BC Youth Week is happening Friday, May 1st until Thursday, May 7th with free/affordable events taking place across the province, from Courtenay, to Abbotsford, and Williams Lake.
This internationally celebrated event aims to recognize the positive contributions youth make in their communities, and to celebrate the valuable work youth do all year round. There are a diverse range of events planned this year and there is sure to be something for absolutely everyone. Random acts of kindness, skateboarding competitions, concerts, sporting events, contests, prizes, and more!
BC Youth Week Events
Check out the full list of events online:
Trades & Technical Career Fair 2015 – Delta
Date & Time: Thursday, April 30, 2015 from 9:00am to 8:00pm
Location: Sungod Recreation Centre (7815 112 Street, Delta)
Cost: Free / Event Link
Youth Week Kickoff Event – Boys & Girls Club of Williams Lake
Date & Time: Friday May 1, 2015 from 6:00pm to 7:00pm
Location: Lake City Secondary, Senior Campus (640 Carson Drive)
Cost: Free / Event Link
Events and activities through to Friday, May 8, 2015
BC Youth Week Activities – Port Moody Arts Centre
Date & Time: Friday, May 1, 2015 to Thursday, May 7, 2015
Location: Port Moody Arts Centre (2425 St Johns St, Port Moody)
Event Link
Join the Port Moody Arts Centre for activities including teen open studio, workshops, and classes.
Family Dinner Night – Abbotsford
Date & Time: Friday May 1, 2015 doors at 5:30pm, dinner at 6:00pm
Location: AYC Youth Centre at Matsqui Rec Centre (3106 Clearbrook Rd)
Contact: Christy at AYC 604-854-8785 or [email protected]
Youth are invited to bring their family and friends to the AYC for a family style dinner. Enjoy a spaghetti dinner and spend some quality time with your family & friends. Youth will help in the dinner prep. View a full list of Abbotsford Youth Commission events online, from May 1st to May 7th.
Youth Week Block Party – Burnaby
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015 from 1:00 to 4:00pm
Location: Edmonds Community Centre (7433 Edmonds St, Burnaby)
Cost: Free / Event Link
Come celebrate Youth Week with sports, activities, fun and games. There will be art and music showcased by Burnaby youth. Ages 10-18.
Youth Week Dance – Coquitlam
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015 at 7:00 to 10:00pm
Location: Pinetree Community Centre (1260 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam)
Cost: $2 presale / $4 at the door
Grab your friends and dance the night away with Deejay Absolute. For youth 14-18 years old. Call 604-927-6924 for more info.
Annual Youth Week Road Hockey Tournament – Courtenay
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015. Register at 9:30am, games at 10:30am
Location: The LINC Youth Centre (300B Island Hwy N, Courtenay)
Contact 250-334-8138 or 250-338-5371 for more info. Come join in on a fun road hockey tournament. BBQ lunch will be included for all participants.
Youth Fest 2015 – Mission
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015 from 12:00 to 5:00pm
Location: Mission Leisure Centre (7650 Grand St, Mission)
Event Link
Free activities including a bike, skate, and scoot competition
Youth Week’s Poco Pursuit– A Truly Amazing Race- Port Coquitlam
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015 from 12:00 to 5:00pm
Location: Hyde Creek Recreation Centre (1379 Laurier Ave, Port Coquitlam)
Cost: $5/team / Event Link
Families and youth of all ages are invited to register their team of four in the 1st annual Poco Pursuit Race Challenge. Solve riddles, overcome obstacles, and work together to win some great prizes.
Youth Basketball & Breakdance Showcase – Surrey
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015 at 12:00pm to 8:00pm
Location: Guildford Recreation Centre (15105 105 Ave, Surrey)
Cost: Free / Event Link
Annual event featuring a city wide youth basketball tournament, break-dance battles, youth focused resource tables, hip hop showcase, I Am Game, and more. 2014’s event saw over 2,000 attendees.
Youth Week Event – Vancouver
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015 from 1:00pm to 4:00pm
Location: Creekside Community Centre (1 Athletes Way, Vancouver)
Event Link
This event will include youth performers on an outdoor stage, card tournaments, 3 vs. 3 basketball tournament, skate park party (DJ & Prizes), info booth, and inflatables.
Saturday Night Silverscreen – West Vancouver
Date & Time: Saturday May 2, 2015 at 7:00pm
Location: Gleneagles Community Centre (6262 Marine Dr, West Vancouver)
Cost: Free / Event Link
An evening of fun with an Indoor Big Screen Movie event featuring BIG HERO 6. Youth entertainers will be on hand for some fun prior to the start of our big show.
Youth Week Dodgeball Extravaganza & BBQ – Place Maillardville
Date & Time: Saturday, May 2, 2015 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Location: Poirier Sports Forum (633 Poirier St, Coquitlam)
Cost: Free
Place Maillardville & Poirier Community Centre present their 1st annual collaborative Youth Week event. Open to youth aged 10-18. Teams consist of 5-8 players or sign up as a single. Showcase dodgeball skills and win cool prizes. BBQ offered for registered teams. Register with Place Maillardville: 604-933-6166.
Youth Talent Show – Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows
Date & Time: Monday, May 4, 2015 from 7:00pm to 9:00pm
Location: The ACT Arts Centre & Theatre (11944 Haney Pl, Maple Ridge)
Cost: $7.50 for youth, $9.50 for adults 19+ / Event Link
Celebrate the many talents of our youth. This is a great opportunity for our communities to see our youth shine. For audition or any other information please call 604-465-2442.
Skate Park Jam – Township of Langley
Date & Time: Thursday, May 7, 2015 from 3:00pm to 5:00pm
Location: Walnut Grove Skate Park (8889 Walnut Grove Dr, Langley)
Event Link
Join us in the Walnut Grove Skate Park for live music, skate demonstrations, free food, and prizes.
Youth Art Festival – City of Langley
Date & Time: Thursday, May 7, 2015 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm
Location: Frostings Cupcakery (20411 Fraser Hwy, Langley)
Cost: Free / Event Link
Come on out and show your support for local youth and their talents.
Follow BC Youth Week
Connect with BC Youth Week on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook for more information.
Miss604 is a proud partner of BC Youth Week
PNE/Playland announced this morning that its newest ride, The Beast, will be ready to roll when doors open for the season on Saturday, May 16, 2015. This new multi-million dollar extreme ride is the first of its kind in North America and Canada’s most intense pendulum ride.
The Beast boasts a one armed pendulum, swinging 120 degrees in either direction, reaching heights of over 125 feet, all while flying 90km/hr, with seats that spin 360 degrees. The Beast also features a unique multi- directional seating configuration. Ten riders face out towards the park and ten riders face into the centre of the ride.
The ride is being installed where Crazy Beach Party once stood and it looks like a far more menacing, amped up version of that old favourite (which will still also be at Playland).
All the traditional favourites will also be back, from the hair raising Hellevator to the wet and wild Flume to the historic Wooden Coaster – there is something for every adrenaline junkie in the family.
Families will enjoy Kids Playce, which features special grass picnic areas, a wide range of children’s rides and is the perfect setting for families looking to spend some activity time in a safe, kid-friendly environment. Popular Playland food vendors such as Triple-O’s, Cheese Please, Fresh Cut Fries, and the FunDunkers Donut Shop are also back.
Season PlayPasses are currently available online and will give families access to over 30 rides and attractions, including the new thrill ride, The Beast. PlayPasses include unlimited access to over 30 rides and attractions, excluding Revelation, Drop Zone, Haunted Mansion and Pacific Adventure Golf. They will be available at the same promotional rates in Lower Mainland 7-Eleven, Safeway, Save-on-Foods, Urban Fare, PriceSmart Foods and Cooper’s stores this April.
Follow PNE/Playland on Twitter and Facebook for more information about what’s in store this season.
Lougheed Town Centre is celebrating playtime with the launch of its new indoor playground. Now open at centre court, the eco-friendly playground is recommended for ages 5-12 and is designed to look and feel like an outdoor activity centre complete with a synthetic lawn.
Image courtesy of Lougheed Town Centre
The playground’s manufacturer, Landscape Structures, strives to foster active and healthy children in relation to a hearty environment. With a focus on developing products out of recycled or reclaimed industrial and post-consumer waste, Landscape Structures builds playgrounds with the concept of ‘continuous play’ in mind. This approach treats playgrounds as social spaces and encourages decision-making, interaction and cooperation among kids, rather than isolating them on independent slides and swing sets.
Win a Lougheed Town Centre Gift Card
“Coupled with the recent introduction of world-renowned children’s apparel retailer carter’s | OshKosh, the new playground helps create a modern family-friendly shopping experience,” says Sara Park, Marketing Manager for Lougheed.
To celebrate this latest addition to the Lougheed family, I have $50 carter’s | Osh Kosh gift card to give away, valid only at Lougheed Town Centre. Here’s how you can enter to win:
- Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
Follow Lougheed Town Centre on Twitter and Facebook for more information about their retailers, hours, entertainment, and special offerings. Lougheed Town Centre is located at 9855 Austin Ave in Burnaby and is accessible from the SkyTrain Millennium Line’s Lougheed Town Centre Station. It consists of 140 stores including H&M, Walmart, London Drugs, Safeway and Hudson’s Bay, and more!
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Friday, April 24, 2015.
Update The winner is Gayle!
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (“WFC2”) hosted their inaugeral home match at UBC’s Thunderbird Stadium yesterday, resulting in a 1-1 tie with Toronto FC 2. Whitecaps FC 2 is the Whitecaps’ own United Soccer League (“USL”) team and over 3,200 fans came out to cheer them on, including John and I as we were given access to document the day. There was plenty of sunshine, family fun, and action on the pitch — it was the perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
Whitecaps FC 2 Inaugural Match Photos
Families and supporters alike appeared to have a great time at the match. There was a band playing, parallel lineups at the balloon twisting and face painting stations, food truck fare, photos with Spike, and autographs from the Whitecaps’ captain Pedro Morales — about which I overheard a little girl gushing to her family after the match when we were at a restaurant nearby.
Seating at WFC2 matches is general admission; however, there are designated areas. The family friendly area is located in the north side of the grandstand and the supporter area is located in the south side of the grandstand. When play began, members of Vancouver Whitecaps supporter groups Curva Collective, Raincity Brigade, and the Southsiders chanted and sang anthems, creating an even more festive atmosphere.
The average attendance for USL games in 2014 was 3,114 so this was a great showing for Vancouver.
A Guide to Whitecaps FC 2
A little bit of league history and a team guide thanks to the WFC2 FAQ online:
The United Soccer League (USL) is a professional soccer league based in North America. It’s currently the third tier of soccer in North America, but is considered to be the strongest men’s professional soccer league on and off the field below and in support of Major League Soccer (“MLS”).
In 2013, USL began a groundbreaking, multi-year partnership with MLS that featured individual team affiliations, inter-league play, and the opportunity for MLS clubs to field a second team in USL. From the perspective of MLS teams, the goal is to aid the development of young players by providing them more minutes in a competitive club environment.
MLS has mandated that each of its clubs either start their own team or reach an affiliation agreement with an existing USL club by 2015. Whitecaps FC are the seventh MLS side to officially launch a USL team for the 2015 season. The others are LA Galaxy (LA Galaxy II); Real Salt Lake (Real Monarchs SLC); Seattle Sounders FC (Sounders FC 2); Portland Timbers (Timbers 2); Montreal Impact (FC Montreal); Toronto FC (Toronto FC II).
With Whitecaps FC 2, there are now a total of 24 teams confirmed for 2015. In addition to the MLS clubs, other expansion teams include Austin Aztex, Charlotte Independence, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC, Louisville City FC, Saint Louis FC, and Tulsa Roughnecks FC. In 2015, each team will play 28 matches (14 home, 14 away) and have the opportunity to qualify for the USL playoffs.
Prior to joining MLS in 2011, the ‘Caps spent a total of 11 seasons in the USL (between the USL A-League and USL First Division), winning league championships in 2006 and 2008. They also previously operated a U-23 PDL team and a W-League side.
Whitecaps FC 2 will feature first-team players from Vancouver’s MLS team, players signed to USL contracts by Whitecaps FC 2, and players from Vancouver’s Residency program. USL allows teams to carry as many as five Academy (aka Residency) players on their roster. Among the MLS players who have already featured this season are goalkeepers Marco Carducci and Paolo Tornaghi, defenders Christian Dean, Tim Parker, and Ethen Sampson, midfielders Kianz Froese and Ben McKendry, and striker Caleb Clarke (who scored the goal for WFC2 on Sunday).
Whitecaps FC 2 Tickets
Tickets and family packs are available now for all WFC2 home matches. Single tickets are $15 and family packs (family season passes) start at $199. Group tickets are just $11.
The next home match is Sunday, April 26, 2015 at UBC Thunderbird Stadium against Sounders FC 2, followed by OKC Energy on May 17th, Real Monarchs on May 24th, and Arizona United SC on May 31st. Find the full schedule online (through to September 2015) and be sure to get your tickets!
