INSIDE: Annual Yard and Garden Show means spring has sprung Pg. B1 T U E S D A Y
March 22, 2011
student takes on Montreal 3 Fashion N E W S ,
SPORTS,
WEATHER
&
E N T E R T A I N M E N T chilliwacktimes.com
Local pols prepare for election
BY PAUL J. HENDERSON phenderson@chilliwacktimes.com
O
ne by one, federal riding associations in Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon are gearing up for an imminent election call. On Monday night, local Conservative Party members were at the Coast Hotel choosing between retiring MP Chuck Strahl’s son Mark Strahl and long-time Strahl supporter, Ernie Charlton. ( The decision was made after press time.) Chuck Strahl announced on March 12 that he would not seek re-election when the country next goes to the polls. Because
Conservatives, NDP and Greens are ready whenever writ drops
the threat of an election is imminent, given the tabling of the federal budget this week, the national party wanted to make sure candidates were lined up in all ridings. Just two days later, 32-year-old Mark Strahl announced he would s e e k t h e Co n s e r va t i v e p a r t y nomination for the riding. The next day, Charlton announced he would try for the nomination. On Thursday, the Green Party announced that Jamie Hoskins had been selected as the candi-
date in the riding. Hoskins is a 31-year-old employment counsellor and facilitator, is married and has a three-year-old son. Hoskins said his decision to be the candidate for the party comes as a direct result of working with families facing tough economic times on a daily basis. “ You can only see so many people worr ied about losing their homes and providing for their children before you need to face your fears, answer the moral call, and do something about it,”
Hoskins said in a press release. As for the NDP, Gwen O’Mahony was chosen as the federal candidate for Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon in April 2010. O’Mahony ran unsuccessfully in the 2009 provincial election against Barry Penner in Chilliwack-Hope. In the 2008 federal election, Helen Kormendy was the NDP’s candidate and finished second to Strahl with 18 per cent of the votes. Strahl received 62 per cent. As of Monday, the Liberal Party had not yet chosen a candidate for the riding but party insiders tell the Times there is considerable interest and someone will be chosen soon.
Photo submitted
Green Party candidate Jamie Hoskins
Homeless numbers don’t tell the story
NATURE A HERON OR TWO
BY TYLER OLSEN tolsen@chilliwacktimes.com
T
Paul J. Henderson/TIMES
One of hundreds of great blue herons currently building or repairing nests at the Great Blue Heron Reserve in Chilliwack. See page 17 and www.chilliwacktimes.com for more photos of the heron colony in breeding season.
he numbers from Wednesday’s homeless count aren’t yet known, but those involved say poverty is still a major problem in Chilliwack. Kim Lloyd, who is the HIV/AidsHepatitis C Prevention co-ordinator with Pacific Community Resources (PCRS) and who organized the homeless count, said volunteers counted more people on the street than in 2008, when around 100 people were tallied. That number, though, represents only the tip of the iceberg, with those who are couch-surfing or employed under-represented, according to Lloyd. In addition to tallying the number of homeless people found, volunteers also use interviews to dig beneath the surface of those who don’t have a steady place to live. Those interviews are used by support services in town to cater pro-
Poverty is a ‘major problem’ no matter how many counted
grams to the needs of the homeless. Lloyd said many of the homeless people interviewed are sleeping behind dumpsters, in parks, in bushes and in abandoned buildings. “They’re throughout Chilliwack,” she said. “They’re really all over the place. There’s no tent city.” Asked how the volunteers approach people suspected of being homeless, Lloyd said “extremely diplomatically.” “Just because you’re homeless doesn’t mean you are perhaps carrying a knapsack and have a hole in your jeans. There are homeless people who are actually employed See POVERTY, page 4
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