On Jan. 11, there was another ceremony for the presentation of the Queens 60th Jubilee medals. One of the recipients, posthumously, was Bonnie Cruzelle Myram. When it came time to announce Bonnie’s award it was an emotional time for all that knew Bonnie and there were many in attendance that did. Two of her children, Debbie and Dean were there to accept the award. I spoke to them at the reception that followed the ceremony. They were very pleased that their mother was given the award.
Her Honour, the Honourable Judith Guichon Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia attended the ceremony and presented the medals. During Her Honour’s address it was mentioned that there would be numerous visits all over the province during her term. As it happens, Barriere will be the recipient of one of those visits on Jan. 28. There will be a luncheon held from noon until 1 p.m. in the gym at The Ridge. Everyone is welcome to attend. Her Honour will give a short address during that time. It will be interesting to hear what our new Lieutenant Governor has to tell us. Following the luncheon, Her Honour is scheduled to visit Barriere Secondary School where she will address the students. Hopefully there will be time to speak with students in a focus group.
Minister Lake was one of the hosts for the ceremony. I spoke with him and he confirmed that he will be at Barriere’s Citizen of The Year dinner on Jan. 19. I had concerns that other greater or more pressing issues may keep him from attending. Terry indicated that he felt it was important to come to Barriere and other communities to recognize those residents that have given so much of themselves to make their community successful, as well as to interact with residents on a regular basis.
I agree wholeheartedly with this sentiment. Barriere residents care about their community. They need to know that their concerns have been given proper consideration. Coming to our celebrations and talking to residents first hand is the best way to gauge concerns. It shows that our community gets just as much attention and time spent by our MLA on issues that effect us as other communities that are larger and perhaps more vocal. I believe in working with people to make things happen, not demanding that we get our way. My experience with Minister Lake and his staff has been that there is a consistent willingness to listen to what is needed here in Barriere and to provide help and support as needed.
In fact, Ministers Lake, Bell and Bond were at the first meeting of the Economic Development pilot held last spring in Valemount. Since that time they have “walked the talk” and made themselves and their staff available to help keep the focus of the pilot projects on track and in focus.
Without their individual and combined efforts nothing would have come from the pilot economic development project meetings. Instead, all three of the projects identified have gone ahead to varying degrees and will continue to show good progress in the months to come.
The District Council has to make some hard decisions. Plans must be made around how best to maintain and grow our community and what direction to go with each issue. Our neighbouring communities have the same decisions to make. Perhaps there is an opportunity to combine ideas and leverage opportunities to get the best results for all. There is no sense in each community doing the same studies and arriving at the same conclusions. Well, unless you are the person that makes your living doing studies, then doing a number of studies would certainly be profitable.
Sound planning, a well thought out economic development plan and a good working relationship with all other government bodies is the only way to insure that our community will grow in the desired direction, as well as be sustainable for future generations.
The amount of snow this year has caused more than enough problems. The local road clearing contractor has been taxed to the limit in trying to keep the roads clear. On their behalf, I ask for your patience and understanding around this issue.