The magic and vitality of BC’s largest festival of French Canadian and francophone music and culture, Festival du Bois is moving online. The virtual event will be full of great tunes by artists from across Canada, performances for children of all ages – plus exciting features and some great surprises.
Festival du Bois 2021
When: April 16-30, 2021 Where:Online Tickets: Tune in for free
For more than three decades, Festival du Bois has welcomed Spring with a popular, vibrant, and tune-filled outdoor celebration in Coquitlam‘s Maillardville. This year, festival performers offer a brilliant glimpse of a diverse range of talent from here in BC and around the country. Watch exclusive Festival du Bois concerts from the following artists:
Florent Vollant (QC): compelling folk-country from Innu singer, composer, activist and co-founder of the celebrated duo, Kashtin.
Le Winston Band (QC): a one-of-a-kind Montréal Zydeco group that mixes its French-Canadian musical roots with rock and Cajun.
Genticorum (QC): this traditional music ‘power trio’ incorporates fiddle, flute, accordion, harmonies and foot percussion into a jubilant musical feast rooted in Québécois tradition.
Sirène et Matelot (PEI): singer/songwriters and musicians Patricia Richard and Lennie Gallant, both Acadians from Prince Edward Island, perform an intriguing mix of folk and country influenced by the musical and cultural currents of PEI and the Maritimes.
Jocelyne Baribeau (MB): this award-winning Franco-Manitoban artist’s blend of folk and pop-country is marked by her pure vocals, sparkling ditties and tender ballads.
Joseph Edgar (QC): now a Montréaler, this transplanted native of New Brunswick is an influential Acadian artist who’s inspired by music from his roots as well as his current urban, cosmopolitan home.
Loig Morin (BC): originally from Brittany, France, Morin’s music draws together popular influences from both sides of the Atlantic, seducing both French and non-French listeners alike.
Pierre Schryer and Andy Hillhouse (BC): a true dynamic duo featuring fiddle master Schryer and renowned guitarist/vocalist, Hillhouse. They perform everything from old time to Irish traditional to Québécois tunes and beyond.
Jocelyn Pettit (BC): delivering a fresh take on tradition, Pettit is a vibrant young musical prodigy – a fiddler, step dancer, singer and composer.
Children’s Programming
Kids and families will find a happy place online with a range of child-focused performances from artists such as André Thériault in the sugar shack, Roger Dallaire and his accordion, Isabelle la Wonderful, and Frenchie the Clown – who will read stories for little ones from Peter H. Reynolds’ book, “Be You”.
The festival’s website will also offer interviews, fun and engaging videos, and more. Follow the festival on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more info.
Granville Island Delivery Co. founder Michelle Ng and local cartoonist Lorne Craig have found a unique way to express their love of Granville Island culture and celebrate the people and businesses that make it special with the launch of a customized and illustrated jigsaw puzzle.
Lorne Craig, Unicycle Creative
See You On Granville Island Puzzle
See You on Granville Island is a 500 piece jigsaw puzzle with a difference – the artwork features real individuals and businesses in a colourful cartoon caricature that visually explodes off the page.
“Jigsaw puzzles had a great boom in popularity throughout the pandemic,” says Ng. “This jigsaw puzzle is a way for us to promote the community we are part of, and their businesses, and share the excitement of Granville Island as people start to return to this iconic destination.”
The puzzle can feature a total of 50 businesses and a host of local characters, who can special-order their caricature to be drawn right into the artwork.
“We have people send a photo with their order,” says Craig. “Then we draw them in and they get to have the fun of looking for their little self somewhere among the 500+ pieces. We also send them the original caricature drawing, suitable for framing with a small frame.”
Craig has already successfully launched one puzzle during the pandemic. The first run of his See You in Whistler jigsaw sold out in 2020, with buyers from Mexico and Australia.
The See You on Granville Island puzzles will be available for sale at Granville Island retailers and will make a popular gift item for tourists as well as locals.
Puzzles can be pre-ordered on the Granville Island Delivery Co. website as well. Spaces are limited so businesses and customers are encouraged to make a pre-order and have themselves drawn into the art while available.
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by Rebecca BollwittDisclosure: Sponsored Post — Sponsored by the CCCTA Please review the Policy & Disclosure section for further information.
Until further notice, all non-essential travel to and within British Columbia should be avoided. Now is the time for us to stay local and support local, so that we can all explore BC again, soon.
While now is not the time to travel outside our communities, I wanted to (re)introduce you to one of BC’s most spectacular regions for your future travel consideration. If you’re looking for quiet, uncrowded, off the beaten path adventure in our beautiful province, here’s how you can travel safely and responsibly in the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast:
Reconnect and Redefine Travel in BC’s Cariboo Chilcotin Coast
With a vast landscape of forests, fjords, peaks, and plains ranging from the Pacific Coast to the Cariboo Mountains, the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast has something for every British Columbian to experience.
My last brush with wildlife in the region was in Williams Lake at the Scout Island Nature Centre, where I spotted deer, turtles, red winged blackbirds and dozens of other migratory birds along the 2.5km network of trails right on the edge of town! Read more about bear safety and awareness, Leave No Trace principles, hiking safely with your dog, and personal hygiene in the outdoors here.
Personal Safety
There are over 8,000 lakes in the Cariboo, and I paddled a good half dozen of them on my last trip a few summers ago. On that trip I rented a kayak from Lone Butte Sporting Goods (who also took me on a fishing adventure) and dipped my paddle into Horse Lake in 100 Mile House. There are so many options, both on dry land and in the water, that personal safety when it comes to dressing in layers, packing the essentials is key.
Understanding navigation is also an important element, especially when you’re taking an epic Gold Rush Trail road trip like I did from the charming town of Horsefly, around to Likely, and over to the Quesnelle Forks ghost town site along dusty gravel roads.
Read more about these trip essentials including route planning and checking forecasts here.
The Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism Association gratefully acknowledges that we live, work and play on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the St’at’imc, Secwepemc, Nlaka’pamux, Dakelh, Tŝilhqot’in, Nuxalk, Tsimshian, Heiltsuk and Wuikinuxv peoples.
I love learning more about the culture in the communities I visit, and doing so in a respectful manner. Whether it’s a visit to the Station House Gallery or the Potato House Project in Williams Lake, a walk to Moffat Falls inHorsefly, settling in for a pint at Jackson’s Social Club & Brewhouse in 100 Mile, or riding ranch land trails in 108 Mile.
The most impactful experience I have had in the region was when I was invited to the Chief William Fathers Day Traditional Pow Wow. The food, the shopping – so many great booths filled with hand-made pieces and artisanal treats – and of course the community and camaraderie was unlike any type of event I had attended.
Aside from learning about and respectfully participating in Indigenous culture, you can find some great resources for observing protocols, guidelines, and traditions of communities and cultures here.
I can’t wait to plan my next trip back, in the form of a road trip perhaps with some camping as well. There are so many options in the region, and on top of the culture, food, epic landscapes and options for adventure, the history is incredible.
Get inspired, and informed, for your future travels in this stunning and diverse region and check out some of the incredibly unique accommodation offerings as well.
Follow the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to save some posts for your future trip planning.
Miss604 is the proud Blog Sponsor of VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation through the Miss604 Health Check Series. The following has been contributed by their team.
Thalia Otamendi: Concussion Patient Puts Her Mind to Enhancing Care
“I just couldn’t get better. I tried to go to work, but I couldn’t concentrate. Everything was too bright, too noisy, and it was all very overwhelming. I didn’t know what was wrong with me — I was scared.”
Thalia Otamendi loved soccer. Ever since she moved to Canada from Mexico when she was 10 years old she was always on the field, playing, practicing and competing. But over the years the sport took its toll on her body, and shortly after completing her undergrad she suffered a serious concussion while playing.
Modern problems require modern solutions
At first, Thalia thought the symptoms would go away on their own. But they only grew worse. After a few weeks she went to see local care providers for help, who told her to stay indoors in dark rooms until the symptoms subsided. This went on for months.
“I was feeling so overwhelmed, anxious and depressed,” says Thalia. Her mental and physical health was steadily declining. She felt increasingly isolated and had no idea how to recover. That is until she met clinician-scientist Dr. William Panenka, a leading traumatic brain injury and concussion expert at VGH and UBC Hospital.
From patient to researcher
Thalia was so grateful for Dr. Panenka’s care that she has since gone on to acquire a Master’s in Kinesiology from UBC. Thalia is now a PhD student studying psychological effects in concussion patients. “I don’t want other people to live through what I had to live through,” says Thalia. “That’s why my research is focused on the psychological component of concussion treatment. It’s a piece we’re missing right now, and I want to change that.”
Concussion Facts, Signs and Symptoms
Did you know?
An estimated 25% of mild traumatic brain injury patients develop a mental health condition within three months of their injury. These mental health factors triple the risk of long-term disability for these patients.
Brain injury is the leading cause of death and disability for Canadians under the age of 40.
Sports and recreational activities are important risk factors for concussion. Cycling, playground activities and hockey are the greatest contributors.
If you experience these symptoms, seek help from a doctor immediately:
neck pain
double vision
loss of consciousness
seizure or convulsion
regular vomiting
headaches that grow more severe
weak, tingling or burning feeling in arms and legs
Brain Breakthroughs aims to solve difficult challenges in brain health, with a goal of raising $35 million to expand knowledge and enhance care in traumatic brain injuries, concussion, stroke, Alzheimer’s, dementia, Parkinson’s, epilepsy, neuromuscular diseases, MS and more.
Follow the VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation on Facebook for more info and updates.
The Skoden Indigenous Film Festival returns for a two-day online event March 26-27, featuring Indigenous filmmakers and creatives from across Canada and British Columbia.
Skoden Indigenous Film Festival
When: Program March 26 & March 27, 2021, films available to watch until April 5th Where:Online Tickets: Pay what you can, book online here (suggested donation $10 per program)
The festival was created in 2019 by Simon Fraser University film students Carr Sappier (Wolastoqew) and Grace Mathisen from SFU’s School for the Contemporary Arts.
The annual film festival is maintained through a semester-long interdisciplinary class taught by Sappier and Kathleen Mullen, a filmmaker and film festival consultant. SFU students from all faculties are invited to participate in building this festival. Read more about the Skoden Indigenous Film Festival course in SFU News.
Skoden is an Indigenous slang term meaning ‘Let’s go then!’. According to Sappier: “Skoden represents a sense of happiness, inclusion and a space where all filmmakers can feel like they are part of something that holds them up in respect.” Mullen adds: “We are sharing experiences and knowledge through this course and for me this is what SKODEN means—Let’s Go Then! with humour, dialogue, and respect.”
More than 100 films were submitted to the festival, and this year’s features include an eclectic selection of filmmakers including comedian Jay Cardinal Villeneuve (Is That One of Your Jokes), rising-star Asia Youngman (This Ink Runs Deep), and hip-hop artist Diana Hellson (The Foundation: Indigenous Hip Hop in Canada).
The festival will open with a welcome ceremony led by Elder Syexwaliya and will also include a series of Q&A sessions. Festival-goers can access five film programs that include: Program 1: Healing the Nation; Program 2: Back to Grassroots; Program 3: Future Generation; Program 4: Potpourri, a program ranging from Indigenous life to music videos; and Program 5, the feature filmShadow of Dumont by Métis director Trevor Cameron.
