A16 www.terracestandard.com
Wednesday, April 3, 2013 Terrace Standard
COMMUNITY TERRACE STANDARD
MARGARET SPEIRS
(250) 638-7283
bc government, nwcc and margaret speirs PHOTOs
local queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal winners include, from left, Terrace Pipes and Drums members Jill MacKay, far left, and Audrey Kerr, third from left; Freda Diesing School of Northwest Coast Art senior advisor Dempsey Bob; and Joyce Gibson, Riverboat Days president. McKay and Kerr went to Victoria for the ceremony and to receive their medals from Premier Christy Clark, pictured with them.
Locals surprised to win medals A NUMBER of locals have been awarded Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medals, and the latest have won for their voluntary and community services. World renowned Tahltan/Tlingit artist Dempsey Bob is an instructor and senior advisor at the Freda Diesing School of Northwest Coast Art at Northwest Community College here. He began carving in 1969 and was directed to the Kitanmaax School of Northwest coast Indian Art by Freda Diesing, who was his earliest mentor and teacher. Bob went on to become a close friend of Freda’s and frequently worked with her. His work is in the collections of such institutions as the Canadian Museum of Civilization, UBC Museum of Anthropology, the Columbia Museum of Ethnology, the Smithsonian Institution, national museum of Enthology in Japan, Canada House in London. Joyce Gibson won her medal for her community service involvement during her years here and it came as a surprise. After working for the school district for 35 years, she wanted something to do when
she retired. She has been president of the Riverboat Days committee for many years, and is involved in Relay for Life on its leadership committee. She works with the Terrace Community Foundation as its vice-chair. And she just signed up for Volunteer Terrace and has been doing volunteering at the Happy Gang Centre. “I like to be busy,” she said, adding it keeps her young. Gibson has also been involved with the dragon boat society and Terrace snowmobile association. Audrey Kerr and Jill MacKay have been with the Terrace Pipes and Drums Society for more than 35 years and nearly 20 years, respectively. Kerr was pipe major for three years from 1991 to 1994 while MacKay has been pipe major since 1994 and continuing with that role until this past September. During that time, she was also giving individual lessons from beginner to experienced as a music teacher.
One of her students has become the new pipe major, she said. She volunteered to shovel snow for seniors as part of Volunteer Terrace, and still does it, although she and her husband do it on their own. “I was absolutely surprised,” she said about being awarded the medal, which she says came as a result of pipes and drums member Murray Hamer nominating her and Kerr. “Something the premier said in her speech really rang true,” said MacKay. “She said ‘I bet you not one of you out there feels like you deserve the medal.’ She goes ‘you do deserve it.’ “All I could think was the dozens of other people who deserve a medal and went unnominated. “That was my biggest feeling ‘there’s so many other people that deserve this and I was happy and proud to get it.” MacKay shared the medal ceremony with her 85-year-old mother, picking her up in Vancouver and taking her to Victoria. “She the one who drove me to all my les-
sons,” said MacKay, adding her mother was surprised and proud of her for receiving the medal. MacKay started playing the pipes when she was a child after starting out as a highland dancer. The pipe band she belonged to played and won the highland games in scotland and in band when she reached the top stage, she was part of the first Canadian band to break the top five in the championships there, she said. Audrey Kerr says she felt very honoured to be selected. She has been with the Terrace Pipes and Drums since she was 15 when she started playing the pipes. She was pipe major, pipe sergeant and band manager and now her son is the pipe major, she said. “It certainly was a surprise to get recognized for it. I’ve done it out of the love of playing and contributing and it brings a lot of joy to other people,” she said, adding her mom was there to see her receive her medal too.
‘Buck for a truck’ boosts food programs By Diana Bateson The Kalum Community School Society is launching its “Buck for a Truck” campaign to replace the old pickup truck that has been used for the various food programs operating in Terrace. The old truck, which was donated to the society in 2002, has served the community well, picking up and delivering food for programs such as the Good Food Box, Food Share, and Hungry Kids Project. In the spring, it is also used to deliver equipment to the school
and community gardens. This has led to it being referred to as the “community truck”. However, the truck is now often needing repairs, costing the society money it can’t then use elsewhere and disrupting the operations of the food programs. It has been decided that it is time to retire the old truck and find a more reliable vehicle. An information table, with posters, brochures, and donation jars will be set up in Save On Foods on Saturday, April 6 to encourage people in the community to contribute a loonie toward buying a
newer vehicle. Donation jars, brochures, and posters will also be placed in various participating businesses around town. Although most people in Terrace have heard of the food programs, many are not aware of the Kalum Community School Society, which is responsible for developing these programs. KCSS is a non-profit organization that has provided community programs for vulnerable children, youth, and families in Terrace, Thornhill, and six surrounding First Nations villages since 1997.
KCSS’s mission is to work with community partners within neighbourhood schools to enable success and belonging for all people. The primary goal of the Hungry Kids Project is to improve food security for children in Terrace and surrounding areas. Terrace and the outlying communities have experienced higher than provincial average unemployment levels, 10.3 per cent in October 2012. These high unemployment levels have contributed to the rise in the number of people, including youth and children, using food banks. In March 2012, a count done
of people using food banks that month illustrates the need – 721 adults and 558 children. There is a link between nutrition and academic performance. It is hard to concentrate on schoolwork when you’re hungry. KCSS addresses this problem serving more than 2,000 servings of food in schools weekly in Terrace and Thornhill. In its efforts to respond to the emergency food needs, it receives significant donations from local distributors, stores and farmers.
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