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TUESDAY
Tuesday, February 19, 2013 X Volume 26 No. 14
THIS WEEK
Thompson Rivers University to add to presence in CIS Page A23 Thompson River Publications Partnership Ltd.
TIB election dispute not yet settled
MUST LOVE DOGS By Dave Eagles STAFF REPORTER
By Dale Bass
dave_eagles@kamloopsthisweek.com
STAFF REPORTER dale@kamloopsthisweek.com
K
ELLY O’DONNELL HAS BECOME best friends with a surprising number of dogs, considering she has yet to call one her own. O’Donnell was raised in a family without canine pets as her father was allergic to the animals. Yet, it didn’t keep O’Donnell from becoming chums with neighbourhood mutts. Sitting on the floor on Student Street at Thompson Rivers University on a winter Thursday afternoon, the adventure-tourism student has just met her newest four-legged friend — a St. John Ambulance therapy dog named Ivory. Dog tired (pun intended) after countless students’ hands reaching out to pet her snow-white coat, the nine-year-old English lab decides it is time for a break from the action — and finds the perfect spot to take a cat nap. Just weeks earlier, during Christmas break, O’Donnell returned to Edmonton, where she visited with friends and their dogs, going for walks with each of them. Now, stroking the soft ears of a snoozing pooch at TRU, O’Donnell loves each moment. She smiles as she looks up from the furry face plunked firmly on her lap. “I’d love to have a job like this,” she says, “laying around and having people pet me.” Fostering positive feelings within students is the goal of TRU Wellness Centre’s Therapy Thursdays. The idea came about from a TRU staff member and animal lover and brought about a connection with the successful St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog program. “It wasn’t hard to see the immediate benefits to our students on campus,” says TRU Wellness co-ordinator Chelsea Corsi. “Improving students’ moods, increasing spirits and reducing stress during midterms is the sole purpose of the dogs’ visits.” From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Thursday until April 11, students can cuddle and pet a therapy dog at the TRU Wellness Centre’s Therapy Thursdays: For the Love of a Dog.
Kelly O’Donnell has become best friends with more dogs than most, although never owning one of her own. O’Donnell grew up with a father who was allergic to dogs. Her connections to her neighbourhood canines stand to this day. Sitting on the floor on Student Street at Thompson Rivers University, the adventure-studies student caresses her newest four-legged friend, Ivory. The nine-year-old St. John Ambulance therapy dog was happy to find a soft landing for a short cat nap — tuckered out after a morning of connecting with the countless students who made their way past the TRU Wellness Centre’s booth during Therapy Thursdays: For the Love of a Dog. Dave Eagles/KTW
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The validity of the 2012 Tk’emlups Indian Band election will become clearer this month when a judge rules on a petition to have the results set aside. Kamloops provincial court Judge Chris Cleaveley reserved his decision after hearing submissions on Monday, Feb. 18, from David Paul, representing the band, and petitioner Marie Baptiste, who unsuccessfully challenged incumbent Shane Gottfriedson for the job of chief. The judicial hearing is the second to be held in the matter, which revolves around incorrect information on voting day and polling location in the November election. The crux of the issue is information mailed to TIB members who live off the reserve. Some received voting instructions giving Nov. 28 as the election date, while others and all who live on the reserve were given documents identifying Nov. 10 — the actual date — as election day.
Paul argued the mistake was simply a clerical error and was included in about 50 of the 377 off-reserve mailouts that were sent. He noted the ballots and other documents in the package had the correct date, as did election information contained in the TIB newsletter, newspaper and broadcast advertisements and online. In response to Cleaveley’s question if a newspaper advertisement should be considered as a means to get information to people who do not live on the reserve, Paul replied Internet advertising would provide that outcome. “That’s assuming everyone had a computer,” Cleaveley told Paul. The only person to call and ask about the incorrect date, Paul told the court, was Baptiste, who asked about the situation on Nov. 21. Paul told the court the petition should also be denied based on timelines established in TIB regulations, which allow for disputes to be considered if they are raised within 15 days of the election. X See WRONG DATE A21
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