Parade of lights returns saturday
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Christy Clark, Parents and bullies
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loCal Curlers to ProvinCials
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Comedian Bob Robertson has a little fun with the coming apocalypse in his recently launched book. See Page A5
wednesday
November 28 2012 www.newwestnewsleader.com
Span design a tall order Chris bryan
editor@newwestnewsleader.com
mArIo bArTeL/NeWSLeADer
After 20 years outfitting New Westminster women in bras and lingerie, Linda Ferris is closing her shop in Uptown and retiring.
Lingerie store owner a true survivor Grant Granger
out sale because it’s time, after nearly two decades in the bra business, for the 62-year-old to retire. Ferris grew up in North Vancouver and her first job out of high school in 1971 was at Eaton’s downtown in the chain’s regional office. She worked 19 years in the iconic Canadian department store, then was abruptly laid off. It made her angry. She made a defiant decision that changed her life, saying to herself, “I am not going to work for anybody else again.”
ggranger@newwestnewsleader.com
Linda Ferris lets out an emotional rush of air as she leans on the countertop in her little lingerie shop on Sixth Street. She has just finished a vivid account of a violent attack nearly nine years ago right out of a Law and Order crime drama. Despite the incident in which she was stabbed and choked while at work, Ferris continued on with her store, Quay Celebrity Lingerie and Accessories. But now she’s holding a closing
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So she started hunting for a business to start. She spent about a year searching, then one day she found herself at Westminster Quay Public Market, and asked if there was space available. They suggested a women’s wear store, possibly lingerie, for a small space on the second floor at the top of the escalators. She had no experience in that product, but in addition to her work at Eaton’s her family had been in the grocery business, and she’d learned a thing or two about retail from her father. He’d taught her to ensure
expenses don’t exceed revenue, so Ferris started small. She liked the location and the low rent so she gave it a shot. She’d ask customers lots of questions. “I was learning how to fit and to cater to their needs,” says Ferris. “I put the focus on personal service. The big department stores are trying to do away with that because it’s costly for them.” Even the name was customer oriented. Please see TrAumATIzING, A4
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A number of obstacles will have to be overcome if the City of New Westminster is to achieve its goal of building a pedestrian bridge linking the Quay boardwalk and Port Royal, The project has been on the books for many years, originally planned for completion by 2015. But it’s been postponed to a 2017 completion, in part due to the city’s decision to borrow from funds allocated to the project to complete the new Downtown civic centre. Planning is already underway for the bridge, said chief city planner Lisa Spitale. But the challenges are significant. In addition to finding the money, residents have voiced concerns about losing the small Quayside pocket park on the mainland landing side. And a key stumbling block is the height the bridge will have to be. To address the needs of marine traffic, the clearance would have to be the same as the mid-span of the Queensborough Bridge, Spitale said. Please see brIDGe, A3