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» Handicapped support
Guilty plea in elk case ALBERNI VALLEY TIMES
wheelchairs or scooters; that cost is covered by the British Columbia Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation for those on disability assistance. But for funding to be provided the patient needs an assessment of mobility needs from an occupational therapist. Thompson has yet to gain this approval for an electric wheelchair. “It gets really complicated, it’s very challenging to live with a disability in Canada,” said Sheryl Harding, programs and services coordinator for the MS Society’s office for southern and central Vancouver Island. She said some of her clients have conditions that prevent them from safely using an electric wheelchair. “I have had people not get a prescription because a motorized wheelchair could be dangerous for them,” Harding said, adding that muscle control or impaired vision can be factors.
A man accused of elk poaching pleaded guilty on Wednesday. Wilson Timothy Jack (a.k.a. Timothy Wilson Jack), 49, pleaded guilty to hunting wildlife out of season under the B.C. Wildlife Act. He appeared in court without a lawyer. His sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 14 at 9:30 a.m. in the Port Alberni provincial court. Jack committed the poaching offence between Nov. 1, 2013 and Dec. 31, 2013. The poached elk was found south of Port Alberni on Nuu-chah-nulth territory. Jack’s arrest is part of an investigation into a wave of elk poaching on the West Coast in recent years. Ken Watts, vice-president of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, said there has been a number of elk poaching incidents in the region with at least 23 Roosevelt elk illegally killed since 2013. When eight elk carcasses were discovered in late 2013, the NTC offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction for poaching. B.C. Coastal Outfitters (now the Wildlife Stewardship Council) added $5,000 to the award amount. With pledges from other organizations, the total reward is $34,000. Jack was arrested and first appeared in Port Alberni court on Aug. 5, requesting more time to consult a defence lawyer. Jack is a member of the Ucluelet First Nation, one of the 14 communities served by the Nuuchahnulth Tribal Council. The NTC hopes the court proceedings will shed some light on the elk poaching problem. Roosevelt elk are on the Provincial Blue List, meaning that harvesting is limited to 300 hunting permits a year from the typical volume of 15,000 applications. While Roosevelt populations on Vancouver Island and the B.C. mainland have grown from 2,550 in 1986 to over 6,900, elk distribution south of Port Alberni remains as low as one animal per 10 square kilometres or less, according to a provincial management plan.
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MS has taken its toll on Port Alberni resident Pat Thompson. [ERIC PLUMMER, TIMES]
MS patient fights for mobility A system for the disabled has created struggles for Pat Thompson ERIC PLUMMER ALBERNI VALLEY TIMES
T
wenty one years after her diagnosis with multiple sclerosis, the disease has taken its toll on Pat Thompson. While the neurological condition progressed, the 61-yearold Port Alberni resident has always fought for her independence – but a complicated system of government and organizational policies now has Thompson struggling for her mobility. MS is an incurable disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the transmission of information from the brain to the body. The condition entails the immune system attacking the fatty substance covering nerve fibres and the nerves themselves, resulting in a variety of frightening symptoms. For Thompson her condition brings several seizures a day, as well as internal bleeding and a hernia that has prompted 17 surgeries. A medical document from Feb. 3, 2012 indicates “relapsing remitting MS,” a
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“It gets really complicated, it’s very challenging to live with a disability in Canada.”
an electric wheelchair would better suit the severity of her condition, allowing Thomson to move around her home and in stores that don’t allow scooters. She’s had one in the past, but the electric wheelchair was destroyed when Thompson was hit by a car in 2009. That’s when she switched to a scooter. But now Thompson fears what could happen to her if she continues to rely on her legs as the condition worsens. “The spine is so narrow and it affects all of the nerves going through the spine, which is one of the reasons why I’m losing my legs now and they’re buckling on me,” she said. “I’m desperate for a wheelchair so that I don’t end up falling on my face. I’m getting too old to be hitting cement floors all the time.” As a resident in a Port Alberni complex for low-income, handicapped people, an electric wheelchair worth thousands of dollars is a daunting investment for Thompson. Island Health does not fund electric
Sheryl Harding, the MS Society’s programs services coordinator
form of the disease that brings defined attacks, followed by periods when symptoms improve. “Right now I’m under active attack with the MS – it’s affecting the legs and the vision in my only (working) eye. It’s been going for about six or eight months and there’s no way of telling when it’s going to stop,” she said. “Even just walking around the house my knees start to buckle, so I’m spending literally my life in this bed.” Thompson uses a scooter to get around outdoors, but the $10,000 machine needs replacing, as the ignition sometimes fails while she’s crossing the street. She believes
Celebrity basketball game supports students
Black Sheep chew up Comox rugby squad
An entertaining Harlem Globetrotterstyle game is coming back this month to clothe, feed and educate students.
The Comox Valley team was heavily outclassed by a superior Alberni side in the local club’s second home match.
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