There is a new haunted house fundraiser this season, taking over the Beaumont Studios gallery space with a Haunted Circus theme, from October 14th to October 31st.
Haunted Circus
Where: Beaumont Studios (316 West 5th Ave, Vancouver)
When: Sun – Wed 3:00pm to 10:00pm; Thurs – Sat 3:00pm to 2:00am
Admission Adults (over 12) $10, Youth (under 12) $5. Available online in advance or at the door at no extra cost. Guardians must accompany children under 12 years old after 6:00pm for their own safety.
The Circus is coming to Vancouver with all the terrifying clowns and circus performers to give you nightmares. The circus will be open to families and young children during the day but as the sun goes down the clowns come out. Live actors and special effects will bring the circus to life.
The event organizers have a powerful personal story of the support they received from BC Women’s Hospital and the BC Women’s Pregnancy Loss Clinic. As such, 100% of proceeds from the event will benefit the BC Women’s Hospital.
Follow the event on Facebook and Twitter for more information.
On a blazing hot day in early October, I got to fly over to Nanaimo with Helijet so I could hang out with Santa Claus and learn about the Kris Kringle Craft Market.
I was on assignment for FestivalSeekers, to get the whole story about the Kris Kringle Craft Market, the brainchild of Veronica von Conruhds which has been a seasonal staple on Vancouver Island for over 20 years.
Kris and I met with a hug at the Nanaimo Museum, where one of this year’s exhibitors gave us a demo with her amazing handmade, artisan soap. The amazingly talented Valerie Krug-Lamirande of Raven Song Soap explained her process, cut some soap, and told us about her craft.
“I’m always Kringle-ing in my mind,” event organizer Veronica von Conruhds told me over a bowl of borscht. She’s put on the Kris Kringle market for the last 23 years on Vancouver Island, the last three years in Nanaimo. I dare you to find someone who lives and breathes Christmas spirit year-round like she does.
I ordered the combo platter #2, that came with perogies, half a sausage, and a cabbage roll. Frank Pluta, the market’s other principal, ordered the same, then show me photos of Kris on his iPhone.
“Here’s our day out on the water with the peddle boats; look at Kris!”
There he was, sporting a life jacket over his velvet robes, trading in his jingle-bell bedazzled staff for a paddle, to promote the market in the heat of summer.
The team spends months each year promoting the craft market, which attracts about 12,000 people, and Kris is such a great sport. Their enthusiasm is contagious, and brings out the best in everyone wherever they go. Veronica said they always have to plan an extra half hour into their travel time, because people just want to stop and talk to Kris. He’ll never rush past anyone. I can imagine a few requests for Santa Selfies might hold up his daily activities as well… Read more »
I got to ride around in the Kringle-mobile all day, and we even stopped in to see another exhibitor, Megan Elena Lott of Elena Designs where I purchase a gorgeous etched leather bracelet cuff.
Check out my article for FestivalSeekers for full details about my fun day with the Kris Kringle team, as well as the FestivalSeekers event listing for the market.
Kris Kringle Craft Market in Nanaimo
Where: Beban Park Centre (2300 Bowen Rd., Nanaimo)
When: November 17, 2016 to November 20, 2016
Tickets: Adults $10/day or $15 and a donation to Salvation Army for a full event pass. Seniors and students $8/per day, children 12 and under free.
Follow FestivalSeekers on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube for more information.
This post has been contributed by Michael Murray, Communications Volunteer with the Stanley Park Ecology Society (“SPES”). I have been following SPES since I moved into the West End over a decade ago and I have been a member for four years. I wanted to offer the team an opportunity to share their news, events, and work so I have created “SPES Saturday” where they contribute and share stories with my audience once a month.
Hanging Out with Bats in Stanley Park
With Halloween just around the corner, now is the perfect time to learn more about of one of the spookier species found in Stanley Park: Dracula’s web-winged cousin, the bat. This past summer, Dr. Cori Lausen along with members of the South Coast Bat Conservation Society conducted bat surveys to learn more about these mysterious mammals and their role in the Stanley Park ecosystem.
A little brown bat in Stanley Park.
Photo: Michael Schmidt.
Of the 16 species of bats native to British Columbia, three have been confirmed in Stanley Park: The little brown myotis, Yuma myotis, and the aptly named big brown bat are the most commonly seen. The hoary bat, silver haired, and Californian myotis may have been heard by researchers in the Park, but not yet confirmed visually. Bats are most often spotted foraging for insects around Beaver Lake and Lost Lagoon during the twilight hours.
One little brown bat can consume up to 1000 mosquitos an hour playing a large part in controlling insect populations in the Park. While active at night, bats rest for much of the day. Little brown myotis bats use a wide variety of summer roosting sites including loose bark, tree cavities, rock crevices, caves and buildings. The staff at SPES can attest to this, having spotted big brown bats roosting in the attic above their offices in the Stanley Park Dining Pavilion. Little brown myotis have also been seen in the out buildings of the Rowing Club near Brocton Oval.
A bat researcher traps a little brown bat during studies
in Stanley Park. Photo: Michael Schmidt
Bats are most active in the Park during the spring and summer months. Some species of bats go south during the winter months while others ride out the cold in their hibernaculas. Dr. Lausen and her colleagues chose Stanley Park as a research site because of the relatively warm coastal climate which gave them an opportunity to see if the bats overwinter in the Park. According to her research, they do spend the winter in the Park but their exact roosting spots are still undetermined.
One major concern facing bat populations throughout North America is White Nose Syndrome (WNS). First documented in 2006, White Nose Syndrome is caused by a fungus that thrives in the cold environments where bats hibernate. White Nose Syndrome has significantly reduced bat populations in Eastern Canada and the United States. To date, WNS has killed approximately 7 million bats in North America. With cases being reported as far north as Washington state, the threat to BC bats is growing. Considering how slowly bats reproduce (approximately one offspring a year), it may take years for their numbers to rebound from a WNS outbreak. Dr. Lausen would like to determine what can be done to possibly minimize the impacts of this disease and how to monitor the impacts once it arrives.
Bat researchers carefully measure a little brown bat in Stanley Park. Photos: Maria Egerton
For more information on Dr. Lausen’s work and to learn more about White Nose Syndrome visit WCS Canada.
Bats and other “Creatures of the Night” will be the focus of SPES’ so-named exhibit at the annual Stanley Park Halloween Ghost Train event in Stanley Park, October 8 to 31, 2016. Be sure to drop by, check out the bat specimens, and meet some of the members of the South Coast Bat Conservation Society!
The Virtual Stage presents the fifth annual production of its acclaimed Zombie Syndrome interactive theatre-adventure series, The Zombie Syndrome: Dead In The Water, from October 4th to 31, 2016 on Granville Island.
The Zombie Syndrome
This year, audience members will be challenged to travel by land and sea, brave the elements, and defeat a strange new breed of mutant zombie-vampires.
For the first time in Canadian professional theatre, this chilling new production will feature the integration of Apple’s sophisticated iBeacon technology. The Virtual Stage has teamed with the award-winning innovators behind local Vancouver company TerraTap Technologies to integrate its mobile content delivery system neartuit into the experience.
The location-based iBeacons will boost interactivity by triggering clues on audience members’ smartphones (through an app), helping teams of up to 18 people as they race against time in their battle with blood-thirsty forces of darkness.
A new highlight of this thrilling adventure involves travelling on the Pacific Ocean; therefore, audiences would be wise to bring their sea legs and dress for the weather!
Disclaimer: Rated PG-13. Contains zombies, vampires, and other mature subject matter. Children under the age of 13 need to be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Win Tickets to the Zombie Syndrome
I have a prize pack for one lucky winner to enjoy on Halloween night that includes: A pair of tickets to The Zombie Syndrome: Dead In The Water on October 31st at 8:00pm; 2 official Zombie Syndrome t-shirts; and a bag of Halloween candy to enjoy during or after this spooky theatrical adventure. Here’s how you can enter to win:
- Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
For more information, updates, and declassified information regarding this year’s mission, follow The Virtual Stage on Twitter and Facebook for more information. Be sure to tweet about your mission’s success or failure and announce your team’s score with the hashtag: #ZombieSyndrome.
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Tuesday, October 11, 2016. The prize is exclusively for Halloween night so the winner must be able to attend, or another winner will be drawn.
Update The winner is Tanya!
It’s at about 2:00am that the cold really starts to get to you. Coupled with the incessant beeps of a nearby truck in the alley that seems to be perpetually moving in reverse, and the fact that there’s nothing between you and the ragged asphalt of the alley but a layer of flattened cardboard, it becomes tough to sleep.
In sub zero temperatures I’ve found that laying on my stomach is most effective for keeping me warm, but it leaves me vulnerable. Luckily, when I participate in one night of chilled, sleepless misery on the streets of Vancouver, there’s a team watching over me with water, tea, coffee, and extra blankets. No matter how miserable I’ve been in the middle of the night, during my last 3 years of the Covenant House Sleep Out, it absolutely pales in comparison to what local youth have to go through. Every day. Every night. But I just signed up to Sleep Out for the 4th year, because this small act has a big impact.
Covenant House Sleep Out
“Sleep Out for one night so that homeless youth don’t have to”
The Covenant House Sleep Out takes place at Covenant House locations across the world, supporting local homeless youth so that they don’t have to spend another night outside. Last year after I set up my “bed” in the alley, I hopped on Twitter and connected with people in New Orleans, Dallas, and New York who were also heading outside for their local Sleep Out.
This year on November 17th, executives, public figures and well connected leaders in our community will once again sleep outside for one night in solidarity with those youth who may face many more cold, lonely nights until they find their way through the doors of Covenant House Vancouver.
From Los Angeles to New York, Toronto to New Orleans and in other major cities across North America, participants will raise funds from their companies, colleagues, friends and family to support the life-changing work that is being done to help young people leave the streets and begin new lives. These leaders will draw the attention of the larger business community and our nation to the problem of homelessness among young people.
Photo by Covenant House
Covenant House Vancouver provides support on various levels: Crisis Shelter, Drop in Centre, Street Outreach, and Rights of Passage.
“Many of the kids have lived with violence or the threat of violence for much of their young lives. Feeling safe is a right we all have but one these kids have not enjoyed.”
Before we head outside on the night of the Sleep Out we usually split off into groups and speak with youth clients and volunteers. It is always encouraging to meet kids who went from being homeless, to the crisis shelter all the way through to Rights of Passage, Covenant House’s program that prepares them for the bigger world.
Those in Rights of Passage actually pay (an affordable) rent and get full access to programs provided that they have a job or they are in school. They end up learning basics like grocery shopping and budgeting, and once they are through the program (6 months to 2 years) they are supported when they eventually move out, even welcomed to return for the weekly communal dinners. The care just keeps going to ensure the youth become self-sufficient, gainfully employed, successful individuals.
Photo by Covenant House
In 2013, my first Sleep Out year, over 600 participants around North America slept out for their local Covenant House. They raised over $3 million. Vancouver had 5% of the participants but raised 10% of the funds.
This will be my fourth Covenant House Sleep Out and I would love your support. $10, $20, $50, any amount you can donate directly to Covenant House through my campaign page would be of significance. Whatever amount you can spare can truly make a difference.
Covenant House Statistics
- 39% of Covenant House’s youth present with a mental health diagnosis
- 70% have witnessed family violence
- 50% of Covenant House’s youth present with an addiction problem
- 95% of Covenant House’s youth report that Covenant House has helped them
- 75% of youth feel more confident about their future after staying at Covenant House
- Average length of stay has increased 83% in past five years (Covenant House knows that a young person’s success rate increases significantly with longer stays)
Thank you very much for your consideration and follow me on Instagram and Twitter for updates on November 17th when I sleep out on the street again. Follow Covenant House on Twitter and Facebook for much more information.
