ered
trad
emar
k of
Th
e Ba
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f Nov
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otia
. RBC
and
Roy
al B
ank
are
regi
ster
ed tr
adem
arks
of R
oyal
Ban
k of
Can
ada.
‡ $
2,50
0 is
a c
ombi
ned
cred
it co
nsis
ting
of $
500
Owne
r Cas
h (ta
x in
clus
ive)
and
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man
ufac
ture
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deal
er fi
nanc
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sh (t
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sive
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a 2
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r fin
ance
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nly
and
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e co
mbi
ned
with
spe
cial
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and
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ash
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t WT
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ash
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hase
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ly a
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anno
t be
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bine
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ith s
peci
al le
ase
and
finan
ce ra
tes.
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sele
ctin
g le
ase
or fi
nanc
e of
fers
, con
sum
ers
are
fore
goin
g th
is $
3,00
0/$1
1,00
0 cr
edit
whi
ch w
ill re
sult
in h
ighe
r effe
ctiv
e in
tere
st ra
tes.
Dis
coun
ts v
ary
by m
odel
. ††
Offe
r app
lies
to e
ligib
le c
urre
nt o
wne
rs o
r les
sees
of
any
mod
el y
ear 1
999
or n
ewer
car
that
has
bee
n re
gist
ered
and
insu
red
in C
anad
a in
the
cust
omer
’s n
ame
for t
he p
revi
ous
cons
ecut
ive
six
(6) m
onth
s. C
redi
t val
id to
war
ds th
e re
tail
purc
hase
or l
ease
of o
ne e
ligib
le 2
015
or 2
016
mod
el y
ear C
hevr
olet
car
, SUV
, cro
ssov
er a
nd p
icku
ps m
odel
s de
liver
ed in
Can
ada
betw
een
Janu
ary
5 an
d Fe
brua
ry 1
, 201
6. C
redi
t is
a m
anuf
actu
rer t
o co
nsum
er in
cent
ive
(tax
incl
usiv
e) a
nd c
redi
t val
ue d
epen
ds o
n m
odel
pur
chas
ed: $
500
cred
it av
aila
ble
on 2
015
Chev
role
t Son
ic a
nd T
rax
or 2
016
Chev
role
t Son
ic, C
ruze
LTD
, Mal
ibu
LTD,
All-
New
Mal
ibu
(exc
ept L
), Al
l-New
Vol
t, Ca
mar
o; $
750
cred
it av
aila
ble
on o
ther
201
6 Ch
evro
lets
(exc
ept C
orve
tte, C
olor
ado
2SA,
Silv
erad
o Li
ght D
uty
and
Heav
y Du
ty);
$1,0
00 c
redi
t ava
ilabl
e on
all
2015
and
201
6 Ch
evro
let S
ilver
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m li
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See
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By Xuyun ZengHouston Today
From Jan. 14 to Jan. 20, police received 25 calls for service, of which five were traffic related, three were bylaw complaints and one was a false alarm.
***Police are seek-
ing help on a case in Granisle. On Jan. 15 at
10:29 a.m., a break and enter occurred at the Granisle General Store located at 20 Hagan Street. It likely hap-pened overnight. An em-ployee came to the store in the morning and no-ticed a footprint on the door and the back win-dow. Police attended, as did the forensic section, looking for fingerprints and forensic evidence. Anyone with informa-tion should contact po-lice or Crimestoppers.
***Police responded to
a domestic assault on Park Lane on Jan. 16 at
1 a.m. Police attended but the male suspect had departed on foot. He was later arrested for assault. He has been charged with mischief and assault. He has been released on a promise to appear in court, subject to several conditions pending his court date.
***Just after 1 a.m. on
Jan. 17, police received a call from the Ministry of Children and Family Development to as-sist them at a residence, where they went to a home full of children where the adults there
were intoxicated. Police stood by and assisted the Ministry while they took the children to a safe place.
***Just after midnight
on Jan. 18, police went to an apartment on Hagman Crescent, re-sponding to a report of loud yelling and bang-ing. Police found a man and woman. The woman was found to be breach-ing bail conditions and she was subsequently arrested and held in cus-tody, appearing in court last Monday.
***
Police would like to warn the public about a phone scam. At 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 19, a man called police saying he had received a call from the Canada Revenue Agency which advised him that he owed $5,500, and was asked to send the cash via a MoneyGram. Police want to inform that this is a fraud that is going on right now, add-ing that CRA will never ask Canadians to send money that way. If any-one has questions, they can call police or the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
Policereport
COMMUNITY10 www.houston-today.com Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Houston Today
Hired Equipment Registration
The Bulkley Stikine District of the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure is creating its list of registered Equipment for Hire for the 2016/2017 fiscal year, which begins April 1, 2016.
All individuals or companies registered this past year through the District Office in Smithers will receive invitations to re‑register their equipment for the coming fiscal year by mail.
Any individuals who were not registered in 2015, but wish to have their equipment listed, are hereby invited to contact the District Office to obtain the appropriate registration forms.
Note that while you do not need to have Commercial (Comprehensive) General Liability Insurance or up‑to‑date WorkSafe BC coverage to register, you will have to meet these requirements prior to working on any ministry projects.
Only owned or lease‑to‑own equipment is eligible for registration. Full details of equipment, including serial numbers and proof of ownership, are required for registration. Equipment may only be registered in one area in any given year. Seniority is not transferable from area to area.
The deadline for new registrations is 4:30 p.m. on Friday, March 25, 2016. Late registrations will be accepted, but will be put at the bottom of the open list. Note that there is no charge for registering new equipment or for changing or deleting equipment information already listed.
To have equipment registration forms mailed, faxed or e-mailed to you,please contact the local District Office in Smithers by mail at
Bag 5000, 3726 Alfred Avenue, Smithers, British Columbia, V0J 2N0, by phone at 250 847-7403 or by fax at 250 847-7219.
You can also register online at www.bcbid.ca
MoTI Ad 1135 -Hired Equipment Bulkley Stikine
Smithers Interior News January 27 and February 3
Houston TodayJanuary 27 and February 3
Burns Lake District NewsJanuary 27 and February 3
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HOPE forHOPE forHOPE forforTodayTodayDiscipline
Speaking to a semi-retired trucker one day about how we were raised as children. He shared with me
how his parents kept him in line. As an example, he said when he was caught smoking in grade 2 he got the strap at school and after that his Dad gave him a spanking at home, it was painful. He got disciplined twice for one offence, yet he did not hold this against his Dad because he deserved it, he said. Though it was not pleasant at the time, he said he knew that his Dad gave him that spanking because he loved him. He said, now many years later, he is still thankful that he got disciplined because in the long term it made him a better person. All through the conversation he spoke very highly of his Dad and his Mom.
This reminded me that the Bible tells us “For the LORD disciplines those he loves.” Hebrews 12:6 NLT
God’s discipline may come in various forms. Sometimes it is when we suffer the consequences of our rebellion and sins, such as crashing a car when driving recklessly, or by facing a judge for having broken the law in some way or another.
Other times God disciplines us not because of a particular sin but just to make us stronger people of God just like the army or police force who put their recruits through strict discipline to make them into better people, good soldiers and responsible police of� cers.
In fact God tells us in the Bible that we are to “...endure hardship as discipline.” Hebrews 12:7 NIV So when something dif� cult or painful happens to us, we should realize God is in control and we can either allow this to make us bitter or better.
Because God loves us, his discipline is always to make us better and more useful to him, if we will allow ourselves to be trained by it.
“For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable when it is happening – it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.” Hebrews 12:10,11 NLT
Submitted by Ken Penner
Find quality employees.
This beautiful photo captured by a Houston resident shows the spectacular winter scenes to be seen in and around Houston. Pictured here are frost- covered trees with their reflection in Irrigation Lake. This kind of beauty makes the coldness of the season easier to bear.
WINTER Beauty
Submitted photo
SPORTSHouston Today Wednesday, January 27, 2016 www.houston-today.com 11
General Meeting
Wednesday, January 27th, 2016
7:00pm at the Idylwild Lounge
Everyone Welcome
Club memberships availableat the meeting or at
Northstar Performance.
Optional snowmobile liability insurance available with club membership.
For more info call Shea: 250-845-4195or Tanya 250-845-2419
HOUSTON
Snowmobile C
lub
Many thanks to our sponsor Sullivan Motor Products
or Tanya 250-845-2419
3744 1st Ave, Smithers250-847-3943
Saturday, January 30th Drop by for Tea & Snacks
Open 9am - 5:30pm
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15% off
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DISTRICT OF HOUSTONwww.houston.ca
At a Public Hearing all persons who believe that their interest in property is affected by the proposed bylaws shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity to be heard or to present a written submission respecting matters contained in the bylaws that are the subject of the Public Hearing.The Public Hearing on proposed Bylaw No. 1074, 2016 and Bylaw No. 1075, 2016 will be chaired by Mayor Shane Brienen. Full particulars may be reviewed by the public by requesting to inspect “Development Bylaw Amendment Bylaw No. 1074, 2016” and “Of� cial Community Plan Amendment Bylaw No. 1076, 2016 at the District of Houston Municipal Of� ce during regular business hours, Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm (except on statutory holidays). For more information please contact:Michael D. Glavin, Chief Administrative Of� cerPhone: 250-845-2238
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGNotice is hereby given that a Public Hearing affecting the District of Houston “Development Bylaw No. 1040, 2013” and the “District of Houston Of� cial Community Plan Bylaw No. 1001, 2010” will be held on:
Tuesday, February 2, 2016 at 7:00 pmin the District of Houston Council Chambers,
3367 – 12th Street, Houston, B.C.“Development Bylaw No. 1040, 2013” is proposed to be amended by Bylaw No. 1074, 2016 and “District of Houston Of� cial Community Plan Bylaw No. 1001, 2010” is proposed to be amended by Bylaw No. 1075, 2016 which would rezone the land describes as Lot D, District Lot 333, Range 5, Land District, Plan PRP43132 only, from R-4 (Multi-Family Residential) to P-1 (Public and Institutional).The applicant has applied to rezone this property to place a permanently mounted brown coloured modular communication building housing a � bre cable distribution system, to provide telecommunication and television signals throughout Houston.
Civic Address: 2080 Sullivan Way
Ringette players going to B.C. Winter Games
Submitted photo Marli Breuer, Dinah Qualizza (back) coach, Sophia Wright-Seymour, Riley Standbridge, Taylor Standbridge, Mackenzie Emberley, Maggie Kenzle, Courtney Farrell, Nolan Kaye, Ken Giesbrecht (back) coach, Bailey Spooner (front). Missing from photo: Madalyn Slaney, Grace Magnusson, Ty Giesbrecht, Lisa Nicholson.
By Xuyun ZengHouston Today
Ringette players from Houston and Terrace will head to the B.C. Winter Games to represent Zone 7 Feb. 25-28.
To form a team, U12-14 players from Houston will join forces with Terrace. Houston will send Maggie Kenzle, Mackenzie Emberley, Maddie Slaney, Courtney Farrell, Taylor Standbridge, Riley Standbridge, Marli Breur, Bailey Spooner and team manager Christina Emberley to the Games in Penticton.
Coaches Dinah Qualizza and Kenny Giesbrecht along with � ve other players from Terrace will also be part of the Zone 7 team.
“We get together at league games, which we had one in Terrace in October and we had one in Prince George in November, and we usually have a practice in a scrimmage with Zone 8 (Prince George and Quesnel),” said Qualizza. “Some of our girls from Terrace and Houston have done very well in the past playing AA with Prince George and Quesnel. [They] have gone on to win championships and gone to nationals and stuff like that.”
Team manager Emberley will accom-pany the players.
“I just go so that there’s always some-body with the girls. I
travel with the girls. I think we � y out of Smithers and we will travel to Penticton, and I’ll just stay with them
through all their games and sleep with them in the schools” she said.
Her daughter Mackenzie, 13, feels “nervous, excited and
just ready to play.”“I think around the
Vernon area they’re re-ally competitive,” she said.
Mackenzie has faced that team in provincials.
Qualizza, on the oth-er hand, feels that com-petitors from the Lower Mainland will pose the
biggest challenge.“They have way
more people to pick from,” she said. “Mind you, Zone 8, one year, had won.”
Qualizza admits that distance between
Terrace and Houston presents a challenge for the team.
“I think they’re actu-ally all doing training on their own, because we live three hours apart, so it’s a little dif-� cult to get any train-ing done,” she said. “It takes a lot of traveling, a lot of commitment from the parents.”
Forming a team in the North also presents a challenge. Qualizza emphasized that in the North, only Terrace, Houston, Prince George and Quesnel have teams.
To form Zone 7’s team, everyone who showed up at the October tryouts in Terrace will go for the Games.
“We just don’t have the numbers to pick from,” she said. “It’s the experience, it’s fun. You’re going to a differ-ent kind of a competi-tion which a lot of these kids have not seen,” she said. “If we win, it’s an even bigger bonus.”““It’s the experience, it’s
fun...If we win, it’s an even bigger bonus.”
- Coach Dinah Qualizza
12 www.houston-today.com Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Houston Today
BUSINESSES & SERVICES around Houston & the Bulkley Valley...
Call Laura at 250-692-7526 or 250-845-2890 or email: [email protected] your business for only $5/week (with 1 year commitment)
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BURNS LAKEBill and Patsy Miller, Owners
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email: [email protected]
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Tire Shop hourS: Monday to Friday: 8am - 6pm - Sat. 8am - noon
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So much more than your local commercial laundry serviceOpen: Mon-Fri: 9am - 5pm
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ALL HUSQVARNA POWER EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIESEQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES
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When your car, truck or SUV is in need of service, trust the factory-trained
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Houston Today Wednesday, January 27, 2016 www.houston-today.com 13
HOUSTON & AREA CHURCH
DIRECTORY
Houston Fellowship Baptist Church
3790 C.R. Matthews Rd.Pastor: Larry Ballantyne
Sunday School: 9:45am
Church Service: 11:00am
Everyone Welcome!Phone: 250-845-7810
Houston Canadian
Reformed ChurchSUNDAY SERVICES: 10:00 AM & 2:30 PM
Pastor Carl [email protected]
Offi ce Phone: 250-845-3441~ Everyone Welcome ~
3797 Omineca Way, Box 36, Houston, BC
Houston ChristianReformed Church1959 Goold St., Box 6,Houston 250-845-7578
~ Everyone Welcome! ~
Services: 10:00 am & 3:00 pm
HOUSTON PENTECOSTAL
CHURCH2024 Riverbank Drive,
Box 597, HoustonPhone: 250-845-2678
Pastor: Mike McIntyre
Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 amSunday Prayer Meeting: 7:00 pmSunday School: During the Service
Everyone Welcome
Anglican Churchof St. Clement
2324 Butler Ave., Box 599, Houston, BC
Rev. Jacob WorleyPhone: 250-845-4940
Services at:2:00pm Sundays
Houston United Church2106 Butler Ave
SERVICES: Sundays at 11a.m.(Kids Sunday Schoolduring the service)
To contact the churchor for pastoral care:
Morgan Ryder (250-698-7612 -H) or 250-692-9576 -C) or
Marianne Dekker 250-845-2282
St. Anthony’s Catholic Church
2001 Riverbank DriveHouston, B.C. V0J 1Z2Phone: 250-845-2841
Sunday Service: 11:30 AMParish Priest:
Fr. Pier Pandolfo
Walter Thomas Pearse, age 85, of Houston, BC, passed away peacefully in the BV District Hospital, on January 20th with family by his side.
Walter and his twin sister Lillian were born Sept.7, 1930 in Tisdale, Sask. In 1931 the family moved to the homestead near Snowden, Sask. travelling on the rst train from Sylvania. The train was dubbed ‘The Twin Special’ as two sets of twins were among the passengers on board.
Walter grew up on the farm, enjoying the calf club where he won many awards. On Oct.30, 1958 he married Linda and they headed west to start their married life. He spent his working life in the lumber industry, signing on with Northwood in 1963. In 1975 Walter and Linda and their daughter Jeannene relocated to Houston where Walter built his career and focused on family. He enjoyed spending weekends teaching Jeannene to appreciate things like shing, photography and hiking. He also enjoyed reading, especially
history books, doing word search puzzles, woodworking, gardening, yardwork and spending time with family and friends. Walter retired in 1996.
Walter is survived by his loving and devoted wife Linda, his daughter Jeannene (Brent) Bartolome; foster daughter Marni (Steve) Rutledge; brother Harold (Leona); sister Joyce and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents Alf and Nora and his twin sister Lillian.
A Memorial Service was held on January 23rd at 2pm at the Houston Community Hall. Condolences may be offered at www.raschraderfuneralhome.com.
R.A. SCHRADER FUNERAL SERVICES250-847-2441
Plant Accountant Pinnacle Pellet Inc. Houston BC
POSITION TO BE FILLED IMMEDIATELY
Please send your Resume to Pinnacle Renewable Energy Inc. [email protected]. Only select candidates will be contacted for interviews. For more information on Pinnacle
Renewable Energy Inc. see our website www.pinnaclepellet.com
Fraser River Chevrolet, Quesnel BC is currently looking to fill the following full time position:
Certified GM Journeyman Technician
Fraser River GM offers a full benefit package including;
• Medical • Dental • Life Insurance • RRSP Plans• Competitive Wage and Compensation Packages
Please apply with resume to Shane Thon by email [email protected] – please include
references and a drivers abstract.
CONTRACTING LTD.
PETE
GENERAL OFFICE ASSISTANT REQUIRED
Some ordering and pricing of product.Must have some bookkeeping experience
and good computer skills. Knowledge of recreational power
equipment would be an asset.
Hours negotiable.
Pete Bodnar Contracting Ltd.North Star Performance
2815 - 5th Street • 250-845-2498
Apply in person, with resumé.
Fraser River Chevrolet is looking for an experienced, career minded
Automotive Sales Consultantto set and meet sales goals and to consistently deliver results in
accordance with our high company standards.
The Automotive Sales Consultant will sell our products and services through the achievement of opportunity-based sales quotas. This individual will also develop ongoing relationships with customers and continually maintain their respective client
portfolios.
Integrity, passion, and presentational skills are essential for this role. Fraser River Chevrolet Offers An Industry Leading Compensation Package, An Incredible Work Environment &
Career Advancement Opportunities.
Qualified applicants should email resume and cover letter with “Sales Consultant” in subject line to
Shane Thon: [email protected]
AL-ANON Are you affected by someone’s drinking? Al-Anon meetings are Monday, 7pm at the Houston United Church. Contact number: (250) 845-7774.
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUSMeetings are at the Houston United Church, Monday and Thursday at 7:00pm. Contact number is:1-877-644-2266
CANADA BENEFIT Group - Do you or someone you know suffer from a disability? Get up to $40,000 from the Canadian Government. Toll-free 1-888-511-2250 or www.canada benefi t.ca/free-assessment
HAVE YOU been denied Canada Pension Plan disability benefi ts? The Disability Claims Advocacy Clinic can help you appeal. Call 1-877-793-3222.www.dcac.ca [email protected]
HIP OR Knee replacement? Arthritic conditions or COPD? Restrictions in walking/dress-ing? Disability Tax Credit $2,000 Tax Credit $20,000 Refund. Apply today for assis-tance: 1-844-453-5372.
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Career Opportunities
CIVIL ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGIST IIDistrict of Kitimat Full Time PermanentWage $39.86 - $48.23
Over 2 YearsCivil Technologist diplomarequired. Duties includesurveying, design, contract preparation and inspection on principal projects. Must be profi cient with electronic survey equipment, and Auto-Cad 3D.
Please Apply By February 15, 2016 4:30 pm,
by Fax: 250-632-4995, or email: [email protected]
Visit: www.kitimat.ca
Accounting/Bookkeeping
Accounting/Bookkeeping
ObituariesObituaries
Announcements Announcements Employment Employment EmploymentEmployment
HEALTHCARE DOCUMEN-TATION Specialists in huge demand. Employers prefer CanScribe graduates. A great work-from-home career! Con-tact us now to start your train-ing day. www.canscribe.com. 1.800.466.1535. [email protected].
MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION! In-demand career! Employers have work-at-home positions available. Get online training you need from an employer-trusted program. Visit today: CareerStep.ca/MT or 1-855-768-3362 to start training for your work-at-home career!
START A new career in Graphic Arts, Healthcare, Business, Education or Infor-mation Tech. If you have a GED, call: 855-670-9765.
Place of Worship Information Business Opportunities
Education/Trade Schools
Career Opportunities
Career Opportunities
Help Wanted Help Wanted
Sales Sales
To advertise in print:Call: 250-845-2890 Email: [email protected]
Self-serve: blackpressused.ca Career ads: localworkbc.ca
Browse more at:
A division of
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INDEX IN BRIEFFAMILY ANNOUNCEMENTS
COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
TRAVEL
EMPLOYMENT
BUSINESS SERVICES
PETS & LIVESTOCK
MERCHANDISE FOR SALE
REAL ESTATE
RENTALS
AUTOMOTIVE
ADULT ENTERTAINMENT
LEGAL NOTICES
TRY A CLASSIFIED ADwww.habitat.ca
More than 1.5 million Canadian
families are in need of affordable
housing. Your contributions
provides Habitat with the resources
it needs to help families.
DonateToday!
Thank you
Than
k yo
u!Shear Delight Kristine Goold / Cakes by Kris Hair Trendz Candis Stumpf – Younique Cassidy Stumpf- Cassie Clips Christine Smith- ReflexologyChia Tran – Mary Kay Arends Specialty Kompany Lee’s Garden 1st Choice Fashions Traction Tire Nadina Truck Service Ltd Finning Dion & Paula Kettle Remax – Lia Long Lorna & Cassie Ofner – Scentsy Tyrelle Delvenne – Scentsy Mainerz Houston Wine N’ Lager Shop Dan’s Source for Sports Vanderhoof & District Co-Op (Houston Branch) Carters Jewelers City Furniture Pleasant Valley Restaurant Angels Flowers and Gifts Bare Necessities Spa Jean Goold Smithers Feed Store 3 Season Spruce Up Pleasant Valley Bobcat Napa Auto Parts Nordan Equipment
Sedaz Lingerie Larkspur Country Wide Sports Blooming Arrangements Hoskins Ford Tea Gallery With A Twist Heartstrings Speedee Interior Stationery Reitsma’s Home Hardware Vybz Monster Industries D&M Industrial Brewstirs Café Sullivan Motor Products Live the Moment Events Country Wide Printing & Stationery Houston Food Market North Star Performance Bulkley Valley Credit Union Interior Hobbies Prince George Kevin Himech / Marni Laroque Donna Vanderwiel-Prince George All West Glass Bulkley Valley Financial Services Bulkley Valley Insurance Services John Himech Logging Katees Kitchen Dwayne AndersonHSS Safe GradMatt KaszasShea Long Gerald Noth Vanderwiel Family
Houston Figure Skating Club would like to thank the following for supporting our
annual Ladies Auction...
14 www.houston-today.com Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Houston Today
RE/MAX HOUSTON Locally owned and operated
Lia Long 250-845-11472436 Poulton Ave., Houston, BC • e-mail: [email protected] • www.realtor.ca
Call 250-845-7325 www.remaxhouston.ca
Whether you are buying or selling, Lia offers prompt, friendly and professional service with over 20 years of real estate experience and a lifetime in the Houston area.
COUNTRY PURE & SIMPLE! Hard to find acreage only minutes from town! 34.9 acre hobby farm with a 1998 1638 square foot 3 bedroom modular with extensive updates! 4 separate fenced areas, shelters, detached workshop/ storage, woodshed, greenhouse and other outbuildings. Hay field and spectacular views! Located approximately 15km down the Buck Flats Road. The country kitchen features ample cabinets and a bright dining area as well as an island. Cozy family room with a woodstove. Custom touches such as barn wood wall in the master as well as the en suite. Garden area and pond just outside your front door. Fridge, stove, dishwasher and window coverings included. Call Lia to view 250-845-1147.
VERY ATTRACTIVE HOME & PRICE!Bright, spacious custom built home located close to schools and no neighbours behind. Sunken living room with bay window. Dining with patio doors to deck, oak cabinets, skylight in bathroom. Full finished basement features huge rec room/ family room, den, 3rd bath, 4th bedroom. Double garage. Included: fridge, stove, dishwasher, washer/dryer, built in vac and attachments.$231,900 $232,500
Community Calendar proudly sponsored by
Bulkley ValleyCREDIT UNION
www.bvcu.com
Since May 1941, Bulkley Valley Credit Union has been building a solid financial institution that members from Burns Lake to the Hazeltons have grown to rely on. People helping people is how we began and we strive to remain people-oriented, both in our financial services and through direct involvement with our communities. We are dedicated to local decision-making and local control, key factors in providing the kinds of services that meet the financial needs of individuals and business members alike.
HOUSTON & DISTRICT BRANCH 2365 Copeland Ave.
P.O. Box 1480, Houston Phone: 250-845-7117
HOUSTON COMMUNITY CALENDARas a fund-raiser for the L.A. to the Houston Legion.
Activities for Seniors in Houston at the Seniors Centre: New Horizons FREE swim for Seniors (60+) every Tuesday 9 AM to 10 AM until February 23. All Seniors invited. Reason: Expanding opportunities for Seniors to become active.
TOPS 1901 meets every Tues.: 8-9:30 a.m. at the Houston United Church. Come join other women who are Taking Off Pounds Sensibly and encouraging a healthy lifestyle.
Coffee Break - an Interactive Women’s Bible Study meet every Tuesday morning from 9:30-11:00 at the Houston Christian Reformed Church, 1959 Goold Road. Childcare is provided. For more info call Margaret: 845-2348, Darlene 845-7438, Evelyn 696-3229.
Buck Flats Community Development Society, meets every 3rd Sat. evening at 6pm at Andy Pollack’s house (17642) on Buck Flats Rd. All Buck Flats residents are welcome to attend, we discuss issues concerning the Buck fl ats area. Please call Chris Newell at 250-845-3564 for more info.
Houston’s “Love by the Bowl” Soup Kitchen serving healthy homemade soups in two different seatings, 11-12 and 12 -1 on Wednesdays.
TOPLEYTopley Fire Protection Society meetings every second Tuesday of the month at 7:30 pm.
Structural Firefi ghting/Hwy Rescue. Interested? Topley Volunteer Fire Dept. is accepting applications. No experience necessary please contact Byron - F/C 250-696-3348 or come to a Fire Practice Thurs @ 19:00 hrs (7pm).
GRANISLEThe Granisle and District Senior Citizens meet every second and fourth Thursday of the month at 1:30 p.m. at the Seniors Centre.
Granisle Volunteer Fire Department meetings & fi re practices every Tues., 7:00pm at the Fire Hall.
Granisle Church of the Way services are Sundays at 11:00am.
The Houston Legion is holding an initiation evening for new offi cers and directors on Saturday, January 30 at 6:30 p.m. at the Legion. Further info contact Joanne at 250-845-2999. (Regular Meetings: 2nd Monday of the month is Executive, 4th Monday is a General Meeting).
Houston Public Library Events: Book Club - Thurs., Jan. 28, 7 to 9 p.m. This month we are discussing Unless by Carol Shields. Copies are available at the circulation desk at the library. • NID Lego Club - Fri, Feb. 5 from 1 to 3 p.m. for kids ages 7 and up. • Game Night for Grownups! – Thurs, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. Admission is by donation. Adults are welcome to drop in and play board games, cards games and RPGs. Junk food is included. For more info on above events please contact the library @250-845-2256.
Houston Snowmobile Club Meeting on Wednesday, January 27, 2016 at 7 p.m. at the Idylwild.
International Women’s Dinner event is planned in Houston for Tuesday, March 8. More details to follow.
Super Valu tapes may be donated to the Legion Ladies Auxiliary at drop off boxes at A&W; Shear Delight; Razor’s Edge and Terri-Lynn Hair Creations. The tapes are used
Please keep your announcements as brief as possible. Deadline (faxed or mailed or delivered) is 4 p.m. Thursday. Items are printed or alternated as space permits. Items will be accepted via fax, email or dropped at the offi ce. No phone calls please. More calendar items are listed online and can be submitted or viewed at www.houston-today.com
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Merchandise for Sale
Misc. for SaleREFORESTATION NUR-SERY Seedlings of hardy trees, shrubs, and berries for shelterbelts or landscaping. Spruce and Pine from $0.99/ tree. Free shipping. Replace-ment guarantee. 1-866-873-3846 or www.treetime.ca
Financial Services Misc. for SaleSAWMILLS FROM only $4,397. Make money & save money with your own bandmill. Cut lumber any dimension. In stock ready to ship. Free info & DVD: www.NorwoodSawmills.com/400OT 1-800-566-6899 Ext:400OT.
STEEL BUILDING Sale. “Really big sale: extra winter discount on now!!” 21x22 $5,190; 25x24 $5,988; 27x28 $7,498; 30x32 $8,646; 35x34 $11,844; 42x54 $16,386. One end wall included. Pioneer Steel 1-800-668-5422,www.pioneersteel.ca
Rentals
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Starting At $800/Mo.Bachelor & 1 Bdrm Suites Full Kitchen Facilities Too! Wi-fi , Ph, Cable & Util. Incl.
Ref. Req.,Terry 778-210-1703 [email protected]
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IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BLACK PRESS COMMUNITY NEWS MEDIA
Take your first step to the international stage!Applications now being accepted for Miss Teen BC, Miss BC & Mrs BC!
To apply visit your community newspaper website and click on contests.
boiler, � eld and pav-ing. The school was built in 1954 and was last renovated in 1970. It and Twain Sullivan, built the same year, are the oldest schools in the valley.
“We have not been asked to consider any schools in Houston or anywhere else in the District,” said District co-chair and Houston trustee Jennifer Williams.
She said the vote to enact the public con-sultation was made af-ter District administra-tion brought forward the recommendation to initiate the closure process at last week’s meeting.
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t Chris van der Mark stressed while explain-ing why closing the school was being con-sidered, the decision has yet to be made by school board trustees.
Financial protec-tion from the province for declining enroll-ment went up from $733,000 last year to $850,000 this year.
That money is taken away when enroll-ment turns around and starts going up.
“It isn’t about the overall budget being up or down; it’s about that [� nancial protec-tion] money coming away, and as you plan for your staf� ng and your budgeting, it’s about the ability to maintain all of your programs … for your students across the district,” said van der Mark.
Williams said trust-ees would approach the public meetings and consultation process with open minds.
“We’ve asked for options. Please give us ideas on how we can save money. We know they don’t want it closed. We don’t want to close it either,” said Williams.
She added that the province has told school districts to � nd savings in administra-tion, which means they are looking for savings everywhere.
“Throughout the District, we’re looking
Public input is welcome in the discussion to close Lake Kathlyn schoolSCHOOL from Page 1
at staf� ng, all facilities and where costs can be cut,” said Williams.
Lake Kathlyn has been considered for the chopping block since the 2003/04 school year, when it had 124 students. Chandler
Park Middle School was shut down at the end of the school year in 2004 and sold in June 2014. The elemen-tary school in Quick was closed in June 2008 and is still for sale.
Public input is be-
ing accepted through meetings, the district website at sd54.bc.ca by email, or through written submission. A third meeting in Smithers will be added if the board believes there is a demand.
16 www.houston-today.com Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Houston Today
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Tree Top Fruit Snacks80 count, 2.08 kg
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Armstrong CheeseAssorted Varieties1.35 kg
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Quaker Instant OatmealVariety Pack, 60 count, 2.1 kg
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Greenworks AutoDish Tablets115 count
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Fantastik AllPurpose Cleaner3.8 litre plus spray bottle
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Christie Oreo Cookies920 g
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Prego PastaSauce2 Varieties, 1.75 litre
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