Dear Readers, Good luck to a New Year, New Goals, and New Opportunities! What are your New Year’s resolutions? I have parenting goals, relationship goals, health goals, friend goals, budgeting goals, reading goals, hobby goals, work goals, and even pleasure goals….for all facets of life………I am getting after it…….Failure is a given…..Another chance to start, of course…. After all. life IS improvisational, as we never know exactly what is coming, but having a plan is comforting. In choosing an entrepreneur, Dr. Lee Van Horn, an emerging writer, Rachelle Chartrand, an artist Mariko Ando, and community connectors, Katherine Allen & Laura Kosciecha as our feature for the January issue, we found ourselves in good company. I see a creative abundance in all areas of life, including realizations of ourselves.  As Dr. Van Horn said in his interview, “In your community, there are a million ways to give back and the only reason you don’t see them is because you are not looking. After all, it is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness”.  The key, again, is effort. Kudos to Bernie Percy and Mary Dopson, 2014 recipients of the Volunteer Award of Kerrisdale Community Centre. We awarded two awards to long time volunteers who have made great contributions to our community. I would like to highlight here some noteworthy achievements: Bernie Percy joined the knitting group 12 years ago and leads the group. Bernie was born in Dublin, Ireland, one of 10 children.  Bernie is very proud of her involvement with the Book of Kells, an ancient book from Ireland which dates from the 6th Century BC.  There were a few replicas made and Bernie organized a committee to purchase the only copy in Canada.  It is now on permanent display in the UBC library, and it is the most popular...

 By Haley Cameron Photo Courtesy of Mariko Ando When Mariko Ando first moved to Vancouver fifteen years ago, she craved a local network, a connection to her new home. In the end it was art that led her to the community she was searching for, shaping her career and her life for the better.   Mariko first picked up printmaking at college, back in Japan. She loved the art form, but recognized that it was a difficult one to pursue. “Printmaking requires a studio, chemicals, a press machine…” at eighteen she chose to continue on with other artistic outlets, including drawing and acrylic painting. She landed a job at a magazine where she illustrated for the advertising department, offering a steady income and a means to develop her skills. “In Japan it’s more common to use illustrations everywhere,” explains Mariko of her role in graphic design. “Our company was huge, the Japanese economy was so good at that time; I was always busy with work.”       When Mariko and her husband relocated to Canada, she assumed the same publishing opportunities would exist. She quickly learned that wasn’t the case. It made the move to Vancouver more difficult. “I didn’t have a great job, I don’t have kids, I wasn’t connecting with people,” she explains. Having always maintained an interest in printmaking, local artists suggested she approach the Malaspina Printmakers Society on Granville Island. “That really changed my life,” Mariko shares, honestly. “I had bought a press machine, but I returned it right away and started to work in their studio.”       The Malaspina Printmakers Society is a local organization that brings printmakers together to create, workshop and exhibit their work. For Mariko it was a comfortable setting in which she could...

 By Katja De Bock Photo Courtesy of Rachelle Chartrand   When Rachelle Chartrand was performing yoga at her sister’s home in Beaumont, Alberta shortly before her 39th birthday in 2011, she had a vision of herself turning into a butterfly.   “It was about a week before my 39th birthday and all babies born in 1972 dreaded turning 40 and I was like ‘Bring it on’,” says Chartrand, who at the time came out of two hard years after a divorce.   She instantly understood this as a chance to finally turn from a scared little girl into a woman.   Chartrand decided to write down her journey and publish it as a book. But she wanted to be honest, without sugarcoating, after having felt like a fraud most of her life. A life that included an early loss of virginity, bulimia, alcoholism and two broken marriages. Her goal at the time: Making 2012 the best year of her life.   Fast forward two years and here’s Chartrand today, a beautiful woman radiant with the joy of her achievement.   Chrysalis is not your typical Sunday-afternoon, cozy-corner memoir that can be easily consumed with tea and cookies. Chrysalis can be fascinating if you like raw, honest dialogue and a no-nonsense attitude. Even though Chartrand says she did not write the book as a form of therapy, it touches on methods such as Emotion Freedom Technique and Emotion Code, as these are practices she used to come to terms with her past.   Chartrand does not mince words in some passages of Chrysalis when reminiscing her loss of virginity at a young age, the inability to speak with someone about this shocking event and the resulting mental pain she suffered throughout her adult relationships with...

  Interviewed by Keiko Honda Lee Van Horn was born in November, 1939 into a large German and Irish Catholic community in Kansas City, MO. Because the US would soon be involved in WWII, and then men would be off to war, he and his mother moved into his grandparents home along with a variety of Aunt and cousins. It was a very safe and warm life for a young child. Lee continued to live in KC until he was 17 when he spent time in the US Army. Then it was off to University. Lee attended University at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. As he was always told by his father to “get an education,” he took this opportunity very seriously and got a triple major in literature, philosophy and social studies and a double minor in education and theology. He graduated cum laude. Lee the moved to Mpls, MN to teach in a local high school. Very early on he was selected to Chair the English department and to coach the tennis team. He also founded the second guidance and counseling center in the State of Minnesota. As a coach Lee’s team won two State tennis championships. This was also the beginning of a life long involvement in social issues. After all it was the 60’s. Lee became very interested in working with the youth of the city of Mpls and was eventually awarded the “Contact” award for outstanding work among the youth of the city. Lee was involved at the time in the anti-Vietnam war efforts counseling youth not to sign up for the war. He was not always successful in this effort and had a few students he taught in high school die int he war. Feeling a need for...

By Katherine Allen & Laura Kosciecha Photo Courtesy of Katherine Allen & Laura Kosciecha     Building Caring Communities (BCC) is an Asset Based Community Development initiative that strives to foster meaningful connections in community. We do this by discovering the gifts and interests of individuals or groups of people (associations). The role of the Community Connector is to remain curious all the while searching for welcoming people and places. By spending time in neighborhoods, we are able to build a map of the assets there – the gifts and interests of neighbors, local businesses, best cafes, friendly faces, and welcoming places. Community Connectors often meet people who are in search of something; whether it be a friend, a helping hand, a space, or a mentor. Our role is to help thread a web of connections in an already-abundant community. Much of what we seek is already there, but perhaps we just didn’t know it yet, or had to adjust our lens to see it. We do this because we believe the more connected a community, the more vibrant, safe, and welcoming it is – for all members of the community. Following are some stories that capture the essence of our work.   The Little Garden That Could   Goodlad community garden, one of the original Can You Dig It community gardens, is nestled behind a friendly residence in Burnaby and has12 garden plots, a greenhouse, compost piles, hazelnut trees, grapevines, and picnic tables. Over the years, despite much effort to engage neighbors and gardeners, the garden had yet to flourish, and the vision of a thriving community space had yet to be realized.   This past spring, BCC collaborated with Can You Dig It to make this original vision a reality. After many conversations...

      http://www.visualspace.ca/     Hello and Happy Holidays! Just a quick email to let you know to save the date for January 10th! Join us for a special Right to Remain gathering for Downtown Eastside (DTES) residents and allies, members of the Japanese Canadian community and anyone interested in the neighbourhood. We’ll find out more about the history and human rights of the Japanese Canadian community in the Powell Street area, and the challenges and human rights issues facing the current residents of the DTES. This will be a great chance to meet new people, learn some history, share food, and make art that expresses your experiences and connections to the neighbourhood. Free and open to everyone! See the attached poster for more information. Sincerely, The Right to Remain Crew         REGISTER NOW! https://www.policyalternatives.ca/ticket-system-change-seniors-care-25 If you prefer not to register online, contact Lindsey Bertrand at 604-801-5121 x233 or bcseniors@policyalternatives.ca....