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Youth-led survey project identifies local needs

Elizabeth Nolan
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Youth-led survey project identifies local needs

Many young people feel lost and alone, without having the skills or support to deal with mental health issues. It takes a special person to make use of those personal difficulties so that others might have an easier time.

Three young women who grew up on Salt Spring have made this step, using their experience to form a group called Mindful Teenagers Affecting Change that is working to improve mental health awareness and coping skills in youth. A survey that MTAC initiated at Gulf Islands Secondary School is now informing several courses of action centered on peer support.

Jessi Cullis, Maeve Newton and Jessamine Vasquez had all faced struggles individually with things like anxiety, depression and loneliness. They found a common bond once they were introduced to each other by teacher/principal Sue Starkey through the Phoenix alternative program. 

“It got us thinking there should be someone to talk to,” Cullis said. “We should find out how many other people were struggling and wanted a safe space.”

The group put together their survey and solicited participation at the high school in 2016, receiving responses from around 150 students. The survey asked questions about students’ knowledge and experience of depression and anxiety, their coping mechanisms, and contributing factors such as sleep, social media, lifestyle and obligations. The results were collated in a summary in 2018.

Vasquez said MTAC’s intention was to encourage thought toward physical and mental heath awareness in youth. The survey succeeded in identifying a need, although she said youth don’t always have the language to articulate what they’re going through or what they need.

“What concerned me the most wasn’t that there were so many of my peers dealing with mental health struggles; I knew that would be the case,” said Newton. “What concerned me was how few of them felt safe enough to get help when they were struggling. It’s so important that we are present for our youth and provide spaces and resources for them to process what they’re going through.”

Cindy Clark is a youth counsellor and “navigator” with Salt Spring Community Services who has been meeting with the MTAC group on a weekly basis as a volunteer facilitator.

“One of the things that came out of the survey was a lot of youth wanted to know about stress — what it is and how to manage it. That surprised us,” Clark said.

Out of 130 respondents, 75 said they had experienced heightened feelings of anxiety that prevented them from doing things they wished to, and 39 said that happened on a daily basis. Youth also indicated they are aware of the contributing factors, and of methods of self-care such as breathing — which was named as the top mechanism students used to cope with stress. The most common reason for experiencing stress was homework, while anxiety was most commonly experienced at school, followed by social situations.

“It’s a silent but deadly kind of thing,” Cullis said, noting that youth stress appears to be school-led for the most part, especially with expectations around grades and homework. “There’s no resource to help lift that or cope with that.”

For more on this story, see the June 19, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Ruckle Park run includes First Nations teachings

Gail Sjuberg
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Ruckle Park run includes First Nations teachings

Runners gathered in Ruckle Park over the weekend to take part in the annual Run Salt Spring Ruckle Park Trail Run and Cultural Celebrations.

The three-day event started with a camp-out Friday night in Ruckle Park. Saturday morning began with a welcoming ceremony, followed by a kids’ run, and a set of trail runs in varying lengths, as well as cedar weaving lessons and a traditional salmon dinner.

Runners had the choice of a 16-km run through the park and around the Beaver Point area, a 10-km run or a three-km run. The event attracts both local runners and runners from off-island.

Organizer Dave Melanson started the Ruckle Park run as a way to bring an understanding and appreciation of First Nations peoples to the sport of trail running. Melanson grew up running the trails in Ruckle Park, and decided that more people would benefit from seeing the beauty of the local trails.

“It was kind of born of wanting to do something to help give back to the island that I grew up on and also be able to introduce these beautiful places to people who haven’t had the opportunity to see them,” Melanson said.

Melanson has been holding trail runs in conjunction with First Nations for years on Salt Spring. Another goal is to foster a sense of respect for the traditional history of the island.

“It was really important for me right from the get- go that First Nations were directly involved, and that permission was coming primarily from them and then moving outward from there,” Melanson said. “People come over, and especially if it’s one of their first time they come to the event, they finish and wonder why everyone isn’t doing this.”

Throughout the day on Saturday, participants could take part in cedar weaving classes taught by John-Bradley Williams from the Tsawout First Nation. Williams taught two classes, one in the morning for campers, and one in the afternoon for runners.

“It’s twofold, we can get everybody fit and they can learn too,” Melanson said. “They get the opportunity to learn, recognize and appreciate another level.”

Editorial: Anxiety education

Driftwood Staff
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Editorial: Anxiety education

Most kids breathe a sigh of relief when their school’s doors close for the summer.

For some it means the chance to work more hours and save up some money, and for others it’s lazy days of beach time and sleeping in.

As adults we envy those carefree months of sunshine. We tend to think that kids have it easy and they’ll be in for a rude awakening whenever they’re forced to participate in the real world of bills and deadlines. What is not acknowledged or fully understood is how much anxiety and stress many youth actually undergo at school.

The 2013 British Columbia Adolescent Health Survey identified mental health and substance use as particular areas of concern for the Gulf Islands district, based on student surveys. Results showed a much higher rate of binge drinking among Gulf Islands youth compared to their provincial peers, and more self-identification of mental health conditions including anxiety and depression.

A survey created by local youth that polled 150 fellow Gulf Islands Secondary School students in 2016 also found that teens experience high anxiety and stress in their daily lives. School was listed as the main cause and place where anxiety occurred, although social situations and the home were also high on the list.

Teens are becoming familiar with the language around mental health issues, and local school programs are doing much to break down the stigmas that might prevent youth from seeking the help they need. A daylong, school-wide mental health forum hosted by the GISS leadership program in February 2017 was a fantastic step in bringing much needed information into the open.

There is still work to be done, however. One of the findings of the survey conducted by Mindful Teenagers Affecting Change is that while many youth practise forms of self-care, others don’t feel they have a safe space to share their concerns and don’t know who to talk to when they need help. A suggestion from the young women who created the survey is that mental health education needs to start much earlier in schools, and that parents and teachers could be trained to become more effective resources.

As we ease into summer let’s not forget the stress and anxiety that children feel during school time is real.

We can help by building our own awareness.

Viewpoint: Building a brighter future

Contributed Article
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Viewpoint: Building a brighter future

By Premier John Horgan

In my travels throughout the province, I get to meet people who have different ideas about what makes B.C. a good place to live. Something that stands out to me is that most people agree on the power of education to change lives.

When I met a young woman named Makayla, the life-changing effects of higher education really hit home. Makayla is strong and determined. She has limitless potential, but she had a tough start in life. Being a former youth in care, Makayla never imagined that one day she’d be studying at university to help kids with backgrounds like her own.

Makayla is one of more than 800 former youth in care who are getting a post-secondary education through our government’s new tuition waiver program. For many of these young adults, eliminating tuition is the key to unlocking a future that offers hope and optimism.

Many young people are like Makayla. They dream of a future where they can contribute and make a difference in their own way. They just need a chance. Our government believes in giving people the chance to succeed.

Education helps lifts people up by unlocking the opportunity to learn a new skill or trade, get a good-paying job, and pursue their dreams.

I’m deeply proud of the work our government is doing to bring down barriers and make higher education and skills training more accessible and affordable for British Columbians.

For too long, the high cost of post-secondary education stood in the way of people reaching their full potential. That’s why one of the first things we did as a new government was to help level the playing field for more British Columbians by making adult basic education and English language learning programs tuition-free. Now, tens of thousands of people can upgrade their skills and pursue a better life.

Education should open doors, not create new roadblocks to getting ahead. We’re helping graduates get off to a better start by eliminating interest from B.C. student loans. This means that someone who finishes school with $28,000 in combined federal and provincial loans will save about $2,300 in interest charges over their repayment period. Now, new graduates can worry less about their debt and focus more on building their careers.

Similarly, the price of textbooks shouldn’t hold students back from reaching their goals. That’s why we’re investing in more education resources like open textbooks that eliminate royalty fees and use open copyright licenses to help students access affordable learning tools. About 100,000 students in B.C. have saved as much as $10 million because of open textbooks.

For people like Makayla, the first step to a brighter future begins when we open the door of opportunity to education. From there, the sky is the limit.

Simply put, helping people succeed is good for B.C. Businesses benefit when they have the skilled workers they need. Communities thrive when more people have good-paying, family supporting jobs. Services that people count on can expand and improve as our economy continues to grow.

Opportunity starts in the classroom, but it opens the door to so much more. Investing in people leads to a better B.C. for everyone.

Islanders take Subaru race challenge

Contributed Article
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Islanders take Subaru race challenge

BY ERIC ELLIS

DRIFTWOOD CONTRIBUTOR

Spring is the beginning of the multi-sport season and Salt Spring has been well represented in the first major triathlon event of the season, the Subaru Victoria 70.3-K triathlon on Sunday, June 2 at Elk Lake.

The morning dawned bright with over 2,000 competitors lined up for the swim start, a 1.9-km loop of Elk Lake followed by a 90-km bike  loop of the Saanich Peninsula from Elk Lake to Land’s End Road and back, and finally, 21.1-kms (half marathon distance) comprised of two loops of Elk Lake.

The first Salt Spring competitor to finish was Richard Hayden in five hours, 10 minutes and 57 seconds, earning him 14th of 135 men in his age group. He finished the swim portion 58th place in his age group, the bike portion at 25th place and the run portion after five hours of competition in 14th place in a time of 1:37 a time that most road runners would die for.

The second Salt Spring competitor to finish was Marcia Jansen in an overall time of five hours, 31 minutes and 47 seconds. This effort earned her ninth place of 91 women in her age group, and 83rd of 786 women. She earned a second place in her age group in the swim portion despite taking a tumble exiting the lake, third place in her age group in the bike portion and what she characterized as a disappointing time in the run that saw her drop from third to ninth place.

Marion Young was the third Salt Springer to finish, crossing the finish line in six hours, 21 minutes and eight seconds for fifth place of 31 women in her age group. Having worked intensely on her swimming skills for six months, she finished 17th in her age group in that section, seventh place in her age group in the bike portion and fifth place in her age group for the run.

This race was but a preparation for our Salt Spring competitors, who are going on to bigger and maybe better things. On July 13, Hayden will be doing the Laugavegur 55-km ultra-marathon in southern Iceland, a journey through ice, snow and rivers.  On July 28, Jansen and Young will be competing in the Whistler Full Ironman competition, a 3.8-km swim, 180-km bike race and full marathon run.

Dead Boats Society wants your derelicts

Gail Sjuberg
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Dead Boats Society wants your derelicts

With the controversial Ganges Harbour wreck Castle Finn now signed over to authorities for proper disposal, the founder of the nonprofit Dead Boats Disposal Society is urging other derelict boat owners to do the same.

Boat owners around the Gulf Islands have the chance to surrender their vessels to the Dead Boats Disposal Society for removal as part of the federal Abandoned Boats Program.

John Roe and disposal society partners have removed 17 boats from waters around Salt Spring so far and were out hunting for more last week to take advantage of the program.

“We’ve removed some and the Coast Guard has removed some, but we know there’s a few more out there. The thing is, getting people to give up their boats is far easier than us going out and going through the paperwork for a seizure notice. It’s very time consuming,” Roe said.

Roe asks owners of boats that are in danger of sinking to sign their vessels over to the society for removal. Roe said they prefer to have multiple vessels to remove at the same time, which is more cost effective than removing one at a time.

“We’ll take it, no questions asked. The only thing we ask is that you keep it afloat until we can remove it,” Roe said. “Like everything else we want to get more listed on the [Abandoned Boats] Program. There’s only two more years left, and we’re going to take advantage of it.”

Bill C-64, or the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act, received royal assent in February 2019, and it authorizes Transport Canada to hold owners of abandoned vessels accountable, as well as impose fines of up to $50,000 or $5,000 per day depending on the situation. Roe explained that by signing derelicts over to the society, the owners will not have the risk of paying those fines.

Roe has surveyed the Burgoyne Bay area as well as Ganges Harbour. The Castle Finn is one notable vessel that has been turned over to the society, after being stuck on shore near Ganges, and then the scene of multiple fires over the winter.

Vessels removed are tested for contaminants before disposal. Any materials that are contaminated are sent to a facility in Alberta to be incinerated. Regular garbage is sent to the Hartland Landfill on the Saanich Peninsula.

People who see derelict vessels can contact the CRD at infoline@crd.bc.ca or the Dead Boats Disposal Society by calling 250-383-2086.

For more on this story, see the June 12, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Lasqueti floated as pipeline terminus

Elizabeth Nolan
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Lasqueti floated as pipeline terminus

Lasqueti Island is one of the more remote communities in the Islands Trust Area, boasting passenger-only ferry service, stands of old growth forest, no paved roads and no BC Hydro electric grid to serve its 400 residents.

The transformation of this alternative sanctuary into a massive shipping terminal for raw bitumen would seem unthinkable to most, but that’s exactly what was proposed by Edward G. Monteiro in the magazine BC Shipping News last month.

The marine consultant and ship’s captain ponders the dilemma of the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion project in a guest column, stating it will probably never succeed with the current plans to end the twinned pipeline at the existing Burnaby terminus.

“Part of the problem has been trying to implement the project in a location that might not be suitable,” Monteiro writes, while advocating an “out of sight, out of mind” approach.

“If the pipeline was diverted to a relatively unoccupied or isolated island in the outer reaches of Vancouver, where no one could see or care, it would be half the battle won,” he argues.

Islands Trust Council has undertaken multiple advocacy projects that deal with protecting the Salish Sea from shipping threats. It has called on the federal government to work towards eliminating the use of 33 commercial freighter anchorages throughout the southern Gulf Islands and advocated for senior government policy to deal with abandoned vessels.

“We were certainly distressed about the lack of awareness of the Salish Sea,” Luckham said about Monteiro’s column. “And when you think about it, it’s absurd a senior ranking officer in a professional capacity thinks you can snow people by doing something where you can’t see it.”

“He completely doesn’t get that our issue is the shipping and the potential of a spill, and also climate change,” Luckham added.

A response to the piece has been drafted, with hopes it will be published in an upcoming issue of the shipping industry magazine. Luckham notes in his response that Monteiro refers to the pipeline terminus as “tidewater,” which is a term the oil industry frequently uses.

“In describing the shortcoming of the current ‘tidewater,’ also known as Burnaby, Cpt. Monterio does an excellent job of outlining why it’s a terrible idea to ship toxic bitumen through the complex narrows of Burrard Inlet right past downtown Vancouver,” Luckham writes, before explaining why shipping it to an island in a protected region would be an even worse idea.

“We are firmly against the expansion because the west coast of Canada isn’t simply ‘tidewater.’ It isn’t the end of the line. It is a precious, fragile part of the world that needs our protecting. Not just for ourselves but for future generations.”

For more on this story, see the June 12, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Xwaaqw’um Project hosts fun day

Driftwood Staff
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Xwaaqw’um Project hosts fun day

Long, late spring days have members of the Xwaaqw’um Project buzzing with excitement and busy with upcoming programs on the land at Xwaaqw’um (Burgoyne Bay).

Next up for the site is a tribal journeys canoe fundraiser set for Father’s Day, this Sunday, June 16 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“Xwaaqw’um Village, pronounced [whoaah-qwum] serves as a meeting place for community members to come together and reconnect with the land and people,” said project coordinator Joe Akerman.

The June 16 community gathering on the land will include activities by donation. All are welcome to attend with or without their father or family.

After the opening at 11 a.m., the day will offer activities such as 10-minute canoe paddles in the cedar big canoe, wool weaving, archery and games such as egg toss, tug-of-war and potato sack races. There will also be a barbecue lunch and tea and water available (bring your own mugs and paper plates) and a 50/50 raffle.

Families and individuals can take 10-minute cedar dugout canoe tours from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Find the full event schedule and updates at the Facebook page: Father’s Day at Xwaaqw’um – Tribal Journeys Canoe Fundraiser.

Donations collected will help send a canoe team to Bellingham for the Paddle to Lummi event.

“We have been training in Cowichan Bay two times per week and will be ready for the journey leaving July 20 and landing July 24,” Akerman reported.

An online silent auction is also open and can be accessed through the Facebook event page.

Jazz group at All Saints

Driftwood Staff
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Jazz group at All Saints

Jazz vocalist Caroni Young is the next Tea a Tempo performer, presenting a program called Parisian Jazz Cafe.

Beginning at 2:10 p.m. on Wednesday, June 19, Young will share the stage with guitarist Jim Shultz and bassist Ian Van Wyck. The trio will present a series of songs about Paris in the style of great French musicians such as Edith Piaf and Michel LeGrand.

The audience can look forward to some favourite standards such as April in Paris and La Vie En Rose but also some newer compositions such as La Belle Dame Sans Regrets, which was composed by Sting.

Young is currently a Gulf Islands School District teacher, and the artistic director of Viva Chorale! and the Makana Youth Choir.

Next year Young will be attending UBC as a graduate student in choral conducting.

Young earned a degree in vocal jazz at Capilano University and loves to sing whenever possible. She performs regularly with the Swing Shift Big Band and is also a member of the Tongue n’ Cheek a capella choir.

Dam plan outcry heard

Gail Sjuberg
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Dam plan outcry heard

Capital Regional District plans to decommission the Gardom Pond dam on North Pender Island have caused local public outcry, and an Islands Trust trustee has made a call for more public consultation before the project is allowed to continue.

The dam is slated to be decommissioned as part of the provincial government’s response to a failure at the Testalinden dam near Oliver, B.C. in 2010. The Gardom Pond dam was flagged during a survey conducted by the province as “high consequence.” The Capital Regional District consulted with the six water license holders with adjacent lands to the pond, who agreed to decommission the dam in February 2017. The project received $460,000 in federal funds through the National Disaster Mitigation Program, which would cover the entirety of the project’s costs.

Work on the project began in early June, which got the attention of people living in the Razor Point Water Service Area on North Pender. They reached out to Islands Trust trustee Ben McConchie about the issue, who has put out a call for more public consultation before the works are completed.

Though the dam’s decommissioning will ensure the safety of the people who live downhill from the structure from a dam failure, McConchie and other North Pender residents believe that other options could be looked at.

“I feel like the residents there haven’t had a proper voice and haven’t necessarily felt their concerns were heard,” McConchie said. “This is a great opportunity to educate people, and there’s a lot of outcry for this to at least be halted.”

Gardom Pond is a body of water that is adjacent to a CRD park. The pond lies within a Islands Trust riparian development permit area, and has the potential to be a part of the watershed that serves properties in the area. Though the dam is in a DPA, the CRD has an exemption to the DPA regulations and has proceeded with decommissioning plans without consultation with the Islands Trust.

“The fact that they didn’t even approach the Trust because they’re exempt makes me concerned,” McConchie said. “It kind of shows the inability of the Trust to stand up to its mandate to preserve and protect, particularly in these types of circumstances.”

McConchie said that the Local Trust Committee has agreed to do a metered groundwater study on North Pender Island, which would include the pond and the aquifer in the area.

The Islands Trust and the CRD have both declared a climate emergency in the area. Residents feel that the pond and the water stored therein are a valuable resource that needs to be protected. The Trust is looking into a legal option for stopping the work on the project, but residents would rather take a political route to resolving the issue.

“We have no water here. It’s getting scary, and with the weather that’s been going on lately, it’s been super dry … We need this water,” McConchie said. “Now is the time. When is an emergency an emergency? When do we save the water? When does that become the more important issue?”

The Driftwood reached out to the CRD for comment, but were unable to connect before press time.

For more on this story, see the June 12, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

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