Last summer I sponsored Burnaby Heights‘ Hats Off Day which, as I quickly found out, is an annual summer highlight for tens of thousands. Since that time, I have worked with Burnaby Heights Merchant Association a little more and have now partnered with them for a fantastic contest where you can enter to win $250 gift cards every day, all day this week.
Experience Burnaby Heights
Every day this week they will post a new prize theme. You can enter the contest 3 different ways daily by visiting the new Burnaby Height website, Liking them on Facebook, or following @BurnabyHeights on Twitter and re-tweeting the daily contest code. I will also update this post with their daily prize information:
1. Monday’s prize theme is Beauty and Fashion. You can enter to win $100 to spend at Chickadee Boutique and $150 to spend at Athena Day Spa.
2. Tuesday’s prize theme is Dine the Heights from morning till night. You can enter to win $250 to spend between Chez Meme Baguette Bistro, Anton’s Pasta Bar, and The Pear Tree Restaurant.
3. Wednesday’s prize theme is Get fit and have fun on the Heights. You can enter to win $250 to spend between Dance Addicts Studio and Moksha Yoga & Heart.
3. Thursday’s prize theme is Gourmet shopping made easy. Enter to win $250 to spend between Cioffi’s Meat Market & Gourmet Kitchen, Valley Bakery, Regent Fish Market, and Rocky’s Meats.
They will draw a winner daily at 12:00pm then open up the next stage of the contest, which will be another shopping prize valued at $250, until Friday afternoon.
Experience Burnaby Heights with Miss604
They have also offered up $100 to spend on the Heights exclusively to one Miss604 reader. To enter, just leave a comment on this post with the name of a Burnaby Heights merchant. There are over 350 businesses located along East Hastings from Boundary to Gamma to choose from. Drug stores, coffee shops, bakeries, beauty, fitness, services, and more.
I will draw one winner at random from all of my entries at 12:00pm on Friday, March 2, 2012. Update My winner is Angie!
In honor of International Women’s Day in March, the Stanley Park Nature House will feature an exhibit about E. Pauline Johnson – Canadian poet and stage performer.
I have profiled Pauline a few times before, even making a few pilgrimages to her modest monument between Ferguson Point and Third Beach in Stanley Park. Pauline, whose father was a Mohawk chief and mother an English immigrant, performed and wrote tales back east before coming to Vancouver at the turn of the century.
She first began to publish poems in 1884, and two of her poems appeared in Songs of the Great Dominion, one of the first anthologies of Canadian poetry, in 1889. She was praised as being an “authentic” Native voice, a notion reinforced by her performances. For half of her readings, Pauline would appear wearing traditional Native dress; the other half she would wear traditional Victorian attire. She was a popular and compelling performer, touring Canada, the United States and England. [Athabasca University]
When she arrived in Vancouver, after retiring from the stage, she produced a series of articles for the Daily Province based on stories relayed by her friend, Chief Joe Capilano of the Squamish nation. As her health failed her in 1911, friends put together a collection of her stories and formed the book “Legends of Vancouver”. It included how she gave Lost Lagoon its name, told the story of the Two Sisters (aka The Lions on the North Shore), Siwash Rock, and more.
In 1886, she changed her name to Tekahionwake, after her Grandfather. Her attempts to resolve both her Native and European heritage was also a subject of some of her poems. She was the first Canadian woman, Indian and writer to be honored with a commemorative stamp in 1961. [Athabasca University]
Pauline succumbed to breast cancer in March of 1913. Her funeral was the largest in Vancouver history until that time. “Legends of Vancouver” gained in popularity in the 20th century and it is currently available in the public domain – you can even download it for free in iBooks.
What International Women’s Day Celebration: E. Pauline Johnson Exhibit
Date Saturday, March 10, 2012 (Pauline’s birthday)
Time 12:00pm to 3:00pm
Where Stanley Park Nature House on Lost Lagoon
The event is organized by the Stanley Park Ecology Society & Stanley Park History Group. Stop by to learn more about Pauline, the history of Stanley Park, and enjoy a complimentary cup of tea (bring your own mug if you can). The first three visitors will also receive an original Pauline Johnson 1961 Canadian 5cent stamp. This is a one-day event, no tickets required (just drop-in), and admission is by donation.
On Wednesday I captured the progress of the demolition of two buildings at Robson and Granville which revealed a “ghost sign” on the side of the Charlie’s Music building.
Immediately Jason Vanderhill and Robert White pointed out on Twitter that this was indeed a ghost sign – the shadow of an old painted advertisement. With some quick sleuthing from Heritage Vancouver, it was revealed to be an ad for a silent movie, “Grandma’s Boy” starring Harold Lloyd, that would be playing across the street at the original Capitol Theatre.
Photo credit:
Photocat62 on Flickr – Submitted to the Miss604 Flickr Pool
(Left) 1926 – Capitol Theatre marquee on Granville. Archives item# CVA 1399-540.
(Right) 1943 – Archives item# CVA 1184-706. Photographer: Jack Lindsay.
On Thursday, the ghost sign was fully revealed and the city was clamoring about this discovery. Unfortunately, all but the Charlie’s Music facade will be coming down so the last record of “Grandma’s Boy” will disappear.
One of my goals when I started this blog was to bring local history to the forefront in our young, glassy, and glossy city. It was encouraging to see how much excitement “Grandma’s Boy” brought this week and it’s important to keep that interest in Vancouver’s past alive.
Over the last few days Jason stressed the importance of documenting these signs and sightings. There’s a Flickr Group called Vanishing Vancouver to which you can add your images and Heritage Vancouver has a nice collection on Flickr as well. If you spot a ghost sign in the future, be sure to snap a photo because you don’t know when it will disappear.
Update March 6, 2012: The Vancity Theatre will be screening “Grandma’s Boy” one night only on Wednesday, March 14 at 7:00pm. Check out this 1922 classic directed by Fred C Newmeyer and starring Harold Lloyd, Mildred Davis, and Anna Townsend. Tickets are available online through the VIFF box office.
The National Aboriginal Achievement Awards will be awarded tonight in Vancouver at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Co-hosted by Theoren Fleury and BC’s Carmen Moore, the 19th annual event will recognize 15 outstanding First Nation, Inuit and Metis Canadians.
Hosts Carmen Moore & Theo Fleury
Photo courtesy of NAAF
2012 Recipients
Adam Beach – Arts
Victor S. Buffalo – Business & Commerce
Dave Courchene – Culture, Heritage & Spirituality
Leona Makokis – Education
Richard Stewart Hardy – Environment & Natural Resources
Dr. Janet Smylie – Health
Violet Ford – Law & Justice
Senator Gerry St. Germain – Lifetime
Richard Wagamese – Media & Communications
The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq – Politics
Grand Chief Edward John – Politics
Minnie Grey – Public Service
Richard Peter – Sports
Earl Cook – Youth
Candace Sutherland – Youth
Among the recipients is BC’s own Richard Peter who plays wheelchair basketball in Vancouver and has represented Canada at four Paralympics Games — and won the gold medal at the Sydney Games in 2000. He was also inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.
Chantal Kreviazuk, Derek Miller, and Robbie Robertson are among the evening’s performers. Tickets for the event are completely sold out (with a waiting list) but you can watch the awards on Global TV Friday, April 13, 2012.
Vancouver’s HootSuite, one the world’s most popular social media dashboards, is hiring sales people, developers, and support specialists and they hope to find them at an open house next week.
A shining beacon among our city’s tech and social startup scene, Vancouver’s HootSuite has come a long way over the last 4 years. Growing from a handful of employees, wrangled by founder Ryan Holmes, their roster has topped 100 talented individuals so far in 2012.
They’re looking to double their “flock” by the end of the year and that’s where you could come in.
“Working at HootSuite is a unique joy as we are building a social media dashboard which have a significant impact on business, technology and world affairs… and we manage to have a lot of fun while doing it,” says Dave Olson, VP Community (@DaveOHoots).
“Specifically, developers enjoy writing next-level code which is quickly implemented to a huge audience of eager users, and sales pros like nothing more than having a well-known and loved tool to share with the biggest brands in the world. Anyone who’s looking for a chance to ride this revolutionary wave should certainly come by the open house to chat.”
HootSuite’s mascot “Owly”. Photo credit:
John Biehler on Flickr
The recruiting open house will be this Monday, February 27, 2012 at 343 Railway Street from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. Drop by to let them know why you would be a good fit for the team.
