STILL MARCHING ALONG: We close out this year’s Grad trilogy PAGES 1011
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THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2022
RETURN OF THE STRAWBERRY TEA VOL. 48 NO. 24
BIUndercurrent
BowUndercurrent www.bowenislandundercurrent.com
Tea Time Photo Gallery
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Canada Day Reimagined ALEX KURIAL Editor
CRAFTY KIDS: Greg Cormier and his team of carpentry students from West Vancouver Secondary School have been hard at work this term building a carport on the site of the new Fire Hall on Miller Road. Once complete, the structure will house the Bowen IslandVolunteer Fire Department’s vintage 1969 PumperTruck.To see more pictures, and to learn what the carport is made out of, check out Page 7. / Alex Kurial photo
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Reconciliation, celebration, and community are the three pillars of Bowen’s 2022 Canada Day lineup of events, set for Friday at Bowen Island Community School. “It’s always been a big deal on the island, there’s always been a very celebratory Canada Day festival,” says Kat Stephens, recreation programmer with Bowen Island Community Recreation (BICR), who organizes the event. Prior to the pandemic she says the day had taken on a Bowfest-like atmosphere, and over the years migrated from BICS to Crippen Park as it became more popular. Following a subdued 2020 Canada Day – in the absence of any gatherings BICR instead made a video honouring local first responders – it remained to be seen how the 2021 version would play out. But following the discovery of 200 gravesites at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in May, and thousands more across the country since, the decision was made to take a new approach to July 1. “Such a somber awakening really underscores the urgency to take reconciliation seriously and really respond to the Truth and Reconciliation calls,” says Stephens. The group set out to accomplish this and their research brought them to the 2017 movie Indian Horse, depicting the story of a residential school survivor. Accompanying the film – and lining up with Canada’s 150th anniversary – was the “Next 150 Challenge”, a series of activities designed to educate people on the importance of reconciliation. The challenges are developed by Indigenous community members, and can involve anything from making Bannock, to consuming different types of media, or even examining how internet speeds differ across the country. CONTINUED ON PAGE 7