LOCAL NEWS: UPPER CLEARWATER MEETING ▼ A5
Times
Thursday, June 25, 2015 ▼ Volume 51 No. 26 ▼ www.clearwatertimes.com ▼ $1.35 Includes GST
THE
NORTH THOMPSON
FINAL BOW:
2014
Brent Buck ends karate instructorship. See A12 inside.
CCNA BLUE RIBBON
First Place Best All Round Newspaper & Best Editorial Page Second Place Best Front Page All of Canada <1,250 circulation 2014 First Place General Excellence B.C. and Yukon <2,000 circulation 2014
Glacier lilies bloom early Left: Margo Venema enjoys the glacier lily bloom in the meadows on Trophy Mountain recently with four-legged companion Lily. The lilies have bloomed several weeks earlier than usual this year, possibly due to a relatively mild winter and spring. Below: An overall view of the glacier lilies in bloom on Trophy Mountain shows the north side of Raft Mountain in the distance. For a different view of the Trophies, see story on page A2. Photos by Ken Matheson
Clearwater hosts community forests meeting Times Staff Wells Gray Community Forest was pleased to join with BC Community Forest Association in welcoming 130 delegates to the 2015 Community Forest Conference and annual general meeting earlier this month. Representatives from community forests all over B.C. gathered in Clearwater to take part in workshops, discuss key forest policy issues, and to learn about community forestry in the North Thompson. “The Wells Gray Community Forest board of directors and society trustees were honoured to host this
Delegates attending BC Community Forests Association's annual general meeting and convention gather at Clearwater ski hill for a banquet on Friday evening, June 12. A total of 130 people from community forests across the province took part. Photo submitted
annual event,” said George Brcko, manager of Wells Gray Community Forest. “Our guests enjoyed a field trip that focused on the management of visual corridors, followed by a bagged lunch at our beautiful and quiet
Dutch Lake," he said. Brcko added that during the conference community members highlighted the many benefits they have received from their community forest in the presence of our local MLA Terry Lake, Minister of
Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations John Thomson, Clearwater Mayor John Harwood and council, and fellow B.C. community forest representatives. “A proud and rewarding moment for the Wells Gray
Community Forest occurred during the night of the banquet which was held at the local ski hill,” Brcko said. “Shelley Sim, on behalf of the Clearwater ski club, gave a powerful and inspiring speech shar-
Highway 5 Little Fort, BC 250-677-4441
ing the community’s appreciation of the community forest’s support for youth programs, including soccer and equipment and funding for the high school and local ski hill.” Topics highlighted during the confer-
Highway 5 Clearwater, BC 250-674-3148
Located on Highway 5
ence included building effective relationships with Aboriginal peoples, setting realistic community forest harvest rates, forest worker safety, and carbon management. Continued on page A3