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Qualicum
Beach &
Oceanside
Communities,
Vancouver
Island, BCCommunity Mapping
Presentation – click on the
speaker icon!
Sarah Faulhafer
Stats about Qualicum Beach
As per the 2006 census there are
approximately 8500 people who live in
Qualicum Beach
The largest age groups include people
over the age of 55 however there is a
growing population of 0-19yrs
The smallest population is the age group I
belong in 25-40
More info about the area
“Oceanside” is the term used to
incorporate the communities nearby
including Qualicum Beach, Parksville,
Coombs, Errington and Bowser
The population doubles in the summer
months as many islanders and others
vacation or have summer homes here
Seniors
There is a thriving seniors community in QB and many resources for seniors are available at the QB Senior’s Activity Centre such as:
Fitness classes, cheap meals, singing, book clubs, hobby groups, art and music programs. These are all run by volunteers
There are three major retirement/senior care facilities in Qualicum Beach
Qualicum First Nation
The Qualicum First Nation Band is located
slightly north of Qualicum Beach – there is
a very small reserve with a population of
105 as per the 2006 census.
The nearest Aboriginal services offered
(such as the friendship centre, Aboriginal
rec centre etc.) are located in Port
Alberni, BC (which is 45 minutes away).
Community Needs Map
Diverse services
addictions
Youth programs
Affordable housing
Food bank
Aboriginal Services
Cultural diversity
and awareness
Qualicum Beach/Oceanside
Capacity Map
Minority/multicultural community
promote awareness
Growing younger population to
become involved in reaching out to
others in the same age group
Churches offer some groups/activities –potential to build a stronger youth-based
focus
Society of Organized Services (SOS 69) supports families in many ways – Parksville,
BC
Thriving seniors community with
many resources/activities/groups for seniors
to be among peers
Public awareness for all services offered
(which is in progress but could be
stronger)
Family Resource Association offers
support to “high risk” families that require
it (Parksville, BC)
Economy
Qualicum Beach is made up mostly of
retirees, however the workforce that does
exist is small at 34%
Most jobs are in the service industry and
the median income after taxes per year is
$22000 CAD
Housing is expensive and very little is
available for rental accommodations
Age & Diversity
There is a range of age within the
community but not as many services
directed to the different ages
There is no youth centre and very few
activities for teens unless they participate
in organized team sports/classes which
requires a considerable amount of money
Multiculturalism and Diversity
There are very few visible minorities in QB itself and no multicultural centres or events that celebrate other festivals (Chinese new year, no Synagogues, etc.)
There is an Aboriginal community on the outskirts of town but little interaction with that community and QB itself
There is currently a Cultural Planning Process underway to promote cultural events in the town and community involvement was invited in the summer (however as noted, the community is mostly retired, Caucasian people)
Services do that exist The few social services (unrelated to seniors
specifically) that are offered, are mostly located in Parksville which is 15 minutes south of Qualicum Beach
Society of Organized Services 69: provides a variety of services to children, youth, adults and seniors that may be in crisis
SOS69 is a non-profit that helps Oceanside residents to access resources such as financial assistance, grief and loss, victims of abuse, accessing formal dress-wear for $5, tutoring among many others
http://www.sosd69.com/
Services cont. Family Resource Association 69 assists families and
children that experience a variety of different challenges such as:
i. Children that experience any form of violence
ii. Mental health issues
iii. Developmental disabilities
iv. Parenting support
FRA provides education and intervention strategies to break the cycle of children that have a high risk to end up in the care of the Ministry for Children and Family Development which carries a negative stigma and to help parents work through challenges that they are facing http://d69fra.org/
Services Continued.. There is an extreme weather shelter in
Parksville – which is the only shelter of it’s kind for all of the Oceanside area
The shelter is mostly run by the Salvation Army and has partial funding from BC Housing
The shelter is only activated in “extreme weather” which is determined by 10am on the day of
Currently this program is experiencing adversity because there is little turn out to use the services
Services Continued…
The emergency shelter is working on providing more advertising on the days that it will be open
It was very difficult to find information about the shelter online (I have been following the stories in the local newspaper about it since November 1st)
The shelter only receives funding from Nov.1 – March 31st
Services Continued…
There is a very limited food bank service in
Parksville that is offered 2x a week for a
few hours, otherwise the nearest food
bank is in Nanaimo (40 minutes south).
SOS69 offers help to access affordable
groceries for emergency situations for
families
Experiencing Qualicum
Beach/Oceanside
I have done several community walks since moving to this community to get to know the area and residents. It certainly feels like a retirement community during the day time, I mostly met seniors. I have noticed that the youth population are around and exhibit a certain “style” that may be classified as alternative (bright coloured hair, wild clothes, body piercings). Everyone I have talked to, both youth and seniors have all been very friendly and I found it quite interesting observing the difference in youth and seniors.
Experiencing the community
continued….
I visited the Qualicum First Nation Band Office, but it has limited hours that it is open and was unable to obtain any information from the band. As noted, it is a very small reserve (25 homes) with very few local resources. Most Aboriginal resources are offered in Port Alberni or in the Comox Valley which are 45minutes away. The band does have a campground that is open to all visitors and appears to be one of the economic resources for the band.
Conclusion
Qualicum Beach and the Oceanside
communities have adequate services for
the seniors in the community. The
strengths that the community has are a
thriving and active seniors community
that volunteer for community events and
services. Being a small town, it isn’t hard to
physically locate the services and to meet
someone that is involved.
Conclusion continued…
There is room for improvement in the
Oceanside communities for community
building. There could be more services for
youth (such as a drop in centre), there is no
food bank, there is limited cultural diversity,
affordable housing, very little Aboriginal
resources for the local band, and nothing in
the town of Qualicum for addictions or
substance abuse. Most of the services that
are offered are located in Parksville, BC.
Conclusion continued… Getting to know the community of Qualicum
Beach and surrounding areas has been beneficial to learn how to look at a community’s strengths and where improvements can be made. Qualicum does a fine job at accommodating for seniors, but can definitely improve services for the younger population as eventually the demographic will change. It has been rewarding to get to know the town and what is in place and development for the residents here.