West Kootenay Advertiser Thursday, September 19, 2013
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Community Change Through Collaborative Action 2013 Columbia Basin Symposium
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Creston October 18-20
Columbia Basin Trust invites you to connect with fellow Basin residents at the 2013 Columbia Basin Symposium with a focus on “Community Change Through Collaborative Action.”
Register Now www.cbt.org/2013symposium 1.800.505.8998
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The Symposium is free of charge and has limited space. If you are in doubt about travel, CBT has arranged online/virtual participation so you can take part from the comfort of your home or office.
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Seeds for Success
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Registration is now open for the 2013 Columbia Basin Symposium
Robson, again proves ideal for hosting rock climbing festival MARVIN BEATTY West Kootenay Advertiser
The West Kootenay Climbing Association, for a second year, held its rock climbing festival in Robson near the Lions Head Pub on Saturday, Sept. 14. Vince Hempsall an organizer and executive member of The Association of West Kootenay Rock Climbers (TAWKROC), a non-profit organization with a mandate to support and promote the responsible development and maintenance of safe outdoor rock climbing areas in the West Kootenays, said it was great to have nice weather this year. “It was a downpour last
year,” laughed Hempsall. “It’s great to be able to get people out here so they can see how it’s done and see how safe it is.” A number of lines are located on the 60 metre rock face behind the pub and the group spent the morning making access easier by removing a lot of overgrowth at the base of the climb. Hempsall said the event is meant to promote the activity in the region. A raffle set up with prizes of climbing gear and outdoor supplies acts as a fundraiser to purchase hardware for the many routes in the West Kootenays. Some of the gear in the Kinnaird region, for example, was
part of the funds raised are used to re i mbu rs e climbers who go out and replace equipment on their own. “The equipment stays up all year and Victoria Lawrence-Jeffery, 12, took a is stainless quick lesson on drilling holes into this but a lot of rock from David Lussier before hammerit needs reing in a hanger to support a long slack line placement.” during a festival. Marvin Beatty He said just replaced by the group rock climbbut had probably been in ing has been kind of a zenplace since the 60s. like activity for him since “That one line you see his college days and he enin front of us is $110,” joys seeing a path through, said Hempsall, who said and up, various routes.
Pura Vida hosts documentary night KIRSTEN HILDEBRAND West Kootenay Advertiser
The Pura Vida Foundation is hosting a documentary night to raise money for a shelter to support abandoned and severely abused girls in Peru. Three years ago the foundation’s Nathan Beninger started making a documentary about a little Peruvian boy with one leg — Ricardo’s Story. The filmmaker spent two weeks in the community in which the boy lived documenting his struggles. “I thought this was an interesting story to tell,” said Beninger, a photographer by trade who first went to Peru to capture its natural beauty. Instead, he became captivated by the struggles of that country’s poor and what he could do help. Ricardo’s story is common. His family lives in extreme poverty with food not available for several days at a time. His father abuses rubbing alcohol. Still, school is very important and Ricardo’s mother carries him there. For him, it’s a four-hour round trip. Beninger revisited the story this year as students at St. Jerome’s University in Waterloo, Ontario fitted the boy with a
Nelson’s Nathan with friends.
Beninger submitted
prosthetic leg. “The film’s second part is awesome. It shows him running around for the first time, playing soccer,” he said. “It was gratifying to see such a positive change for this boy. I really did something cool for this kid’s life,” said Beninger. Positive change is something Beninger works for at the expense of luxuries in his own life. It’s often a hard sacrifice considering the work is, at times, very dark. “People give me a hard time because this stuff is so depressing,” he said. “These kids were born and their lives’ paths were set at birth. Here we are changing that path.” While Beninger filmed Ricardo’s Story, he came across the property eventually purchased as a site for a bigger shelter he intends to build to house more young girls need-
ing help. Since 2009, Beninger has been helping a half dozen girls in a smaller shelter in Cusco where he lives with his wife and their young child. “With the girls we have in the shelter, it’s super gratifying because you get to see the change you are making,” he said. The documentary night will include a short film made on the work the foundation is doing through their shelter and the dire need for more space. “We’ve told the social workers hundreds of times that we have no more space, but they still bring us kids and it’s really hard to say no. I’m not going to say no to an 11-year-old kid that’s been forced into prostitution for the last year… if she’s not going to stay with us, I know where she’s going to go and it just makes be feel so bad,” said Beninger. A Freeride Entertainment film called Through Their Eyes about several girls from a shelter’s first trip to Machu Picchu will also be shown. The documentary night will be held at the Prestige on Friday, September 20. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the films start showing at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 and are available at the door.
Mountain guide and Nelson resident David Lussier helped show Victoria Lawrence-Jeffery how to drill holes in the rock and install hangers that were part of a long slack-line that was being set up. “The hanger should be positioned so that it’s in the direction of the pull,” said Lussier. Lawrence-Jeffery was a quick study and in no time had hammered the hanger into place. Though there was a minor incident near the end of the day, involving a young girl falling from a relatively low height, Hempsall said first responders were called out of an abundance of cau-
tion. “Just a sore bum in the end,” said the father of the girl after the event. “Didn’t even need x-rays. It was an unfortunate way for her to end the event as all of the kids were having so much fun with the variety of activities.” Over $1200 was raised through donations, a raffle and silent auction at the festival and the money will be used to help create new routes in the Castlegar area and other locations in the Kootenays. The aim of the association is to increase access to climbing areas through the building and maintenance of trails, stairs and relay platforms.
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Smell ‘n’ tell 1
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Call FortisBC’s 24-hour emergency line at 1-800-663-9911 or 911.
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