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Past MLA and housing resident prompt ICS queries

Gail Sjuberg
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Past MLA and housing resident prompt ICS queries

Adam Olsen, who was the Saanich North and the Islands Green party MLA until the current election was called, has been portrayed on social media as saying in a Sept. 13 ASK Salt Spring meeting that addressing problems with Island Community Services (ICS) should be an absolute community priority.

Olsen recently told the Driftwood he is concerned that his words may have been expanded upon and some inferences made that he did not intend, but that he does feel it’s important for community members to be aware of and engaged with the island’s largest non-profit social services agency.

“I’ve been long involved with that organization, and it delivers critical services, and basically my call to action was for Salt Spring residents to recognize the importance of that organization and to pay attention to its governance.”

Olsen said he had interacted with ICS on many issues and fielded constituent complaints about the agency over the seven-plus years he was local MLA, but said a non-profit society is viewed much differently from a government agency.

“The government has been very clear to me that there’s no role for an MLA in terms of oversight of a community organization or non-profit society under the Societies Act. MLAs and the provincial government govern the act but not the bodies that are created under the act.”

Olsen disagrees with the ICS board when it suggests that ICS is only accountable to its funders and those it serves, but not the broader community.

“[Those agencies] that provide services in our community are responsible to the community, and so therefore, they need to be accountable to community members. And the only way that that accountability happens is when people are participating in them, engaging with them, paying attention to them.”

“We often take these organizations for granted — that they’re just going to be there to provide the services. But there’s a whole bunch of work that is required in making sure that those organizations continue to function properly. And so I guess it’s just a call to society in general that where these services are being delivered by organizations to vulnerable people, that we as a society remain engaged and that we don’t just assume that everything is okay, but that we’re engaged with it and involved.”

Jennifer Campbell

Jennifer Campbell is the person who spoke up at the Sept. 13 ASK Salt Spring meeting with MLA Adam Olsen, which prompted his comments about community members needing to pay attention to ICS.

Campbell shared with the Driftwood her experience of living and feeling unsafe at Murakami Gardens, and the results of a Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB) adjudication released Aug. 3, 2023 that was granted in her favour. Campbell successfully fought an eviction notice issued by ICS, based on claims that Campbell had “repeatedly disturbed the quiet enjoyment of the other residents” and “interfered with the fire doors at the property and therefore put the property at risk.”

Campbell said she felt, and confirmed with Salt Spring fire department personnel, that fire doors in apartment buildings should be kept closed for residents’ safety in the event of a fire. She admitted she would close the doors, despite being told by ICS management to leave them open. A photograph of an open fire door with a “PLEASE LEAVE THE DOOR OPEN” sign was part of Campbell’s RTB hearing evidence.

The RTB arbitrator’s decision stated: “The Landlord testified that their fire protection company has told them to keep this door open. I find keeping a fire door open to be a serious action that would jeopardize the building and its occupants. It is worrisome that the Landlord would be okay with this. I find the Landlord has not proven that the Tenant has seriously jeopardized the health or safety or a lawful right or interest of the Landlord or another occupant or put the Landlord’s property at risk.”

“The Landlord said they served the one-month notice for the benefit of the other residents, but the Landlord also owes the Tenant the protection of her right to quiet enjoyment. The fact that the number of complaints from one tenant began in January 2023 against the Tenant appears very striking. Especially because this person has a criminal legal matter involving the Tenant, the circumstances are suspicious.”

“I order the Landlord to be mindful of its obligations to all tenants, specifically Section 28 — protection of Tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment.”

As well, just 13 days before the first of two hearings for that proceeding, Campbell received another eviction notice, this time for non-payment of rent, which she had to scramble to formally respond to, knowing the rent had been paid. When ICS staff looked into the matter they said an “accounting error” had been made and apologized.

Viewpoint: Protect Baker Beach

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Viewpoint: Protect Baker Beach

BY DEBBIE MAGNUSSON

In the late 1980s, Sheila Sayer, working for Community Services, and I started Parents for Playgrounds. As an elementary school teacher, it had become harsh to watch kids knock out their teeth on the metal and cement playground equipment. Centennial Park’s playground changed first and soon the school district recognized the benefits of having newer equipment and pea gravel as a softer landing material.

I mention this personal background because I have a new worry. It is that another “playground” (aka Salt Spring’s much-used recreation site, Baker Road Beach) could be in jeopardy. Many islanders know Baker Road Beach for its trail loop of beach heading north to the Quarry Road stairs and trail that then goes through forest back to Baker Road Beach. Many islanders walk, swim, socialize and play on this beach. Many generations of children climb, learn balance, hide, build and engage in all kinds of creative play with the driftwood and logs and land on the natural beach. The beach is a wealth of wildlife, spawning and natural beauty.

A Notice of Application was filed in March 2024 by four property owners, although only recently posted. There is a notice at the end of the Baker Road staircase. If you investigate the website, you can learn that the intention is make changes to 560 metres (half a kilometre.) of beach. That, in my opinion, is a long stretch of public land, Crown land. Apparently, one of the intentions is to barge in “nourishment” the beach. But isn’t the beach already a healthy, diverse ecosystem? Have biologists, oceanographers and marine scientists determined there is e need for erosion prevention or, indeed, any immediate concern about this beach?

So, what then is the motivation for the application? It is not easy to determine from the information online. So, it is only a guess that there is personal motivation. Protection of land?

It would be very helpful if the property owners could be more public about their intentions. They are following the rules. But for major changes to Crown land that is well used by islanders and visitors, it seems like more should be done to inform people. Look how much revision was needed for planned changes to Portlock Park. Should four property owners be given permission to affect such a significant stretch of public land?

Right now the only recourse is to send comments, questions and concerns to the Steward of Land, Water and Resources: Applications, Comments & Reasons for Decision (gov.bc.ca) Re: File #1415573. I wish I had thought to ask our candidates for MLA how they would support further inquiry and protect the beach. In my opinion, this is a big deal, possibly precedent setting.

Voicing “Comments, Questions and Reasons for Decision” should happen sooner rather than later as there is Nov. 13 deadline. That’s not much time so, spread your opinions through the Driftwood, SS Exchange and the other forums that will urge people to use the above link and write they thoughts. It would be too late to effectively change plans once the barge(s) are in the waters across from the beach. Too late if the machine(s) are rolling across the rocks and crabs and oysters. Too late if the logs are removed. Too late if new high-tide lines are built up and beachfront lost. We don’t know enough, and imagination can run wild.

Please join me and, hopefully, put my new recreation/playground worry to rest. Protect Baker Road Beach from private needs that may be unnecessary or harmful to a much-loved public beach.

Penelakut Chief visits Salt Spring LTC

Robb Magley
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Penelakut Chief visits Salt Spring LTC

Land-use officials on Salt Spring received a personal message from local First Nations leadership, as Penelakut Chief Chakeenakwaut Pam Jack attended the island’s Oct. 10 Local Trust Committee (LTC) meeting to signal hope for a renewed partnership –– and an intent to engage.  

Elected this year, Jack had visited Galiano Island just days before, part of what she said was a long-overdue re-establishment of community connection to islands important to the Penelakut Mustimuxw.  

“It saddens me to hear we haven’t been an active entity within Salt Spring and Galiano,” said Jack. “I want to say to our Salt Spring community, and the [Islands] Trust, that I’m really sorry that we haven’t been involved in the past.” 

That would be changing, Jack said, adding she was there on behalf of her elders and people to deliver a message of “unwavering interest” in working with Salt Spring’s residents and local government going forward. While noting the Penelakut Mustimuxw never relinquished rights to their lands, Jack nevertheless said she was not there “in opposition” to anyone. 

“We come to you in the spirit of partnership and good faith,” said Jack, “seeking to work with you to ensure that our people have a strong foothold on our ancestral land. Our goal is not to disrupt or cause conflict, but to establish a strong foundation and understanding in cooperation with one another.” 

Jack’s appearance is the first time in memory a Penelakut Chief has addressed the LTC so directly, although leadership have expressed government-to-government interest in specific issues, such as opposition to the sablefin hatchery at Walker Hook in 2003 and the 2012 to 2014 efforts against development on burial cairns at Grace Islet.  

“The stories I hear from my grandparents, we used to be out in our sister communities all the time,” said Jack. “Island life is a unique way of living, and quite often, we need to support each other to ensure we continue to thrive; that’s always been our teachings. My grandparents never waited to be asked to do something; you see what needs to be done, and you do it.” 

Jack said she was fundamentally delivering a message on behalf of their elders and community that the Penelakut Chief and Council were ready to engage in open and constructive dialogue, “to build a future where the Penelakut Mustimuxw can thrive on the land that we have sustained for generations.” 

Thanking her for coming, LTC chair Tim Peterson expressed his appreciation Jack made the time to attend the meeting, something new he said he hoped would continue. 

“I hope that we’re at the beginning,” said Peterson, “of building strong, durable relationships.” 

The Islands Trust Council recently voted to again request the government of B.C. conduct a legislative review of that body, in part over what it believes are systemic obstacles to meaningful reconciliation with First Nations.  

Salt Spring’s Capital Regional District director Gary Holman, who also attended the LTC meeting during Jack’s presentation, later called her message “gracious” and a clear indication local government can expect more direct interaction with First Nations leadership. 

“I think of how many of us attended the recent event with the Penelakut elders at Fernwood,” said Holman. “Or back [in 2014] for Grace Islet rallies. It’s always been the case on Salt Spring that when First Nations indicate there’s something important to them, Salt Spring responds.” 

Island Community Services in the spotlight

Gail Sjuberg
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Island Community Services in the spotlight

Island Community Services (ICS) — Salt Spring’s largest social service non-profit organization in terms of staff, programs and budget — has been facing unwelcome scrutiny in recent months.

First, news was informally shared that four board members of the governing Salt Spring and Southern Gulf Islands Community Services Society had resigned in June. Then on July 19, at an ASK Salt Spring session where ICS’ 20-year executive director Rob Grant and other ICS staff were guests, a handful of people expressed strong criticisms of the organization, according to ASK coordinator Gayle Baker. Finally, at the ASK meeting attended by Adam Olsen on Sept. 13, the retiring MLA was reported by Baker as saying that concern about Community Services is the “single most pressing social issue Salt Springers must address, fully engaging to seek solutions.”

Olsen’s statement, made in response to an emotional plea from islander Jennifer Campbell, who lives at ICS’ Murakami Gardens housing complex, prompted a number of social media comments about specific ICS incidents and individuals, which the society’s board responded to in an Oct. 9 statement posted to the ICS website.

“The board of directors would like to point out that slander and libel are serious offences, and to stress that misrepresentation and misinformation are extremely unfortunate when in opposition to an organization that offers so much support to the community,” reads the statement in part. “This puts our staff and programs at risk. Targeting staff with vitriol and falsehoods that we are not at liberty to set straight is unacceptable.”

ICS administers more than 40 different services, ranging from Family Place to The Core youth centre to food security programs, seniors services, mental health, the emergency shelter and the recycling depot, among many others, with an annual budget of approximately $8 million. Programs are funded by government, foundations and private donations.

Both Baker and Campbell are encouraging people to become members of ICS, following on Olsen’s advice that community members should learn more about and be involved with the organization. (See separate story.)

“By becoming a member, you will be able to vote at the upcoming AGM. I am hopeful that becoming a member will allow more community involvement so that we can all work together to make Community Services even better,” said Baker, who is also a publicly elected Capital Regional District Local Community Commission member.

In response to Driftwood questions about membership matters, ICS said the society currently has “less than 10” members. Individuals must be society members 30 days before the AGM in order to vote at the meeting. While the AGM will reportedly be held in the first half of December, ICS told the Driftwood that the time, date and place are still to be confirmed. 

“The AGM will be, as always, announced with those details on our website and in the media as per our legal obligations, at some point two weeks or more before the date it is held.”

ICS said people who apply to be members will be contacted by the board of directors about whether their membership application is accepted or rejected. Membership forms are downloadable from the saltspringcommunityservices.ca website, and must be taken to the ICS main office at 268 Fulford-Ganges Rd., accompanied by a $1 membership fee.

Adding board approval to the society membership process is one of a handful of changes made to ICS bylaws at a July 24 members meeting held by Zoom.

“The changes to bylaws regarding membership and conflict of interest issues were made to clarify vaguely defined processes that were  causing division [among board members],” said ICS. The Discovery Group, a company with expertise in non-profit operations, was engaged for that purpose and “to ensure the best governance possible.”

Changes also aligned with Society Act model bylaws, they said, “and therefore can be considered best practice.”

Tisha Boulter, who was one of the four directors who resigned in June after only serving on the board for about a year, said she feels the changes “will create more barriers and therefore limit accessibility to diverse involvement from our community as a director or member, and give inappropriate power to the chair.”

Bylaw statements regarding “conflict of interest” and investigating of complaints were also strengthened after an anonymous complaint was made about Boulter being in a conflict to serve “because of my other community connections,” she said. 

Boulter elaborated on her experience.

“During my time on the ICS board, I learned more about the great work that is being done in this society that operates multiple diverse, enriching programs. I have also learned about systemic challenges within governance that have concerned me.

“I witnessed an ingrained culture where the operations of the agency manage the board of governance. I worked very hard to effect change in this area to support professionalism, accountability and responsibility to the public interest in my role as the vice-chair of ICS.”

Boulter, who is also an elected School District 64 trustee and current board of education chair, said remaining on the ICS board would have meant “fight[ing] a system that did not want change.”

Directors Amanda Myers, Larisa Fry and Andrea Little resigned along with Boulter, leaving chair Jennifer Lannan and director Gary McNutt. Past board chair Jody Hawley agreed to temporarily serve again to ensure the society had the minimum number of board members needed to function.

Looking ahead to the AGM, who might not be accepted as a society member and why is not clear, but ICS has provided two statements on the topic: “The society welcomes new members that are supportive of the mission and services and apply for membership with the purpose of participating constructively” and; “The board of directors welcomes genuine and respectful expressions of interest for memberships and directors alike, however, they would like to point out that trusted confidantes, mentors and advisors are appropriate in those roles.”

Anticipating that attempts may be made at the AGM to present alternate directors from those being presented by the current board, ICS stressed, “The board of directors is filled by the current directors through a recruitment process that involves interviews, conflict of interest disclosure and agreement to a code of conduct. The AGM of Island Community Services does not take director nominations from the floor.”

Baker hopes the society will be open to accepting memberships from all who apply, and points to a 2020 B.C. Supreme Court case — Farrish v. Delta Hospice Society — where a society’s attempt to refuse memberships was struck down due to lack of specific membership criteria set out in its bylaws.

Physical comedy of Underbelly comes to ArtSpring

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Physical comedy of Underbelly comes to ArtSpring

By KIRSTEN BOLTON

FOR ARTSPRING

From Salt Spring’s own renowned clown, movement and performance artist Nayana Fielkov comes Underbelly, taking to the stage as an ArtSpring Presents performance on Friday, Oct. 25.

It is preceded by her three-hour introduction to Clowning workshop on Thursday evening for those in the community aged 16-plus.

This one-woman surrealist physical comedy finds Fielkov confronting a combination of monsters, dismemberment, shower opera, inconceivable truths and a hot date that may be just the recipe needed to shed the past and let it run down the drain. Despite the description, Fielkov assures that the show is for all ages.

With live-feed projection, puppetry, mask, dance and illusion, the show promises to take audiences to the inner realms of the psyche. How do we wash away the monsters inside ourselves? Or must we befriend them, is the question.

Underbelly is the latest creation in a body of work that spans over 20 years of scripted plays, musicals, clowning performances and teachings dedicated to the work of play. This homegrown talent has performed at recognized festivals and venues across the nation with her genre-bending approach to theatre, in what The Georgia Straight calls “immensely charming.”

Fielkov is co-creator of multi-award winning RAGMOP Theatre, Habitats and The Myrtle Sisters. She is an active and founding member of Vancouver’s cherished Dusty Flowerpot Cabaret and been a youth facilitator with The International Children’s Festival.

Fielkov’s $50 workshop on Thursday, Oct. 24 runs 5 to 8 p.m. and is limited to 20 registrants. Participants will develop play and personal presence on stage and in life through a series of experiential awareness-building games to cultivate curiosity and delight in the discovery of the moment.

With the Edmonton Journal’s Liz Nicholls stating, “Underbelly is a chance to see an expert clown at work,” Salt Springers are in for a treat.

Thank you to Mouat’s Home Hardware for sponsoring this performance from within our own community.

Tickets to Underbelly and workshop registration are available online at artspring.ca or at the box office.

Rescue Watch: Tips from your SAR team – Layer up!

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Rescue Watch: Tips from your SAR team – Layer up!

The following is the first in a series of Rescue Watch columns on how to stay safe outdoors, presented by Salt Spring Island Search and Rescue.

Fall is a great time to get outdoors in the crunchy leaves and autumn glow.

It’s also getting cooler and wetter outside.

One of the most important ways to stay safe and have fun this season is to layer your clothing.

Dressing in layers helps you regulate your body temperature and makes it easy to adjust to sudden changes in the weather.

That means you’ll be comfortable: you can pull that sweater off on the uphills and throw on your rain jacket when it starts to come down.

Layering also makes you safer. You’re less likely to be caught unprepared by unexpected changes in temperature and precipitation. If you end up staying outside longer than you anticipated, you’ll be more prepared to keep yourself warm and dry until you can get back inside.

The three basic layers you need are:

1. Base layer: sits closest to your skin and pulls sweat away from your body.

2. Middle layer: holds your body heat to keep you warm.

3. Outer layer: protects you from rain and wind.

You don’t have to wear all three layers when you head out. Just pack them along with you and you’ll be prepared. Remember, you can always remove layers if it gets warm, but you can’t wear something that you didn’t bring with you.

See you outside!

OPINION: Possible lifting of moratorium unwise

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OPINION: Possible lifting of moratorium unwise

By DAVID J. RAPPORT

A version of the following was sent to North Salt Spring Waterworks District (NSSWD) CAO Mark Boysen and board chair Brian Pyper and filed with the Driftwood for publication.

Re.: KWL Engineers’ Draft Report “St. Mary Lake and Maxwell Lake Reliability Assessment” commissioned by the NSSWD.

I am writing in reference to the above-mentioned draft report, in which KWL Engineers model and project water balances for Maxwell and St. Mary lakes, month by month, all the way to the year 2100, concluding that Maxwell Lake (although not St. Mary Lake) will have sufficient reliable water to support 300 new household connections. Having reviewed this report, my considered assessment is that this conclusion, on which NSSWD relies in considering a partial lifting of its longstanding moratorium on new water allocations, is not based on solid science and is entirely unwarranted.

Over the past four decades, I have undertaken numerous assessments of the health of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems under anthropogenic stress for various national and international bodies. Unsurprisingly, a recurrent finding in work of this sort is that global warming is having a pervasive impact on the state of the world’s ecosystems and its resources.

In fact, projecting the future state of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems has become ever more uncertain for two main reasons. Firstly, predictions are heavily impacted by the degree of global warming, which in turn rests heavily on the success (or lack thereof) of the world’s nations in curbing their emissions of greenhouse gases between now and 2100 — a factor that is unknowable. Secondly, predictions are heavily dependent on climatologists’ capacity to understand the increasingly complex climate dynamics — a capacity that has been repeatedly stymied by all kinds of unanticipated surprises as the globe heats up.

Considering these overarching factors, it seems clear that peering into the climate crystal ball to glimpse the future state of our small island’s aquatic ecosystems (including the volume of available water over time) amounts to little more than a pipe dream. The fact is that engineers’ work demands far greater certainty than our ever-changing sociopolitical, climatological and ecological environment provides. To come up with their projections, the KWL team had to essentially ignore all the complexities and uncertainties, and act as if clear, long-term projections were possible — and possible with as much as 98 per cent reliability, to boot!

Furthermore, diverting waters in the winter season from Rippon Creek and Larmour Creek through the Rippon diversion into Maxwell Lake might sound terrific, if it weren’t for the fact that our forests, with increasing summer heat stress, are drying out and becoming ever more fire-prone. Starving them of replenishing water and moisture through such stream diversions strikes me as a most unwise and risky move. And that is not the only danger involved in “robbing Peter to pay Paul.” There is also the danger of mixing waters in the lake basins through transfer of microfauna and flora, which in their new environments may take hold as invasive species, upsetting the existing ecological order. This is no trivial matter, yet no mention of this major and well-documented ecological risk is to be found in the consultants’ report. Visualizing our lakes as ecosystems and not simply as reservoirs seems beyond the mindset of those who drafted this report.

While they valiantly tried to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the hat by means of sophisticated statistical manipulations, no statistical tricks can get around the fact that the climate dynamic under global warming, at levels unprecedented in human history, remains poorly understood, and that the future of climate policy and action is virtually unknowable. Under these conditions, it is patently absurd to assume that any meaningful projections for water balances for our lakes far into the future can be obtained.Regrettably, I have to conclude that this draft engineering consultants’ report is far from being “comprehensive and heavy on the science,” let alone “getting us really close to the best available science, and recognized approaches to tackling this kind of issue,” as the NSSWD chair is quoted as saying in the Sept. 4 Driftwood.

In my view, to proceed with a partial lifting of the moratorium based on these projections, and to consequently commit to supplying an additional 300 households with drinking water in perpetuity, would be foolish and beyond irresponsible. The consequences would most likely come back to haunt NSSWD, perhaps far worse than was the case several years back with the aerators fiasco. I don’t say this lightly, as I am well aware that the housing shortage remains a serious issue on Salt Spring (and elsewhere). Yet, the stark reality is that we simply can’t afford to play Russian roulette with our island’s undeniably uncertain future water supply.

Rev. Harold Munn book talks God for secular ears

Contributed Article
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Rev. Harold Munn book talks God for secular ears

BY ANGLICAN PARISH OF SSI

The Reverend Harold Munn is no stranger to Salt Spring Island, having been a frequent visitor on holidays and a house-sitter over many years.

A large part of his latest book entitled “Faith in Doubt – How my dog made me an atheist and atheism made me a priest” was written during sojourns on our island.

Munn will introduce his book in two upcoming events on Salt Spring Island:

• Friday, Oct. 25, 7 to 8:30 p.m., at All Saints by-the-Sea, where the experienced church leader will speak about the challenges facing religion in secular society and where he proposes some fascinating and unexpected opportunities that science and secularism may offer.

• Saturday, Oct. 26, 2 p.m. at the Salt Spring library, where Munn will speak of how science, secularism and faith may be connecting in new ways. Copies of his book will be available.

Admission to both events is free and open to all, spiritual and secular, young and old, committed or curious or neither.

About the Book:

What happens when an atheist and a believer find themselves next-door neighbours? What happens when religion finds itself in a culture of science and secularism? Could they hold hands? Could they fall in love?

Faith in Doubt claims that churches speak about faith and God only from within the world view of an ancient culture — as foreign to modern people as Latin. No wonder there is a precipitous decline in church attendance. Faith in Doubt proposes that churches start a conversation with secularism by learning to speak of faith and God from within the assumptions of modern secular culture. Faith in Doubt explains how.

Faith in Doubt grounds the discussion with accounts of real incidents in the author’s own life as a child and later as a priest in urban, rural and First Nations contexts. He experienced disbelief and strains in important relationships —unexpectedly finding those challenges to be sources of new life and joy. Readers, whether believers or not, may discover similar experiences happening in their own lives.

About the Author:

Munn has led congregations ranging from tiny churches in Canada’s far north to All Saints’ Cathedral in Edmonton, Alberta. He is an associate of the international Society for Ordained Scientists and has received awards for his writing.

In addition to the cross-cultural experience of being a priest in secular culture, Munn has lived in, or in close proximity to, many cross-cultural contexts, teaching science in East Africa; with miners in northern B.C.; with oppressed women in Edmonton’s inner city; with First Nations villages in the Yukon, on the Naas River and on Vancouver Island; in Victoria addressing homelessness, addictions and mental health issues; and in prisons outside Vancouver. He lives on the campus of UBC, Vancouver, with his wife of 50 years.

COBHAM, Aubrey Eugene

Driftwood Obituary
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COBHAM, Aubrey Eugene

 We are heartbroken to announce that Aubrey Cobham passed away in Hospital on Tuesday September 24th 2024. It is impossible to summarize what a wonderful and multidimensional person he was, and everything he meant to us.

Aubrey was born in Halifax Nova Scotia to Reverend Byron Cobham, mother Lillian, and sister Joyce. He lived in numerous Nova Scotia towns and spent many summers in New Brunswick with his grandparents. Aubrey demonstrated a gift and a passion for music from a very young age resulting in many lead roles at Acadia University where he got his BA in Psychology and later his MEd.

In 1973 he married Joan Carolyn Atkinson, and they eventually settled in Victoria BC, raising seven children.

As a teacher, he taught science, drama, musical theatre, choir, consumer education and was a counselor at Reynolds, Shoreline, and Esquimalt Secondary Schools. He touched the lives of hundreds and hundreds of people over his career. As one former student put it, “Mr Cobham… was a brilliant man and someone I not only admired as a teacher but as a dear friend as well. He was the inspiration that set me on a path in the arts…a path that continues 34 years later.”

In retirement, Aubrey moved with Joan to their off the grid cabin in the Sansum Narrows, and enjoyed 31 glorious years there by the ocean. During his retirement Aubrey made lots of friends in the area, took scuba diving lessons, joined the Salt Spring Singers choir, got involved with the Retired Teachers Association of BC, traveled to Europe and South America, and worked as a very convincing mall Santa.

Aubrey passed away in hospital from complications after an emergency surgery. Joan was able to be with him, and his children came to visit him throughout his hospital stay. He is survived and remembered by his wife, Joan, his children Kelda, Andrea, Amanda, Jason, Alexis, Mary, and Jonathan, his nephew Calvin and niece Pam, and his 9 grandchildren

His family wishes to thank his amazing physician Dr, Applewhaite, and the wonderful doctors, nurses, and staff at Jubilee and Lady Minto hospitals for their kindness and the incredible level of care he received.

Anyone who wishes to make a donation on Aubrey’s behalf can send one to Pacific Opera Victoria with whom he sang for 30 years or the Lady Minto Hospital Foundation.

WRIGHT, Nancy

Driftwood Obituary
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WRIGHT, Nancy

Elsie Ann Wright (Nancy to all who knew her) passed away peacefully on 17 September 2024 at Greenwoods.

Nancy was born in Detroit, Michigan, on 12 June 1930 to Rev. Thomas Frederick Wright and Grace Wright (née Armstrong), where her parents, both Canadians, were employed by the Episcopal Diocese. Nancy’s father was an Anglican Minister, and her childhood saw frequent moves related to his work. The family migrated to England in 1935, and during World War Two, her father served as a military padre (rank of Squadron Leader) in the Royal Air Force. Nancy saw the horror of war first-hand, being on the ground close to where Nazi bombs were being dropped. In 1944, the family joined Rev. Wright at a posting in Scotland, and they stayed there for several years.

Nancy’s parents returned to Canada in 1954 and she accompanied them to Wembley, Alberta. In 1956, they moved to Canmore, where her father was Rector of St. Michael’s Church, while Nancy divided her time between work at a curio shop in Banff and looking after her invalid mother. Upon her father’s retirement in 1967, they moved to Salt Spring Island, residing next to Nancy’s brother Tom at St. Mary’s Lake. Shortly after arriving, Nancy took a cashier’s job on the Queen of the Islands; she loved her new life and made many friends among both crew and passengers. Nancy worked on several ships over the years, but always on the Long Harbour route, and her cheerful voice could be heard announcing the ports of call. She retired from BC Ferries in 1994 but continued to speak often of her fond memories of the ferries.

Nancy lived with her parents before building her own home on Lang’s Road; she loved her little sanctuary in the forest, until finally moving to Meadowbrook and then to Greenwoods as her health declined. Nancy was predeceased by her parents, her brother Tom and her younger sister Molly Klein and husband Wilf Klein. She had lifelong loving relationships with her sister-in-law Irene Wright, nieces Susie, Penny and Bridget, and nephews Hal, Alexander (Sandy) and Patrick, as well as their partners, children and grandchildren.

Nancy was actively involved in the Salt Spring community, and volunteered in the Public Library, the Lady Minto Hospital Auxiliary Thrift Shop and St Mark’s Anglican Church. She remained a dedicated member of the Anglican Church for her entire life. Nancy was a gentle, humorous, giving person, who made countless friends and left smiles on faces throughout her 94 years.

At Nancy’s request, a simple service will be held at All Saints by-the-Sea Anglican Church, 110 Park Drive, Ganges on 19 October 2024, at 1:30. Everyone is welcome. In lieu of flowers, please donate to one of Nancy’s favourite causes, such as the Salt Spring Island Public Library, the Lady Minto Hospital Auxiliary, or the Anglican Church.

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