PENINSULA
NEWS REVIEW BREAKING NEWS: peninsulanewsreview.com
Wednesday, August 21, 2019
BC Ferries sets fiscal records
WE NEED YOUR HELP. THIS WEEK: CANNED TOMATOES
Hunger has no seasons. www.splfoodbank.com splfoodbank.com 250.655.0679 Hours: Monday to Friday 8am - 2pm
BLESSING of the ANIMALS Sunday, August 25 @ 10:15 am
Our Annual Blessing for our furry family members. Come with your favourite pet.
www.centralsaanichunited.ca 7180 East Saanich Road
Rick Stiebel News Staff
Lauren Richardson, who is raising awareness for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness Day on Sept. 9 showcases her red shoes, a symbol of sufferers and their supporters. (Nick Murray/ News Staff)
Red shoes raise awareness of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Bus ads and Sept. 9 awareness day remind parents ‘alcohol and pregnancy don’t mix’ Nick Murray News Staff
Cyclists all smiles
Rain doesn’t put a damper on ninth annual Tour de Victoria Page A10
People living with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) are raising awareness of the condition, Sept. 9. The disorders occur in people whose mothers drank alcohol during pregnancy and can include
physical, cognitive, sensory and behavioural problems. People living with FASD can experience trouble in school and participate in high-risk behaviours, sometimes leading to legal issues. Lauren Richardson, who lives in Sidney, is an advocate for FASD sufferers and wants to break the taboo surrounding it. She was born in El Salvador before being adopted by a family in Ontario. She says that although her birth mother was known to have drunk alcohol during pregnancy, it was not until Richardson was 27 that she was diagnosed with FASD. Now 32, and a qualified Care Aide, Richardson says she was assessed as having a non-verbal
learning disability at school but, largely because she was well-behaved and didn’t exhibit any defiant behaviours, was not diagnosed with FASD. If teachers and doctors had identified her condition earlier, she feels she would have received more support in her academic career, saying she “flew under the radar” at school, before graduating, and then initially “struggling in the workforce.” “There’s still a lot of stigma and that’s why people don’t really want to talk about it,” she says. “Especially mothers, and there isn’t enough of an awareness out there in the general public.” Continued A5
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BC Ferries sailed into uncharted waters by hitting a historic high watermark for the first fiscal quarter this year. According to an Aug. 15 BC Ferries news release, passenger and vehicle traffic numbers are the highest the company has ever experienced in the first quarter of a fiscal year. Net earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 2020 were $12.2 million, more than double the $6 million total for the same quarter of the previous year. “Net earnings are essential for us to fulfill our commitment to support the growing needs of coastal communities,” BC Ferries president and CEO Mark Collins said in the release. “With the public interest in mind, we reinvest all earnings back into the ferry system. This is evidenced by our $26 million of investments this quarter which is more than our $12.2 million of net earnings.” That enables expanded service, larger ships, upgraded terminals, debt reduction and financial sustainability, Collins added. BC Ferries provided more than 700 additional round trips compared to the same period last year to accommodate higher traffic volumes and deliver the increased service levels agreed to with the province. The company also introduced the Northern Sea Wolf into service and brought the upgraded Spirit of Vancouver Island back into service, which contributed to a 7.3 per cent increase in revenue and a corresponding 5 per cent increase in expenses, compared to the first quarter of the previous fiscal year. Continued A5