Ronald McDonald House BC & Yukon (“RMH BC”) is celebrating the fourth annualHome for Dinner community fundraising initiative this fall. Each year, the program encourages individuals across BC and the Yukon to host safe in-person, outdoor, or virtual dinners, while raising money to support families travelling to Vancouver so their children can receive urgent medical care.
RMH BC Families: (Top Left) Divoux Family from Victoria (Top Right) Antoine Family from Kamloops (Bottom) Fry Family from Nanaimo
Home for Dinner Fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House
The program is simple: hosts invite families, colleagues or friends to safely and responsibly gather for a meal. Instead of contributing food, wine or gifts, guests instead donate to RMH BC, whose state-of-the-art House – situated on the grounds of BC Children’s Hospital – provides accommodation, community and kindness to up to 2,000 families each year.
Here’s how to plan your Home for Dinner gathering:
Hosts are invited as well to register to attend the virtual celebration on October 14, 2021.
Plan a home-cooked meal or support your favourite local restaurant by ordering takeout.
Invite your friends, family or colleagues and make sure to follow current public health guidelines and recommendations!
Host Your Dinner and Fundraise by asking your guests to donate to your personal fundraising page in lieu of wine, flowers or other contributions.
Celebrate by joining RMH BC’s virtual celebration on October 14, 2021.
Sharing a meal with loved ones is always a special occasion and it’s even more meaningful when it raises funds to support families staying at RMH BC. That’s what Home for Dinner is all about. Whether cooking a multi-course Thanksgiving feast or curating a laidback cheese board, Home for Dinner hosts have multiple, creative ways to fundraise.
Since 1983, RMH BC has positively impacted the lives of countless families through the most difficult of times. Here, families from across BC and the Yukon, are treated to a safe space where they can stay close to their children, regardless of whether their medical treatments require days, weeks, months or even years to complete. Plus, staying at the House – which offers healthy meals, art and music therapy, and an ecosystem of support from fellow families– saves families up to $6,000 per month in accommodation, food and other costs associated with being away from home.
RMH BC House
This year, Home for Dinner participants and the general public are invited to join RMH BC for an inspirational virtual celebration on Thursday, October 14, 2021 at 7:00pm and raise a toast to the communities lending their support to families in need. The online event will feature live entertainment, family stories and an exciting silent auction, as well as a virtual toast to fundraisers, donors and supporters across BC and abroad.
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by Guest AuthorDisclosure: Sponsored Post — Sponsored by the City of Coquitlam Please review the Policy & Disclosure section for further information.
The Long Weekend in Coquitlam kicks off with the return of a beloved local festival. ScotFestBC is back (this Friday and Saturday) so grab your kilt and join in the fun at Coquitlam’s Lafarge Lake! This is the BC Highland Games’ first live, in-person event since 2019, and it’s going to be worth the wait. There will be piping, dancing and drumming, not to mention a haggis hunt, kids’ activities and a whisky school for the 19+ crowd.
Take part in cultural workshops, kick back in the beer garden or stroll through the many food and merchandise vendors while listening to live Celtic music. At the Heavy Events, watch as competitors throw stones and hammers in events that take inspiration from every day life.
And if that’s not enough to set you racing for the door, here are 10 more activities to fill your last long weekend of summer.
Coquitlam Long Weekend Activities
Outdoors
Shop at Poirier Street Farmers Market
Grab your tote bag and get ready to shop. This much-loved market is open every Sunday until October from 9:00am to 1:00pm, offering a wide selection of local produce, baked goods, prepared foods and one-of-a-kind artisan crafts. Stock up on everything you need for an end-of-summer dinner while being entertained by local musicians. Check it out at 575 Poirier Street, near Poirier Sport & Leisure Complex and the Coquitlam Public Library, with ample parking and bike racks available. This open-air shopping experience is operating under COVID-19 protocols.
Play Some Golf
Swing into the last long weekend at a local course. Whether you’re practising the perfect putt, finding some length on the driving range or chipping in from just outside the green, Coquitlam’s golf scene has a challenge for lovers of traditional golf or those looking to expand their skills, with a free nine-hole disc golf course. Coquitlam courses also boast stunning views and delicious restaurants!
Relax on a Patio
Kick back on a sunny patio with refreshing drinks and great food. Here is the ultimate Coquitlam Patio Guide.
The long weekend is here and so is a new month filled with activities. Throughout September, you can participate in the Search the Rock scavenger hunt to win great prizes (look for the Miss604 challenges), and visit these local farms for family fun outdoors — corn maze, anyone? Find these activities and more things to do in Vancouver this Labour Day Long Weekend below:
Cook along with talented local chefs, for a cause! Dan’s Legacy Foundation’s Chefs in the House, presented by Pacific Restaurant Supply, is a virtual fundraiser that will support the charity’s trauma informed counselling and life-skills programs for youth at risk in Metro Vancouver.
Chefs in the House
When: October 20, October 27 and November 3, 2021 from 6:00pm to 7:00pm
Where: Watch live from your home
Registration:Now open for $25 per household or $100 for a Chef Class Pass. Tickets eligible for a partial charitable tax receipt. Your ticket includes admission to the live interactive Zoom event, Q&A with the Chef, and exclusive early access to the online silent auction.
For the second year in a row, participants are invited to join the live Zoom-cast with chefs Shay Kelly (The Caterer) and Andrew George (BC’s first Indigenous Red Seal Chef), as well as pastry chef Alannah Peddie (Frolic & Forage), for a one-hour, interactive cooking show, live from the test kitchen at Pacific Restaurant Supply in Vancouver.
October 20, 2021 – Scrumptious Starter with Chef Shay Kelly
October 27, 2021 – Dinner Tonight with Indigenous Red Seal Chef Andrew George
November 3, 2021 – Just Desserts with Pastry Chef Alannah Peddie
Cook-Off Competition – Secret Chefs (will be announced soon)!
A 4th pre-recorded show, available to all access Chef Class Pass holders, will showcase the talents of two chefs competing to create a dish in one hour from a box of surplus food. The competition will be judged by Cassandra Anderton, President of Les Dames d’Escoffier.
“We had such a great time with last year’s series of shows, that we decided to keep the fun going this year,” says Barbara Coates, Dan’s Legacy’s executive director. “Everyone enjoyed the interactive nature of the event – being able to cook along with the chefs and ask questions in real time. We’re looking forward to seeing guests from last year and welcoming all newcomers!”
Food and cooking are integral to the success of Dan’s Legacy’s core counselling program, which is supported by its recovered food collection program. Each month the charity collects over 14,000kgs of donated surplus food from three grocery stores in Vancouver and Burnaby, and delivers the product to 14 charitable organizations. A portion of the food supplies Dan’s Legacy’s food bank as well as its “Intro to Cook” job-skills training program in New Westminster. The majority of the charity’s clients are youth aging out of foster care with significant mental health challenges, many are homeless, and all are hungry.
Since the start of COVID-19, Dan’s Legacy fielded a 50% increase in referrals from other agencies, as well as identified a 50% increase in hospitalizations for youth with psychosis, overdose and suicide attempts. Dan’s Legacy’s team of trauma-informed therapists go directly to the youth wherever they are, there is no wait list and its programs and counselling services are free.
Can’t tune in live to all the classes? No problem! Each one will be recorded and sent to ticket holders for private viewing later.
Win a Chefs Class Pass!
I have a Chefs Class Pass to give away that includes access to all of the events including the special cook-off competition. Here are several ways you can enter to win:
Copy/paste the text below to enter on Twitter (entry)
[clickToTweet tweet=”RT to enter to win a Chefs Class Pass for all of the @DansLegacyBC #ChefsInTheHouse2021 events this fall http://ow.ly/DnYu50G2gTo” quote=” Click to enter via Twitter” theme=”style6″]
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Wednesday, September 8, 2021. UPDATE: The winner is: Cheryl Inger!
About Dan’s Legacy
Dan’s Legacy provides trauma and culturally-informed counselling and life-skills intervention programs for youth at risk in Metro Vancouver. In the past five years Dan’s Legacy has helped over 400 youth meet their educational, employment, and recovery goals.
Miss604 is a proud sponsor of Dan’s Legacy Chefs in the House
The Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation announced today that they will be extending the temporary closure of all non-essential access to Stanley Park between the hours of 7:00pm and 7:00am beginning tonight (August 31, 2021). The closure, which was originally implemented to mitigate fire risk, is being extended in an effort to reduce continued conflict between park users and coyotes.
There have been three coyote attacks in Stanley Park over the past few days, according to BC’s Conservation Officer Service. [Source: Vancouver Sun]
Stanley Park Overnight Closure Due to Coyotes
Park Rangers will continue to maintain temporary overnight access control points at four locations across the park to reduce the number of individuals in the park overnight. Vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians, and anyone who does not require essential access to the park will be turned around at access control points.
Anyone requiring entry into the park during the closure, including the #19 bus, emergency services, patrons and staff of park businesses, will be permitted to enter through the control points. Individuals who remain in the park after the closure begins will have unrestricted access to leave the park through the control points.
The access control points are positioned at the following locations:
Traffic circle off Georgia Street
The corner of Barclay and Park Lane
The South exit of the Stanley Park Causeway (closure in effect from 10:00pm – 6:00am)
The North exit of the Stanley Park Causeway (closure in effect from 10:00pm – 6:00am)
The Causeway will remain open. Access to the seawall will be closed. Signage will be placed along the access points of the seawall to advise pedestrians and cyclists of the closure.
Park Rangers will be patrolling the park throughout the closure to monitor activity.
The Park Board is working with the BC Conservation Officer Service, Stanley Park Ecology Society, the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development on ongoing efforts to address and reduce coyote conflicts in the park.
“We are taking the escalating conflicts with coyotes extremely seriously and have offered our full support to the Province to do whatever we can inside Stanley Park as public safety is our number one priority,” said Donnie Rosa, General Manager of the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation. “At this point, a number of options are on the table and our focus remains on removing attractants and influencing public behaviour to ensure direct and indirect feeding of coyotes and other wildlife comes to a stop.
In the last week alone we have removed 1,000 kgs of garbage from the park, secured animal-proof garbage cans that will be installed shortly, and printed 96 new signs to be installed at key locations where the majority of coyote incidents are taking place. We are asking the public to help us with this issue and to observe the park closures overnight, to stay off trails when visiting businesses in the park, and to report any feeding of wildlife.”
The public are reminded to dispose of garbage appropriately and that feeding all wildlife within the park, including coyotes, raccoons and birds, is strictly prohibited.
Visitors to the park need to be aware of their surroundings especially at dusk and dawn. If a coyote is encountered:
Make yourself big. Face the coyote, stand tall, arms stretched. Do not run.
Speak loudly and make noise (but don’t scream).
Call the RAPP line at 1-877-952-7277 to report any aggressive behaviour or wildlife feeding.
