It’s been pretty tough for most of us these past couple of months – staying at home, not seeing friends or family (except for virtually), and doing what we can to “flatten the curve”. Now more than ever before the importance of “community” is something a lot of people are talking about.
But what if you never had family or friends to start with?
Dan’s Legacy BC and Mental Health Week
Dan’s Legacy is a non-profit organization I’ve been proud to support for the past few years, and they’re really making a difference in the lives of young people in our community who are facing the world alone.
These are youth who grew up in the foster care system, and now that they’re aging out of government care at 19, are pretty much on their own. Because of significant trauma in their childhoods, they’re dealing with mental health and addictions issues, and things have only gotten worse since the start of the COVID-19 crisis. Anxiety, depression and hospitalization for overdose and suicide attempts have gone up 50%. It’s a tough reality – but Dan’s Legacy’s team of therapists are there for the youth.
Dan’s Legacy Land-Based Therapy for at-risk Indigenous Youth
These therapists are front-line health care workers who go directly to their clients wherever they are, there’s no wait list and their counselling and wrap-around programs are free.
As well as mental health support, Dan’s Legacy knows they can help the youth help themselves by building their own networks – whether that’s reconnecting urban Indigenous youth to their traditional culture and community, helping LGBTQ2S+ youth find support and services, or bringing everyone together for a hot meal every week at their Sunday Haven community dinner and food bank – Dan’s Legacy is there for these young people when they ask for help.
Sunday Haven Dinners, Trans Extravaganza are some of Dan’s Legacy programs
In the past five years Dan’s Legacy has helped over 400 youth meet their educational, employment, and recovery goals.
May 4-10 is Mental Health Week in Canada and if you’d like to help Dan’s Legacy continue to provide these critical services to at-risk youth, visit www.danslegacy.com to donate, or text DANS to 45678 to make a fast and easy $10 donation right from your phone.
And if you or someone you know is asking for help, contact Tom Littlewood, Program Director at (604) 999-9136 or tom(at)danslegacy(dot)com.
From the local agricultural destination that brought us Drive-Thru Easter, we now have Maan Farms Drive-Thru Mother’s Day!
Maan Farms Goats! Dylaina Gollub Photography
Maan Farms Drive-Thru Mother’s Day
When: May 9 & May 10, 2020 from 9:00am to 12:00pm Where: Maan Farms (790 McKenzie Rd., Abbotsford) Tickets: $10 person, book online. Rain or shine. Arrive for your pre-booked time slot.
Your experience includes Mama Maan’s yummy berry crepes, featuring Maan Farm’s homegrown berries, along with a choice of coffee or berry lemonade.
You can also purchase add-ons:
Maan Farm’s wine
Fresh meals like butter chicken and samosas
Cheesecake-stuffed chocolate chip cookies
Specially curated gift boxes for mom: (1) do-it-yourself (DIY) roti & curry kit and an instructional video (2) wine & cheese kit (3) self-care kit
Have a drive-thru morning with a visit from Queen Elsa of Arrendelle and a farm safari with farm animals, including baby goats. To find out more innovative experiences this summer, follow Maan Farms on Facebook.
The Vancouver Art Gallery has launched Art At Home, a weekly series of digital family programs to inspire the whole family to get creative at home. Recommended for children aged 5-12, Art At Home can be adapted by families for various ages.
Art at Home with the Vancouver Art Gallery
CREATE: Inspired by Michael Snow’s “Walking Woman,” how many different ways do you think you can you create an action silhouette portrait of yourself, of someone or of something in your home?
Any materials will work! Look around your house and think about what materials will work best for your ideas.
Every Sunday, the Gallery will share a different art-making activity on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, taking inspiration from the exhibitions or an artwork from the Gallery’s permanent collection.
Twice a month on every other Wednesday at 1:30pm, families are invited to attend a free Art At Home Live webinar session on the Gallery’s Zoom channel. Christina Jones, Family Programs Coordinator at the Vancouver Art Gallery, will share fun and animated stories about the incredible lives of artists and how they make art. Families will experience the power of storytelling through anecdotal stories about artists and artworks in the Gallery’s permanent collection. Art At Home Live will also introduce a related art-making activity for families to use. Art At Home projects and supporting resources for caregivers will be available on the Gallery’s website to spark art-making inspiration at any time
Families are invited to follow along and post their creations on social media and tag the Vancouver Art Gallery to share their creations with the community.
If you missed previous weeks’ activities, you can catch up with these activity sheets:
I would usually have a fun lineup of brunch, tea and photo events to share this week but like the rest of the calendar right now, Mother’s Day will look a bit different this year. If you’re like me and you can’t be with your mom on Sunday, May 10th, you can still send her something special. Check out this selection of Fraser Valley and Vancouver Mother’s Day gift boxes, brunch to go and more available for pick-up and delivery:
Vancouver Mother’s Day Gift Boxes and Brunch to Go
High Tea To Go from Little White House in Fort Langley
High Tea to Go
Where to purchase: Online here Delivery or pick-up: May 9-10, 2020 from 9:00am to 3:00pm front porch pickup at 9090 Glover Road, Fort Langley.
Little White House & Co. is offering their White Hydrangea High Tea including five sweet and six savoury petite selections, a mini bottle of Champagne and Creme de le Earl Grey tea served in a beautiful gift box with satin ribbon and perfectly petite hydrangea.
Where to purchase: By email [email protected] Delivery or pick-up: Both
Faubourg is offering A Day in Paris – Mother’s Day Afternoon Tea this Friday May 8 to Sunday May 10 at both locations (Kerrisdale and Hornby). It includes chicken salad on choux, vegetarian on eclair, smoked salmon on croissant, scones, coffee cream & ladyfinger, 2 raspberry chocolate opera, raspberry rose macarons, vanilla croquant choux, blood orange tartelettes, and more!
Love Vancity Gift Boxes
Where to purchase:Online here Delivery or pick-up: Delivery
Partnering with local small brands such as Chop Value, Mala the Brand, Woash Wellness, Blume, Naked Snacks and many more, the Love Vancity team has lovingly curated a collection of gift boxes that support both the local community and frontline workers. Options are $25 to $85 boxes packed with local goods. $5 from each Love Vancity box sold will go to support Feed the Frontline Workers Canada. Local delivery within the Greater Vancouver area for $15. For everyone outside the Greater Vancouver area, they off shipping via Canada Post nationwide.
Handmade & Homegrown Fraser Valley Gift Box
Where to purchase:Online here Delivery or pick-up: Pick-up is May 9, 2020 from Tradex between 10:00am and 2:00pm.
Tourism Abbotsford and the Fraser Valley Trade and Exhibition Centre (Tradex) have launched a Handmade & Homegrown Fraser Valley Gift Box with several options ranging from $38 to $60 options. Items you can choose from include flower seeds from Tanglebank Gardens, tulips from the Abbotsford Tulip Festival, a flowerpot chocolate lollies from ChocolaTas, a cupcake from Tracycakes Bakery and Café, lavender room spray and bar soap from Tuscan Farm Gardens, honey sticks from Campbell’s Gold Honey Farm & Meadery and more.
Brunch Boxes To Go
Where to purchase:Online here Delivery or pick-up: Delivery and pick-up. Delivery fee is $4 if within 4km of the restaurant, $7 if further
Steveston Seafood House is offering a Mother’s Day Brunch Box for $24.95 per person. The menu includes: Spinach and feta cheese frittata, crab cake with red pepper aioli, brioche French toast with caramelized banana and pecans, apricot spinach salad, homemade blueberry scones and chocolate-dipped strawberries. Add-ons to make the brunch more special, include a 15-stem bouquet of freshly cut tulips for $19.95 or mini mimosa kit (orange juice, bottle of Piccolo Champagne and fresh-cut oranges) for $12.
Where to purchase:Online here Delivery or pick-up: Pick up hot and ready on May 10 from Dominion (13475 Central Ave, Surrey)
Choose from three Mother’s Day Brunch options from Dominion Bar + Kitchen, from $36 to $49 per person,. Options include large garden salad, French-Canadian onion soup, French toast, Italian meatballs with classic marinara sauce, seared salmon with quinoa, mini lemon meringue pie, salted caramel brownie, and more!
Cake!
Cake from Ladurée
Where to purchase:Online here Delivery or pick-up: Delivery
Of course one of my favourite boxes contain just one thing: cake! I ordered up a little surprise from Laduree on Robson for my mother’s birthday this past weekend.
They will deliver macarons, pastries, cakes and all their products to Metro Vancouver (free delivery for orders $100+ Surrey, White Rock, Langley, Tsawwassen areas excluded, a delivery charge will apply).
It’s the 15th anniversary of the event and since we can’t participate all together, Vancouver Frontrunners is providing some options for you to do your own Vancouver Pride Run and Walk this summer.
Vancouver Frontrunners Photo
Do Your Own Vancouver Pride Run and Walk This Summer
Register online for the 5km run or walk, or the 10km run or walk. Or you can simply register to fundraise.
During the month of July, complete your own 5km or 10km walk or run for the cause.
Public Health guidelines during COVID-19 suggest you stick close to home, so a route in your neighbourhood is best. If you have access to an area with low vehicle traffic, that’s ideal. Whatever you choose, you may want to run or walk it a few times using your watch or app to measure the distance before you do it for real on the race day you choose.
There are some prizes to be won including costume entries (show off your run look) and most money raised over $500. There are also door prizes that all participants have the chance to enter.
Vancouver Frontrunners, an all-volunteer, LGBTQ2+ running and walking club, and they created this event out of a desire to give back to the community. The objective is to raise funds for community beneficiaries: Out in Schools and the LOUD Foundation’sPride Youth Scholarship Fund.
Follow fellow participants and organizers on Facebook and Twitter for inspiration.
