How $5 can jumpstart two dreams

Lynn Valley’s North Shore Disability Resource Centre is back with its 5 for 5 Raffle. With proceeds going to a new mobile sensory van and ongoing advocacy work – you have until Sept. 17, 2019 to purchase tickets.


Adding Resources


The (almost) annual raffle is a key fundraiser supporting resources and advocacy work undertaken by the NSDRC. This year it is looking to expand its community resources by adding another multi sensory room available for community use and this time making it mobile to serve even more people. 

An example of a Snoezelen room.

Multi-sensory environments are safe spaces designed to stimulate senses, explained Kathleen Jessop, interim executive director for the North Shore Disability Resource Centre. They can soothe and calm the agitated, as well as engage the withdrawn, she said.

“We are purchasing sensory equipment and putting into a van to make it mobile,” said Jessop. “There is  one multi sensory Snoezelen room on the North Shore and it’s booked all the time. Our plan is to make it mobile so we can take it to a person or to a school or to a seniors’ centre or even to a community event.”

With ambient and active visual, touch, sound and smell stimulation, the existing Snoezelen room is already an important resource for local families.  

“We will be able to serve the people we already do with the room but we can also expand and serve others and it will raise awareness of us in the community as well as what multi sensory spaces are and what they are used for,” said Jessop.

The goal is to be up and running by April 2020 or when all the funds needed have been raised. The project has gotten a big boost being the beneficiary of  this year’s North Shore Community Foundation’s Mayors’ Golf Tournament. That $50,000 is a huge step forward, said Jessop.

“We have some families whose children are so anxious they don’t want to leave their houses. If we can bring the room to their doorstep, we can get them from their threshold to the van it will be a huge step for them,” she said. 

“You can imagine these families seeing the van pull up and having their children able to participate in something, to smiling and enjoying something – it could change lives,” added Bob McCormack, NSDRC past-president and board member. 


Get Tickets


Where else for the price of $5 can you support a dream project and possibly win a dream trip? Tickets are available for $5 at the NSDRC office at 3158 Mountain Hwy or by calling 604-985-5371. More information can found on its webpage. Tax receiptable donations (does not apply to raffle tickets) to the Snoezelen van or any of their projects can be made in person or online

Prizes include: 

1st prize: Trip for two, anywhere WestJet flies*

2nd prize: $180 BC Ferries voucher; two night stay Ocean Village Beach Resort in Tofino; $50 gift card to Shed Restaurant Tofino*

3rd prize: Harbour Air Panorama Tour & $150 gift card Pacific Centre

4th prize: Harrison Hot Springs Resort one night stay & breakfast for two*

5th prize: $250 gift card The Bay

*Some conditions apply, details on the NSDRC website. 


Five Facts You May Not Know About the NSDRC


  • The organization began in 1976 by a group of parents with physically disabled children.
  • They have 11 group homes.
  • They employ over 200 people making them one of the larger employers on the North Shore.
  • One of the largest roles NSDRC plays is supporting and helping individuals advocate for their disability and housing benefits. 
  • NSDRC is pretty much always hiring – they typically have both volunteer and paid positions available. Check them out

Looking for more?


There’s always something fun and exciting happening in Lynn Valley. Check out our Community Events Calendar or learn more about Local Activities, Mountain Biking or Hiking and Walking Trails.

Life Learning

We have an idea. There are great partners in Lynn Valley – we have a wealth of experience and knowledge between our hills and we want to share it with our community. Starting this Fall, we will be leveraging the knowledge of our neighbours and sharing it around with a series of workshops at the Legion.

 

Who

We want to share and discuss topics that are relevant to you. We know our community is diverse. We have families just starting out. We have couples working and playing hard. We have parents supporting their children and taking care of their own aging parents. We have seniors who have called this place home for decades. We have immigrants diversifying Lynn Valley’s future. While every topic might not be for you, our aim is to have a topic for everyone.

What

There is a lot going on in Lynn Valley and we will try to offer something for everyone. Our goal is to provide these workshops and experiences for free or very low cost.

When

We are going to start slow and do this smart. Our goal is to have Life Learning sessions that will take place throughout the Fall and Winter.

Where

We are partnering with the Lynn Valley Legion to use their well appointed facilities, with space, audiovisual equipment, free parking and fantastic walkable location it is the perfect place to launch a community program.

How

We’d like to tailor these workshops to you so feel free to share your ideas with us HERE as we get started in this process.

 

Live and local 2019

The popular neighbourhood Live and Local concert series is returning again to Lynn Valley Village. Each week there are two events hosted by the North Vancouver Recreation and Culture Commission. 

Events take place Wednesdays 6 – 8 p.m. and Fridays  7 – 9 p.m.


July


5 Terminal Station Blues Rock 7 – 9 p.m. 

10 Fell the Beat – Move to the smooth and beautiful sounds of Rosewood’s Marimba ensemble. 6 – 8 p.m.

12 Cayla Brooke  Jazz/Blues 7 – 9 p.m. 

17 Music & Magic – An evening of cheer with interactive crafts, magic and youth band Sm:)e. 6 – 8 p.m.

19 R&B Conspiracy Classic Rhythm & Blues 7 – 9 p.m. 

24 Starry Night – Enjoy the Mojo Stars, an R&B tinged blues-rock that is guaranteed to get everyone out of their seats. 6 – 8 p.m.

26 Wooden Horsemen Folk & Blues 7 – 9 p.m. 

31 SHINE Young Artists Music Showcase – Join a showcase of the North Shore’s up and coming talent from Creativ Music Centre, backed up by a live band. 6 – 8 p.m.


August


2 Smith & Jones Country Rock 7 – 9 p.m. 

7 Jazzy Tunes – Join East Vancouver’s unique carnival band, Tiny Islands, to learn about brass instruments through their upbeat, can’t-sit-still jazz tunes. 6 – 8 p.m.

9 Trésor Otshudi World Music 7 – 9 p.m. 

14 Roots and Rhythm – Create community with an African drum circle and learn new instruments with JOJY Music 6 – 8 p.m.

16 Big Easy Funk Ensemble New Orleans Funk  7 – 9 p.m. 

21 Hands on Fun – Creative clay play, active circus arts and make your own bouncy ball.  An Interactive event for everyone! 6 – 8 p.m.

23 Platform Soul Disco Funk 7 – 9 p.m. 

For more information visit Lynn Valley Village’s FACEBOOK or check out this video.

Year three of rockbreaking on Seymour River

The Seymour Salmonid Society is marking a “mile-stone” of sorts July 10th. The organization is inviting the public and other guests to join them in society’s Rockslide Opening Ceremony. 


Rockbreaking Opening Ceremony


“We are hoping this is our last summer of the rockslide mitigation project,” said Reese Fowler, volunteer coordinator for the Seymour Salmonid Society.

The society is leading a walk July 10th at 1 p.m. from the north end of Riverside Drive to the presentation site for 1:30 p.m. at  Fisherman’s Trail. There will be presentations from partners like the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations, government representatives and other stakeholders. 

“Part of the reason the ceremony is where it is, is because it overlooks the actual site,” said Fowler. “Anyone coming up can see the scar on the side of the canyon and the boulders in the river. Some of these rocks are huge – one of them is called a house rock because it is a big as a house. Others used to be the size of a car and our aim is to blast them down to the size of a microwave.” 


The slide


An early morning in December 2014 saw nature dramatically change the Seymour River. The normal freeze-thaw cycle created a dramatic rock fall. About 80,000 cubic metres of rock entered the river with about 30,000 washing away and leaving 50,000 cubic metres in the river. 

“A rockslide broke off the canyon walls and completely blocked the river channel,” said Fowler. “It created a lake upstream of the river. The big thing is it prevented returning salmon and steelhead from being able to move up the watershed to be able spawn.”

This lead to some creative planning and a multi-year project to re-open the channel and improve young salmon habitat.

“The Society has been managing a project of rock drilling and rock blasting so we can get salmon into the upper watershed again. This is the third year and hopefully the last,” said Fowler. “In the last three years we have also been doing a Trap and Truck program in the lower river. When the salmon arrive in to the river they are captured in nets and taken to trucks and physically moved upstream of the rockslide and released. It’s a lot of manual labour and volunteer assistance to get that to happen. Some fish are taken to the hatchery as well as for breed stock to support the number of salmon that are able to spawn naturally in the river.”

The ongoing project has seen a number of highs and lows. 

“Last year was a very poor salmon run,” said Fowler. “We managed to only move 140 fish to the upper river, but in 2017 we were able to get close to 2000. We are hoping this is the last year with trap and truck and that next year the fish will be able to move up naturally. The hope is that we will have spawning salmon in the river in the years to come.”


Restoring habitat


The opening of the Seymour River is one part of a larger plan to improve the habitat for salmon.  

“We have drilling contractors there during the week drilling holes and at the end of the week they fill up the holes with explosives and they set off the charge,” said Fowler. “They repeat to create a smoother path. For the salmon it’s about gradient, it can’t be too steep or have too big a jump. We are trying to smooth it to about a 7 per cent gradient.

“During the summer we do rock breaking but the rocks are in still in the channel. In the fall when the heavy rains come we let the river do it’s natural cleaning process and move those rocks along. We hope there will be some decent rain and it will flush the remaining rocks out and clear a path that will enable the salmon to through.” 


Community in action


Besides the paid professionals dealing with the slide, there is also a roster of 950 volunteers that support the Seymour Salmonid Society throughout the year. The rockslide project has a budget of about $1.2 million – all from donations and government support. 

“It’s a lot money but its a drop in the bucket for the wider ecosystem restoration we are trying to do,” said Fowler. “Creating passage is one thing but you then have to create the habitat to spawn in as well. It’s about creating off-channel habitats – river gravels and ponded areas so the young salmon and steelhead can live. They live in fresh water for a year before they move out of the system into the ocean. We create the habitat for the young fish to grow to a decent size and survive the two to three years they need to before returning.”

 The Society is working on 40,000 square metres of habitat compensation in the 15 km river between the mouth and the Seymour dam. 

“It’s an interesting dynamic here in that the Seymour River is quite a steep sided valley so there aren’t a lot of the flat areas next to the channel to find those spots and create that habitat,” said Fowler. “It’s a challenge but most of the spots we have found can be used to increase that habitat area.”

To learn more about the Seymour Salmonid Society visit its website. For more information on the July 10th Rockslide Opening Ceremony visit their Facebook page

Images courtesy of the Seymour Salmonid Society and Sage Fly Fish.

Summer camps in Lynn Valley

The summer season is almost upon us. Parental planning is just about hitting its peak as families coordinate childcare, vacations and summer camps. Living where we are you don’t need to go far for some local solutions. Here are some ideas!



Check out some options for local NVRC day camps such as Camp KM Kirkstone (6-8yrs), Camp KM Nye (9-12yrs), Camp Lynn Valley (5-6yrs) or Bricks 4 Kidz (various age groups 5-15yrs).

Or search “Lynn Valley” on the NVRC registration system for more options and details as spaces are limited.



Discover a variety of member and non-member summer camp options such as Aquatics Lessons and Lifesaving, Dance, Tennis, Sportball, Multi-sport Day Camps and Summer Hockey.

Also check out Kids Corner Camps with art and culinary options. Visit the Winter Club website for more details.



Summer Mini-Camps (some spots still remain)

Ecology Centre Summer Camps are where the Forest and Fun meet! There is plenty of forest fun planned throughout the summer from Slime Time to Bear in Mind for younger children and from Survive to Making Tarcks for older kids.

Or join in for Imagine & Explore (3-8yrs) on Sundays through July & August. Themes include Creek Creatures, In the Treetops, Buzz and Art in the Park.

Lynn Canyon Ecology Centre