TUESDAY MARCH 24, 2015
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RED SKELTON TRIBUTE AT LEGION
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Parksville branch to host Reflections of Red comedy show on April 4
Rules against door-to-door sales a challenge for painter
RESEARCHERS WANT INPUT
Looking for rare seniors Survey seeks answers to why some live longer CANDACE WU news@pqbnews.com
British Columbian researchers are trying to answer the age old question: what is the secret to a long, healthy life? And to help find the answer, lead researcher Angela Brooks-Wilson said she’s seeking “super seniors” to take part in the Canada-wide study. Brooks-Wilson defines super seniors as people who are age 85 or older, who have never been diagnosed with cancer, heart disease or stroke, dementia or Alzheimer’s, diabetes or lung disease. She said super seniors are “actually quite rare” and the study is looking for as many participants as possible. Parksville Qualicum Beach is known for being a retirement Mecca and the oldest community in Canada. According to Statistics Canada, the average age in Qualicum Beach is 64. “The idea behind studying people who are 85 and free of disease is that we want to look at health rather than just longevity,” Brooks-Wilson told The NEWS from Vancouver, where the study is based. She explains the purpose is to determine whether super seniors have genetic characteristics that protect them from major diseases like cancer. Additionally, a branch of the study will look at centenarians, people who are age 100 or older. Centenarians are eligible regardless of any health issues. The Canadian Cancer Society is providing $200,000 of funding over the next two years for the study, a first in Canada, which is the second phase of a research project that started more than a decade ago. The first phase looked at 500 super seniors based in the Metro Vancouver area, who were interviewed in their homes. See GENETICS, page A7
AUREN RUVINSKY PHOTO
CRUNCH: There were no serious injuries reported from this multi-vehicle collision Friday morning on Highway 19A in Parksville near the intersection of Martindale Road.
TODAY THROUGH FRIDAY IN PARKSVILLE COMMUNITY PARK
Vehicle access to beach closed You may have to walk a little farther this week to access one of Canada’s greatest beaches. The City of Parksville says the beachfront road in Community Park will be closed today through Friday, eliminating all vehicle access to the beachfront. Late each afternoon, the city says it will attempt to reopen the road.
“However, it is possible the road will remain closed overnight,” the city said through a news release. “During this time, vehicle parking will be accommodated in the overflow parking area behind the curling rink.” The work being done includes repair of the drainage issues which cause roadway flooding in heavy rain. The city said this will involve trench-
ing about 30 metres past the washroom building to install catch basins and drainage pipe. Meanwhile, construction on the food truck pads is underway with the water connection to the site completed on March 18 and electrical trenching to be completed this week, according to the city. — NEWS Staff/City of Parksville
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