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MERRITT HERALD FREE
THURSDAY, JUNE 13, 2013 • MERRITT NEWSPAPERS
Merrittonian takes two-wheeled trek By Michael Potestio THE HERALD
reporter@merrittherald.com
PEDAL TO THE METAL (From left) Emily Clark and Kaitlyn Kwok on their journey across Canada. Clark originally took the trip to celebrate completing her undergraduate degree from the University of Victoria, but it’s an experience the two girls have made educational for the students Clark’s parents teach back home in Merritt. Submitted
It can be nerve-wracking for parents whose child decides to bike across Canada, but it can also be a great learning opportunity. For Merritt parents and teachers Diane and James Clark, the latter is exactly the case. Diane teaches kindergarten to Grade 7 at Merritt Central Elementary School and James teaches Grade 2 at Merritt Bench Elementary School. At the moment, their daughter Emily, 23, is on a bike trip across Canada with friend Kaitlyn Kwok, 24. The two teachers are using their daughter’s experiences to help teach their elementary classes more about Canada in
the process. Using a Spot GPS device, which runs off a satellite, the parents are able to track the women on their journey across Canada. The GPS sends out a signal on their location every 10 minutes, which can be viewed as a map or satellite image online at findmespot.com, Diane said. “Well, sometimes I do worry. We do worry about her, but it’s been really nice having this Spot on her because we know where she is,” she said. By using the GPS technology and practical example of the bike trip, Diane has been able to teach her Grade 5 and 6 classes more about Canada’s weather and geography. “We go on to the weather graph and we
say, ‘OK, here’s what the weather is today. It’s expected [to be a] 30 per cent chance of rain. What’s the probability of rain?’” said Diane, adding they’ve discussed how weather or geography — for example, the hills of B.C. — will affect the women on their bike trip. Her husband’s Grade 2 class is also doing a daily journal of the trip. The trip has allowed James to teach his students more about the mapping of Canada and its landmarks, cities and capitals. That class even uses Skype to communicate with Emily and Kaitlyn and to ask them questions. But it’s not just the kids who are learning more about Canada.
See ‘Cross-Canada’ Page 3
Vandalism strikes in Saturday night spree Teepees, benches around Merritt Desert Inn trashed; three arrested for mischief By Michael Potestio THE HERALD
reporter@merrittherald.com
Vandals struck in the area around the Desert Inn over the weekend, say members of Merritt’s RCMP. On Saturday, RCMP responded to a call of a fight outside the Merritt arena on
Mamette Avenue at 1:36 a.m. When police officers arrived, they came across two witnesses who had apprehended a man they saw vandalize the teepees outside of the Merritt Desert Inn, said RCMP Staff Sgt. Sheila White. Police took the man into custody and
he spent the night in jail. He was charged with mischief and will appear in court in July, White said. Tears were found in one of the teepees. The teepees themselves cost an estimated $500 brand new, said White. Also on the night of June 8, the president of
the lawn bowling club in Merritt — located behind the Desert Inn — reported eight benches had been vandalized. Though the benches are secured in concrete, the vandals were able to tip one over and attempted to do the same with several oth-
ers. Many of the metal straps that hold down the benches were broken, White said. RCMP say there were no witnesses to this incident nor are there any surveillance cameras in the area they could use to try to identify the culprits.
The estimated damage to the benches is $100, White said. Anyone with information regarding these crimes or any others is asked to call Crimestoppers or the Merritt RCMP detachment. White said there was a lot of vandalism
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Saturday night. Over the weekend, four people were arrested for being drunk in public; three were arrested for mischief, which includes the man who damaged the teepees; and two were brought into custody for domestic assault cases, White said.