The Fort Langley Community Hall might not be located in Vancouver, but with its countless television and film appearances, and being a popular venue for events and gatherings throughout all seasons, it’s today’s (Greater) Vancouver Icons photo feature:

Located at 9167 Glover Road, the Fort Langley Community Hall has been used in shows like Once Upon at Time, Bates Motel, Fringe, Supernatural, Riverdale, motion pictures, TV movies, and commercials.

It was designed by architect Archibald Campbell Hope and built in 1931. The Fort Langley Community Improvement Society was founded by the Fort Langley Women’s Institute in 1924, in order to build the community hall.

1931: Community Hall still under construction. Langley Centennial Museum Object ID 0932.

1931: Langley Centennial Museum Object ID 1175.

The hall is maintained by a volunteer Board of Directors and is used as an event space, wedding venue, and for the Fort Langley Library. Inside its elegant ballroom is party space, complete with a stage and a horse hair sprung wooden ballroom floor hosted its inaugural ball in March of 1931.

Photo credit: v chung on Flickr

A post shared by Real Weddings Magazine (@realweddings) on Mar 6, 2016 at 5:38pm PST

Photo credit: Rachel Patterson on Flickr

Photo credit: Kalev Hunt on Flickr

Photo credit: Ramjheetun on Flickr

Photo credit: Andrew on Flickr

Other Vancouver Icons posts: Christ Church Cathedral, Waterfront Station, Pacific Central Station, Randall Building Mural, East Van Cross, Robert Burns Statue in Stanley Park, Vancouver Maritime Museum, Flack Block, The Drop, Prospect Point Lighthouse, Engagement, Ovaltine Cafe, The English Bay Slide, Freezing Water #7, Cleveland Dam, Heritage Hall, School of Theology Building at UBC, Gate to the Northwest Passage, St Paul’s Hospital, Capilano Lake, Stawamus Chief, Nine O’Clock Gun, Malkin Bowl, Search, Vancouver Rowing Club, Echoes, Point Atkinson Lighthouse, English Bay Inukshuk, Hollow Tree, Hotel Europe, Lions Gate Bridge Lions, LightShed, Granville Bridge, 217.5 Arc x 13′, Canoe Bridge, Vancouver Block, Bloedel Conservatory, Centennial Rocket, Canada Place, Old Courthouse/Vancouver Art Gallery, Dominion Building, Science World, Gastown Steam Clock, SFU Burnaby, Commodore Lanes, Siwash Rock, Kitsilano Pool, White Rock Pier, Main Post Office, Planetarium Building, Lord Stanley Statue, Vancouver Library Central Branch, Victory Square, Digital Orca, The Crab Sculpture, Girl in Wetsuit, The Sun Tower, The Hotel Vancouver, The Gassy Jack Statue, The Marine Building, and The Angel of Victory. Should you have a suggestion for the Vancouver Icons series please feel free to leave a note in the comments. It should be a thing, statue, or place that is very visible and recognizable to the public.

Presented by Honda:
Honda Happiness Contest
The Honda Happiness social media contest is running now through to Sunday, May 10, 2015. Honda wants to take you to your happy place in BC, so they’re inviting you to tell everyone about it on Twitter for a chance to win $1,000 to get you there.

• Post on Twitter account about your happy place in BC
• Include #HondaHappiness in the post
• Follow @HondaCanada on Twitter

Here is a sample tweet that you can complete and post:
“_____________ is my Happy Place in BC because ____________ #HondaHappiness”

My Happy Place

I think I’ve literally used the words “Happy Place” every single time I have described Salt Spring Island ever since John and I first visited together in 2008 and fell head over heels in love with this beautiful gulf island.

We’ve spent summer and winter weekends there ever since, at Hastings House, during the Glowtini or Chefs Across the Water event, or exploring Ruckle Park.

The island has peaceful pastures and lush, mossy forests, as well as mountain peaks, beaches, markets, farms, and the friendliest (and most creative) people you’ll meet. We’ll spend an entire day going for a hike, visiting the market, stopping by the craft brewery, then relaxing in front of the fireplace in our hillside room above the harbour, where light from the sunset dances around twisted arbutus trees. Salt Spring Island is definitely our happy place in BC, what’s yours?

Happiness comes with a Honda!

Where’s your happy place in BC? The local mountains? The big hockey game with your family? Or your yoga studio at sunrise? Tell us about yours on Twitter and share a photo if you like! You’ll be entered for a chance to WIN $1,000 towards your happy place. Just make sure you include #hondahappiness and follow @hondacanada. Contest runs April 17 – May 10, 2015. For full contest details visit: http://my-honda.ca/happiness.

The YWCA Women of Distinction Awards are coming up on Tuesday, May 26th, 2015 at the Vancouver Convention Centre and voting is now open for the 6th annual Connecting the Community Award, presented by Scotiabank.

Vote Now for Connecting the Community Award

In addition to the category in which she was nominated, all individual finalists are eligible for a 12th category called Connecting the Community. This award provides an opportunity for Women of Distinction finalists to gain recognition through social media, as well as raises awareness for YWCA Metro Vancouver’s programs. The recipient of this award will be determined via on-line vote. Each finalist selects a YWCA program area that she identifies the most with and submits a quote as to why. Click here to read about the finalists, the YWCA programs they have chosen, and to vote.

Voting ends on May 15th at noon. The nominee with the most votes will receive the Connecting the Community Award. The recipient will be announced at the Awards event on May 26th and Scotiabank will donate $10,000 to her chosen YWCA program area in her honour.

YWCA Women of Distinction Awards Nominees

Congratulations to all of the nominees in the following categories:

Get Your Tickets

The 32nd Annual Women of Distinction Awards is 75% sold out! Join YWCA Metro Vancouver on May 26th to pay tribute to the inspiring finalists and to celebrate our Women of Distinction Awards recipients.

Early Bird/Until April 26: $225 per person
As of April 27: $250 per person (10 seats per table)
Order online or call (604) 895-5768

Follow the YWCA of Vancouver on Facebook and Twitter for more information along with the YWCA Women of Distinction Awards @YWVanWODA on Twitter. And be sure to VOTE for the women you would like to see receive the Connecting the Community Award.

YWCA Metro Vancouver is dedicated to achieving women’s equality. Their mission is to touch lives and build better futures for women and their families through advocacy and integrated services that foster economic independence, wellness and equal opportunities.

Vancity Member Day is coming up at Science World, where members can get great deals on admission and enjoy Green Month programming.

Vancity Member Day at Science World

In celebration of Earth Day (on April 22nd) the first 422 Vancity members to visit Science World on Vancity Member Day on Saturday, May 2 will get in for free. Additional members and their guests will receive 50% off admission (savings of $11.25 for adults).

Where Science World (1455 Quebec St, Vancouver)
When Saturday, May 2, 2015 from 9:30 am to 6:00pm
Admission Simply present your Vancity MEMBER CARD® debit card or Vancity enviro™ Visa (your guest does not have to be a member).

Vancity Member Day is part of Green Month at Science World from April 22, 2015 to May 22, 2015, featuring exhibits and activities that celebrate environmental awareness in a fun and interactive way.

Green Month at Science World (presented by Vancity) is an opportunity for everyone to learn more about creating a sustainable future in a fun and interactive way. Vancity’s community partners will also be sharing their work and commitment to sustainability initiatives on May 2nd outside Science World including:

• Free bike tune-ups provided by Pedal Energy Development Alternative
• Free bike valet provided by BEST Bicycle Valet
• Free recycling drop-off stations for hard-to-recycle items (ex. Batteries, cell phones, light bulbs and electronic toys) provided by Green Chair Recycling.

RSVP for the event on Facebook and make a plan to take the family to Science World on May 2nd to join in the fun.

Win a Prize Pack

To celebrate Vancity Member Day at Science World, I have prize pack (valued at $300) to give away that includes:

EXPLORE: 1 Family Day pass to Science World – 2 adults, 2 children
ENJOY: Vancity swag pack (travel mug, lunch tote, glass water bottle, Just Potters mug)
EAT: Choice of one Salad Box (Summer Box) from Fresh Roots ($150 value) or one Beasty Box from Urban Digs Farm ($175 value)

Here’s how you can enter to win:

• Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
• Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)

I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Wednesday, April 29, 2015. Follow Vancity on Twitter and Facebook for more information.

Update The winner is Marisa P!

Every day the Vancouver skyline seems to change, with new glass walls rising above the rooftops of previous generations. It’s not often that a whole tower is taken down though, and entirely replaced with another. That’s what happened to the Georgia Medical-Dental Building in 1989, when the 17-storey tower was razed and the 23-storey Cathedral Place tower popped up in its place.

View from the Vancouver Art Gallery – Sequence from the demolition video on YouTube

Built in 1927-29, the Medical-Dental Building was the first art deco skyscraper built in Vancouver and was designed by the same architects who did the Marine Building, McCarter and Nairne. “Like the Marine Building it rose in tiers, topped by pale terra cotta that dripped off the brick facade like ice cream,” reported the Vancouver Sun.

January 9, 1929 VPL#: 12145; March 4, 1929 VPL#: 12148; June 15, 1929 VPL#: 12154 by Leonard Frank

Chuck Davis wrote about the features of the building in his History of Metropolitan Vancouver: “[The Medical-Dental Building] was richly embellished with whimsical ornaments like plump little terra cotta owls and other birds, lions and horses. The building was adorned with medical, religious and mythological symbols around the main door. Most of its tenants were doctors, dentists and the like. Easily the most famous distinguishing features on the building were three 11-foot-high terra cotta statues of nursing sisters in First World War uniforms, one perched on each of the building’s three visible corners.”

1950s: Georgia Medical-Dental Building viewed from the Vancouver Art Gallery steps. Archives# 2008-022.040.

At about the 10th-storey level, the building was graced with 11-foot-high, terra cotta statues depicting a Nursing Sister of World War I, one on each of the building’s three visible corners. Architects John Young McCarter (1886-1981) and George Colvil Nairne (1884-1953) had both served overseas during World War I. McCarter was seriously wounded and credited the Nursing Sisters with saving his life. They founded their architectural firm in 1921, and when they obtained the contract for the Medical Dental Building, they decided to honor the Nursing Sisters. The sculptures were designed by Joseph Francis Watson. A local joke among the medical users of the building was that the statues represented the Rhea Sisters – Gono, Dia, and Pyo. [Source: Vancouver’s Monuments To Nurses by Nina Rumen, RN, BScN / RNABC History of Nursing Group]

1969: Looking down West Georgia Street. Hotel Vancouver on the left, Medical-Dental Building on the right. Archives# CVA 780-17.

As a young girl, out on one of our many family Sunday drives, I distinctly recall looking up at the “Nursing Sisters”. In fact, it’s the only building I remember admiring when I was a child, through the window of our van. This memory must have been before I was even 10 years old as the building was imploded in 1989.

Following the public outcry that surrounded the dramatic demolition of the Georgia Medical Dental Building, City Council introduced a policy to prevent the future demolition of “A”-listed heritage buildings.

“Council has instructed that prior to consideration of a proposal that includes demolition of an “A” listed building, a formal independent consultant’s report on the physical condition and economic viability of retaining the building be reviewed by the Director of Planning. The report is at the expense of the applicant.” Council reaffirmed this policy on April 18, 1991. [Heritage Vancouver]

2011-2014: Cathedral Place on Google Maps

The Shaw Tower at Cathedral Place is a dramatic postmodern structure designed by Vancouver architect Paul Merrick. Cathedral Place was developed through a joint venture with Sir Run Run Shaw of Hong Kong to realize a long-time dream of Charles Shon to redevelop the Georgia Medical-Dental Building site creating an enduring architectural landmark.

Photo credit: Michael & Philip Tong on Flickr

A public campaign was raised to save the original statues for the new building. However, as these proved both extremely heavy and difficult to remove from the original building, replicas had to be made. When the new tower opened in 1991, the replicas were mounted at about the 3rd-storey level, easily visible from the streets. [Source: Vancouver’s Monuments To Nurses by Nina Rumen, RN, BScN / RNABC History of Nursing Group]

Photo credit: Swire on Flickr

In 1992, the Museum of Vancouver took the least-damaged head from one of the broken statues for safe-keeping; this was also patched and repaired and is held for display by the Museum. A fibre-glass replica of the head also is on display in the lobby of Cathedral Place.

“I quite like Cathedral Place,” writes Eve Lazarus. “It’s nicely tiered, the roof fits in with the Hotel Vancouver across the street, and it even has a few nurses, gargoyles and lions pasted about as a reminder of the former building. Everyone over 35 likely remembers the three nurses in their starchy World War 1 uniforms looking down from their 11th storey parapets.”

While walking back from the Whitecaps FC 2 match at UBC’s Thunderbird Stadium last Sunday I looked up at the corner of the Technology Enterprise Facility III building on campus and spotted some familiar faces. Looking down from fifth floor there they were, the Nursing Sisters! It felt as though I spotted an Expo86 bench in White Rock or a repurposed Vancouver 2010 sign — but I felt 10 times the excitement.

“A Vancouver landmark, [the Medical-Dental Building] was the focus of an intense public preservation campaign. Although the battle to save the building was lost, Discovery Parks purchased and restored the salvaged terra cotta, with proceeds used to benefit the Vancouver Heritage Foundation.”

I have yet to confirm whether these are another set of replicas (according the several sources they are) but the plaque on the building seems to imply that they are in fact the original, restored terra-cotta pieces. Either way, if we look close enough, there are pieces of local history all around us, and we just have to keep telling their story.