Current News

Field Trip! Check out the (old) museum and (new) gallery!

The North Vancouver Museum – the one tucked away quietly at Chesterfield and West Fourth Street for decades – is shutting up shop at the end of April.

That’s good news – it’s all in preparation for the exciting new museum to be built adjacent to Lonsdale Quay – but at the same time it’s always hard saying goodbye to an old friend. So why not pop down for a look at the displays while you have the chance? Take a glimpse into the kitchens, school rooms and shops of early North Vancouver, and peek into the wall-mounted memory boxes that encapsulate the reminiscences of some of our neighbours who grew up here – among them well-known volunteer Del Dimock and North Shore News photographer Mike Wakefield, both residents of Lynn Valley.

Featured currently is an exhibit on Chief Dan George: Actor and Activist, and it’s a thoughtful window into the chief’s extraordinary life that played itself out here on the shores of Burrard Inlet, on the ancestral lands of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, as well as in Hollywood where George was best known for his role as Old Lodge Skins in Little Big Man, playing alongside Dustin Hoffman. Chief Dan George’s voice continues to be heard in his evocative writings about the indigenous experience of the land, as in his collection of verse that includes the title poem, My Heart Soars.

The North Vancouver Museum is open by donation, from Thursday to Sunday, noon to 5 (closed stat holidays) and the address is 209 West 4th St.

From the old to the new, you can then take a trip into the much different environment of the Polygon Gallery, the modern silver-sided building located on a new inlet-edge walkway between Tap & Barrel and Lonsdale Quay. Open by donation until the end of 2020 with the support of BMO Financial Group, the Polygon Gallery is showcasing photos and artworks that reflect North Vancouver – past and present – back to its citizens in myriad forms and styles. Be sure to pick up the info-packed guide to the N. Vancouver exhibit, and visit the second-floor bookshop for photo and art books on a range of topics and places.

The Polygon Gallery is open from Tuesdays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. More info is right here.

 

 

March 25, 2018 in Blog, Community Events, Current News, Notable Neighbours

Got a great idea for your neighbourhood? Funds available to make it real

The deadline for the Vancouver Foundation’s Neighbourhood Small Grants is fast approaching. You have until April 9 to take advantage of this growing program. Each year many locals take advantage of the $50 – $500 grants given to fund community initiatives.

“The goal is about connecting and engaging the community,” said Tricia Alsop, of the North Shore Neighbourhood House which oversees the program in North Vancouver. “Community doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone. It doesn’t need to be a project with your neighbours. Last year we gave out about 80 grants.”

Since 2011 the North Shore has been apart of the Vancouver Foundation’s Neighbourhood Small Grants program. The grants are given to projects that bring people together, share skills and knowledge, build a sense of belonging, responsibility, and respect and celebrate diversity, according to the Foundation.

“We had hosted a block party – a potluck kind of party the first year we moved here,” said Lynn Valley’s Shannon Samler, a recipient of a 2017 grant. “Someone told us about these grants so we thought – why not [apply]? It was very easy to do.”

Easy access

“The goal is to make it available to everyone,” said Tricia Alsop. “The application is online but we also have paper applications. If people need help, we can help them work through it. It is supposed to be easy.”

For most projects the most labour-intensive piece is creating a budget.

“It’s a simple process,” said Samler. “Putting together the budget help me think about what I wanted to do. We wanted to take on the responsibility of the main course part of the food and provide a few extras – like face painting.”

The Samlers’ block party was one of a handful in Lynn Valley last year funded by the grants and is a typical project that the Foundation funds.

Other projects on the North Shore included gardening, food, beekeeping, emergency preparedness and craft workshops, invasive weed pulls, intergenerational programs, Little Free Libraries and others.

“It was a great way to meet people,” said Samler. “We learned the names of people we see – not just families with kids that same age as ours. We were able to set up a neighbourhood email list to connect and share concerns.”

Lasting impacts

Samler says the – now annual – event has fostered a more open neighbourhood. Sometimes the grants are what give legs to an idea, said Alsop.

“The grants can help give people the initiative to get started on an idea they have always had,” she said. “We see lasting relationships grow out of the projects – sometimes they can be a help with conflict resolution by bringing people together.”

Organizers welcome more applicants

“We would like to see some new people with new ideas,” said Alsop. “If it fits, there is a good chance they will get the grant.”

The deadline for applications is April 9th. For more information or help with applications contact the North Shore Neighbourhood House at 604-987-8138.

March 23, 2018 in Blog, Community Events, Current News, Getting Involved, Uncategorized

An Egg-citing Way to Celebrate Easter in Lynn Valley!

It sounds like there will be a mix of sun and clouds in Lynn Valley’s future, but whatever the weather we hope the Easter weekend is joyful for all!

easterWe are having our annual FREE family Easter Egg Hunt April 2 from 10 a.m.-noon at Viewlynn Park. There will be prizes, plenty of eggs to find and lots of family fun — think face painting and balloon twisting too.

If it is rainy, there’s no better way to spend the time than in painting some Easter eggs to give out to family and friends. Here are few novel ideas to get you started – you probably have everything you need at home already!

Easter Egg 2017

Another tradition that will keep the kids busy is to bake hot cross buns on Good Friday, or to make an Easter bonnet for Sunday. And if you’re really having fun, why not make some homemade chocolate Easter eggs as well?

Easter Egg 2017Easter Sunday is the culmination of the Christian Holy Week, and is preceded by Good Friday and Holy Saturday. Special services are being held on all three days at many Lynn Valley churches, and all are welcome – should you want more information, contact info and church websites are listed on our Clubs and Associations page. Happy Easter, everyone!

March 5, 2018 in Blog, Community Events, Current News

Dogs offer audience to young readers at LV Library

An interesting news release from the Lynn Valley Library, especially for young readers who are dog lovers!

North Vancouver District Public Library is thrilled to announce a new program aimed at encouraging children to further develop their literacy skills by reading aloud…to a dog! On Wednesday evenings from January 17—March 14, local children have the opportunity to come to read to Starr, the friendly Great Dane, at Lynn Valley Library at the Paws 4 Stories program.

Paws 4 Stories is a St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog Community Service program that is designed to assist in helping to improve reading skills of children. Reading to a certified therapy dog has been shown to be motivating and calming to readers, and can potentially help children change their approach to reading. It can be particularly beneficial for children who may be hesitant or anxious about reading.
The program is recommended for children ages 6 -12.

Children can sign up for up to three twenty minute sessions while the program is running, but space is limited and registration is required. Those interested in participating can call 604-984-0286, ext. 8141 or visit the Lynn Valley Children’s Desk to register.

January 5, 2018 in Blog, Current News

Hopes and Reflections: North Vancouver District Library

It has been a busy year – for us all. We don’t always get a chance to keep up with all the goings on in our community or to know what happens behind the scenes. LynnValleyLife reached out to pretty much every local group we could track down and ask them to share their how the year went, what their hopes are for 2018 and how the Lynn Valley community can help them succeed. A few shared their thoughts. We have three posts coming up featuring the diversity of our community. We hope you enjoy this series of hopes and reflections.

 

A 10th Anniversary for the North Vancouver District Library Lynn Valley Branch

 

2017 Highlights 

The 2017 NVDPL board

2017 was a year of many great accomplishments for the North Vancouver District Public Library system. This year, the Library completed a beautiful renovation to the main lobby of the Lynn Valley Library, hosted over 2,100 programs, loaned over 1.1M items across our three locations, and celebrated the 10 year anniversary of Lynn Valley Library’s ‘new’ location.

2017 Challenges

The Library is a safe, neutral hub for lifelong learning and community connection. As such, an ongoing challenge is to find a balance and adapt to the varying needs of our community for study space, increased technology capability, and a robust collection.

2018 Goals

Our hope is to continue to demonstrate our commitment to the community, the wonderful programs and services we offer, and to welcome more residents.

Hopes for Lynn Valley

We hope that Lynn Valley retains its warm community feeling while embracing and welcoming new residents.

How can Lynn Valley help the Library?

North Vancouver residents have always been very supportive of library services and we appreciate that continued support. We encourage everyone to stop by and say “hello”!

To keep up with the NVDPL all year round follow their Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.

January 3, 2018 in Blog, Current News, Getting Involved

Hopes and Reflections: Seymour Salmonid Society

It has been a busy year – for us all. We don’t always get a chance to keep up with all the goings on in our community or to know what happens behind the scenes. LynnValleyLife reached out to pretty much every local group we could track down and ask them to share their how the year went, what their hopes are for 2018 and how the Lynn Valley community can help them succeed. A few shared their thoughts. We have three posts coming up featuring the diversity of our community. We hope you enjoy this series of hopes and reflections.

 

Our local Seymour Salmonid Society marked its 30th year working to protect our salmon

 

2017 Highlights

  • 14 weeks of drilling and rock breaking that was completed on the Seymour River Rockslide Mitigation Project. This was a big move toward re-establishing migration for species on the river currently blocked by slide debris.
  • The monitoring program of outgoing coho smolts that showed a high survival rate for out-migrating juveniles salmon past the rock slide debris.
  • We had a very successful spring education program (Gently Down the Seymour) that ran 50 full-day field trips between March and June.
  • Due to the success of the spring we extended the program in a Fall pilot, providing 20 additional spaces for Grade 2 – 6 students.
  • We hosted three community events: Family Fishing Day, Open House and Rivers Day Estuary Clean Up. All three were well attended.
  • We spawned more Seymour pink salmon than ever before (100 pair)
  • We spawned more Seymour chum salmon than ever before (32 pair)

2017 Challenges

The challenge we faced was fundraising for major projects and education programs. Although we were successful it took a lot of time from limited staff that have many other duties. Another challenge was that our fish fence was washed out in high flows in a storm this past fall. We are looking to repair it in the early part of next year.

2018 Goals

In the year  our goals are to continue to make progress on the Seymour River rockslide, we have fundraised over $300,000 for the work in 2018.

We would like to offer 70 field trip days to elementary-aged children next spring and fall, educating youth on the importance of salmon and a healthy watershed.

Finally, our main goal is to continue to enhance coho, pink and chum salmon and steelhead trout on the Seymour River to ensure they’re long term survival.

Hopes for Lynn Valley

We would like to see Lynn Valley stay the pristine natural place that is wonderful to hike and spend time outdoors.  

How can Lynn Valley help the Seymour Salmonid Society?

The community has been an incredible support in the past and we hope that they would continue to support the Society. A couple important way to help are by becoming a volunteer or by becoming a paid member (only $10 annually). Another great way the community can show its support is by coming and participating in our annual events like, Family Fishing Day on June 17th, Seymour Hatchery Open House on September 16th and Rivers Day on September 30th.

To keep up with the Society all year round follow their Instagram or Facebook.

January 1, 2018 in Blog, Current News, Eco-Awareness & The Great Outdoors

LynnValleyLife is looking for this year’s Good Neighbour!

If you’ve been following LynnValleyLife for a while, you’ll know that one of our favourite times of the year is the lead up to our annual Good Neighbour Award.

Good Neighbour Award Winner Ribbon

All year ‘through we keep our ears to the ground for people who represent Lynn Valley at its finest – whether it is through acts of quiet kindness or participating in more public “passion projects” for a good cause. Last year’s recipients were Dave and Wilna Parry, who opened their doors to a blind Somalian refugee, and the year before that it was Cath Bates Dimmock, a volunteer coach who has given heart and soul to Argyle’s gymnastics program. Other times recipients have been people whose name you might not have heard before, but who are heroes on their street or in their organization for all the help they give to others.

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October 10, 2017 in Blog, Contests, Current News, Notable Neighbours

Love the neighbourhood? Write for LynnValleyLife!

We know how many of our followers love stories on local recreation, neighbourhood history, interesting Lynn Valley personalities from past or present, or the scoop on new municipal initiatives or retail options. So we’re looking for a few Lynn Valleyites who want to help populate our pages with the local low-down!

IMG_0807We’re looking for a special sort of writer who shares our goals – someone who is interested in  strengthening the Lynn Valley community, sniffing out stories with local interest for the neighbourhood, and in general having FUN on the “beat.” We’re looking for someone whose style is friendly and engaging…. but consistently professional. Just because we like informality and sometimes a certain “chattiness”, it doesn’t mean we’re cool with typos, sloppiness (i.e. missing information, wrong addresses, unreliable facts, etc), or a low standard of journalistic ethics.

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October 4, 2017 in Blog, Current News, Getting Involved

Give thanks, and give food!

It’s almost Thanksgiving, and LynnValleyLife is hoping everyone can have a share in the harvest.

This year we are teaming up with St. Clement’s Anglican Church to help people with enough food on their table make sure the same goes for their neighbours. Thanksgiving has long been celebrated as a time of gratitude at the end of the harvest season, and if you would like to express your gratitude in a tangible way – with garden produce or a bag of groceries –  your contribution would be much appreciated!

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September 24, 2017 in Blog, Community Events, Current News, Getting Involved