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by Rebecca BollwittDisclosure: Sponsored Post — Sponsored by ZenSeekers Please review the Policy & Disclosure section for further information.
Rural BC islands will inspire your next eco-travel adventure in our province’s beautiful backyard! These small islands have big climate conservation stories to tell, and my friends at ZenSeekers have captured an incredible chapter on each in their latest series featuring Quadra, Cortes, Cormorant, Gabriola and Hornby Islands.
5 Photos to Inspire Your Eco-Travel Adventures to Rural BC Islands
Melissa Renwick is a photographer and writer based in Tofino. She is interested in documenting the complicated interrelationship between the coastal landscape and those who inhabit it. Through her intimate style of portraiture and long-term storytelling, she aims to capture the different ways people live in remote regions of the country.
Melissa Renwick for ZenSeekers – Cortes Island
1. Cortes Island – Klahoose, Tla’amin, and Homalco Traditional Territory
Renwick selected this image of a calm morning because it really highlighted what they’re trying to protect on the island. But beyond the serene coastal sights, there’s also the sounds. George Sirk, known by beloved nickname “Nature Boy”, has been running a show on the local Cortes Radio where he showcases nature recordings he’s captured around Cortes Island. He plays these sounds for listeners with the intention of familiarizing them with the creatures and animals that they live with on Cortes. Sirk encourages listeners to take audio recordings from their own backyards so he can interpret them on the airwaves. He hopes listeners develop an appreciation for the natural world and the habitat they share with nature.
Melissa Renwick for ZenSeekers – Quadra Island
2. Quadra Island – Wei Wai Kai and Wei Wai Kum Traditional Territories
On her trip for ZenSeekers, Renwick captured photography of Quadra Island’s intricate web of trails used for mountain biking, climbing, hiking. That’s where she met volunteer John Barclay, who moved to Quadra in 2003. Barclay is in his 70s and loves getting his hands dirty out in the forest, surrounded by nature and the younger generations who bring energy to the trails, the environment and the greater community. He’s a vital part of the island’s ecosystem, just like the roots and branches that cover the trails. He told Renwick: “When you’re in nature, you’re a part of nature, and that encourages you to protect it.”
Melissa Renwick for ZenSeekers – Cormorant Island
3. Cormorant Island – Kwakwaka’wakw Traditional Territory
Sunrise taken from the The Cabins at Alert Bay owned and operated by the ‘Namgis First Nation on Cormorant Island. The grounds at the cabins lead down to this viewing platform that overlooks the ocean. Renwick captured a stunning sunrise with golden light with yellow, orange, pink, purple hues. “You just feel like you’re on the edge of the world. That morning as we were standing on the platform you could just hear the echoes of whales coming up for air. Birds were hovering the surface of the ocean, enjoying a morning feeding like the whales. It just felt like you were right there with them. It was just a really special moment.”
Also on the island, you’ll find the U’mista Cultural Centre, one of the longest-operating and most successful First Nations cultural facilities in BC. It was founded in 1980 as a ground breaking project to house potlatch artifacts which had been seized by government during an earlier period of cultural repression.
Logan Moore for ZenSeekers – Tribune Bay Outdoor Education Centre
4. Hornby Island – K’ómoks Traditional Territory
The Tribune Bay Outdoor Education Centre prioritizes preservation and stewardship of Tribune Bay on Hornby Island. Known for its vast, white, sandy beaches and aquamarine water, Tribune Bay is a place where visitors can connect with the landscape through activities, such as rock climbing, kayaking and stand-up paddle boarding. Kate Ortwein, the Centre’s business manager, said that through sharing their stewardship priorities, she hopes guests walk away with teachings they can apply in their own backyards.
Logan Moore for ZenSeekers – Gabriola Island
5. Gabriola Island – Snuneymuxw Traditional Territory
The Gabriola Lands and Trails Trust was created to provide visitors with opportunities to connect with the natural world. By giving people the chance to explore the remote island through these trails, Rob Brockley, Trust president, said they’re able to develop an appreciation for the wonders of Mother Nature. One of the most densely populated Gulf Islands, the trails offer visitors a chance to step off the beaten path into undisturbed areas and soak in the magic of the forest.
Tickets are selling out fast for Dan’s Legacy’s 9th Annual Chefs’ Charity Dinner presented by BCGEU, and it’s an event you don’t want to miss! This unique fundraiser, taking place at the Shaughnessy Restaurant at VanDusen Garden, features four guest chefs preparing signature dishes only using surplus food.
All funds raised go towards Dan’s Legacy’s trauma-informed counselling and life-skills programs for youth at risk in Vancouver.
Dan’s Legacy Chefs’ Charity Dinner
When: Saturday, November 5, 2022
6:00pm Reception & Silent Auction, 7:00pm Dinner & Program
Where: Shaughnessy Restaurant at VanDusen Botanical Garden (5251 Oak Street, Vancouver)
Dan’s Legacy works primarily with youth who grew up in foster care, most of whom don’t have friends or family to turn to for support. Counselling, wrap-around programs and connecting youth to community are some of the ways Dan’s Legacy is closing the gap in mental health services to youth.
The organization goes directly to the youth wherever they are, they aim to have a no-wait list, and all of their services are free. They also partner with 15 other organizations across Metro Vancouver and Whistler that provide services to youth.
Leo-nominated Emcee Erin Cebula will host for a fun-filled evening of food, entertainment and community connections.
Win Tickets
I have a pair of tickets to give away to this incredible evening! Here’s how you can enter to win:
No other organization in Metro Vancouver does what Dan’s Legacy does and they have an over 50% success rate in helping youth to stabilize, and begin working towards their education, employment and recovery goals.
In the past year, they have helped over 450 youth overcome their mental health and addiction challenges and lead productive and fulfilling lives.
Purchase your tickets now and see what Chef Matthew Phillip (Shaughnessy Restaurant), Chef Andrew George (Industry Training Authority), Chef Luke Willingdon (Dan’s Legacy), and Pastry Chef Alannah Peddie (Frolic & Forage Catering + Cakery) have whipped up for this fundraiser. Each signature dish will be created using recovered food donated by local growers and grocery chains.
Miss604’s Rebecca Bollwitt is a member of the Dan’s Legacy Board of Directors
On Saturday Miss604 is proud to sponsor Offleashed for the BC SPCA and you can find over fifty more things to do in Vancouver this weekend listed below. Have a great one!
Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend October 14-16, 2022
Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art presents the Canadian premiere exhibition of Keeping the Song Alive from November 2, 2022 to March 19, 2023.
Guest curated by Cheryl Kaka‘solas Wadhams and co-developed with theJewish Museum & Archives of BC, Keeping the Song Alive shares the mostly unknown story of the decades-long work between ethnomusicologist Dr. Ida Halpern and the late Kwakwaka’wakw Chiefs Billy Assu and Mungo Martin to document hundreds of sacred and traditional songs that otherwise would have been erased due to the Potlatch Ban and suppression of Northwest Coast Indigenous culture.
Ida Halpern with her audio recorder, c.1960 Photo courtesy of the Royal B.C. Museum and Archives; Mungo Martin Restoring Totem Poles, 1949. from the UBC Archives Photograph Collection; Sonny Assu, Live from the ‘Latch, 2012 Archival pigment print, edition of 67. Courtesy of the Artist
Keeping the Song Alive at Bill Reid Gallery
When: November 2, 2022 – March 19, 2023
Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00am to 5:00pm
Where: Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art (639 Hornby St, Vancouver)
Thanks to the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association (DVBIA), there is free admission from 2:00pm to 5:00pm every first Friday of the month
Through a rich mix of traditional music and regalia, contemporary art, film, and historical documentation, Keeping the Song Alive celebrates a unique friendship, the spiritual power of music, and the beauty of preserving ceremonial art and culture for future generations.
For Kwakwaka’wakw peoples, songs are an essential part of cultural knowledge and ceremonial life, part of the rights and privileges of Chiefs that strengthen identity and lineage. The Big House is a place of belonging where songs, language, drumming, and dancing come together, and where the next generation is continuing these traditions in a good way.
“As a Jewish immigrant fleeing the Holocaust, Dr. Ida Halpern understood the impact of cultural erasure,” says Wadhams, Guest Curator, Keeping the Song Alive. “Assu and Martin trusted her as an ally to preserve and record songs fundamental to the Kwakwaka’wakw culture that would have been lost forever due to the Potlatch Ban. Decades later, they couldn’t have imagined how enduring and profound their collaboration would be. This exhibition reflects on the tremendous impacts of the Potlatch Ban, residential schools, and the Indian Act, and showcases the significant works by contemporary artists that have been inspired by these recordings.”
The exhibition will feature the original audio recorder, records, research notes, and photographs from Dr. Halpern’s career as an ethnomusicologist in Canada, following her escape from Nazi Europe in the 1930s. These significant historical artifacts will be displayed alongside contemporary Kwakwaka’wakw artists who are actively responding to the history and meaning of these recordings.
Ellipsis, an installation of 137 copper LPs critiquing the ongoing oppression of the Indian Act, was created by Sonny Assu, the great great grandson of Chief Billy Assu.
The powerful installation, Concealment, by Andy Everson, combines a kitchen table tea party with potlatch imagery, which recalls a time when his family had to hide their ceremonial activity. A historic headdress by Chief Robert Harris will also be displayed alongside a ceremonial robe, apron, and headdress by artist and community leader Maxine Matilpi.
Visitors will have the chance to listen to a selection of the songs recorded with Chiefs Mungo Martin and Billy Assu in the 1950s. Several films by renowned ‘Na̱mǥis Filmmaker Barb Cranmer will immerse viewers in the potlatch experience, bringing together songs, dances and drumming in traditional ceremony. A replica potlatch drum log can also be played by visitors. Finally, the exhibition presents important conversations with a new generation of artists and community members who have been able to reconnect with their culture and heritage because of Halpern, Assu, and Martin’s collective work.
Kwakwaka’wakw communities continue to work to regain traditional knowledge about the ceremonies that were lost due to colonization. Halpern’s recordings, many completed when it was illegal for Indigenous peoples to practice their culture, are a critical part of this work, regaining one part of what has been lost. In 2017, Halpern’s recordings, which date back to 1947, were added to the UNESCO Canada Memory of the World register.
Keeping the Song Alive, through historical information and a rich and immersive selection of contemporary art, audio, text, photographs and video, will offer visitors a chance to better understand the meaning of potlatch and the essentiality of music to ceremony. A series of artist talks, Kwakwaka’wakw dance and drum group performances, and hands-on workshops are being planned. In 2024, the exhibition will be remounted at the U’mista Cultural Centre in Alert Bay, BC.
About the Jewish Museum & Archives of BC
The museum and archives is dedicated to the collecting and sharing of community memories of Jewish life in British Columbia. Through innovative exhibits and programming, the JMABC builds bridges with the diverse communities of BC and heightens awareness of the rich 163-year history of Jews in BC.
About the Gallery
The Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art is a public gallery nestled in the heart of downtown Vancouver. It was named after acclaimed Haida artist Bill Reid (1920–1998), a master goldsmith, carver, sculptor, writer, broadcaster, and spokesman. Since opening in May 2008, the Bill Reid Gallery has remained the only public gallery in Canada devoted to contemporary Indigenous art of the Northwest Coast, and is home to the Simon Fraser University Bill Reid Art Collection, as well as special exhibitions of contemporary Indigenous art of the Northwest Coast of North America.
The Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival (“VHS”), now in its fifth year, has announced that it will host the Vancouver premier of Terrifier 2, along with a full hybrid event lineup featuring 61 short films and six feature-length films from 13 different countries.
VHS 2021 award winners: Gigi Saul Guerrero, Mistress of Bones; Lisa Ovie, Witches Midnight; Brodi Jo Scalise, Itsy Bitsy Spider
Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival 2022
When: November 5-8, 2022
Where: Fifth Avenue Cinemas, Cineplex Marine Gateway VIP, The Cinematheque
The in-person screenings will heavily feature Canadian films – highlighting some outstanding locally made, BC-based projects and featuring filmmaker Q&As after each screening.
