Nutcracker dances into Vanier Hall ... Page 30 Four local high school teams played the best in BC to claim the double-A volleyball title, and one of them came out on top
The Duchess Park Condors gather for a group photo on Monday, Dec. 8 at the high school’s gym, for the raising of the BC School Sports double-A boys volleyball provincial championship banner. Turn to Page 36 for full coverage.
Members suggest that councillors deserve more because of media, public criticism
COLIN SLARK Citizen Staff
Prince George mayor and council could be in line for huge pay increases if they accept a recommendation from the Advisory Committee on Council Remuneration approved at its Friday, Dec. 5 meeting.
Towards the end of each four-year city council term, a committee made up of members of the public is assembled to review elected officials’ salaries and benefits and compare them to those from a list of other BC municipalities.
That list includes Coquitlam, the Township of Langley, the City of Delta, the District of North Vancouver, Saanich, Nanaimo, Victoria, Kelowna, Kamloops and Chilliwack.
At the current iteration of the committee’s third meeting on Dec. 5, members voted to recommend that starting in the next PG council’s term, councillors’ pay should be boosted from the current $42,678 per year to $58,346 and the mayor’s from $140,068 to $148,268.
That’s an increase of $15,668 per year for councillors, representing a hike of 36.7 per cent.
For the mayor, that’s an $8,200 per year increase, a raise of close to 5.9 per cent.
A report prepared for the council by Sainas Consult Inc. showed the population, total operating budget, base mayor’s salary, base councillor’s salary and the ratio of mayor to councillor salary for Prince George and each of the other municipalities used for the compensation comparison.
Another chart showed the 25th percentile, median, average and 75th percentile populations, total operating budget, mayor’s salary, councillor’s salary and councillor-to-mayor’s salary ratio.
Of the compared municipalities, Prince George has the third-lowest
mayoral salary, with Kamloops and Victoria paying theirs less. For councillor salaries, Prince George’s was by far the lowest.
Prince George also lagged behind the median mayoral salary of $148,268 and councillor salary of $58,346 as well as the average mayoral salary of $157,040 and councillor salary of $62,335.
In the peer municipalities, councillors make between 37 to 43 per cent of what the mayor does. In Prince George, councillors make 30 per cent of the mayor’s salary.
However, Prince George has by far the lowest population of the compared municipalities with 15,000 people fewer than the next-smallest and the second-lowest operating budget behind only Chilliwack.
Discussing the differences between municipalities, Jen Higham said that Prince George elected officials have to deal with snow control more than in other places and have an increased workload because they have to deal with “associated complaints, whining leading into spring potholes” and so on.
Fellow member Dave Mothus said that he agreed it’s a tough position for them to be in, but they don’t necessarily know what other councils get beat up on by their residents.
There was some discussion of adjusting the councillor-to-mayor ratio to 35 per cent, but ultimately the committee decided to recommend that they boost both the mayor’s salary and councillors’ salary to the median among the peer municipalities.
Doing so would set a 40 per cent councillor-to-mayor salary ratio if council approves the recommendation when it is presented to it at a future meeting. The committee decided against raising salaries to the average as it would have represented about another $4,000 a year for councillors and $9,000 more for the mayor per year.
“We’re going to get beat up,” Gendron said of the decision.
“We’re going to get beat up regardless,” Higham said.
Higham also pointed out the large pay discrepancy between elected officials in Prince George and the peer municipalities and the low ratio of councillor to mayor pay.
Chairperson Denis Gendron said that the peer municipalities all have larger tax bases and the snow removal budget is presented in a finalized state to council for final approval.
Mothus said that if the city wants people to run for council, civic duty is not the same incentive that it used to be and the compensation needs to reflect elected officials being available to the public and potentially getting criticized for every decision seven days a week.
Social media, Higham said, has opened a new avenue of abuse that didn’t use to exist and she wouldn’t sign up for council to be harassed 24-7.
“You just attract different people who can put up with being turned into a cartoon, right?” Mothus said, likely in reference to Citizen political cartoons. “You’ll just have to attract people who can put up with it.”
Participating remotely via text chat, Diana Duchscherer said “No one wants to sign up for this, to be honest. It doesn’t help that a local newspaper also shows strong negative views.”
Deputy corporate officer Leslie Kellett pointed out that the committee is making a recommendation that council will still have to approve.
Some other items were also discussed.
Currently, the city covers 100 per cent of the mayor’s health insurance premiums and 50 per cent of councillors’. There was some talk of boosting the councillors to 100 per cent coverage but decided against it given the wage increase recommendation.
It was decided not to adjust the child-care allowance established by the previous iteration of the council, which manager of legislative services Ethan Anderson said had yet to be claimed.
The city’s acting mayor role rotates between each councillor each month and the committee decided not to add compensation for that work, something that some of the peer municipalities do.
Also decided was to keep the quadrennial cycle for the city’s future council remuneration reviews, though Duchscherer suggested at one point that the current committee be retained for the next four years to determine the progress of their suggested changes.
No changes were recommended for council’s technology or vehicle allowances.
The committee’s next meeting is set for Thursday, Dec. 18 at 9:30 a.m.
We consider Christmas as the encounter, the great encounter, the historical encounter, the decisive encounter, between God and mankind. He who has faith knows this truly; let him rejoice. -PopePaulVI
At Ave Maria Specialties we have something for all your Christmas Traditions. From Advent Candles and wreathes, to Nativity scenes in all shapes and sizes, as well as beautiful, boxed packs of Christmas Cards. Ave Maria also carries gifts for everyone in your life. Winter hats and gloves, as well as lovely hanging crosses, rosaries and so much more! We are incredibly happy to be able to showcase these beautiful products for this amazing time of year. Wishing you a joyful Christmas Season. Many blessings to you and your family, from all of us at Ave Maria Specialties.
COLIN SLARK Citizen Staff
With Prince George city council’s budget deliberations about a month and a half away, members of the Standing Committee of Finance and Audit got a crash course and a general overview of the proposed 2026 operating budget.
Here’s a breakdown of projected changes to expenses and revenues for city departments and services in 2026.
Salaries and benefits: $3.165 million increase over 2025
Increases for this line item include salary increases from the 2024 to 2026 Canadian Union of Public Employees collective agreement, wage increases from the International Association of Fire Fighters collective agreements, wage increases for management and exempt employees, and cost of living adjustments for mayor and council.
While the IAFF collective agreement expired at the end of 2024, the city is still budgeting for the increases and putting it aside as contingency funds. Around $1.2 million in contingency funds are noted in the 2026 draft budget.
The city is adding the equivalent of 4.5 full-time positions.
Two of them are new dispatchers for the local 911 service as the City of Nelson is joining the program. As the service is run and paid by the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George, the increased expenses are offset by increased revenue.
Two arborists are being added to city staff after being approved as a service enhancement in the 2025 budget. The remaining half-FTE is from the realignment of staff in the sewer and water services.
RCMP contract — $1.994 million increase over 2025
This line item increases every year, director of finance and IT services Kris Dalio said, especially after the RCMP unionized.
“We used to see pretty modest increases from the RCMP, very
affordable for the most part,” Dalio said.
“But now the labour is becoming something that is really hitting a lot of municipalities pretty hard. You’ll notice that it’s a $2 million increase … and it actually should be higher. We have funded less members due to data that we’re seeing that shows that all of these 157 members for the contract can’t really be filled at the same time. People go on leave for stress leave or paternity leave or any number of reasons. So even though the contract’s for 157, we’re only funding 130 members at the cost per member that you see in there.”
Coun. Tim Bennett said he was surprised that he didn't see a service enhancement listed in the budget for extra officers, as council has approved requests for them in the last three years.
Dalio said that’s because of the vacancy rate. There was a five-year plan for increasing RCMP staffing, but the city is taking a one-year hiatus so the city can see if the RCMP can fill the existing vacancies.
Director of administrative services Eric Depenau said that given the vacancy rates, it doesn’t seem appropriate to advance the hiring plan at this time. This decision, he said, was made in agreement between Prince George RCMP officer-in-charge Supt. Darin
had considered a cost-sharing agreement with School District 57, as votes for both the city and district take place concurrently.
Manager of legislative services Ethan Anderson said the cost estimate does factor in cost-sharing as well as with the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George where possible. Cost savings are found by using school district buildings where possible.
A meeting with the school district on election plans was scheduled within a week of the committee meeting, Anderson said.
He said the cost of renting voting machines in 2026 is $58,000, up from $36,000 in 2022.
Rappel, himself and city manager Walter Babicz.
Committee chair Coun. Cori Ramsay said she’s been wondering about the future of contract policing across Canada.
“I wonder if we should be asking the question around the potential cost savings of a municipal force,” Ramsay said. “It’s an exercise we haven’t done before. Obviously, there’s some restrictions there provincially … I think there also comes certain additional privileges such as having a police board or local control over your police force.”
After the RCMP’s next round of collective bargaining, Ramsay said, she worries that the city’s contract with them might approach 50 per cent of the total operating budget.
This category represents a grab bag of things that don’t necessarily fit into other categories.
While the city has been putting aside $35,000 a year from 2023 to 2026 to spread out the costs of the 2026 municipal election, Dalio said the city has had to add an extra contribution to meet the rising costs. The current projected cost of the election is around $186,300.
Coun. Tim Bennett asked if the city
“Hand ballot voting is incredibly slow and incredibly costly,” Anderson said. “I have to hire extra staff to do that counting and typically you get slower results.”
Also included in this category is a drop in aquatics-related expenses due to the planned two-year closure of the Aquatic Centre for extensive renovations and upgrades projected at $241,777.
However, the closure of the pool will also mean a decrease in aquatics revenues.
The city is doing what it can to accommodate user groups who typically use the Aquatic Centre for their programming, Dalio said the city doesn’t know how many users will make the switch to the Canfor Leisure Pool during the closure.
Director of civic facilities and events
Andy Beesley said that the Aquatic Centre is different from a lot of other facilities in that most of its labour is part-time.
Some of those staff will be offered hours at the Canfor pool and they will be adjusted as the city gets an idea of drop-in rates during the closure.
With the city finally closing down the encampment on Lower Patricia Boulevard known as Moccasin Flats after winning its court case at the BC Supreme Court, a $190,000 drop in legal fees is projected for 2026.
Other changes in this category include a $155,813 increase to the myPG Grants program, a $163,990 in stormwater expenses, a $910,967 increase (with corresponding revenue increase) to the events budget, an increase of $100,000 for development services to hire outside level 3 building inspectors, a $100,000 drop in insurance premiums and a $272,000 for IT software providers.
Snow control — $1 million increase from 2025
While many of the snow control expenses are related to how much snow falls in a given year, Dalio noted that the cost of labour, equipment and supplies keep going up.
As previously reported by The Citizen, some members of the committee have already mused about gambling with a lower-than-recommended snow control budget for 2026 as they did in 2025.
Debt servicing — $663,705 decrease from 2025
Every five years, the city’s long-term debts are refinanced at current interest rates. The Bank of Canada lowering the prime lending rate has led to some of the city’s debts being refinanced at a lower rate, resulting in savings.
sword. Drops to the prime rate also mean drops to the interest rate for the city’s investments. In 2026, the city is currently projecting a $1.8 million decrease in investment revenue from 2025.
The draft 2026 city budget includes a $304,104 increase in the transit budget from 2025. The city has renewed its annual operating agreement with BC Transit and those increased figures are reflected in the budget.
Transit services — $304,104 increase from 2025
Around the middle of 2025, the city renewed its annual operating agreement with BC Transit and those increased figures are reflected in the budget.
Prince George Public Library — $300,973 increase over 2025
Dalio said the library has submitted a preliminary budget to him. The library is funded by the city, which is the
tires and maintenance.
“This is normally a number that is at least double that figure of $163,000,” Dalio said. “This is a really good news story for the fleet drivers.”
Utilities — $76,360 net increase from 2025
Prince George is expecting to pay $47,000 for electricity, $25,175 more for water and sewer services, $27,785 for the district energy system and $23,600 less for natural gas in 2026.
capital budget.
As an example, Dalio said that a renovation to city hall’s fourth floor the previous year didn’t meet the threshold and didn’t end up in the capital budget.
Revenues — $1.534 million increase from 2025
Projected changes to revenues in 2026 include:
• $1.239 million increase in the tax base growth through new properties coming online and property assessment changes
• $98,582 decrease in grants-in-lieu from tax-exempt properties like those owned by other levels of government
• $341,000 increase to 9-1-1 dispatch revenues
• $1.6 million increase to fees and charges
• $1.8 million drop in investment revenue
• $272,751 in internal recoveries from other funds
Discussing the drop in investment revenues, Dalio said that unlike private companies, the city’s investments have to be principle-protected. That limits some flexibility and ties the
COLIN SLARK Citizen Staff
Early budget documents for the City of Prince George show that staff will ask council to approve a 5.98 per cent tax increase in 2026, but a couple of councillors expressed unease with that figure at the Wednesday, Dec. 3 meeting of the Standing Committee on Finance and Audit.
That budget request includes around $6.2 million in proposed increased spending on general services, around $1.5 million more money allocated to the general infrastructure reinvestment fund, a $1 million increase to the snow control budget and a $300,000 increase to the road rehabilitation budget.
In total, it would represent almost $9 million more in spending than the 2025 budget if approved by city council. There’s another $2.7 million in potential service enhancements which, if approved, would increase the required tax hike to 7.79 per cent.
For the representative household in Prince George, it would mean an increase of around $174.74 in property taxes. In 2025, the representative residential property was valued at $453,777. Director of finance and IT services Kris Dalio explained to the committee that each percentage of tax increase represents almost $1.5 million in spending.
A chart included in the report on the operating budget compared Prince George’s tax increase percentage over the last few years compared to Saanich, Nanaimo, Coquitlam, Victoria, Maple Ridge, Chilliwack and Kelowna.
Of those municipalities, Prince George had the third-lowest percentage increase in the last five years at 25.67 per cent and the second-lowest representative home tax at $2,922. The chart also shows that if the 5.98 per cent increase was approved, it would be the lowest since 2022, when city property taxes went up by three per cent.
After getting an explanation of changes to various expenses and revenues in the projected 2026 through 2028 operating budget, Coun. Tim Bennett
COLIN SLARK Citizen Staff
said he didn’t think that residents would necessarily care about how Prince George is doing compared to other municipalities.
“But rather, you know, the fact that they’ve seen a 25.67 per cent increase over the last five years,” Bennett said.
“This is one of many tax increases that they’re continuing to see … I’m not just talking about the city, but talking provincially, federally, we have to be very cognizant that in the coming years, we’re going to see increases from the regional district with relation to the new hospital tower.”
He said he was having trouble with the 5.98 per cent figure and that council will have to dig deep to see how it could be lowered, which could come with service decisions.
In response, Dalio emphasized that he felt that the proposed 2026 budget is based off of maintaining existing services “and there’s no fluff left in it.”
“If there were to be cuts, we’d have to talk about service impacts and what that would mean,” Dalio said.
Coun. Ron Polillo said he’d like to see this year’s tax increase below four per cent, which would mean reducing spending by around $3 million.
After convincing his colleagues to gamble on reducing the snow budget in 2025, he said he would look at it again.
In 2025, staff asked for a snow control budget of $10.6 million. Polillo successfully moved for it to be lowered to $10 million.
Projections in Dalio’s report said that with mild snowfall thus far, expenses
are expected to be in the neighbourhood of $9.3 million in 2025.
“I know our crews have done tremendous work with roads and road rehab, maybe some degree (of cuts) there,” Polillo said. “I also had — I know it would be quite small, but thoughts about council contingency. I think we reduced it to $50,000. I’ll propose this when we have budget discussions, but I would say get rid of council contingency.”
Polillo also said that while the proposed enhancements in Dalio’s report are worthy, he can’t go along with them.
Coun. Trudy Klassen said she would have liked to see staff come with multiple potential budgets representing zero, two and four per cent tax increases and what it would take to achieve them.
She said that though Prince George compares favourably to other municipalities, she worries that the city is losing its affordability and should do what it takes to maintain that so that people can continue to choose to live here.
Coun. Garth Frizzell said provincial data shows that Prince George has the lowest representative tax for comparable municipalities in BC except for Abbotsford, but when it comes to how much is paid in tax per person in the city to the Fraser-Fort George Regional Hospital District, there are only six more expensive in the province.
That’s before the major spending has begun for the University Hospital of Northern BC acute care tower project, too.
The electrical and mechanical contractors for the $1.579 billion University Hospital of Northern BC acute care tower project have been selected, according to a Friday, Dec. 5 Northern Health media release.
With the selection of PML Professional Mechanical Ltd. for the mechanical aspects of the build and Houle Electric for the electrical components, the health authority said the full alliance team undertaking the project has been assembled.
“The alliance contract is a collaborative approach to project delivery that brings together the owner, designers, and contractors as one integrated team under a single agreement,” Northern Health’s release said.
Both companies are BC-based. PML is based out of Coquitlam, while Houle Electric has 11 offices across the province, including one on Opie Crescent in Prince George.
On Oct. 1, Northern Health announced that Missisauga, Ont.-based EllisDon Corporation had been selected as the main construction partner and DIALOG BC Architecture and Interior Design Planning Inc. would be handling the design work.
The release said that the alliance partners will now work with Infrastructure BC to prepare for the relocation of the Northern Interior Health Unit building in spring 2026, the start of tower construction in fall 2026 and the tower’s anticipated opening date in winter 2031.
At the Monday, Dec. 1 meeting of Prince George city council, a rezoning application for the hospital was approved to allow for the acute care tower project.
KENNEDY GORDON Citizen Managing Editor
The idea that our mayor and council deserve a “hazard pay” raise because they face public criticism, media scrutiny or (and this was definitely about us) an editorial cartoon is as unserious as it is revealing.
It suggests not that the job of a city councillor has become harder, but that some of our current political representatives have grown softer.
First off, there’s this: taking criticism is part of being a politician and always has been.
From the earliest days of newspapers more than two centuries ago, editorials and editorial cartoons have been essential tools for holding elected officials to account.
They needle, they provoke, and sometimes they sting, but they are part of a healthy democratic society. If someone can’t handle being the focus of a political caricature or an editorial, maybe public office just isn’t for them.
But you wouldn’t know that from the latest meeting of the Advisory Committee on Council Remuneration, which is made up of members of the community. It’s their job to recommend pay increases to council, who will then approve or reject raises that would take effect when the next council is elected.
Members voted on Dec. 5 to recommend that starting in the next PG council’s term, councillors’ pay should be boosted from the current $42,678
per year to $58,346 and the mayor’s from $140,068 to $148,268. It’s a hike of $15,668 or 36.7 per cent per year for councillors and $8,200 or 5.9 per cent for the mayor.
But there’s more to it. A couple of the committee members suggested that
councillors’ pay should go up so much in part because they have to deal with online insults and Facebook complaints as well as criticism from their local newspaper. Think of it as a “hurt feelings tax.”
One committee member lamented
that the possibility of being “turned into a cartoon” makes serving on council difficult. Another pointed out that the newspaper “shows strong negative views.”
We acknowledge the financial support of the government of Canada. Nous reconnaissons l’appui financier du gouvernement du Canada.
Kennedy Gordon Managing Editor
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We don’t know what the future holds for
On Nov. 22, Lori Gauthier responded to my letter about Indigenous landclaims lawsuits.
She didn’t deny my concern that such claims raise the spectre of never-ending litigation. Her letter never answered whether that was consistent with reconciliation.
She did suggest, however, that simply raising the idea that the Cowichan band might take over the private property of current owners in Richmond is “racist.” This is an accusation that is flung about all too casually. It is also totally inappropriate.
Justice Young herself raised the idea that the status of the property holders’ title could be resolved by “subsequent litigation.”
I note that Gauthier does not say that
the Lheidli T’enneh won’t attempt to take over private property if they are successful in their lawsuit. In fact, no one on behalf of the Lheidli T’enneh has said anything about what they are or are not claiming. Neither they nor the government has disclosed one iota about the nature or status of their lawsuit.
Are Prince George property owners to be kept in the dark like those in Richmond until we find out that a court decision has already been made? How can a government say it has a mandate to conclude negotiations on such issues when they have not been transparent enough to involve the electorate? The Lheidli T’enneh voted on a proposed treaty.
Is the rest of society not to be involved in that process?
There are many other concerns that might arise out of any land claim by the Lheidli T’enneh, but until they or the government deign to disclose more about what is being sought, it is impossible to address matters in a meaningful way. Perhaps that is the aim of their silence.
James Cluff
Prince George
We have it pretty good when it comes
The citizens of PG really are spoiled by winter snow removal. PG is the only major city in BC in a snow belt and historically averages 15 feet of snow per season.
The city’s annual snow-removal budget is larger than the six largest
That second one is a common and telling complaint that comes from a fundamental misunderstanding of journalism.
News reporting is not negative or positive. It provides facts and lets people make up their own minds.
Politicians who cry “negative news” or “fake news” are really saying they don’t like how an accurate recounting of what they say and do makes them look. They’d rather blame the messenger than admit fault.
Editorials and political cartoons, on the other hand, are not news; they are carefully considered opinion, a long-established journalistic tradition that reflects the position of the newspaper on issues of the day.
A politician’s discomfort with how the public reacts to those opinions shouldn’t be a factor in how much they’re paid, especially with an increase like 36.7 per cent on the table.
That recommendation, by the way, would be laughable if it weren’t so
tone-deaf.
Prince George is not Coquitlam, Saanich or Kelowna.
It has the smallest population of all the municipalities used for comparison and the second-lowest operating budget.
Yet the committee wants to rocket local council salaries up to the median of cities with far larger tax bases and more complex municipal infrastructures.
Meanwhile, Prince George faces very real shortcomings in its infrastructure. Whether it is the deteriorating trail system, the Agriplex, Studio 2880, or Kopar Memorial Arena, council needs to start investing more in the foundations of our community that make living here enjoyable.
The committee’s proposal shows it is out of touch with what our part time city councillors actually do and with what their constituents are living through by recommending a raise worth more than most families’ annual grocery bills.
OK, now for that obvious part.
What is especially eyebrow-raising is where this “hurt feelings tax” narrative came from.
It started with a comment about our cartoons from committee member Dave Mothus, who has had a long and very public friendship with Coun. Kyle Sampson, including publicly endorsing him in the last municipal election.
The “negative news” bit came from committee member Diana Duchscherer, who was Sampson’s financial agent during his last campaign.
No one is claiming he put them up to it but given his recent public excoriations of the local newspaper’s coverage of him it would be easy, even predictable, for the local Facebook crowd to make their own assumptions.
When elected leaders attack the press, and those close to them then argue that council deserves more money because of media criticism, the optics are terrible.
Besides, any elected official so preoccupied with what people say online or what a newspaper publishes is not focusing on the actual job, which
cities’ combined annual snow-removal budgets.
This is the only major city in BC that not only clears the sidewalks but sands them as well. Most other municipalities require business and homeowners to maintain their sidewalks or face fines or other punitive measures. While the city’s snow-removal plan is far from perfect, generally speaking, most areas of the city are cleared in a reasonable amount of time. Even when the city clears residential streets, they clear the berms made by passing graders — no other major municipality in BC does that.
Yes, complain all you want about snow removal, but compared to other municipalities in the province, we are spoiled rotten. Just remember that the next time it snows.
Dean Soiland
Prince George
involves solving problems, making decisions and stewarding public resources. If criticism distracts them, how would they handle an actual crisis?
Serving on city council isn’t supposed to be a smooth ride.
It requires thick skin, a degree of selflessness and a community-first attitude. It also means being under constant scrutiny, which isn’t an occupational hazard. It’s a democratic necessity.
This pay-raise-related series of events — which you would not know happened without our coverage — is exactly why scrutiny from the community’s newspaper of record (and its readers) is so important.
The pay raise suggestion will eventually have to go to this council for approval or rejection and will take effect after the 2026 election.
Any members of this council voting for a 36.7 per cent raise who plan to run for re-election should be ready for open, honest reaction from the public and the press. And that may include a cartoon or two.
editor@pgcitizen.ca
How did we get here? A retelling of the Prince George Aquatic Centre saga
This story picks up the story of “How did we get here?” halfway through the answer
Take a few steps back to find the root of the problem, lack of basic maintenance in the city infrastructure.
Things like ignoring peeling paint on metal surfaces like beams and piping allow the constant humid air to cause major rust damage.
What once could have been repaired with a wire brush & some paint now becomes an expensive repair.
Ignoring simple repairs also is one of the root causes why many millions had to be spent to replace the police station, Fire Hall No. 1 and the Four Seasons Pool. The Aquatic Centre avoided joining this list by the skin of its teeth.
Will the city ever learn? One consultant reported water has damaged the facade of CN Centre!
Will they do repairs or wait until a $500K stopgap emergency patch job is done like what happened to the Playhouse?
Council should demand staff report on how maintenance is done and who is ultimately responsible(there is someone right, right?)
Bobs your uncle
Share your views on our stories at
Privacy concerns lead to change in rules for letters to council
Have our councillors just been hoodwinked by city staff? The change they approved weakens the significance of public input. Council needs full addresses at submission to judge whether comments come from affected neighbours or outside interests.
Removing this information strips away essential context and makes letters easier to manipulate, diluting the voice of real residents. Privacy concerns are easily solved by redacting addresses before publication, which protects people and avoids link issues without compromising integrity.
Yes, it requires extra effort, but that’s sometimes necessary to uphold genuine democratic values.
Choosing administrative ease over accuracy signals that resident letters don’t carry meaningful weight. This decision reduces transparency, undermines trust, and lowers the quality of the consultation process.
Perham
Finance committee discusses what it would take to lower 2026 tax hike
Turn the process on its head. Normally, each department director passes their spending plan up the chain until it reaches the finance committee, mayor and council. Instead, call the city manager in and tell him that the tax increase will be a maximum of four per cent for the coming year. Give him details of what must be included and what are the nice ‘haves.’ Then tell him to get to work.
The various department heads, and those who report to them, can find savings a heck of a lot better than a committee sitting around a boardroom table.
Make sure to inform everyone from the city manager down that how well they do in finding savings will play a large part in their annual performance review.
Bobs your uncle
Council presses on with Aquatic Centre closure after mayor reopens debate
How does this project take two years? A new pool that should last longer doesn’t require this long. What has to be torn down and rebuilt?
There better be constant construction every day Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The people who stand by this reno — when it doesn’t last how long they say it will who does the tax payer hold accountable?
Because apparently questioning if the city staff is working at full effort is disparaging.
Four city workers to fill a pothole, operators watering plants at 5 a.m. during the summer after it rained all night.
Seem like justification for Coun. Brian Skakun to question things.
Alucard
Snow removal reduction ... okay, Coun. Ron Polillo, the road to your house will no longer be plowed more than twice a year, and the same for the rest of council if they agree to it ... and then let us see how you feel about snow-removal cutbacks.
If council ran their homes like they do the city, they would be bankrupt in six months.
I am betting the “needs” are taken care of long before the “would likes” — I know mine are — except in the city budget, of course. There, the “would
likes” always seem to have priority.
BCRacer
COLIN SLARK Citizen Staff
Representatives from Public Safety Canada met with Prince George Mayor Simon Yu on the afternoon of Tuesday, Dec. 2 to discuss potential security risks stemming from the country’s pursuit of major economic projects.
Public Safety Canada is the federal department that oversees public safety and emergency management operations, as well as agencies like the RCMP, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, the Canada Border Services Agency and the Correctional Service of Canada.
Just before 3:30 p.m., two people were escorted into a second-floor boardroom of Prince George City Hall by the mayor’s executive assistant, who then left to fetch the mayor.
A Citizen reporter asked them to confirm that they were from the department. They neither confirmed
nor denied, said they don’t speak to the media, asked the reporter his name and affiliation and then asked him to leave.
Minutes later, the reporter met Yu in the hallway outside the boardroom and asked him for information on the meeting. He confirmed they were from Public Safety Canada and said he would call to provide information once it had finished.
Just over an hour later, Yu called and
Here’s to the small moments that make the season big.
Twinkling lights. Shared meals. Quick chats at the rink or the grocery store.
The little things that make our communities feel like home.
Wishing you a season full of simple joys and time with the people who matter most.
told The Citizen that with the federal government pursuing major economic projects in the region, Public Safety Canada is meeting with representatives of local governments to provide a guide on how to deal with security threats.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has forwarded several BC projects to his new Major Projects Office, including BC Hydro’s North Coast Transmission Line project, Ksi Lisims LNG on the north
coast, LNG Canada phase two near Kitimat and the Red Chris Mine expansion in the province’s northwest corner.
Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith have also signed a memorandum of understanding on the creation of a new bitumen pipeline that would export product via BC’s north coast, though there are still many details to work out including the exact route and opposition from coastal First Nations.
“It’s not on foreign interference, but foreign security is a part of the thing,” Yu said.
“Because there’s investment, you go all over the world and stuff like that. People come to visit a mayor’s office. If you happen to go overseas, what the protocol? Stuff like that … Making sure we, as a country, have got to never sacrifice our security for our country.” Yu added that he thought the visit was a good indication that this region is being looked upon by the federal government as an area of growth.
BOB MACKIN
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A BC Supreme Court judge will give his decision Jan. 6 in the case of a man tried for sexual assault and criminal harassment allegedly committed while he worked as a shop steward at the Canada Post depot in Prince George.
Justice Dev Dley heard closing arguments Dec. 8 about Aaron David Paul Brandly, who was charged for offences against one complainant between Aug. 9, 2017 and Aug. 9, 2024 and between Jan. 1, 2022 to Aug. 9, 2024 against another complainant.
The 1971-born Brandly pleaded not guilty. When he testified Nov. 20 and 21 in his defence, he told the court that he was simply joking around with
workplace buddies. He described the horseplay and bawdy language that he said he traded with the women, though he admitted he regretted some of his behaviour.
Crown prosecutor Gail Barnes told Dley the fact that the depot was a toxic work environment “does not excuse or
normalize any of the allegations that the complainants made against the accused.”
She said the evidence heard in court proved the Crown’s case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Citing testimony of one of the complainants, Barnes said Brandly
frequently touched the woman’s genitals, breast, buttocks anal anal region without consent, thus committing sexual assault.
“She made it very clear to the accused every time one of these assaults took place that she wanted him to stop,” Barnes said.
On the criminal harassment charge, she said Brandly had to know that the woman felt harassed, because he admitted that “she frequently would say nasty things to him.”
She emphatically swore at him and told him to leave her alone.
The woman also feared for her safety, left her job at the Prince George depot and moved out of the city.
“She’s got this creepy person who’s done all kinds of things to her at her workplace, who says he knows where she lives,” Barnes said. “She lives by herself, and the Crown says, in all of those circumstances, her fear is reasonable.”
BOB MACKIN Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The case of a man caught after a 2024 carjacking outside Prince George International Airport is scheduled to return to BC Supreme Court next week after a Crown prosecutor said he may seek long-term offender classification for him.
Tanner Jordan Meier pleaded guilty Oct. 27 to robbery, dangerous driving causing bodily harm and assault related to the Aug. 24, 2024 theft of a car at YXS.
Meier, 30, stole the car from an elderly couple who suffered serious injuries in the incident.
On Dec. 8 in Prince George, Crown prosecutor Rodney Withall told Justice Andrew Majawa that the Crown would apply for an assessment of Meier, which is the first step toward an application
for long-term offender designation.
Meier’s lawyer, Kenneth Thomson, said he had not received disclosure from Crown about the request for assessment and long-term offender classification. The copy of Meier’s criminal record that he did receive was heavily redacted.
“What is available to me in the criminal record does not support the application,” Thomson told Majawa.
Withall said defence lawyers are generally entitled to an unredacted version.
Majawa then adjourned the case to Monday, Dec. 15 for a scheduling hearing.
If a judge approves a long-term offender application, the court would order a minimum two-year jail sentence and an order that the offender be subjected to long-term supervision not exceeding 10 years.
Emergency crews work outside the Connaught Residences apartment tower on Queensway on Thursday, Dec. 4 after a fire on the 11th floor.
Firefighters quickly began suppression efforts and contained the blaze to a single suite. The RCMP confirmed to The Citizen that an arrest was made at the scene and an arson investigation has begun. No injuries were reported. Residents of the building were evacuated. Emergency support services were brought in to assist affected occupants.
Prince George RCMP are asking anyone with dashcam footage or information about a fatal collision on Highway 16 West to contact investigators.
The crash, which closed the highway just past Isle Pierre Road for several hours, was reported shortly after 11 p.m. and involved a grey Volkswagen Jetta and a grey GMC Sierra.
When police arrived, they found the driver of the Volkswagen deceased. The driver of the pickup truck was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
“Investigators are releasing details of the collision in the hopes that someone may have captured the driving behaviour of either vehicle on their dash camera in the minutes before the crash, which occurred around 11 p.m. Our condolences go out to the family of the deceased,” said Cooper.
Anyone with information or dashcam
footage who has not yet spoken with police is asked to call the Prince George RCMP non-emergency line at 250-5613300 to speak with an investigator.
Prince George RCMP’s Street Crew Unit has arrested a suspect in relation to a residential break-and-enter.
Surveillance footage captured footage of a distinctive vehicle on Saturday, Nov. 27 that police officers were able to associate with a suspect.
Jason Edward Boone 57, of Prince George was arrested shortly afterwards. The following charges have been approved:
• Theft under $5,000
• Mischief under $5,000
• Breaking, entering and committing an indictable offense
Possession of property obtained by crime
Police investigators will now review all recent break-and-enter reports from the city to determine whether any are related to this investigation.
BOB MACKIN Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A 27-year-old man who caused almost $14,000 in damage to the Prince George Regional Correctional Centre was sentenced Nov. 24 to time served in Provincial Court.
Smitty Ralph Bent pleaded guilty to mischief over $5,000, resisting a peace officer and breaching probation conditions.
Judge David Simpkin agreed to the joint Crown and defence proposal for a 285-day sentence. Since Bent had spent 194 days in custody, he qualified for a time-and-a-half credit of 291 days.
The most-serious offence accounted for 150 days of the sentence.
On Aug. 7, 2024, the day he was scheduled to be moved from a regular unit to segregation, Bent lit a fire with a rice cooker in a sink. Despite thick smoke, he refused to leave and threatened violence.
A correctional officer put a fire extinguisher through a hatch in the cell to put out the blaze. Bent also broke off a faucet from the unit’s kitchen and used it to damage sprinkler heads, cameras, the unit phone, lights and the staff station window.
The emergency response team was deployed and eventually incapacitated Bent with pepper spray. He was handcuffed, placed in leg irons and moved to the segregation unit.
The cost of the damage was $13,911.53.
Simpkin called it “self-destructive behaviour that occurred during the fit of depression.”
“Mr. Bent, you caused a lot of damage there to that government facility which the rest of us have to pay taxes to maintain,” Simpkin said. “Almost $14,000, that’s a lot of damage you caused there.”
The sentencing proposal did not include restitution because it is unlikely
A man who was in custody at the Prince George Regional Correctional Centre in 2024 set a fire at the facility.
Bent would pay for the damage.
Bent resisted a peace officer on March 2, 2025, after Prince George RCMP was called to Freeman Street and Eighth Avenue to investigate a suspicious person report. An officer found Bent and told him he was under arrest, but Bent fled and jumped a fence.
Eventually cornered in a driveway, Bent dropped to the ground, pulled out a container and ingested a substance
that appeared to be fentanyl. An officer deployed a Taser and Bent was handcuffed.
Bent also pleaded guilty to breaching his curfew conditions on July 23, 2024, in Penticton. A police officer found him on a front porch after a resident complained that someone was banging on a door at 4:21 a.m.
Court heard that Bent’s adult criminal record began in 2016. He has three prior convictions for assault-type offences and three prior convictions for obstructing or resisting a peace officer.
The member of the Takla First Nation will face no further jail time but remains under probation until the end of February 2027 as a result of a July 2024 court order. The order includes provision for counselling.
“You’re still a young man, Mr. Bent, but you have, frankly, a quite terrible criminal record,” Simpkin said. “But there’s lots of mitigation here, including your personal circumstances.”
A Prince George Provincial Court judge sentenced a 47-year-old man on Wednesday, Nov. 26 to time served plus one year probation after he pleaded guilty to possessing knives while on
Evidence before Judge Cassandra
Middlemiss was arrested Aug. 3, 2024, after Prince George RCMP responded at 12:39 p.m. to a report about a male and female who had allegedly pushed their way into a residence at the Prince
An officer found Middlemiss at 1:40 p.m. and booked him for break and
A search found he possessed two
order, Middlemiss was prohibited from having knives outside his residence after being found guilty of obstructing a peace officer.
He pleaded guilty to breaching a probation order.
A charge of unlawfully being in a dwelling was stayed.
Middlemiss’s three days in custody were credited at time-and-a-half for a total of five days served.
His criminal record includes prior convictions for theft and driving while prohibited.
He served one day in jail for a prior breach of probation.
As part of proceedings, court heard that Middlemiss, an Indigenous man, has not used methamphetamine since early this year.
However, he has suffered at least two heart attacks since spring and is now on medication.
BOB MACKIN Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A hunter found not guilty last January of violating a judge’s order is suing the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, BC Conservation Officer Service (BCCOS) and four officers for defamation.
In a Dec. 2 notice of civil claim in Prince George Supreme Court, Richard Dawson Smith said Facebook posts by BCCOS were intended to unlawfully mislead the public and damage his reputation and that of his company, BND Productions, in the eyes of fellow hunters.
Smith claims that he was harassed by members of the public, called a poacher by fellow hunters, asked to leave private hunting-focused Facebook groups and asked to remove his book from a retailer’s shelves.
None of the allegations has been tested in court and the defendants have
not filed a reply.
The saga began when Smith pleaded guilty Dec. 13, 2022 in Provincial Court to hunting on cultivated land in November 2020, Judge Oliver Fleck fined him $1,200 and ordered him to re-take the provincially required Conservation
BOB MACKIN
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The case of a man on trial for drug and weapons possession continues to remain on hold after his lawyer quit.
Terry La Liberté told BC Supreme Court Justice Lisa Hamilton on Nov. 24 that he could not carry on representing Kerridge Andrew Lowley due to an “insurmountable ethical issue.” Hamilton agreed to delay the case for two weeks so that Lowley could find a new lawyer and schedule the continuation of the trial, which began Nov. 3.
During a Dec. 8 scheduling hearing, Kira Dhillon told Justice Andrew Majawa that she had “just got the referral” to become Lowley’s new lawyer and sought a two-week adjournment to get up to speed on the file.
Majawa set Jan. 5 to fix another date, because court is not sitting in two
Outdoor Recreation Education (CORE) safety and ethics course.
According to the order Smith and the Crown negotiated, the requirement to retake the course was tied to Smith’s ability to hunt after March 31.
Smith retook CORE in April of that year, due to course availability.
Smith’s filing said BCCOS posted “erroneous sentencing information” on Facebook Dec. 22, 2022, that said Smith and another hunter “are required to retake the CORE course before they are able to hunt again.”
That line was repeated in a Dec. 26, 2022 story in the Alaska Highway News.
Smith filed a formal complaint with BCCOS in February 2023, asking BCCOS to correct or delete the post.
But Smith alleges Deputy Chief Chris Doyle dismissed his complaint the next month.
In May 2024, Smith was charged for violating the court order when he hunted and shot a lynx on Dec. 28, 2022.
Cait’s is expanding their lunch menu to include soups & such! Just in time for cozy lunches over the winter months
weeks due to the Christmas break.
“Since you’re in the middle of trial, make sure that you’re taking steps between now and Jan. 5 to try and figure out where you’re going from here,”
Majawa said.
The judge told Dhillon to speak to trial schedulers to determine open court dates that correspond with Hamilton’s schedule.
Lowley pleaded not guilty to charges of possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking and possession of weapons when the trial began.
Earlier this year, La Liberté represented Lowley in an aggravated assault and break-and-enter trial.
A judge acquitted Lowley and co-accused Dakota Rayn Keewatin on March 3. The 2022 incident began as a dispute over a drug debt and ended with a grisly machete attack at a Prince George motel.
Judge Cassandra Malfair said in her Jan. 10 decision that Conservation Officers learned about Fleck’s order and sought to have it amended. A new form of the order was drafted and submitted to Fleck in September 2023 without notice to Smith.
In hindsight, Malfair decided that Fleck had misspoken during sentencing and did not intend to change the negotiated sentence.
“BCCOS illegally changed wording on a court order to match a narrative and then took that to trial,” Smith’s Dec. 2 lawsuit alleged.
“The conduct by the defendant(s) falls outside the statutory provisions authorizing, falls outside the code of conduct or alternatively was in excess of activities and was intended to harm and victimize Smith.”
Smith wants a judge to order BCCOS to remove or correct the Facebook post and pay damages of more than $800,000.
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Local political advocacy is needed, councillors hear
COLIN SLARK Citizen Staff
Prince George currently has 14 Crown prosecutors but had as few as 11 earlier this year, a representative from the BC Crown Counsel Association told Prince George city council at its Monday, Dec. 1 meeting.
The organization’s vice-president, Jennifer Johnston, delivered a presentation on their role, the role of Crown counsel in the provincial justice system, recent changes to legislation and case law and how the city can help advocate for mutually beneficial changes.
“We represent the frontline criminal prosecutors, the people who stand in trial court, the people who evaluate charges, the people who argue bail hearings,” Johnston said.
“We are an association and not a union. We engage in collective bargaining, and other employment-related grievances and other aspects of professional employment. We’re the exclusive bargaining agent for Crown counsel. We speak for our members. We advocate in the public interest. We do not speak for government.”
Johnston’s presentation slide said that the association represents around 550 frontline criminal prosecutors in BC.
She said that she and her colleagues do not investigate charges instead evaluating material provided to them. While they can ask follow-up questions, they do not direct police and do not seek convictions at all costs.
Also, they are arms-length from the provincial government. While the prosecution service is led by the assistant deputy attorney general, who reports to Attorney General Niki Sharma, Johnston said the attorney general does not tell them who to prosecute.
Their goal, she said, is to ensure the fair application of the legal system and make sure justice has been done. In prosecuting a case, she said they have
to make sure there is both a substantial likelihood of conviction based on available evidence and that pursuing the case is in the public resources.
That last part involves asking whether justice requires a case to be taken to trial. Some are diverted, some are met with a caution letter.
Since she began her career more than 25 years ago, Johnston said that new sources of evidence have come into existence like text messages, social media posts, emails, closed-circuit television footage, cellphone video and more prevalent forensic evidence like DNA and blood splatter.
New digital evidence includes footage from body-worn cameras, which have been rolling out to RCMP detachments including Prince George’s in the last year.
“As you can well expect, this has resulted in hours of additional disclosure that must be evaluated and reviewed,” Johnston said. “Currently, AI is giving some help in creating transcripts, but at the end of the day, there is human contact and human evaluation of that evidence.”
That has created new backlogs and new work for prosecutors, she said.
Due to changes in case law, Johnston said, the number of criminal prosecutions has increased. She referenced proposed new bail legislation introduced by the federal government on Oct. 23.
When it comes to bail, she said it involves the presumption of the earliest release on the least restrictive terms, a principle known as the presumption of restraint.
This new legislation, addresses presumption of restraint, but there is still ongoing discussion about how it will be applied.
Another factor in prosecutions is time limits for prosecutions laid out by the Supreme Court of Canada in what’s known as the Jordan decision. Under that, summary matters must be prosecuted within 18 months and Supreme Court matters must be resolved within 30 months.
Meeting these standards and timelines, Johnston said, requires resources.
Crown Counsel Association vice-president Jennifer Johnston gives a presentation to Prince George city council on Monday, Dec. 1.
To help make sure that they are met in their community, she said council can ask the province about increasing the number of available Crown prosecutors, deal with the disclosure of evidence from body-worn cameras and other new technologies.
The agenda for the Dec. 2 meeting of the Standing Committee on Intergovernmental Affairs included a letter from Dwayne McDonald, the commanding officer for the BC RCMP, who said that during the Union of BC Municipalities convention in Victoria this past September, Prince George officials spoke to him on several matters including issues with the rollout and management of evidence from body-worn cameras.
During the Dec. 1 council meeting, committee chair Coun. Garth Frizzell moved for discussion of Johnston’s presentation to be forwarded for further discussion at the committee’s next meeting so they can bring these items up during their next conversation with Sharma.
In response to a question from Frizzell, Johnston said that there’s a correlation between the number of prosecutors on the ground and what they’re able to achieve, such as meeting those court-mandated timelines.
Coun. Brian Skakun wanted to know whether the number of available jail cells impacts Crown counsel’s decisions on whether to approve charges.
“It does not factor into what I do,” Johnston said. “My entire career, I’ve never had to worry about whether or not there’s going to be a jail space for
a person based on my sentence. It’s a larger problem for society, it is not a problem for Crown counsel.”
Skakun also said it seems as though there are a lot of social media posts about fires being lit, but the RCMP doesn’t seem to make a lot of related arrests.
Johnston said it’s up to police to forward charges to counsel for consideration and it’s very difficult to know what the issue is. In many cases, it could just be that there’s not enough evidence.
Coun. Ron Polillo asked how many Crown counsel lawyers are dedicated to both Prince George and Quesnel, the city where Johnston lives and works.
It’s difficult to pin down, Johnston said, but her understanding is that there are currently 14 in Prince George. The high water mark for the city was 17 and at one point earlier this year, there were as few as 11. However, she encouraged Polillo to ask the BC Prosecution Service to confirm those numbers.
Coun. Cori Ramsay said she’d be happy to support a referral motion to the intergovernmental affairs committee but would like to see it amended to include forwarding a resolution to the UBCM calling on the province to increase available Crown prosecution services to help sift through body-worn camera evidence.
Ramsay was sworn in as UBCM president for a one-year term back in September, becoming the second Prince George councillor to hold that position.
Coun. Kyle Sampson asked what specific resources are needed to help deal with the camera evidence backlog.
Johnston said paralegal support would be helpful and it’s important to investigate ways of speeding up the workflow like using AI software. She added that in general, it would be helpful to augment the province’s virtual bail team.
Council forwards discussion of Johnston’s presentation and a related UBCM resolution to the Standing Committee on Intergovernmental Affairs
• Result: approved unanimously.
BOB MACKIN Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
No jail time for a 68-year-old man convicted of causing distress to a 14-yearold Shih Tzu dog.
Instead, a Provincial Court judge in Prince George ordered Daniel Keith Abernethy to pay a $5,000 fine and be on probation for two years.
“Mr. Abernethy had an obligation to keep a close eye on Sarah and, if necessary, medicate her to ensure she did not suffer,” Judge Cassandra Malfair wrote in a Nov. 27 sentencing decision.
“Sarah would not have experienced many of her painful conditions had Mr. Abernethy been attending to her needs when her mobility diminished.”
The law allows for a maximum fine of $75,000 and two years jail. The Crown had sought a 90-day jail sentence and one-year probation, but Malfair deemed jail to be excessive in this case. She could not sentence Abernethy to house
Two days time served plus a year on probation is the sentence for a man who refused to leave his mother’s residence when asked to do so.
Randy Ray Henricks, born in 1976, pleaded guilty on Nov. 26 in Prince George Provincial Court to violating a term of his probation — to have no contact with his mother upon her request — on Nov. 22, 2024.
Henricks had been on probation after being convicted of possession of stolen property under $5,000.
His mother told Prince George RCMP that he had arrived at her residence drunk and said he needed a place to sleep. Judge Cassandra Malfair accepted the joint Crown and defence sentencing proposal and noted there was no violence or threats involved.
Nearly two years after an incident in Williams Lake, a man pleaded guilty in B.C. Supreme Court to sexual assault
arrest or curfew, because he was convicted under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, not the Criminal Code.
So she opted for the fine to “express society’s condemnation of the neglect of one’s companion animal, and send the message that a pet owner who is ill or experiencing crisis is nonetheless expected to make appropriate arrangements for their animal’s care.”
Malfair said there are reasonable grounds that Abernethy “may again become blind” to a pet’s needs, so she agreed with the Crown proposal to ban him for life from owning or having control or custody of another animal.
Abernethy, who represented himself, maintained his innocence, said that he loved animals and asked only that he not be sent to jail. He claimed that he was hopelessly overcome with depression as aging Sarah’s health declined. In August 2021, a family friend using Abernethy’s washroom called Abernethy’s ex-wife to pick up the dog after
noticing Sarah’s horrific condition. Sarah was taken to a veterinarian, but ultimately euthanized.
“She was wasting and dehydrated. She had a painful ruptured eye, an infected wound on her leg, and matted, dirty fur,” Malfair wrote. “Her abdominal area was infested with live maggots. She was weak and unable to walk. She smelled fetid and was unresponsive to stimuli, except when the veterinarian attempted to examine her painful eye. The veterinarian opined Sarah’s more serious conditions would likely have developed over the course of a couple of weeks.”
Abernethy was not accused of causing any of Sarah’s injuries and Malfair decided, on a balance of probabilities, that her advanced age contributed to her immobility. But Abernethy was guilty of failing to care for Sarah and ensure she did not suffer.
“He had an obligation to attend to Sarah’s needs, seek medical care and, if necessary, have her humanely
euthanized,” the judge wrote.
Court heard that Abernethy, who has no criminal record, retired from CN Rail in 2018. Two years later, his wife left him and emptied their joint bank accounts. Abernethy suffered further financial and emotional distress by losing $20,000 as the victim of a telephone fraud and gambling away $60,000 on the stock market.
“Mr. Abernethy says the stress of these events caused him to suffer a nervous breakdown at the time Sarah’s health was declining,” Malfair wrote.
However, Malfair did not believe Abernethy was totally oblivious. She said it was more likely that he turned a blind eye to Sarah’s condition under the assumption that natural death was imminent, “which he felt relieved him of any duty to seek medical attention to alleviate her suffering.”
Malfair’s judgment said Abernethy did not consider surrendering Sarah to the SPCA, believing it was “less cruel” for her to pass away with her owner.
and unlawful confinement.
Brandon Daniel McMaster admitted to the Dec. 13, 2023 crimes before Justice Ronald Tindale on Dec. 1 in Prince George. The agreed statement of facts read in court indicated that McMaster and the victim had broken up. She learned she was pregnant and told McMaster when he came to Williams Lake. They agreed to try and resurrect their relationship.
But, on Dec. 13, 2023, they argued. McMaster refused to let the woman out of the residence. She hid from him in a closet where she sent a text message to her mother, who called police.
Officers arrived at 1:15 p.m. and arrested McMaster. They found the woman in shock and needing medical attention.
McMaster admitted he restrained the woman contrary to her wishes, deprived her of liberties and had sexual intercourse with without her consent.
Court reporting by Bob Mackin, Locak Journalism Initiative Reporter
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TED CLARKE Citizen Staff
When the Curt Garland Community Support Centre opened in 2015 in the former Dairyland building in Prince George on 18th Avenue, it allowed the Salvation Army to combine in one location all the services it now provides 50 other service providers in 15 Northern BC communities through its food bank, thrift store and recycling depot.
Garland, the man who bought the building and donated it back to the Sally Ann to serve as the region’s community hub — a place that feeds 5,000 people each month — was there for the opening ceremony but never wanted to be in the spotlight and asked his granddaughter to speak on his behalf.
He didn’t want the fanfare that came with his philanthropy, supporting charities like the Salvation Army, Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation and mental health programs in the region, but was proud he was able to give so much back to the community where he was born and raised, knowing he was helping less fortunate souls get through tough times, just as he did in his early years.
“The love he had for the community might not have been heard, he was more of a silent behind-the-scenes kind of person,” said Roy Law, the Prince George Salvation Army community ministries director. “His thoughts were that he wanted a building which as much as possible didn’t have to have people lining up outside in the rain and the cold. That’s not something the average person would think about.
“The benefit partnership we had with Curt was just to help him give us some soundboarding in business. I know we’re a non-profit but we still have to act as a business and gaining some of that knowledge from him was invaluable. His helpful vision took us to a whole new level. The Prince George community was just in his heart and it came out naturally that way.”
Garland died Nov. 21 at age 88, surrounded by the love of his Prince George family.
Born Feb. 8, 1937, he was the son of
an unwed mother from Vanderhoof who left her newborn baby in a basket on the snow on a cold winter day in the Seventh Avenue yard of Norm Radley, a Northern Hardware employee.
Radley knew Ellen and Percy Garland, a South Fort George couple unable to have children of their own, and they took in the boy and named him Curtis, beginning what turned out to be a sixyear adoption process.
Percy was a truck driver who came to Prince George in the 1920s from Moncton, N.B. He started out as a truck driver and eventually bought his own truck and created his own freight line — Eastern Transport — to haul goods from Prince George on the Giscome Road to Upper Fraser, as far as the road went in the days before Highway 16 was built.
In 1944, after hearing rumours a pulp mill would be built at Giscome, Percy sold his truck and moved the family to Willow River, where he opened a roadside diner, Garland’s Café. The café had no electricity and no running water and was 3/4 of a mile from the town.
Even after the café building was put on stilts and moved into the town, where they fed mostly sawmill workers, they struggled to pay the bills, and Percy’s drinking habit added to the family’s
new company name, Garland Contracting. He bought a tandem hauling trailer and another truck that allowed him to utilize the air brakes on his trailer and used both trucks to haul logs to Eagle Lake Sawmill.
He earned a reputation as a hard worker who would go out to do his job in any weather, surprising mill workers when he would brave treacherous winter roads and was the only driver to show up that day to deliver a load.
After years of hauling logs and lumber, Garland signed a contract to work for Alexandra Forest Industries in the summer of 1965 to clear the future townsite of Mackenzie, which included pulp and lumber mills being built at the south end of the eventual reservoir created by the Bennett Dam.
problems. Curt quit school at age 15 and went to work at Eagle Lake Sawmill, making 87.5 cents an hour.
Curt had just turned 18 when he decided working for somebody else was not for him. Encouraged by his mother, with the province about to extend Highway 16 from Upper Fraser to Jasper, he decided to start his own trucking company. The problem was, nobody wanted to insure an 18-year-old driving a commercial truck.
He eventually met a man at a downtown Prince George bar whose company insured the area’s sawmills, and when Curt explained his insurance problem he was told to go to Vancouver and speak to Robin Openshaw, who sold him an insurance policy and would become a lifelong friend.
He got his first commercial licence plate in 1955 and Eastern Transport was back in business, hauling groceries and general freight from Prince George to small stores along Giscome Road, a trip that sometimes required driving his loaded truck over the railway bridge across the Fraser River to Sinclair Mills.
By the winter of 1957–58, Garland put aside his plan to create a freight-hauling line between Prince George and Edmonton and focused on log hauling under a
Unfortunately for Garland, he bid too low and the difficult working conditions left Garland Contracting in dire financial straits. He had already started another company in 1965 with Rolly Houde, C&R Contracting, and they built a plant — Mackenzie Redi-Mix — to supply the concrete needed to build Mackenzie’s major buildings and road projects and the BC Forest Products pulp mill.
The company wasn’t profitable until 1970, when Garland bought five Kenworth cement mixer trucks direct from the factory in Burnaby. C&R profits were invested in the 180-unit Morphee Lake Trailer Park in Mackenzie.
C&R was eventually dissolved and the assets were divided when Garland decided to pursue an opportunity to work with the Fort Nelson Indian Band to export spruce logs to Japan, and that led to his next venture, Tackama Forest Products. Three years later, in 1974, Garland opened a sawmill and veneer plant to process the leftover wood from the logs.
Poor construction techniques made the BCR rail line from Fort Nelson expensive to maintain, and in the spring of 1977 Garland bought Lomack Transport from Prince George logging contractors McDermid and Lofting. He dropped the “c” and renamed it Lomak Transport.
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Starting with four lowbed heavy-equipment hauling trucks, the company expanded to serve the forestry and mining sectors and became well known for supplying chips to the region’s pulp mills.
The same year Garland bought Lomak, the Fort Nelson mill burned down, and although a quick insurance settlement got it running again, the continual threat of BCR closing the rail line, problems securing timber rights from the government, interest rate hikes and labour shortages convinced Garland to sell Tackama in 1987.
Garland continued to take on new ventures. He created Somerset Estates, an 87-unit subdivision on Cluculz Lake; bought a tree farm in Uruguay; started Lomak North Corp., a trucking operation in the Yukon to haul ore from the Anvil Range mine to Whitehorse; and formed Lomak Road Maintenance to maintain the road to the Kemess Mine northwest of Mackenzie until the mine shut down in 2011.
Lomak Transport went through some tough times when Teamsters Local 31 went on strike against the company on June 26, 1998. The union wanted a $2-per-hour increase and picket lines went up at the Prince George terminal on Pacific Street and in Terrace, where the job action shut down the terminal.
Before the strike, Garland purchased Lynch Transport, which was certified federally by the Teamsters union for all of Canada, and he renamed the company Lomak Bulk Carriers Corp. On the recommendation of labour lawyer Don Jordan, Garland sold all of Lomak Transport’s trucks and cancelled its contracts in Prince George and Terrace to have Lomak Transport removed from the corporate register, which cost him $3 million. Lomak’s buildings were in another company name and did not have to be sold.
“We were able to retain the trailers because for some reason they fell outside the Teamsters’ interest,” said Garland in his 2019 autobiography,
Uphill Both Ways. “The union was only concerned about the trucks and contracts. I felt a moral obligation to retain all my non-union salaried employees. I am forever indebted to Don for his keen legal foresight which helped me change Lomak into the thriving company that it is today.”
That August, Lomak Bulk Transport Corp. successfully bid on a five-year contract from Northwood Pulp to supply 25 chip-hauling trucks, starting at the beginning of October, which gave the company time to purchase its new fleet.
Three months into that contract and seven months into the Teamsters strike, Garland applied to the BC Labour Relations Board for an order to prevent picketing at the Prince George terminal, which was proven to be unlawful because Lomak Transport no longer existed as a legal entity. On Feb. 1, 1989, the pickets came down and Garland moved his operation back to the site.
“He was a very humble man, never wanted his picture in the paper, never wanted recognition for anything,” said Mike Grimm, president of Lomak Bulk Carriers.
“Curt took a lot of value in having long-term employees and we’ve got many of them with 30-plus years here. People liked working for Curt, he was a genuine man and treated people like family. He was very generous to all his employees and his staff and made everyone feel they were part of the family.”
Garland remembered as a kid seeing float planes anchored to the shore of the Fraser River at South Fort George, and he eventually got his pilot’s licence and his own plane. Ever since he started flying, he dedicated at least two weeks every summer to take his family, friends, employees and business associates on trips using his de Havilland Beaver float plane to go fishing or hiking at some of the most beautiful lakes in Western Canada or Alaska.
Garland built his house on West Lake with a wine cellar, and in 2003 he went looking for property in the South Okanagan, thinking he’d grow his own grapes and have an established local winery
make his own wines. While he was there, a newspaper ad revealing Hester Creek Estate Winery was in receivership piqued his interest. It had been losing money for several years despite producing quality wines on prime vineyard property near Oliver.
He came up with a plan to buy all the Hester Creek shares and loan the company the money needed to pay off the creditors and halt foreclosure proceedings. But the court quashed the deal and ruled the winery should be sold to the highest bidder, a decision Garland’s lawyers successfully appealed when the appeals judge deemed he was the rightful owner of the winery.
Garland asked his now-retired insurance friend Openshaw and his wife, Lee Ann, to run Hester Creek, and they agreed to move there and hit upon the idea to sell wine in three-litre and 16-litre boxes as a quick way to sell the 11,000 litres of unmarked wine that had been left in the vats when the financial
troubles began. In 2023, Great Northwest Wine magazine chose Hester Creek as BC’s winery of the year.
“I personally think Curt has been so successful because of his unwillingness to settle for less — there is no such thing as, it’s good enough,” said Richard Montpellier, who worked for years for Garland as manager of Lomak Road Maintenance and was quoted in Garland’s book. “Details matter to him. From what I can see he consistently works at improving all aspects of his life and does the hard work to make that happen.
Garland is survived by his former wife, Nora Jean Garland; his life partner, Gail Hotell; his children, Jason Garland (Jeannie) and Carlene Heppner (Geoff); his grandchildren, Mackenzie and Jocelyn Kerr; and four great-grandchildren.
A celebration of Garland’s life will be held on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 1 p.m. at the Prince George Conference and Civic Centre.
ABIGAIL POPPLE Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
After months of councillors debating over which cemetery fencing materials to use, many McBride residents seem to think the best cemetery fencing solution would be no fence at all.
The village hosted an open house to hear residents’ input on the project Nov. 19 and published a survey on their website which is open until Dec. 15.
Council expects to make a decision some time in January, taking resident feedback into account, CAO Jeanette McDougall told The Goat.
At the time of the open house, 19 people had responded to the survey and many said they didn’t want a fence, according to McDougall. Many residents suggested having a deer-resistant hedge instead, she said.
“There’s a lot of community interest,” McDougall said. “This public consultation is very, very important.”
Council had previously bought fencing material in 2024, but upon closer inspection, Public Works found it would not withstand long-term use, McDougall added.
She said the fence will likely be repurposed elsewhere or sold.
Council will consider four factors when making its decision about the cemetery fence, McDougall said: aesthetics, durability, maintenance needs, and the initial cost of the material.
McBride Coun. Glen Frear discusses cemetery fencing options with McBride
residents and Village staff.
Open house attendees who spoke with The Goat said they want to avoid making the cemetery feel closed off, and reduce the possibility of people vandalizing the fence.
Resident Dave Hruby said hedges are an appealing option, but worries they might attract deer. He says there are very few options that can withstand the
wind and cold of McBride winters.
It’s important to make sure the fence has a long lifespan and will be attractive to look at, he added.
“I’ve always been passionate about respecting the people in there,” Hruby said.
Local contractor Doug Monroe brought mock-ups of concrete panels he could produce for the fence. The panels
could even be customized with embedded designs, sort of like the decorative walls on highway on-ramps, he said.
“It should last between 50 and 80 years,” he added. “The architectural possibilities are endless. It’s just a matter of how creative you want to be and how much money you have.”
McBride resident and contractor Doug Monroe discusses the concrete panels he could produce for the cemetery.
Terri Jensen, a landscaper with decades of experience, questioned whether the cemetery needs a fence at all.
Given her landscaping experience, Jensen knows that hedges are high-maintenance and require lots of water. She also worries that concrete panels will be seen as a blank canvas for graffiti, and would prefer a more open design.
“I have family and friends — dear, fussy old friends — residing in there,” she laughed. “I’d go with as low maintenance as possible that does whatever job it needs to do.”
Mayor Gene Runtz said he came away from the open house with lots of feedback to consider.
“Everything you put in there is gonna require maintenance of some kind,” he said. “The final decision on this comes down to council. We’re having this (open house) so we can get input from people, because the cemetery is a very personal thing for everybody.”
This story originally appeared in The Rocky Mountain Goat.
ABIGAIL POPPLE
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Tete Jaune residents Nancy and Chris Bennewith are fundraising to cover costs after a nearly fatal head-on collision with a drunk driver Nov. 10.
In an interview with The Goat, Nancy said the two are lucky to be alive.
“The (driver) fled the scene and pretty much left us there to die,” she said. “There’s nothing left of my car.”
Nancy was airlifted to a hospital in Vancouver, while Chris was brought to the Prince George hospital. Both are back home now and undergoing physiotherapy, but they have a long road ahead.
Nancy, who broke her ribs and back, had to drain her savings to buy a $4,000 adjustable bed, allowing her to sleep and sit more comfortably. She’s looking at a minimum of a one-year recovery process, but says she has no idea if
she’ll have healed at all a year from now.
She added that Chris had a major brain injury due to the collision and lost his sight. It’s gradually returning now — he can see colours and blurry shapes — but he, too, will take a long time to recover. Their sons have moved in to take care of them in the meantime.
“It’s been extremely expensive,” Nancy said. “ICBC covers some things, but not everything.”
The couple’s friend, Tyler Will, published a Go Fund Me on Nov. 17.
The fundraiser will keep going for the foreseeable future, and any donations are greatly appreciated, Nancy said.
“Drive safe — don’t drink and drive,” Nancy urges, adding that the man who hit them probably got away with just a few bumps and bruises. “I still can’t fathom that a person could do that.”
The Go Fund Me is available online at https://tinyurl.com/bddf383t.
MATTHEW HILLIER Citizen Staff
A new School District 57 (SD 57) childcare centre will soon be opening its doors in Mackenzie.
This 62-space childcare centre is located at 32 Heather Cres. and will offer 12 spaces for children under 36 months, 25 spaces for children aged 30 months to school age, and 25 spaces for schoolaged children.
School District 57 has partnered with Inquiring Little Minds to operate the centre and states that this will ensure that expert care is provided to children in Mackenzie.
The project began with construction on the former site of Mackenzie Elementary School in September 2024, with its completion in October of this year.
“It’s exciting to see more childcare spaces opening for families in Mackenzie,” said Rohini Arora, BC parliamentary secretary for child care. “These new spaces give parents peace of mind knowing their children are safe and cared for, allowing them to focus on their own professional and personal development goals. Affordable, reliable child care is a game changer for communities and we’re proud to be delivering the type of care hard-working families need.”
SD 57 expects the centre to be able to open in a week or two at most. They stated that the centre’s service provider now has an occupancy permit, which will allow them to gain the licence required for opening.
They expect the licence to be issued in the next few days and, once in place, the centre will be ready to open.
School District 57 has partnered with Inquiring Little Minds, a licensed childcare provider, to help operate the centre itself.
One of the key drivers of this long-running project has been a lack of dedicated childcare spaces in Mackenzie, which SD 57 superintendent Jameel Aziz noted was a highlighted issue in the community.
“There was an existing daycare that was running out of the mall, but it
wasn’t really designed, from the get-go, to be a childcare space,” said Aziz. “It was certainly highlighted to us both via community as well as through other partners that a dedicated childcare space in Mackenzie would really be a helpful piece.”
He added that parents in Mackenzie have responded positively to this new addition to their community and to the remodelling of the former school site.
“We certainly have heard from community partners and my staff who has told me that there’s been lots of positive social media comments,” said Aziz.
“They are more so around having the childcare available on a dedicated site. The building was built with properly sized bathrooms, properly sized sinks, it’s modern, it has a lot of outdoor space, because it’s a former school site. There are fields and easy access with better parking. We expect it to be fully utilized very quickly, and we really believe that it will be a valuable asset to the community.”
Another reason this project got off the ground was the passing of Bill 19, the School Amendment Act.
This piece of legislation was passed by the government in October of this year and, among other things, allows school districts to add childcare spaces on school grounds, which Aziz said was essential to the opening of this new space.
“There is a mandate with the government through their ministry to create more childcare spaces,” said Aziz.
“They look at sites that could be converted into childcare space. Mackenzie’s former site, where we had an elementary school previously, was highlighted and targeted as the first. Those plans and ideas came together, both with the community, the ministry and the school district, in order to build a new site there. It’s come together very nicely.”
This centre would also not be possible without the contributions of up to $6.2 million from the ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund, which SD 57 states is jointly supported by provincial
investments and federal funding under the Canada–British Columbia Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement.
They add that the BC government and the federal government signed an extension to the agreement for 2026-27 until 2030-31.
Aziz noted that the total construction cost was $5 million and that surplus funds from other SD 57 projects were diverted to help manage rising
construction costs.
He noted that no funds dedicated to education in the district were used for the Mackenzie project.
Aziz told The Citizen that this Mackenzie site is just the first of many new childcare sites in the North, including one in Prince George.
“We have another site here in Prince George at the former Austin Road School coming together,” said Aziz. “We are also looking at a space in Fraser Fort George that we have there as well. These are properties that our school district owns. When we can work with the ministry to revitalize those properties to be able to provide community service — whether it’s childcare or other services — that’s always a great benefit.”
Early childhood educators working at the centre will also be eligible for the ECE Wage Enhancement program, providing financial incentives for their essential work.
Forever Young Chorus presents The Bells of Christmas featuring the Zion Handbell Choir on Sunday, Dec. 14 at 2 p.m. at the Elder Citizen Recreation Centre, 1692 Tenth Ave. This event features a variety of Christmas music. Tickets are $12 each and available at the Centre. Celebration of Human Rights goes Wednesday, Dec. 10 from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at Artspace, above Books & Co., 1685 Third Avenue. Amnesty International’s Prince George Group is hosting a commemoration of the anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights. There will be a candle lighting ceremony followed by Write for Rights - letter and card writing. Admission is Free.
Hart Holiday Market goes Friday, Dec. 12 from 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 13 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Hart Centre Mall, 3813 West Austin Road. There will be 41 curated artisans selling their wares during a festive holiday market. There will be local makers, bakers, and small businesses, all offering unique gifts, sweet treats, and thoughtfully crafted items just in time the holidays.
Holiday Evening Market goes Friday, Dec. 12 from 6 to 9 p.m. at Homespun Refillery, 3110-15th Ave. This festive event will see a small mix of local vendors with unique, sustainable and handcrafted gifts to explore while enjoying a warm, welcoming atmosphere.
Scary Ghost Stories, a Victorian Tradition goes Friday, Dec. 12 and Saturday, Dec. 13 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Artspace above Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave. Fans of the classic horror genre are invited to wear Victorian attire for the live reading presented by Kevin O’Brien. Come warm (or freeze) your soul. Ghosts are not just for Halloween. In the days before TV and radio families used to gather and share scary stories on those cold dark nights. Tickets are $20 at Books & Co.
Celtic Christmas goes Saturday, Dec. 13 at 7 p.m. at St. Michaels’ Anglican Church, 1505 Fifth Ave. Celebrate the season with the PG Symphony Orchestra, Old Time Fiddlers and PG Conservatory Harp Ensemble. This event features
festive favourites, toe-tapping jigs and beautiful carols. Admission by donation (suggested $25 for adults and $10 for children). Tickets available online and at the door. For more information visit https://pgconservatory.ca/calendar
Prince George Artists Co-Op Workshop & Gallery Christmas Open House goes Saturday, Dec. 13 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 3955 John Hart Highway in the old Hart Highway school. Come meet some of the artists and see their work. Find out about the Co-Op’s art classes, including drawing, coloured pencils, oil, acrylic, watercolour, pen & ink and mixed media.
Evan Symons at Deadfall Brewing goes Saturday, Dec. 13 at 7:30 p.m. at 1733 Nicholson St S. Evan Symons from Texada Island plays rock/folk/blues/ country originals and classic covers during the show. Evan grew up in PG and is returning to his home town for this performance.
Christmas Brunch goes Saturday, Dec. 13 at 10 a.m. at Spruce Capital Senior Centre, 3701 Rainbow Drive. Everyone is welcome to join in the fun. Enjoy a hearty meal including eggs,
bacon, ham, sausages, hash brown, French toast, fresh fruit, toast with jam, juice, coffee and tea. For adults it’s $25 and for children under 12 it’s $12.
Long Rider Live goes Saturday, Dec. 13 at 7:30 p.m. at the Legion, 101-1116 Sixth Ave. Get your dancing shoes ready, $20 cover charge at the door, 19+ with two pieces of ID required.
Conservation North: Why Disturbance Matters in Primary Forests goes Saturday, Dec. 13 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave. Fire, insects, and other natural forces shape primary forests into vibrant mixtures of tree ages, habitats, and species.
Conservation North shares Briony Penn’s stunning artwork, revealing how life regenerates and thrives after each disturbance.
Legends, Live! Presents a Legendary Christmas on Sunday, Dec. 14 at 6:30 p.m. at Om Pizza Bar, 1970 Ospika Blvd., where glamour meets glitter and nostalgia collides with pop power. It’s Elton John’s (Cory Hicks) legendary holiday party and he’s invited his friends Kat Fullerton as Almost Marilyn, Audrey Layne as Basically Britney, Tyree Corfe
as Pelvis. Tickets are $30 each. This is an all-ages event. For all the details and to get tickets visit www.eventbrite. ca/e/a-legendary-christmas-at-om-pizzabar-cafe
P&R Farms 5th Annual Christmas Market goes Sunday, Dec. 14 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 12800 Salmon Valley Road. Lots of local vendors will be selling their wares, food and hayrides are available and a bonfire will be on site. Come out and support local vendors. Cash sales only.
Blackburn Community Pancake Breakfast with Santa goes Sunday, Dec. 14 at 9:30 a.m. at the Hall, 2451 Blackburn Road. Doors open at 9, breakfast is at 9:30 and Santa will make an appearance at 10 a.m. There will be a professional photographer on site with Santa. Breakfast features pancakes, sausages, strawberries, juice, coffee and hot cocoa. Adults are $15, seniors and students are $10, ages 5 to 11 are $7 and children under 5 are free. No tickets at the door. Tickets are available from Terri Whitwick or at the Craft Fair on Nov. 29 and 30. Donations of non-perishable food items and toiletries will be accepted for the Secret Santa Project PG.
The Austen Affair: Tea, Tales & Timeless Love goes Tuesday, Dec. 16 from 1 to 5:30 p.m. at the Prince George Public Library, Bob Harkins Branch. Fall back in time to enjoy afternoon tea, a Jane Austen reading and a movie adaptation of Pride and Prejudice (2005). Period costume voluntary, enjoyment mandatory. Tea and readings at 1, movie at 3 p.m. This is geared for adults and it’s a free event. For more information visit www.pgpl.ca/events/ austen-affair-tea-tales-timeless-love.
The Nutcracker goes Dec. 18 to 21 at 7:30 p.m. each evening with matinees at 2 p.m. on Dec. 20 & 21 at Vanier Hall, 2901 Griffiths Ave. Presented by Judy Russell and the Prince George Symphony Orchestra. For more information and tickets visit www.pgso.com/ TheNutcracker
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Small Business Holiday Luncheon goes Thursday, Dec. 18 from noon to 2 p.m., doors open at 11 a.m. at the Prince George Conference and Civic Centre, 808 Canada Games Way. This event is a festive lunch with your favourite workmates, closest pals or hard-working committee members. There are door prizes, entertainment and delicious festive food. Tickets are $40. For more information visit eventservices@ princegeorge.ca.
Early Bedtime Club Christmas Bash goes Friday, Dec. 19 from 5 to 10 p.m. at Ignite Night Club, 1232 Third Avenue for those who want to relive the best hits of the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s while still protecting your precious sleep schedule. Dance, socialize and enjoy the music that raised your generation and be in bed before the late-night crowd even wakes up. Each ticket supports the construction of water wells in remote African communities, giving families access to clean, safe and reliable drinking water. Tickets are at www.eventbrite.com/e/ early-bedtime-club-xmas-bash-tickets
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation Holiday Movie Night goes Friday, Dec. 19 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Prince George Playhouse, 2626 Recplace Drive. Get ready for some holiday laughs. Bring friends, grab some popcorn, and enjoy this classic Christmas comedy together. The venue is licensed so beer and wine will be available. For tickets visit www.eventbrite.com/e/nationallampoons-christmas-vacation-on-thebig-screen-tickets
Marshall & Chase Christmas Meet & Greet goes Friday, Dec. 19 from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. at Bubbles Indoor Playground, 3053 McGill Crescent. The duo from Paw Patrol will visit with children at Bubbles to celebrate the holidays. For more information and tickets visit www. bubblesindoorplayground.ca/PawPatrol Christmas Country Weekend goes Friday, Dec. 19 and Saturday, Dec. 20 at the Underground Show Lounge, 1177
Third Ave. On Friday there is a karaoke contest, trivia and the dance floor is open. On Saturday there is a variety show, the karaoke finale and the dance floor is open. To enter the karaoke contest register by emailing Madameteaze@ gmail.com
Rock the Halls goes Saturday, Dec. 20 from 7 to 11 p.m. at the Prince George Playhouse, 2626 Recplace Drive. During the last weekend before the holidays escape the madness with cold drinks and a massive live music triple header featuring Dead Sexy, Diode, Examine the Bore. For more information and tickets visit www.eventbrite.com/e/ rock-the-halls-2025-tickets
memories with your children. There is a lantern-making station and kits for purchase for $3 to $10 each or make your own at home with no open flame. Bring drums or small instruments to add rhythm to the lantern walk. For all the details visit www.facebook.com/ events/wintersoltice
magazine corner, second floor, where fibre artists are invited to bring their latest projects to share, vent frustrations, brag about successes, get and give help and join in lively discussions. Snacks provided. This event is in partnership with Great Northwest Fibre Fest.
Candlelight: Tribute to ABBA goes Saturday, Dec. 20 at 8:30 p.m. at Knox Performance Centre, 1448 Fifth Ave. Candlelight concerts bring the magic of a live, multi-sensory musical experience featuring the Listeso String Quartet. Enjoy all the most popular ABBA songs. For more information and tickets visit www.feverup.com/ candlelightABBAtickets
Last Minute Holiday Bazaar goes Saturday, Dec. 20 and Sunday, Dec. 21 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the CN Centre Concourse. Local vendors will have last-minute gift ideas, food, coffee, photos with special guests, door prizes and lots of holiday cheer.
Ballad of the Prospector book launch goes Saturday, Dec. 20 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Books & Co., 1685 Third Ave. Local professional wrestler and author Wes Barker has written a book based on Billy Barker, Barkerville and the Cariboo Gold Rush during the harsh winter of 1862.
Winter Solstice Lantern Walk goes Sunday, Dec. 21 from 3:15 to 5 p.m. at Lheidi T’enneh Memorial Park at the Pavilion near Exploration Place parking lot. Join Mousewood Forest & Nature Early Learning and Family Society for a joyful evening of lantern-making, songs, stories, games, and a magical walk through the park. It’s a heartwarming way to welcome winter, connect with your community and make special
Looking for that special gift? The Hospital Auxiliary to UHNBC Gift Shop, open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the foyer of the hospital, has the best selection of stuffies in town, funky beaded earrings, beautiful money pots, baby apparel lovingly handmade by local volunteers, unique felted ornaments, curated jewelry pieces and Christmas décor galore.
Craft & Chat at the main branch of the Prince George Public Library goes every Saturday from 1 to 3 p.m. in the
Myeloma Support Group goes every third Saturday from 1 to 3 p.m. at Commonwealth Financial, 575 Victoria St. Everyone is welcome who has been diagnosed, those who are caregivers, family members and friends. Wheelchair accessible parking at the back of the building. For more information call Viv Lougheed at 250-981-2618.
If you’ve got an event coming up email us at news@pgcitizen.ca to offer details including name of the event, the date, time and location, ticket price and where to get them and a little bit about what’s happening, too. LOCF
Across BC, it’s a place to turn to for help for young people and their families
CHRISTINE DALGLEISH Citizen Staff
The Foundry is a province-wide network of integrated health and wellness services for young people in BC ages 12 to 24 and their families. There are 19 Foundry centres open in BC, including one in Prince George that was established in 2018.
There are 16 more in development and a virtual service available anywhere in BC.
The Foundry, celebrating 10 years in the province, brings together mental health and substance-use health supports, peer support, physical and sexual health care, and work, education and community services in one location where no referrals are needed.
The Citizen sat down at a round table with Prince George Foundry representatives who shared insight as those who have lived experience accessing, advocating, governing and working at the centre in downtown Prince George, where 267 people accessed the service in 2025 during 2,642 visits.
Since June 2018, which is the first data available, there have been 3,800 registered users, including parents and caregivers, who visited more than 30,000 times.
“For Foundry the model is no barrier and integrated youth services,” Piumi Lakchani, peer support coordinator, Foundry Prince George, said.
“Like at any Foundry, in Prince George we have supports for mental health, substance use, including harm reduction, primary care and sexual health, and we have an amazing peer support team and what we work on is wellness and we provide connections with social services.”
Lakchani said the statistics for the Prince George Foundry show 25 per cent of youth who accessed its services said they would not have anywhere else
to go for help, 43 per cent were guided by family or a friend to visit Foundry, and 84 per cent of the youth who visited said their stress level was high or very high at the time they walked into Foundry.
“So here the focus is to create a safe space for all youth,” Lakchani said. “So when a youth comes in the idea is they will get all their needs identified and then get the support to achieve their goals by creating a safe space and building trust, and most importantly, as they get the care they need, they are empowered to make their own decisions about their health within that care plan.”
Lakchani said as the peer support coordinator she has an amazing team.
“All of them have very unique lived experiences and have lived through a lot of stuff and navigated the systems, resources and supports with many difficulties and challenges, and they are
now in a space in their lives where they can help others navigate the same kind of challenges,” Lakchani said.
“So when a youth comes in it might be to see a counsellor and then when they go to the peer support room, which is a warm, welcoming space, they might find a peer support person who will listen to the youth and provide that non-clinical emotional support they are looking for.
From there the peer support person can identify what the youth needs, advocate for the youth’s needs and help them navigate.”
Lakchani gave the example that a peer support worker can accompany youth through the process of getting a copy of their birth certificate and literally walk with them to Service BC and help them go through the process of what might be considered a stressful event.
Max Hirt is a youth support worker who has accessed Foundry services
for the last five or six years, including gender-affirming care, he said.
“And that was massive for me,” Hirt said.
“And through that I was also connected to a psychiatrist and both of those things have been huge.”
As part of the youth advisory committee for Foundry, Hirt said he attended a conference about queer disabled persons addressing the intersection of those two identities.
“People tend to be very siloed,” Hirt said. And those issues were addressed during the conference and the information provided was very helpful.
There is a youth advisory and a family advisory committee, which provide feedback to Lakchani, who then presents a report to management using their input.
Family members and caregivers are also provided care by Foundry, and that’s where the family advisory committee feedback is crucial to fine-tune services for them as well.
Registered nurse Michelle Miller lost her son Tanner to toxic drug poisoning in 2019. Miller is a member of Broken Hearts of Fentanyl and Moms Stop the Harm, and as an advocate in the community was invited to sit on Foundry’s family advisory committee.
“I am here as a parent with lived experience who had kids who struggled throughout their teens,” Miller said.
“Foundry has been very helpful over the years with myself and my family — how to effectively communicate with your kids — and I think as parents we need to be more active in that role. Life is hard and it’s important to just be sitting beside your child, talking with them and listening — kids just need to be heard. As parents we just need to open our minds. We need to support them in achieving their goals and helping them with their fears. Fear is real and depression and anxiety are real and we want our kids to be safe and loved with
background supports and Foundry has been really helpful with all of that.”
Donna Eckert, who helped raise her grandson, is the volunteer facilitator of the Prince George Grandparents Raising Grandchildren peer support group and sits on the BC Schizophrenia board, Northern Health mental health and addictions advisory committee, volunteers with Fairness for Children Support Services and is a member of the Foundry family advisory committee.
Eckert said Foundry helped her with her grandson during the time she was his caregiver, and it was Melissa Cailleaux, director of community health at the YMCA Northern BC, which oversees Foundry, who pointed her in the right direction when she needed help for herself.
“Melissa is my angel,” Eckert said.
“I’m going to try to get through this without crying — all I needed was someone to listen to me. With all the help Foundry gives to youth — well, this time it was my turn and Foundry is the most incredible organization.”
Things have come a long way since Eckert and another member of the family advisory committee were raising their children.
As Eckert’s sons were growing up
and she was seeing problems, she tried to discuss it with her mother but that was the era of silence when it came to sharing family issues, and it was only years later that she discovered her grandmother had been an alcoholic.
“People didn’t realize back then that these things could be hereditary,” Eckert said. “Things were weird back then.”
Anne Mattis, a member of the Foundry family advisory committee, was an early advocate for her daughter when she started acting out in school. Despite people denying there was an underlying problem, Mattis took her daughter to the family practitioner to be diagnosed with ADHD.
Once the issue was managed, her daughter did very well, Mattis added.
“But back then the thought of going to the doctor or going to a counsellor was unheard of,” Mattis said.
Her nephew had struggled like her daughter did, but his parents were not supportive. When the nephew went to the doctor to get help, the doctor, as was common practice in that day and age, called the parents to get permission to give the necessary medication, but the parents refused. Mattis said her nephew continued to struggle, never
graduated and fell into the cycle of self-medication throughout his lifetime.
“And that’s why it’s so important for kids to be heard and sometimes it’s hard as a parent to sit and listen and not judge and not react. It’s really important to just let them get it out,” Miller said.
Hirt said that was a big part of what Foundry did for him.
“Foundry helped me learn how to communicate with my mom,” Hirt said. “It takes time and effort and with support from the people at Foundry I was able to have that important conversation with my mom and that was really helpful.”
Mattis discovered Foundry when she was helping raise her neurodiverse granddaughter.
“It got to the point when in about Grade 7 I needed help to navigate what was happening,” Mattis said.
“Up to that point it was going really good but at that time it was me who was needing the support with a situation,” Mattis said.
After trying to access support and being rejected by other organizations because she was not her granddaughter’s legal guardian, Mattis was given Eckert’s contact information.
“Donna kept saying ‘Foundry! Foundry! Go to Foundry!’ so I wandered into Foundry with my granddaughter in tow and oh my goodness — not only did they help my granddaughter through a lot of stuff, they also supported me and somehow I got onto the Foundry (family advisory committee),” Mattis said.
Foundry helped connect Mattis to Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT), which helped her improve her relationship with her granddaughter by learning skills specific to her needs.
“And it’s all thanks to Foundry,” Mattis said. “Foundry is the place to go.”
Foundry is part of the Government of British Columbia’s strategy to improve mental health and addictions care for young people. Learn more at foundrybc. ca, or download the Foundry BC app to connect virtually or visit the Prince George Foundry at 1148 Seventh Avenue, across from city hall.
CHRISTINE DALGLEISH Citizen Staff
Celebrating Jane Austen’s 250th anniversary of her birthday, the Prince George Public Library is hosting The Austen Affair: Tea, Tales & Timeless Love on Tuesday, Dec. 16 from 1-5:30 p.m. at the Bob Harkins Branch downtown.
During the event, in which people are welcome to dress in period costume, guests will enjoy afternoon tea and birthday cake, hear a reading from a book she wrote when she was 14 years old, Love and Friendship, and watch the 2005 movie adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.
The event is the brainchild of Patricia Gibson, collections coordinator at the Prince George Public Library, who has worked there for 20 years.
Gibson said there’s a certain appeal to working at a public library.
“At the reference desk here you never know what you’re going to be asked,” Gibson said.
As the imagination turns to the ridiculous, Gibson was quick to say something very different.
“Some people come to the library desk in tears because they just don’t know where to turn and it’s in those moments that I feel that I’m doing the job that I was trained to do,” Gibson said.
And the public library’s only job is to serve its community.
“Not many institutions in our city or our province provide services for free,” Gibson added.
Patricia Gibson, collections coordinator at the Prince George Public Library, has organized the Austen Affair, celebrating Jane Austen’s 250th birthday anniversary on Tuesday, Dec. 16 from 1 to 5:30 p.m. at the main branch of the Prince George Public Library.
And the Austen Affair is one of those free events offered at the library where everyone is welcome.
“Several months ago I read somewhere that it was going to be Jane Austen’s birthday — her 250th — and it clicked that maybe we should be doing something,” Gibson explained.
“Years and years ago at my old library — in Kamloops — I had a brainchild when Barbara Cartland died. She was a very cheesy romance writer who is quite renowned in the UK, she is related
to Princess Diana distantly, who was known for her very gaudy makeup and she’d wear lots of boas and she was very theatrical. So when she passed we had a commemorative day for her, which was very popular, so I thought we should do the same thing for Jane Austen.”
Some staff members will dress in period clothing for the occasion, she added.
“So we will have an afternoon tea on proper china,” Gibson said.
“There will be a birthday cake and so
we’ll have the public reading first and then we’ll watch the movie to showcase Pride and Prejudice.”
The film will be shown in the Keith Gordon room on the main floor of the library.
Jane Austen has had an impact on the world, addressing gender equality issues felt by the women of her era, which are issues still relevant today, Gibson noted.
“So many women who didn’t have a man to support them had a very precarious existence, particularly those in the landed gentry. It was very easy for women to slip into genteel poverty if they didn’t have a father, a brother or a husband so it really was about the business of getting married. Even today I remember being advised by a much older woman when I was a young woman to never rely on a man for money because, as she said, whoever makes the money has the power in a relationship. So this is Jane Austen’s memorandum but it still has applicability today.”
People don’t have to have a library card to come to the event.
“It’s free, of course, as all things are in the library,” Gibson said.
“It’s going to be really good fun and people don’t have to stay for the whole thing. If they’d just like to attend the readings or they just want to see the film they can do whatever they wish — pop in and pop out — or just come have some cake.”
The Austen Affair is geared for those 19 years and older.
CHRISTINE DALGLEISH Citizen Staff
Demand continues to be so great that applications for the Prince George Council of Seniors Christmas Hamper campaign has reached its limit and now the non-profit organization is asking for the community’s help to provide for those seniors in need.
Shoppers Wholesale has offered
space to the Council of Seniors whose volunteers will be creating the hampers that see enough food for a traditional holiday meal along with about a week’s worth of groceries to get those in need into the new year without the stress of trying to stretch their budget at what most consider the happiest time of the year.
“So Dec. 15 to 17 we’ll be packing all the hampers,” Malhar Kendurkar,
executive director of the Prince George Council of Seniors, said.
“And then the 18th and 19th will be delivery days. Right now we are looking for donations and those can be gift cards from grocery stores or cash and we can provide a charitable tax receipt for any donation made. We are coming up short this year for donations and we need more so we can provide hampers for all 200 applications that we’ve gotten
this year. Last year we provided 169 hampers to seniors but there is more of a demand this year.”
Kendurkar is asking volunteers for a two-to-three-hour commitment if they could.
If people want to donate they can drop by the Seniors Resource Centre, 1330 Fifth Avenue and to volunteer they can call the office at 250-564-5888 or email info@pgcos.ca.
and Josh vander Merwe after talking to them about the opportunity to audition for a new play.
Miracle Theatre is putting out a call for two young actors to join the cast of its upcoming production The Garage Sale, a family comedy set to take the stage this spring.
At the centre of the play is a household with a teenage son, and the company is seeking performers who can convincingly portray a high school student aged 16 to 18.
Auditions will be held in mid-December and early January, and interested students are encouraged to contact the theatre to register.
The Garage Sale runs March 26 to April 19, with evening performances Tuesday through Saturday and Sunday matinees.
To help balance school commitments, Miracle Theatre plans to double-cast the role so two students can alternate performances.
Producer Anne Laughlin says the rest of the cast has already been chosen through video auditions from actors across Canada, but the team wanted to search locally for the role of Randy, the family’s teenage son.
“We thought we’d put on our ‘talent-scout hats’ for the role of young Randy,” Laughlin said in a press release. “Over the years we’ve had terrific success finding young people to take on roles written for both teens and children.”
Director Ted Price added that working alongside experienced actors can be an ideal learning environment for emerging performers. “
If you find a young person who has that special raw talent, they seem to blend right into the cast by osmosis,” he said in the release. With the other members of the stage family made up of seasoned professionals, he noted that young actors often rise to the challenge by following the example and work habits of their castmates.
Parents or students wishing to register for an audition or request more information can call Miracle Theatre at 250-563-6937.
The Garage Sale, by David King, is a fast-paced comedy about Phil, an everyman desperate to break free from the daily grind. His escape plan begins with a garage sale he hopes will go unnoticed by his wife and teenage child.
Instead, it unravels into a chaotic parade of quirky bargain hunters, unexpected family blowups and one very determined town grump who becomes obsessed with her favourite customer.
Miracle Theatre, known for donating every show and all proceeds to community groups, announced that this year’s beneficiary will be the PG Community Foundation.
Funds raised will be used to establish a Mobility Disorder Support Fund, which local organizations can access to help cover costs for programs assisting individuals affected by conditions such as Parkinson’s, MS, ALS, Huntington’s disease, the effects of stroke, and age-related impairments including dementia and Alzheimer’s.
Tickets are available now at Books & Company in Prince George or by phone at 250-563-6637.
Proposed Terrian Tower- 42 meter Tall Monopole Tower Structure
Terri0n GP Inc. (Terrion) is committed to building infrastructure that provides Canadian communities with high speed wireless internet, voice and data service.
To improve wireless service, Terrion is proposing to construct a 42m monopole tower structure at 8431 Peter Road, Prince George, BC V2K 5P9. Access will be completely restricted from the public.
As part of the public consultation process as required by the City of Prince George and Innovation, Science & Economic Development Canada, the regulator under the Radiocommunication Act, Terrion is Inviting the public to comment on the proposed tower location before close of business day January 10, 2026. This structure Is fully compliant with Innovation, Science & Economic Development Canada’s guidelines, as found under the Client Procedures Circular (CPC-2-0-03).
ANY PERSON may comment by close of business day on January 10, 2026 with respect to this matter. Please submit any comments to the following contact:
Tour Terrion proposée - Structure de tour monopôle de 42 mètres de hauteur Terrion GP Inc. (Terrion), s’engage à construire des infrastructures qui fournissent aux communautés canadiennes des services Internet sans fil à haut débit, de téléphonie et de transmission de données. Afin d’améliorer le service sans fil, Terrion propose de construire une tour monopôle de 42 mètres au 8431 Peter Road, Prince George, BC V2K 5P9. L’accès sera totalement interdit au public. Dans le cadre du processus de consultation publique exigé par Innovation, Sciences et Développement économique Canada (ISDE) et le Ville de Prince George, Terrion invite le public à formuler des commentaires Sur l’emplacement proposé pour la tour avant la fin de la journée ouvrable du 10 janvier 2026. Cette structure est entièrement conforme aux lignes directrices d’Innovation, Sciences et Développement économique Canada, telles qu’elles figurent dans la Circulaire sur les procédures à l’intention des clients (CPC-2-0-03).
TOUTE PERSONNE peut formuler des commentaires à ce sujet avant la fin de la journée ouvrable du 10 janvier 2026. Veuillez envoyer vos commentaires à l’adresse suivante :
Tower Location/Emplacement de la Tour : 8431 Peter Road, Prince George, BC V2K 5P9
Coordinates/Coordonnées : 54.007345, -122.805337
Terrion Contact / Coordonnées du Représentant de Terrion : Cypress Land Services Suite 1055, 409 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 1T2 Ph: 604-620-0877
Email: PublicConsultation@cypresslandservices.com
Prince George’s Murf Laidlaw also stars in a commercial with 20M views on YouTube
CHRISTINE DALGLEISH Citizen Staff
Remember the Canadian Tuxedo Man from the Petro-Canada commercials that aired during the Olympics? And what about the Mountain Man whose sidekick goat showcased what’s new on Paramount+?
Well, Prince George-born and raised Murray Laidlaw is at it again, showcased wonderfully during seven seconds of glory when he shares the screen with Owen Wilson on Apple TV’s Stick, a sports comedy series about golf.
He also just hit 20 million views on YouTube as the star of a Tillamook Creamery commercial where he delivers a variety of dairy products to a small coastal village.
Laidlaw, also known as Murf, has changed it up a bit recently.
A few years back he came home to be near family during a health crisis, living off-grid and doing all the things that entails, including chopping cords and cords of wood to feed into his only heat source — the wood stove — and generally roughing it while making several local commercials as his “Don’t Be That Guy” character.
Now he’s moved back to the Lower Mainland hoping to “Be That Guy” who is successful enough in his acting career to not have a full-time job doing something else, while putting himself out there on social media to ride that lucrative wave.
The Stick gig came to Laidlaw like a Christmas turkey on a platter.
Laidlaw was doing goofy commercials for Aberdeen Glen, a popular golf course in Prince George, where he developed his “Don’t Be That Guy” character.
The golf course people had connections with the casting people hiring caddies and golfers, so one thing led to another and off Laidlaw went to be part
of the show.
“There were big-name actors, bigname golfers — Canadian and American — and I just got lucky because of Jessie at Aberdeen. We made that video and Jessie got the video in front of the hiring guy who he used to golf against, and next thing you know I am on the set down in the Lower Mainland,” Laidlaw said.
“It was 10 days of filming and they wanted us on the set every day — and I say ‘us’ meaning all the caddies, who were a lot of the Canadian golfers and the PGA studs — the world-famous guys — and I chipped and putted for at least five hours every day on set. We were fed like kings and we were just hanging out for a chance to be on camera because they might need us, they might not. I was probably in at least 10 scenes throughout that 10 days in the background, but I only made one scene, but it was a scene with Owen Wilson and it was only seven seconds of my life, but it was so cool to be there for 10 days and get to know everybody.”
Laidlaw said it just so cool to see the big-budget magic happen.
“A lot of people on set with me didn’t even make the final edit,” he said.
“It was so crazy to see how long it takes — it was just so unreal.”
Another thing that seems unreal is the massive number of views on what looks like a simple message conveyed through a commercial.
No one was more surprised to see the Tillamook commercial on YouTube had hit more than 20 million views than
Laidlaw.
“I was gathering the collection of commercials that I have been in for my social media posts, and when I went looking for the Tillamook commercial on YouTube and I saw it had 20 million views, I thought ‘that’s cool,’” he said. “That was really awesome to see that.”
Laidlaw has expended his presence on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook.
“So now I’m just going to grow on all those platforms,” he said.
“It’s interesting because I started looking at it more in the last 30 days and on Instagram I am up over 55,000 views this month, so I am looking to grow and grow and grow my social media presence.”
As for the local work he’s done recently, another Hospice Dream Home Lottery video just came out.
He’s done other commercials where he’s basically just walking into the dream home and making it his own. This time his “Don’t Be That Guy” character took it to the next level by inviting friends to join him.
“I love working with the hospice team,” he said. “The video just came out a few days ago and it’s so cringe-worthy — same character as for Aberdeen, basically just acting like a goof. I just play it up and I think I’m the coolest guy alive.”
When Laidlaw first started out in his acting career he played serious characters like a murderous ghost cowboy, a biker and a tough guy in a prison.
“After I did those three roles where I was in that headspace, studying these psychopaths and such, I didn’t love how I felt afterwards,” he said.
“So after that I focused more on my silly characters, but now that I am back in TV and film again I am keeping an open mind and I will continue to take from lived experiences to inform my acting.”
His next soon-to-be-released commercial is for the Prince George Golf & Curling Club, and that was a lot of fun to do, he added.
And there are four major projects and another commercial that he’s waiting on word about.
“Lots is in the works and I just have to keep going,” he said.
“I’ve had four big auditions that have the potential to be life-changing and that’s always the hope — that you finally land the big one.”
Recently Laidlaw went from his mountain-man look to clean-cut.
“Oh yeah, that was for the job,” he said, and that’s as much as he can say about that right now.
“But I can say that I am focused on what I love to do now and I love my new look because it makes me look more like my dad, and I love my dad — I love my mom, too — but now I look more like my dad and I love that. I love this look because it reflects that I am evolving as a human and my characters are evolving, too.”
Keep watch for Laidlaw on Stick during episode 10, which first aired in July on Apple TV.
Check him out on the Dream Home Party video at www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ Dream-Home-Party
And to see what 21,924,381 people have seen since his Tillamook commercial was posted on Feb. 2, 2025, visit www.youtube.com/ watch?v=06n28Y7MUXw
If you’d like to up his numbers on TikTok and Instagram, catch him @ murflaidlaw, and on Facebook visit https://www.facebook.com/ilovemyliferightnowAnd the video that landed him the Stick gig is at www.facebook. com/Aberdeencommercial.
CHRISTINE DALGLEISH Citizen Staff
When was the last time people who enjoyed partying early to music from the 80s and 90s considered a trend?
Apparently, we’re a going concern now and to celebrate that there’s an Early Bedtime Club Christmas Bash taking place at Ignite Night Club on Dec. 19 where people can get the party started at 5 and be done by 10 p.m.
“And be in bed before the late-night crowd even wakes up,” Richie Appiah, event organizer said in his Facebook post about the party.
“This type of event is a trend that’s going on right now where people my age and a little older want to go out but still want to be able to carry on the next day. We coined the phrase Early Bedtime Club. This is for anyone. I have had so many people reaching out telling me this is such a great idea and some of them are in their 20s. Essentially in your early 20s it’s great and when I was that age I would stay up all night and then not wake up ’til noon but now if you’re gonna be an adult 10 o’clock sometimes seems late.”
The night will celebrate Christmas but also have a heavy influence that harkens back to the early clubbing days.
“So it’s a Christmas theme but has the 80s, 90s and early 2000s music so we imagine it to be a bit of a Christmas party with early club music so a Christmas vibe with nostalgia is what we’re going for really,” Appiah said.
“I always hear people say ‘oh, music’s not as good as it was back in the day’ so we’re hoping a lot of people will come
has the exact same problem. So I spoke to Dave Mothus, (known for his philanthropic work in Prince George and is an administrator of Hell Yeah Prince George) who is a friend of mine and my family and we decided that if we go back we definitely can be part of it. So in the meantime we get these letters saying they know we already built the school but could we help with the wells. So I said I would talk to some people and that’s how we decided to build the wells. It’s basically a continuation of the schools we built.”
Each well will cost about $5,000 and that includes digging the well, installing the pump and providing a poly tank that will store water above ground, making it easier to access.
There’s even talk of using pumps that use solar energy to make it more efficient, Appiah added.
out and dance like it’s midnight when it’s probably only six o’clock. We’re going to play all the bangers, which are all the best songs of the era.”
(“Banger” is slang for a song that is catchy that makes people want to get up and dance and sing along.)
“I’m hoping that people who haven’t gone out to dance in a long time will come out and dance and when they get home they’ll look at it and think they went out for an entire night and it’s only 10 o’clock,” Appiah said.
“If this event is successful I plan on doing it again because I manage the events at Ignite Night Club, who are so happy to support me in this fundraising event.”
Appiah was born and raised in Ghana
and still has deep connections there. He moved to Canada with his family when he was 12 years old and most recently built a school in a remote village.
Now Appiah is hosting the Early Bedtime Club Christmas Bash as a fundraiser to provide clean drinking water to three villages that all have schools but no wells.
“The village where we built the school a few years back has no electricity and one of the things they struggle with is a lack of water,” Appiah said.
“I go back every year with my wife and family and last year we actually met another lady who had also built a school and we went there and there was about 200 kids and they also have no water and another village we visited
“Since we already had a team in place when we built the school, we thought why not go back and build these wells and when we fundraised for the school the people in Prince George really came out to support us at our fundraising events and hopefully we can deliver this for those families in need in these small, remote communities. I am hoping everybody comes out to the Early Bedtime Club Christmas Bask to have some fun and help us make this happen for the families in the villages.”
Early Bedtime Club Christmas Bash goes Friday, Dec. 19 from 5 to 10 p.m. at Ignite Night Club, 1232 Third Avenue. All proceeds go to fund the wells and tickets are only $11.98 each at www.eventbrite.com/e/ early-bedtime-club-xmas-bash-tickets
Judy Russell and the
present the Christmas classic from Dec. 18-21
DALGLEISH Citizen Staff
Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker is presented by Judy Russell in partnership with the Prince George Symphony Orchestra at Vanier Hall from Dec. 18 to 21.
Reprising his role as Herr Drosselmeier, who gifts the famed nutcracker to Clara, is Izaak Smith, who once starred in the role of the Prince.
Smith, who spent most of his youth in Prince George, might best be remembered for his appearance on So You Think You Can Dance Canada during its debut season in 2008.
Smith moved to Toronto 15 years ago to pursue his acting career and returns to his hometown often.
He’s been seen on our screens for years in major motion movies, like Mirror Mirror, Slumberland, Percy Jackson & the Olympians and Marmaduke, in a comedy television series called 18 to 35, special guest spots in television series like Nurses, Kim’s Convenience, Star Trek: Discovery, Ginny & Georgia and commercials like those for Campbell’s soup, and the list goes on and on. The next one to watch out for is six seconds long.
What can Smith do in six seconds? Can’t wait to find out.
His most recent works are Dinner with Friends, a movie showcased at the Toronto International Film Festival and a short film called Ed & Alfie
It all started for Smith when he and his family moved to Prince George for his Dad’s work, coming from the much warmer climate in Vancouver when he was about 10 years old.
“That first winter was harsh,” Smith recalled.
He remembers that bundling up against the cold was a major priority and it was still winter when things started to change for Smith.
“My mom saw an ad in the paper that
the Nutcracker was being put on and she always loved ballets so she got tickets for her and the two kids — I think I fought my way in because I missed going to the Titanic movie with them and I was real resentful — I was like ‘how dare you go to a movie without me?’ so the next thing they were going to I was like ‘I’m in, get me there, I wanna go’ but I was sick and so I took a bunch Gravol and so I didn’t even see the Nutcracker. I went to the show, got into that seat in the dark and I was asleep before the story basically even started,” Smith laughed.
“I saw a bunch of costumes come out on stage and I was thinking ‘this is great!’ and then fell asleep. So I literally had Sugar Plum Fairies dancing in my head. As it turns out that year Judy had hired a Prince from down south and he happened to be half black as well and so my mom was sitting in the seat watching who could’ve been me in 20 years dancing throughout the whole night and
I just remember waking up to everybody clapping and they are all on stage taking their bows and my mom like leans over in the seat and she’s crying because the Grand P (pas de deux) had just finished and she’s like ‘you’re going to that dance studio!’ I had no idea what was going on — I was like ‘What? Who? What?’”
He was signed up at Judy Russell’s Enchainement Dance Studio and the rest, as they say, is history.
“So one day you’re watching the Nutcracker with your two kids and then years later you’re seeing your son dance the Prince and years after that you’re seeing him on the screen in a Netflix movie,” Smith reminisced. And now mom can see him in the Vanier Hall as Herr Drosselmeier.
Smith acknowledged the monumental task Judy Russell and her team undertake to bring The Nutcracker to the stage.
“I admire Judy’s tenacity and
dedication to bringing this show to the people of Prince George for decades,” Smith said.
“It’s not an easy show to put on. There is so much work in organizing and teaching people all the dances. I can’t accurately convey how hard it is. As a kid you don’t appreciate it as much because you’re in a little clown costume and you’re like ‘my tights are too tight!’ Just know idea of what’s going on around you. But being of a Drosselmeier age you marvel at this person and her crew — it’s a whole studio of people — who believe in that story, believe in that magic and believe in that tradition who have been working tirelessly to bring that story and magic to audience members who grew up watching the Nutcracker and now are bringing their kids to see it and I think without those creatives we don’t have those things in our world and we don’t get those traditions.”
‘NUTCRACKER’ ON NEXT PAGE
MATTHEW HILLIER Citizen Staff
The winner of the 2025 Hospice Dream Home Lottery is Prince George resident Karly Comeau, who, it appears, manifested her ticket being pulled.
Prince George Hospice Palliative Care Society announced Comeau as the winner of a brand-new $1,001,620 custom-built home located at 7807 Southridge Ave. in Prince George.
The home features four bedrooms, three bathrooms, a walkout basement, a wine room, a spacious garage and more.
Funds from all tickets purchased went to supporting hospice care and hospice programs in Prince George.
Hospice executive director Donna Flood said that when she called Comeau, she thought it was a prank.
“It was quite funny,” said Flood. “The first thing she said was, ‘Get off, it’s a prank.’ She was sure someone was pranking her and then the phone went dead. So I said, ‘Did you hang up on us?’
All of a sudden I heard a little, no, and you could just hear the trembling in her voice. Like, she was overwhelmed.”
The Citizen spoke with Comeau on
her win and how she seemed to have predicted it.
“It was just excitement,” said Comeau. “It was weird, but like I was telling everybody I was gonna win … ever since I bought the tickets in June, now and then when I would think about it or see something, I’m like, I’m gonna win my home. It’s my home … I literally said that in my head so many times and then on the day I texted my mom at 4:30, I
said, ‘I feel like I’m gonna win the house, like I need to get ready.’”
She said that her whole family was stunned during and after the initial call.
“My mom was crying,” said Comeau. “I was on the phone with her. I called her at 4:59 on the dot. I made sure I had my dinner made, got everything clean before. I called my mom and I was like, ‘Mom, I’m getting a call from a number that’s not in my phone,’ and then I texted her while
talking to them that I won and she said she could hear over the phone and was bawling her eyes out.”
Winning the dream home couldn’t have come at a better time for Comeau, who said she and her family have been looking to move for a while.
“We wanted to move for the last year, we really want a property, it’s kind of out of our price range, so now I think it might be in our price range!” she said.
Comeau is currently looking forward to moving into her new home and is slowly working through the processes and paperwork to make her dream home a reality.
Flood also thanked ticket-buyers like Comeau for making 2025 a profitable year for the dream home lottery.
“We’re so thankful because there’s always a risk that if we don’t make enough,” said Flood, “we actually have to buy the house. It’s not that the house is given for free. So we’re always happy with the sellout we’re able to achieve, and we’re free and clear on the purchase of the house and all the things that go into it. We’ve made a fairly significant profit to support the work we do in the house.”
CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE
Smith said he is honoured to be invited back to be part of the show.
Then Smith took a moment to reflect.
“You really have no idea where that little bit of Christmas magic is going to take you and I have a lot of fun coming back and working on projects like the Nutcracker where you get to watch Clara go through a night of magic and there’s lot of sweet elements to the story and I like being reminded there is still magic to experience in our world. All these projects still feel like magic to me and they impact your life in ways you can’t even begin to fully understand or fully explain — there’s really no rhyme or reason to some of these fortunes — and with everything that’s
going on in our world right now it’s nice — and it’s almost a necessity — to go and watch a story where you can be reminded that yeah, there might be a Rat King or two but those things can be surmounted and moved past. There’s a whole world of sweets and adventures and wonders. It’s not all doom and gloom. There’s Sugar Plum Fairies and I think it’s a wonderful time of year to be reminded of that. Along with all of our other holiday traditions, the Nutcracker is a big part of it.”
The Nutcracker goes from Thursday, Dec. 18 to Sunday, Dec. 21 at 7:30 p.m. at Vanier Hall, with matinees on Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.
For more information and tickets visit https://www.pgso.com/concerts/ The-Nutcracker
TED CLARKE Citizen Staff
When Billy Barker struck gold in the heart of the Cariboo mountains during the harsh winter of 1862, it triggered an overnight influx of hundreds of likeminded prospectors who came north to central BC seeking their fortunes.
History was made every day in the boomtown of Barkerville and fortunately Barker wrote some of those details down in his journal, which eventually fell into the hands of his greatgreat-great grandson, Wes Barker. He obtained that precious journal in a dubious way — while robbing his ancestor’s grave in search of gold that was buried with his coffin. Hoping to pay off a gambling debt, he dug up the body hoping to find Bigfoot, a 96-ounce gold nugget shaped like a human foot, but the journal was the only treasure his nefarious efforts uncovered. The pages of that journal reveal some of the deep dark secrets of what
happened in Barkerville and the shady characters it attracted, and that formed the basis of the novel The Ballad of the Prospector, written by “Wes Barker” — the professional name used by wrestler and writer Isaiah Berra of Prince George.
“It’s a spooky ghost story, it’s a western and it’s got a lot of life lessons in it, like don’t make a deal with the Devil,” said Berra from his home in Kentucky, where he works as a professional wrestler. “Growing up in Prince George I always was fascinated by Barkerville, we did family trips up there.
“My wrestling character is Wes Barker, the great-great-great grandson of Billy Barker, and when I was looking for inspiration to write a novel I thought, what if I write a fictional version of Billy Barker and that history of the Cariboo Gold Rush?”
Berra touches on the Great Fire of Barkerville on Sept. 16, 1868, when most of the townsite was destroyed. It was quickly rebuilt with wider streets and those buildings still exist at the historic
finish the task, it’s probably 20 years in the making.”
Berra, 28, moved this past summer to Lexington, Ky., to pursue pro wrestling opportunities in the United States and lives there with his girlfriend in her hometown. His wrestling schedule with Appalachian Mountain Wrestling and NWA Texas takes him on the road constantly and he used his downtime when he wasn’t traveling to work on his novel. The concept of pro wrestling had yet to be invented in the late 1800s but the Barkerville wrestling ring figures prominently in the novel as a way to settle disputes in a slightly less violent way than a gunfight.
“I added pro wrestling in because I’m a pro wrestler and thought it would entertain people,” said Berra. “I thought, how great would it be if this boomtown set up a wrestling ring in the middle of it and anytime two people had a disagreement, they wouldn’t talk it out, they wouldn’t go to court, they’d just go in the ring and fight it out and the winner of the wrestling match would be deemed correct in the case.”
site that’s now a tourist attraction.
“The book s based on reality but it’s a fabricated account of what happened,” he said. “There are historical tidbits in it. Barkerville existed, the Cariboo Gold Rush happened and Billy Barker founded it and there was a large number of 49ers from California who came to the Cariboo. At that point it was a fur-trading district for the Hudson’s Bay Company, it wasn’t even yet Canada.”
Berra’s parents, Renzo and Monica, are both educators. Renzo is a phys-ed instructor at Prince George Secondary School who also runs the hockey program at PGSS and Monica was a librarian at Pinewood Elementary School, which Isaiah attended, and he dedicates his book to her.
“I’ve been trying to write a book since that age of elementary school — my mom has books 10 pages long written in crayon that she saved,” said Berra. “Into my teens and adulthood I’d start one and never finish it. It took a long time but I’m proud that I was finally able to
As Wes Barker explains in the book: “Of course, the wrestling ring could only solve the least severe of disputes. It was a reasonable solution for common cases about mining claims and general slander. There had never been a murder in Barkerville, but if that situation occurred, a noose would need to be tightened around the murderer’s neck. Fortunately, Mayor Barker had not had to find a hanging tree... Yet.”
Berra’s self-published 77-page book was released on Amazon on Nov. 17, 20 years to the date when he saw his first pro wrestling show live, WWE Smackdown, while on a family vacation in Italy. Berra offers a simple explanation for why he titled the book The Ballad of the Prospector.
“It just sounds cool,” he said. “In the world of pro wrestling, if something sounds cool then it is cool. It’s just a great title.”
He’ll be in Prince George on Saturday, Dec. 20 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. for a book-signing session downtown at Books and Company on Third Avenue.
Nelly’s pub DJ Dave Bulmer gets “Nellied in,“ kissing a salmon held by Cassidy Malgunas as he holds a shot of Screech while standing over one of the four meat boxes in a draw to raise funds as part of the 100 Hampers for 100 Families event at Nelly’s Pub on Sunday, Dec. 6. The project will supply food hampers to hungry school children and their families over the Christmas break when the children attending five area schools do not have access to their school breakfast/lunch programs.
CHRISTINE DALGLEISH Citizen Staff
The Prince George Public Library Board is seeking nominations for the 2026 Jeanne Clarke Local History Awards, in the category of service.
Nominations for the Service Award must be received by Jan. 1. Nomination letters must:
• Identify the name of the nominee
• Make a compelling case on behalf of the nominee(s) for the reason the individual or organization deserves to receive the Jeanne Clarke Award
The Service Award recognizes outstanding contributions by an individual or group in the area of local history.
To nominate a person or organization include:
• Your name and contact information
• Name and contact information of the nominee (if you know it)
The Jeanne Clarke Local History Award celebrates local history, highlights the library’s role in preserving and promoting local history, and recognizes individuals and groups for their efforts in local history.
Local history is broadly defined to include Northern BC so that historical work with a regional focus is eligible for recognition.
The Jeanne Clarke Memorial local history awards were established by the Prince George Public Library board in 1985, in memory of Jeanne Clarke, a former board chair who served on the library board from 1978 to 1984.
For more information email communications@pgpl.ca.
Nominations can be submitted to communications@pgpl.ca or by mail to 888 Canada Games Way, Prince George, BC, V2L 5T6.
The Jeanne Clarke Local History Awards ceremony will take place in February.
Dec. 11, 1968: Pineview Improvement District trustees Howard Burroughs, Bill Empey and Carroll Billings melted snow over an open fire to demonstrate how their community was being forced to find water after the city cut off the rural community’s tank-truck water supply. The district was looking to raise $16,000 to qualify for a $316,000 loan from the province to set up its own water system using wells.
Dec. 10, 1999: Young inventor Gina Gallant demonstrated her latest idea: A bicycle helmet with built-in safety lights. She came up with it after her brother was hit by a car while cycling. Having already made the news the year before for inventing crackers that don’t get soggy in soup, the 12-year-old St. Mary’s Elementary School student would go on to invent a road surfacing material made out of recycled plastic called PolyAggreRoad, which was used to pave a section of road on Cranbrook Hill. CITIZEN FILE PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN
Dec. 11, 1984: A helicopter was used to lift a cow moose from Pine Valley Golf Course after it wandered onto the driving range and wouldn’t leave. Environment ministry workers tranquilized the animal before flying it to West Lake where it was released after being given another drug to neutralize the tranquilizer. CITIZEN FILE PHOTO BY RIC ERNST
Dec. 10, 2014: Prince George Cougars player Jari Erricson was all smiles as he scooped up a huge pink stuffed horse as part of the team’s annual Teddy Bear Toss. Stuffed animals, hats and gloves were tossed on the ice between periods and were later donated to the Salvation Army. The Cougars beat Saskatoon 4-3 that night. This year’s Teddy Bear Toss is on Saturday, Dec. 13 as the Cougars take on Kamloops. Erricson played three seasons with the Cougars after two with the Everett Silvertips, and went on to play university hockey. CITIZEN FILE PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN
MATTHEW HILLIER Citizen Staff
The University Hospital of Northern BC (UHNBC), locally owned McDon ald’s Restaurants in Prince George, Ronald McDonald House BC & Yukon, Northern Health and the Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation (SNHF) celebrated the opening of a new family room at UHNBC on Thursday, Dec. 4.
The Ronald McDonald House Family Room contains three sleep rooms, a stocked kitchenette and a dining area, as well as a living room, laundry and bathroom with shower, and is expected to support hundreds of families during times of crisis and healing.
Richard Pass, CEO of Ronald McDon ald House BC & Yukon, spoke at the event about what makes this space so important.
“It’s just an incredible service for families because the most horrible thing has happened, whether it’s just an arm break or an injury, or an illness,” said Pass. “It’s really stressful for a family. For them to be able to have the sup port of volunteers and staff but also the other families that are in the same neighbourhood as well that can support one another, it really is a gift.”
The region that this new room will serve is where approximately 25 per cent of Ronald McDonald House BC & Yukon’s Vancouver House families orig inate, and will address gaps for families with sick or injured children needing extended care across the North.
This space aims to keep families together and supported.
“I think it’s a really important piece for northern BC,” said Pass. “Sometimes to come to the hospital you’re driving 10, 19 hours to get somewhere, and to be able to have a home somewhere that you can stay and do with the family and really support the family is just a key piece.”
He added that the family room at UHNBC is now the northernmost Ron ald McDonald space in BC, something he is proud to bring to the community.
“The opening of the Prince George Family Room is a powerful reminder that when family stays, comfort and
considered, in terms of food and housing, but even just that social space. When our son was there, there was no sense of solitude, no sense of being stuck on our own.
“It wasn’t a lonely experience to be down there. We immediately met other adults and other kids who are having similar crises or even worse, and that’s what this space is locally in Prince George. It’s one of the major pieces that you can’t really measure. This is going to gather families in crisis, and crisis is a language that not everybody speaks, and speaking in crisis, you don’t often feel heard, but now there’s a space within our own hospital that’s 20–30 metres from your door where someone can understand your language. That’s a
The family room will be open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. to families of patients ranging from birth to 18, with
TED CLARKE Citizen Staff
Three years ago, when the Duchess Park Condors junior boys volleyball team needed a replacement coach, Griffin Olexyn stuck up his hand and said, “I’ll do it.”
His hiring was a popular choice with the players. “Grif” was somebody from their own generation calling the shots.
Just 19 when he took on the job, his introduction to the high school coaching ranks came as a Grade 12 student the previous season as an assistant with the Shas Ti Kelly Road junior boys team. By that time, he’d already had a lifetime of exposure to the ins and outs of the game, having grown up watching his dad, Jason, win three provincial championships as coach of the Duchess Park senior girls team.
With Jason along for the ride as an assistant coach, Griffin knew he had one of the city’s best coaching minds to back him up as his closest advisor. That first year they won junior provincial bronze and last year they finished seventh in BC as a senior squad.
Anybody who was in the College of New Caledonia gym on Saturday, Nov. 29 knows how well that father-and-son combination has turned out this year for Duchess Park.
When that final point landed, Griffin ran over and hugged his dad, parked at courtside on his scooter alongside fellow assistant coaches Dan Drezet and Brayden Dukacz, watching as the Condors capped off an incredible 48-8 season with a five-set double-A provincial championship win over the Richmond Christian Eagles.
That championship match was a thriller of epic proportions, a best-offive made memorable by the Condors’ fifth-set comeback. They won the first two sets and had a substantial lead in the third when the Eagles stormed back, winning back-to-back games to tie it up
before the Condors clinched it with a 15-12 capper.
The Condors had depth throughout the lineup that helped them overcome a few injuries. They were among three of the province’s top-six ranked double-A teams with Prince George addresses all season and that meant intense competition in every local tournament.
The Condors won banners at the North Central zone, Kodiak Classic and city championship, and each one pushed them to their limits and prepared them to raise it up another notch at the provincial tournament.
“You know you have a special group when they win championships and I said to (now retired Duchess Park athletic director) Louise Holmes earlier this year, ‘I think we’ve got this,’” said Jason, prior to Monday’s banner-raising ceremony at the Duchess Park gym.
“They were cohesive, they played for each other, like they were family. You get this special feeling and you know there’s a chance. We had a few losses but that made us stronger. The parity in the city definitely helped us. The way these boys pulled together was so awesome, they played like a family.”
The Condors roster includes Owen Martin, Sam Cramer, Santiago Gonzalez, Jonah Barette, Brayden Woroshelo,
Jude Poulin, Jesse Bomford, Taylor Hodgin, Tommy Afolab, Jake Birkheim, Rhome Secor and Sawyer Roberts. Wayne Clements was also a key ingredient as the Condors’ super fan and special assistant coach.
“What we’re celebrating today is truly rare — a team from a small town in northern BC won a provincial championship in our hometown in front of friends, family, our community — it’s kind of a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” said Duchess Park principal Sid Jawanda.
“This victory is more than just a banner — for these athletes it took years of hard work, dedication and teamwork, and they’ve been incredible ambassadors for our school on and off the court. They’ve impressed people around the province all year.”
Cramer addressed the crowd and told the story of riding to school with his dad, Duchess Park history teacher Brad Cramer, as a Grade 8 player after watching the 2021 team get its banner hung in the gym. They’d all been staring at that banner ever since, wondering when their time was going to come. They answered that question last weekend.
“It’s surreal, we’ve been staring at it all four years of my high school and it’s ours now. I don’t know if I can put into words how it feels,” said Barette, who
knows how rare it is for high school teams to win a BC banner in their home city.
“That’s the first time I’ve ever seen it, and it happened for us. We’ve gone out of town for big games and there have been cool atmospheres, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that.”
It did happen, eight years before Barette was born.
Jason won the provincial senior girls volleyball title with Duchess for the first time in 1997, and went back-to-back with the Condors in 2000 and 2001. The 2001 final was also at CNC gym and the Condors beat the Cambi Crusaders of Richmond in a five-set affair. In that one, Duchess Park lost the first two sets and had to win the next three to secure the banner.
Jason was 25 when he won for the first time and Griffin, now 22, won’t let him forget he found the winning formula as a skipper a few years earlier.
“He’s got that on me and he’s bugging me about it,” said the 53-year-old. “He’s at that social age level where he can relate to them and all the stuff that’s going on in the world that kids are immersed in.
“I’m extremely proud of my son, not to mention the team as well. He’s been my assistant since he was five years old, on the bench for 19 years now, and it’s been a fun ride to watch him grow up into the coach he is now.”
Duchess Park has now won 15 provincial banners.
Griffin Olexyn knows what a winning tradition does to set the bar high within his own family, and his players have now done their part to reinforce that legendary Condor past.
“This banner now hangs as proof of what’s possible here,” he said. “Every future player who walks in this gym will look and know exactly what the standard is. Boys, you didn’t just win a championship — you wrote a part of history.”
TED CLARKE Citizen Staff
Just when the Victoria Grizzlies saw a glimmer of hope they might leave Prince George with a point or two in the BC Hockey League standings, the Prince George Spruce Kings pulled up their stockings.
The Spruce Kings had no need to drop the gloves. They were too busy socking it to the Grizzlies.
They stuck to hockey and trounced the visiting Grizzlies 7-3 Saturday at Kopar Memorial Arena to complete a two-game sweep of their BC Hockey League opponents in front of a crowd of 1,291.
Jackson Froysland and Ryan Wachtel each scored two goals and Kings centre Ben Vreugdenhil, newly promoted to the top line after Kazumo Sasaki’s departure, collected three assists.
Fans brought donations of winter clothing on Drop the Gloves and Sock It To ‘Em night, in support of the good work the St. Vincent de Paul Society does to feed and clothe the city’s less fortunate.
Tai Ushio got to his own rebound to bat in a backhander into the Victoria net to open the scoring and trigger the clothing toss over the glass 7:59 into the game.
After a quick sweep of the ice performed by Prince George Minor Hockey Association players, the Spruce Kings went to work on the power play and Froysland collected his first goal of the night to make it 2-0, just 76 seconds after Ushio’s goal.
The Grizzlies made a game of it, temporarily, responding with goals late in the first period Landen Ward) and early in the second period (Levi Eiter), to tie it at two and the Grizzlies had momentum working in their favour. But it didn’t last long. Dominic Szcyzgiel hooked up with Vreugdenhil and Ushio to score his sixth goal and that gave the Kings a 3-2 lead to take into the second intermission.
A four-goal Spruce Kings outburst to start the third period put the game out of reach for the Grizzlies. The visitors started the period with Ward banished
Northern Capitals players collect winter gloves and other outer wear
the Gloves and Sock It To ‘Em event at Kopar Memorial Arena Saturday, Dec. 6. The
Vincent de Paul Society’s efforts to help homeless and disadvantaged prepare for the cold of winter.
for a slashing major and game misconduct after he took a two-hander with his stick on the leg of Kings defenceman Evan Bellamy. Once Bellamy served his unsportsmanlike conduct minor penalty the league’s second-most potent power play went back to work.
Wachtel ended a 14-game scoring drought, connecting for his fifth of the season at 2:47, and just nine seconds later, Froysland took a Spencer Masters pass and fired the puck in behind goalie Spencer Michnik.
The Kings went 3-for-5 on the power play in the game.
Masters and Wachtel added to the tally later in the period. Four goals in less than five minutes of game action, the rout was on.
Landon Mackie netted the third goal for Victoria to cap the scoring.
Ryder Green made 25 saves in goal for Prince George to improve to 7-2. The
Kings outshot Victoria 37-28.
It was the fourth-straight win for the Spruce Kings (14-9-1-0) who are now tied in points with the Coquitlam Express atop the Coastal East Division. The Express (14-6-1-0) will be in Surrey Sunday afternoon to take on the lastplace Eagles.
The Grizzlies (13-12-0-0) remained fourth in the Coastal West Division.
Prince George is 7-1-1-0 in its nine most recent games.
The Prince George Spruce Kings rallied from a 3-1 deficit to beat the Victoria Grizzlies 5-4 on Friday, Dec. 5 at Kopar Memorial Arena.
Vreugdenhil had a goal and an assist, while Marcus Lougheed scored twice and Tai Ushio added a goal and three assists.
Prince George tied the game with two
quick second-period goals, then took the lead on Lougheed’s second of the night and extended it with a power-play marker early in the third. Victoria narrowed the gap late but couldn’t complete the comeback.
LOOSE PUCKS: Ushio collected six points (two goals, four assists) in the two-game series and now leads the Kings in scoring with 14 goals and 31 points in 20 games … The Spruce Kings hit the road for the last time before the Christmas break and will play Friday in Coquitlam (the first of seven meeting this season) and Saturday in Langley … Kings left winger Marcus Lougheed (shoulder injury) did not play Saturday. Prince George defenceman Ozbej Rep left the game midway through the second period with an undetermined injury. Rep is the BCHL third-highest point producing defenceman with 27 points in 23 games.
TED CLARKE Citizen Staff
Carson Carels ripped a wrist shot from the faceoff circle into the net 24 seconds into overtime to give the visiting Prince George Cougars a 4-3 win over the Victoria Grizzlies on Sunday, Dec. 7 in Victoria.
Brock Souch was able to return the favour, sending the puck over to Carels for his game-winning blast, after a Carels shot set Souch up for the third Cougar goal early in the third period.
The Cougars completed their sixgame road trip a near-perfect 5-1 as they racked up their 20th win of the season. They improved to 20-8-0-0 to solidify their grip on first place in the WHL’s BC Division and moved within eight points of the league-leading Everett Silvertips.
Josh Ravensbergen made 26 saves in what should be the last game he plays for the Cougars this calendar year. The WHL’s goaltender of the month in November improved his league-leading record to 16-6.
It’s expected he will be among 26 players to get the call Monday to report to Hockey Canada’s world junior team camp in Niagara Falls, Ont., starting on Friday, Dec. 12
Shots were 29-28 in the Cougars’ favour.
The Cats took their first lead of the game just shy of the six-minute mark of the third period. Carels let go a high shot from the point just as Souch turned to face the incoming puck while he skated into the slot. The puck deflected off the blade of Souch’s stick and found a seam into the net to put the Cats in front 3-2.
The Royals tied it at 12:35 with a power-play goal. Timothy Rutso collected his sixth goal of the season with a wrist shot that got through a screen in front of Ravensbergen.
The Cougars found themselves trailing 1-0 before the game was a minute old. Hayden Moore finished off a threeway pass play to beat Ravensbergen 55 seconds in.
Cougars winger Kooper Gizowski ended a month-long scoring drought
with his 13th of the season. He took a pass from Patrick Sopiarz and let go a blast that fooled goalie Ethan Eskit at the seven-minute mark.
The Cougars’ power play, scoring at a league-leading 35.9 per cent clip, went to work for its first opportunity eight minutes into the first period, but it backfired when Miles Cooper took a puck that skipped past Carels at the blue line and scored on a breakaway for a 2-1 Victoria lead.
Gizowski’s goal came after the Cougars’ fourth line — Sopiarz, Townes Kozicky and Jack Finnegan — showed plenty of jump and smart puck decisions, keeping the Royals pinned in their own zone for most of their shift, and they set the tone for the Cougars, who had the first six shots of the second period.
That forward trio kept up its aggressive ways and it led to the tying goal when they won a puck battle along the neutral-ice boards.
Kozicky was sent into the Victoria zone on a feed from Arsenii Anisimov and let go a high hard shot to the blocker side that found the net — the first goal of the 17-year-old Kozicky’s WHL career.
It was the second point in 21 games for the rookie centre from Calgary,
drafted in the second round, 44th overall, by the Cougars in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.
Terik Parascak and Jett Lajoie each scored in the shootout to give the Prince George Cougars the edge they needed in a 3-2 victory over the Victoria Royals on Friday, Dec. 5 in Victoria.
The Cougars overcame a 2-0 deficit after one period. Goals from Souch in the second period and Sopiarz in the third period knotted the score.
Five minutes of 3-on-3 overtime settled nothing.
Sopiarz tied the game 3:38 into the third period. He had a wide-open net to put the puck into when Royals goalie Ethan Eskit went behind the net to play the puck and had it stripped off his stick by Finnegan, who fed it out front to Sopiarz for his second goal of the season.
Souch’s goal, his eighth, came 8:29 into the second.
Reggie Newman and Ashton Brown gave the Royals a 2-0 lead in the first period.
First star Ravensbergen made 31 saves in goal for the Cougars. Eskit was picked as the game’s second star after he made 29 stops.
Neither team scored on the power play. The Cougars were 0-for-3, while Victoria missed on its four chances.
“Character win for sure for our group,” said Carter Rigby. “It wasn’t our normal start for sure. They (Victoria) wanted to come out and give it to us especially after the last two games we played them at home.
“We stuck with it. We regrouped after the first, we regrouped after the second, and then just got back to our game plan and thankfully we also have Josh Ravensbergen. He was great all night and in the shootout.”
LOOSE PUCKS: The Cougars are 6-2 against BC Division opponents so far this season. They beat the Royals 3-2 in a shootout on Friday, Dec. 12. They will be back at CN Centre on Friday to face the Kamloops Blazers on Carson Carels Bobblehead Night. The Cougars are expecting a sellout crowd for Saturday’s rematch with the Blazers, the annual Teddy Bear and Toque Toss. Cougars defenceman Bauer Dumanski missed his third game since suffering a lower-body injury Wednesday in Kelowna. Parascak is wearing the C in Dumanski’s absence. The Royals (11-10-4-2) remain fifth in the division. It was the 10th time this season the Royals have gone into overtime.
TED CLARKE Citizen Staff
Moira Green of Prince George finished 34th Sunday, Dec. 7 in the IBU Cup women’s 10-kilometre sprint in Obertilliach, Austria.
The 21-year-old Caledonia Nordic Ski Club member hit 17 of 20 targets in four rounds on the shooting and finished 3:34.7 behind gold medallist Anna-Karin Heijdenberg of Sweden, who finished the course in 30:45.5.
Green was the only Canadian who qualified for Sunday’s race, after she posted a 27th-place result in Saturday’s sprint.
She was 58th in Thursday’s sprint with just one miss, 1:24.1 behind race winner Heijdenberg in the opening race of the IBU Cup season.
Emily Dickson of Burns Lake finished 65th in Saturday’s sprint race. She shot clean in two bouts and was 2:27 off the winning pace.
Only the top 60 sprinters advance to the pursuit race.
In other Canadian results from the women’s sprint on Saturday, Gillian Gowling of Whistler was 80th, Morgan Quinn of Golden was 106th, and Prince George sisters Iona and Isla Cadell were 107th and 111th respectively in a field of 123.
In the men’s 12.5 pursuit, Zachary Connelly placed 40th (+3:59.7) and Matthew Strum of Bragg Creek, Alta., was 50th (+5:43.5).
Johannes Dale-Skjevdal of Norway set the pace, winning in 33:05.4.
Connelly qualified 37th in Saturday’s sprint and Strum was 50th. In that race, Malcolm McCulloch of Wasaga Beach, Ont., was 102nd and 26-year-old Ryan Elden of Quesnel, making his IBU Cup debut, was 120th (out of 140), after a 117th-place finish on Thursday.
The IBU Cup tour resumes Thursday, Dec. 11 in Ridnaun-Ridanna, Italy with individual races.
Meanwhile, the BMW World Cup races in Oestersund, Sweden wrapped up Sunday.
Shilo Rousseau of Tessalon, Ont., was the only Canadian to qualify for either pursuit. Rousseau finished 47th (15-for-20, +3:58.9) after placing 31st in Saturday’s sprint.
Lisa-Theresa Hauser of Austria shot clean and won the women’s 10 km pursuit in 30:14.1.
Quentin Fillon-Maillet of France took gold in the men’s 12.5 km pursuit in 30:14.5.
In other Canadian results from Saturday’s sprint events: Men — Logan Pletz of Lumsden, Sask., was 62nd, Adam Runnals of Calgary was 70th, and Jasper Fleming of Squamish was 93rd; Women — Benita Peiffer of Whistler was 73rd, Nadia Moser of Whitehorse was 80th and Pascale Paradis of Calgary was 81st.
The World Cup tour resumes Friday, Dec. 12 with sprint races in Hochfilzen, Austria.
Shas-Ti Kelly Road Secondary School wrestler Logan Turcotte tosses Mackenzie Secondary School wrestler Sam Merkley over his hip to the mat in their 62-67-kilogram match at the PGSS Icebreaker and Pin to Win tournament on Saturday, Dec. 6 at Prince George Secondary School. The PGSS Icebreaker and Pin to Win tournament is an annual early-season scholastic wrestling event that brings together high school and elementary wrestlers from across the region.
KRRISH NARENDRA UNBC Athletics
The UNBC Timberwolves closed out the Canada West men’s basketball calendar year with a 90-69 loss to the host TRU WolfPack Friday in Kamloops.
Despite a gritty effort and 13 points from point guard Justin Sunga, the Timberwolves couldn’t overcome a balanced attack from the WolfPack, led by 19-point performances from Jaeden Bynoe and Jayden Stephens.
The WolfPack jumped out to a quick start on their home floor, with Stephens scoring inside and hitting a threepointer to build an early lead.
Tony Kibonge got the Timberwolves on the board with a layup, and Sunga added a jumper to settle the offense. UNBC continued to fight back, getting perimeter scoring from Milan Pasquale and a late layup from Miller Davies assisted by Isaiah Bias.
Bynoe closed the quarter strong for
TRU, hitting multiple jump shots to give the hosts a 24-15 lead after 10 minutes.
The Timberwolves found their rhythm in the second quarter. Cairo Wells provided a spark with two treys, and Kibonge added another triple with a quick release. Danilo Gonzalez was efficient from the line and the field, while Chris Ainsley caught fire late in the half.
Ainsley drilled back-to-back three-pointers — assisted by Sunga and Pasquale — to cut into the deficit. Despite TRU getting a dunk from Gavin Reis and steady scoring from Dami Farinloye, UNBC narrowed the gap to 47-37 at the half.
In the third quarter, the Timberwolves clawed their way back into the game. Sunga opened the half with a three-pointer, and later converted free throws to keep UNBC close. Kibonge remained active, earning trips to the line and coming up with a steal.
The WolfPack offense exploded in the
fourth quarter to put the game out of reach. Bynoe was perfect from the freethrow line and added another triple, while Stephens continued to score inside.
The Timberwolves continued to battle, getting free throws from Gonzalez and a layup from Haukur Davidsson. Wells connected on another late threepointer, and Kibonge added a layup, but TRU’s perimeter shooting, capped by a Chris Piotrowski triple, secured the victory.
In the women’s game earlier Friday, UNBC ran into a red-hot shooting performance from the host WolfPack and fell 74-50 in their last game before the winter break.
While the result wasn’t what the visitors wanted, Claire Huang was a standout performer for the Timberwolves.
The second-year guard was the bright spot for UNBC, pouring in a team- and career-high 16 points to go along with three assists and three rebounds. Avin
Jahangiri was a force on the glass, hauling in a game-high 10 rebounds.
For TRU, Sydney Vollrath was the story, draining seven three-pointers en route to a game-high 28 points.
The WolfPack jumped out to a fast start on their home floor, opening the game on a 9-0 run fueled by Vollrath and Morgan Eichenberger. Hazel Phillips got UNBC on the board with a free throw, and Viktoriia Filatova connected on a three-pointer assisted by Aurora Cabrera to cut the deficit. However, TRU’s offense kept clicking, and despite a late layup from Cabrera assisted by Huang, the hosts led 24-10 after one quarter.
In the third quarter, the WolfPack pulled away behind the arc. Vollrath caught fire, hitting multiple threes to extend the TRU lead.
Both Timberwolves teams will now enjoy a holiday break before returning to action Jan. 15 against the UBC Thunderbirds at the Northern Sport Centre.
September 15, 1947 -December 4, 2015
It has been ten long years since you left us to remember all of the wonderful things you did for everybody. Love you, Miss you, your Boys and their families.
April 6, 1934 - November 26, 2025
Curtis Plunket Garland February 8, 1937 - November 21, 2025
It is with profound sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Curtis Plunket Garland on November 21, 2025, at UHNBC, surrounded by family and loved ones.
Born and raised in Prince George, Curtis leaves behind a lasting legacy within the community he loved so deeply.
A dedicated and visionary entrepreneur, he built several successful businesses, most notably Lomak Bulk Carriers Corp and Hester Creek Estate Winery.
Julie, as she was known to all who loved her, passed away peacefully on November 26, 2025, at the age of 91. She was predeceased by her beloved husband of 65 years, Herb Assman, on November 21, 2024.
Born on April 6, 1934, in Leoville, Saskatchewan, Julie was one of ten children born to Arthur and Gabrielle Poulin. In her early twenties, she moved to Prince George, where she met the love of her life, Herb. They married in 1960, and together they built a life centred around family. Julie embraced life with gratitude and joy; she was the steady heart of our family and supported Dad through many adventures and a successful business. She cherished her children, grandchildren, greatgrandchildren, and her many siblings, nieces, and nephews and countless friends. With a spirit that saw the glass as always full, she taught us patience, kindness, strength, and most of all love.
Curtis was also known for his generosity and passion for philanthropy. He was committed to improving the lives of others through his support of community initiatives, including the Salvation Army Curt Garland Community Support Centre, the Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation, and various mental health programs.
Curtis is survived by his former wife, Nora Jean Garland; his life partner, Gail Hotell; his children, Jason Garland (Jeannie) and Carlene Heppner (Geoff); and his grandchildren, Mackenzie and Jocelyn Kerr. He is lovingly remembered by his step-grandchildren, Rachel Aylen, Scott Gilchrist, and Isaac and Shelby Heppner.
The family kindly requests privacy during this difficult time. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Salvation Army Curt Garland Community Support Centre or Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation.
A celebration of life will be on Jan 31st at 1pm at the Prince George Civic Centre.
February
Julie is lovingly remembered by her children: daughters, Beverly Assman (Michael Noonan) and Judy Neiser (Richard George), and her son, John Assman (Maureen); her grandchildren Michael (Angie) Neiser, Steven Neiser, Jennifer Neiser; Kenedy (Melissa) Assman, Bowen Assman, and Benett Assman; and her great-grandchildren, Hudson, Weston, Gracen, and Shea. She is also survived by her sisters Muriel Leblanc and Jeannine Albach; brother-in-law, Ken Kania; and sister-in-law, Donna McBurney (Terry). Julie was predeceased by her son-in-law Cal Neiser; her grandson Sean Noonan; her brothers, Candide, Laurier, Lionel, and Philip; and sisters Carmel Seierstad (Frechette), Alice Bourassa, and Louise Kania; along with her parents. She was also predeceased by members of Herb’s family who she was very close to: his parents, John and Kate Assman, and her sister-in-law Mary Jane Assman.
At this time, the family has chosen to honour our mother’s memory privately. To those who knew her, we invite you to raise a toast in her honour and remember her warmth, gentle humour, kindness, and generous spirit.
Mom, we miss you dearly. We smile knowing you, Dad, and those who went before you are together again in eternity.
“To love and be loved is to feel the sun from both sides.” David Viscott
Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.springfieldfuneralhome.com.
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1040806 B.C. LTD. FOREST OPERATIONS MAP # 104 FLA93631 2025-4
1040806 B.C.’s Operations Map # 104 FLA93631 2025-4, public review and comment from December 11-January 11, 2026, at link below, or in person by appointment Mon-Fri 9am-4pm. Contact the forestry department at the email or phone number below in order to schedule an appointment. 17000 Dunkley Rd, Hixon, BC, V0K 1S1. This FOM is applicable for 3 years and may be relied upon to apply for a cutting or road permit to harvest a cutblock or construct a road displayed on the FOM. 250-998-4421
fom@dunkleylumber.com
https://fom.nrs.gov.bc.ca/public/projects
In accordance with the Forest Range and Practices Act, Canadian Forest Products Ltd. (Canfor) invites the public to review its Forest Operations Maps (FOM ID: 2808) in the Prince George Natural Resource District. The FOM describes areas proposed for Cutting Permit and Road Permit development within the next three years starting on January 2, 2026, and ending on December 3, 2028. We welcome your comments and feedback during the one-month review period starting December 3, 2025, and ending January 2, 2026..
The map is accessible for review and comment submission online at: https://fom.nrs.gov.bc.ca/public/ projects#publicNotices.
Alternatively, in-person review and comments can be completed at the following location during regular office hours (Monday – Friday, 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM):
5162 Northwood Pulpmill Road, P.O. Box 9000, Prince George BC V2L 4W2
Comments may also be submitted by mail to the above address or submitted via phone or email at: 1-250-962-3512; pg.fom.comment@canfor.com
* On Dec. 22, 2001, the world’s first cloned cat, appropriately named CC, or Copy Cat, made her debut in a Texas biomedical lab. She lived for 18 years, possessed all the attributes of a normal cat, and her birth jumpstarted a pet-cloning industry around the world.
• On Nov. 11, 1831, Nat Turner, an American slave and educated minister who believed that he’d been chosen by God to lead his people into freedom, was hanged in Jerusalem, Virginia, for leading a revolt with 75 followers through Southampton County, killing about 60 white people.
* On Dec. 23, 1982, the Missouri Department of Health and the federal Centers for Disease Control told residents of Times Beach, Missouri, that their town was contaminated by the chemical dioxin sprayed on its unpaved roads, with the unfortunate result that the town would have to be demolished. By February, the federal and state governments had spent $36 million to buy all the town’s houses, with the exception of one that the owners refused to sell, and the city was officially disincorporated.
* On Dec. 24, 1801, British inventor Richard Trevithick took seven of his friends for a test ride in his “Puffing Devil,” aka “Puffer,” the first steampowered passenger vehicle.
* On Dec. 25, 1971, Garo Yepremian punted a 37-yard field goal in the second overtime of an AFC playoff game, giving the Miami Dolphins a 27-24 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in the longest game in NFL history: 82 minutes and 40 seconds.
* On Dec. 26, 1946, mobster Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel opened the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Singer/comedian Jimmy Durante headlined the entertainment, with music by band leader Xavier Cugat. The opening flopped, however, due to bad weather that kept away many Hollywood guests, and as gamblers didn’t have rooms at the hotel, they took their winnings and gambled elsewhere. The casino lost $300,000 in its first week.
ARIES (March 21 to April 19) Handle that potentially awkward situation by warming up your confidence reserves and letting it radiate freely. Also, expect an old friend to contact you.
• On Nov. 12, 1969, investigative journalist Seymour Hersh revealed the extent of the U.S. Army’s charges against 1st Lt. William L. Calley at My Lai, Vietnam, in a cable picked up by more than 30 newspapers, saying that “The Army says he [Calley] deliberately murdered at least 109 Vietnamese civilians during a searchand-destroy mission in March 1968, in a Viet Cong stronghold known as ‘Pinkville.’”
CANCER (June 21 to July 22) Party time beckons, but for some Moon Children, so do some workplace challenges. Deal with the second first, then you’ll be free to enjoy the fun time.
LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) The revelation of a secret could cause some changes in how to deal with a workplace matter. It very likely also validates a position you have long held.
CAPRICORN (December 22 to January 19) Be careful not to push people too hard to meet your ideas of what holiday preparations should be. Best to make it a cooperative, not a coerced, effort.
TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) It’s not too early for the practical Bovine to begin planning possible New Year workplace changes. A recent contact can offer some interesting insights.
• On Nov. 13, 1979, Philadelphia 76ers center Darryl Dawkins leaped over Kansas City Kings forward Bill Robinzine for a memorable slam dunk that shattered the fiberglass backboard. His equally memorable comment on the move, which was not his last and the sound of which spectators likened to a bomb going off: “It wasn’t really a safe thing to do, but it was a Darryl Dawkins thing to do.”
GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) A request for an unusual favor should be carefully checked out. Also check the motives behind it. Your generosity should be respected, not exploited.
• On Nov. 14, 1882, outlaw Frank “Buckskin” Leslie shot and killed Billy “The Kid” Claiborne, who had publicly challenged him, in Tombstone, Arizona.
• On Nov. 15, 1984, Baby Fae, a month old infant who received the world’s first baboon heart transplant, died at California’s Loma Linda University 20 days after the operation. Three other people had received animal heart transplants, but none survived longer than a few days.
• On Nov. 16, 2001, British author J.K. Rowling’s most famous and beloved creation, the bespectacled boy wizard Harry Potter (played by Daniel Radcliffe in his first major role), made his silver-screen debut in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” which went on to become one of the highestgrossing movies in history.
• On Nov. 17, 1903, the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party split into two factions: the majority Bolsheviks and minority Mensheviks. The Bolsheviks went on to become the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
© 2024 King Features Synd., Inc.
LEO (July 23-August 22) A warm response to an earlier request might be a positive indicator of what’s ahead. Meanwhile, Cupid could pay a surprise visit to single LEOs looking for love.
VIRGO (August 23 to September 22) How you respond to a proposed change in a project could affect your situation. Be prepared to show how well you would be able to deal with it.
SCORPIO (October 23 to November 21) An attempt to get too personal could upset the very private SCORPIO. Make it clear that there’s a line no one crosses without your permission.
SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) The savvy Sagittarian might be able to keep a family disagreement from spilling over by getting everyone involved to talk things out.
AQUARIUS (January 20 to February 18) An unexpected request could make you rethink a position you’ve had for a long time. Meanwhile, plan a family get-together for the weekend.
PISCES (February 19 to March 20) Someone might find that it was a fluke to try to use your sympathetic nature to get you to accept a situation you’re not comfortable with. Good for you.
The holiday season is a time of celebration, togetherness, and the joy of giving. Finding the perfect gift isn’t just about what’s inside the box—it’s about sharing warmth, thoughtfulness, and a little touch of style. This year, elevate your gift-giving by choosing presents that are both meaningful and beautifully designed.
Thoughtful Gifts Make the Difference
The best gifts reflect the personality and interests of the person receiving them. Whether it’s a cozy knit blanket for someone who loves quiet evenings by the fire, or a sleek travel mug for
a friend always on the go, thoughtful gifts show you’ve paid attention. Personalized touches—like engraved jewelry, monogrammed accessories, or handmade crafts—add an extra layer of care and sentiment.
Stylish and Sustainable Choices
Stylish gifting doesn’t have to mean extravagant spending. Many modern, eco-conscious products combine great design with sustainability. Consider locally made candles, reusable shopping totes, or natural skincare sets wrapped in recyclable materials. These options not only look beautiful but also help support local artisans and
the environment—two things worth celebrating during the holidays.
Home décor and lifestyle items are timeless choices that bring ongoing joy. Elegant serving trays, festive throw pillows, or art prints can transform a space and remind loved ones of your thoughtfulness all year long. For a more personal touch, consider DIY gifts such as homemade baked goods, a framed photograph, or a holiday wreath— simple creations that carry heartfelt meaning.
Beautiful wrapping can make even the simplest gift feel special. Use ribbons, reusable fabric wraps, or natural touches like pinecones and twine to create a stylish, festive presentation. The effort you put into the details enhances the excitement of the giftgiving moment.
This holiday season, give gifts that blend joy with style—items that not only delight the recipient but also reflect care, creativity, and thoughtfulness. After all, the true spirit of the season lies in sharing happiness and giving from the heart.
The holidays are meant to be joyful—a time to gather with family, share laughter, and create lasting memories. Yet for many hosts, the season can bring as much stress as it does sparkle. Between planning menus, decorating, and managing guests, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. The good news? With a bit of preparation and a focus on what really matters, you can host a celebration that’s filled with warmth and magic, not exhaustion.
The key to stress-free holiday hosting begins well before guests arrive. Start by making a detailed plan a few weeks in advance. Outline your menu, shopping list, and schedule for decorating and cleaning. Prioritize what truly matters to you—perhaps it’s serving a signature dish, creating a cozy ambiance, or making time to relax with guests. Let go of the idea that everything must be perfect. A thoughtful, welcoming atmosphere always outshines flawless execution.
You don’t need a gourmet feast to impress your guests. Choose dishes that can be made ahead of time or that require minimal last-minute effort. Classic comfort foods—roasts, casseroles, or hearty soups—are crowd-pleasers and allow you to spend more time enjoying company rather than being stuck in the kitchen. Don’t hesitate to ask guests to bring an appetizer, dessert, or beverage; most
people are happy to contribute.
Ambiance sets the tone for the entire event. Keep decorations simple but meaningful—string lights, candles, and seasonal greenery instantly create warmth without extra effort. Music is another powerful mood-setter; a soft holiday playlist in the background can make your space feel festive and relaxed. Most importantly, ensure seating areas are comfortable and conversation-friendly. Hosting magic often comes from connection, not extravagance.
On the day of your gathering, stick to your plan but remain flexible. Set up food and drink stations so guests can help themselves, freeing you from constant serving duties. Keep essentials—like extra napkins, plates, and utensils—readily available. If something doesn’t go exactly as planned, smile and move on. Guests remember laughter and warmth, not whether the pie crust was perfect.
It’s easy to get caught up in the todo list, but remember: a calm host sets the tone for the entire event. Schedule time for rest the day before, stay hydrated, and take short breaks during the festivities. When you’re relaxed and present, guests feel it— and that energy makes your gathering memorable.
The holidays are about connection, gratitude, and togetherness—not perfection. When you focus on sharing good food, meaningful conversation, and genuine kindness, you create magic that lasts beyond the season. Let your home reflect who you are— welcoming, imperfect, and full of heart.
In the end, less stress doesn’t mean less magic—it means more space for it. By simplifying your plans, sharing responsibilities, and embracing the moment, you can host a holiday gathering that shines with joy, comfort, and authenticity. This year, give yourself and your guests the greatest gift of all: a celebration that feels as wonderful as it looks.
