Cortes Currents

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Fifteen antique cars will be in our area this week. They will be checking into the Discovery Inn, in Campbell River, later today. That will be their base for day trips into Cortes Island and Quadra Island and the Comox Valley.

“There'll be quite a number of Ford Model Ts. I'm not just sure how many. There'll be at least two Buicks: mine is a 1912 and a friend of mine is going to be bringing his 1910 Buick. There's going to be a Russell, which is a Canadian built car, and there's going to be -  I think it's  called a ‘Premier’ and it may be a Canadian built car as well,” explained Bruce Beecham, one of the organizers.  

“We're all members of the Vintage Car Club of Canada and the Antique Chapter, which is basically  cars that are 1915 and older. But for this tour, we've softened that a little bit so people with 1927 and older could come. There will be a few people from Campbell River.  Myself and Darryl Weedman are from the Comox Valley. There might be  one or two people from  other parts of Vancouver Island and possibly even a few people from Washington, but I would  say the majority of the cars are going to be from the Lower Mainland.”

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Eleven volunteers turned out for the Friends of Cortes Island (FOCI) annual Beach-Clean-up on Saturday, June 17. 


“Most of what we collected today is styrofoam, which is used for floats. That's obviously washed up on the beach, which is great to get off because it breaks up. We got a whole truckload full of styrofoam. We've also picked up a lot of the little black plastic trays they use on the oyster farms, tires with styrofoam in them, a few buoys and then just some sort of trash, but mainly styrofoam,” explained Helen Hall, Executive Director of FOCI


“We've been cleaning up the beach on both sides of Hollyhock right round the southern tip and towards Seascape.  This is a beach that gets hit by the southeastern storms that come in the winter. Lots of stuff collects on the beach.” 


We were standing in front of an overfull pick-up truck, with extended walls. There were still garbage bags of debris, and piles of aquaculture trash waiting on the ground. 


Cortes Currents asked, “Do you have any idea how much debris was picked up?” 


“Just looking at it now, about two big truckloads,” replied Hall.


The volunteers split into three groups and combed the beach in an hour and a half. 

Someone from the central group, whose area stretched north from Hollyhock, said, “My sense is that the beach was remarkably litter free. We probably found everything that wasn't nailed down, or tied down and cemented in by sand and rocks.”


Hall explained, “What's interesting is we haven't been picking up a lot off the beach. People who walk the beach regularly have been collecting the garbage and putting it into piles. That's really helpful, we've really been collecting their piles off the beach. I was talking to one person here who does that, and she said, 'I put it in a pile because I don’t know what to do with it.’”

Comox Valley Waste Management left a large bin on Cortes Island to be used for the beach clean-up and a Klahoose First Nation project.  


“We're getting it off the island and recycled, which is great news,” said Hall.


After the clean-up, FOCI’s volunteers gathered on the beach below Hollyhock for refreshments.


The lady from the central group said, “It’s a joyous group to be a part of. We're sitting here enjoying exchanges and drinks from Hollyhock; kamboucha, and the great weather.”


Hall added, “It was nice to have the community coming out to clean the beach and we're going to be doing more of this next year.” 


Comox Valley Waste Management may leave a bin over the winter next year. There was also talk of extending FOCI’s beach clean-up to more remote areas that can only be accessed by water.

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - While young families have been migrating to urban centres for decades, in recent years there has been a trend in the opposite direction. The BC Rural Centre asks ‘’What does it take to entice young people away from big cities to small towns?’ Every two years they host a major international conference to profile successful and innovative rural development initiatives. This year’s conference was held on June 1 and 2 at the Hampton Inn, in Kelowna.

Regional Director Robyn Mawhinney of Area C gave the Strathcona Regional District Board a brief report at their June 14 meeting.

The text that follows is a transcript of her presentation:

“At the beginning of June, I had the good fortune to spend two days with rural leaders from across the province at the BC Rural Centre’s ‘Keeping It Rural Conference.’ We discussed forestry, agriculture watershed management, rural innovation, mega projects, healthcare, reconciliation, and the erosion of the right to be rural and how to restore it.”

“Most of us around this table represent rural communities, connecting with rural leaders across the province, highlighted the similar challenges and opportunities, many areas face.”

“The Parliamentary Secretary for Rural Health, Jennifer Rice and Parliamentary Secretary for Rural Development, Roly Russell, brought provincial perspectives to the conference. Until now, I didn't know these two rural advocates existed. It was excellent to meet them.”

"Chief Clarence Louie of the Osoysoos Indian band discussed rural economic development, hard work, land back and the difference between profits and maximizing profits, which is ‘what got us into this corporate mess.’"

“Chief George Lampreau of the Simpcw First Nation highlighted their nations holistic approach to environmental assessment and that his nation is working towardd an MOU with municipalities within their nation’s geographic area to build a better future for all.”

“We heard from forestry operators working to achieve margins through value added, not driving prices down and about community forests from a First Nations perspective.”

“The Agricultural Panel questioned what the culture of food growing is in our regions, ‘because we all need to eat,’ and discussed food hubs and small scale meat production.”

“At the Rural Innovation Panel, I learned innovation is best when working with place-based strengths. Then it's a social process, which can be a catalyst for economic development and diversification. It was stated that the reality for rural innovation is there are proportionately higher costs, and it's best to think of it as a marathon, not a sprint.”

“Broadband infrastructure was mentioned as key to supporting innovation and Connected Coast was highlighted as an example of great work, connecting rural communities to the world.”

“The conference was held in Kelowna, an area central to much of BC and a non-rural location was deliberately chosen because the pressure of a conference on a small rural community could present unwanted challenges to that community and I thought it was a valuable learning experience.”

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - The Strathcona Regional District (SRD) is looking into the possibility of setting up a housing service to access funding for affordable housing projects. 

In the staff report prepared for the June 14 Board meeting, it states that 45% of the renters in the SRD are paying more for housing than they can afford. Many homeowners are facing similar affordability problems.

“Both the Comox Valley Regional District and the Cowichan Valley Regional District currently access requisition taxes for a housing service fund, to be accessed by local non-profit housing providers and other partners to support housing projects.”

Staff is not suggesting the SRD increase taxes, the proposal is to set up a service which would allow it to access grant money. 

The need for an additional 41 units in Area D (Oyster Bay to Buttle Lake) was cited as an example of what the SRD could do if this service were set up. The SRD could apply for a Housing Accelerator Fund grant that could potentially access between $820,000 and $1,599,000 of funding for the proposed development. 

The motion to proceed with investigating this proposal passed, with one opposing vote.

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Elinore Harwood posted a thank-you posted a thank-you note in the Tideline last week. Writing on behalf of the Board and Membership of the Cortes Island Seniors Society (CISS), she stated Carina Verhoeve had been ‘a fine Coordinator.’ This was the first indication many Cortes residents had that the Seniors Helping Seniors program was no longer being funded. When Cortes Currents contacted Verhoeve, she said the funding for her program was terminated eight months ago. Now the Seniors Helping Seniors program has been restarted under the auspices of a new senior’s society.

“Seniors Helping Seniors is a wonderful initiative and program. I'm happy that it has started way back, I am happy that it has been going all these years and I am even more happy that it's continuing. It offers essential services to seniors and if we are lucky,  we will all be seniors at some point,” explained Verhoeve.

Greg Osoba/ CKTZ News - BC composer Wylie Ferguson showcased a new composition with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) this spring.

Ferguson's nearly six minute piece is titled "Broken Earth" and the VSO played his composition on May 30. The 30-year-old composer is very pleased with how it turned out; he describes the composition as "monster music, like something out of a Godzilla movie." He adds that most of his works lean towards the "dark side."

Ferguson, who is based in Nanaimo and whose parents live on Cortes Island, applied last September to the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra's composition mentorship program. He was accepted and began the seven month program last October.

Ferguson studied and taught at the Squamish Academy of Music and studied composition at Capilano University in North Vancouver. Ferguson says he's influenced by a number of contemporary composers in both the jazz and classical fields, most notably Frank Zappa.

With his VSO mentorship now complete, Ferguson hopes word will get out about his compositions and he will be sought out for commissions. In the meantime he continues composing and teaching as well as playing in a number of musical ensembles.

Kate Maddigan/CCEDA - Recently, the province announced a new rural intercommunity transportation study. Cortes Islanders will be familiar with efforts over the years to explore improvements in transportation options for residents and visitors while reducing the island's contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

This new transportation study will address rural intercommunity transportation. For residents of Cortes, Sonora and Reid Islands, this is mainly about finding affordable and reliable ways to get across Quadra Island to access essential goods and services without the use of a personal vehicle.

The focus is on passenger transportation connections between communities, especially in rural and remote areas that are either not currently served or are underserved by buses, ferries, water taxis, float planes, community shuttles, or other ways of getting around. Connections between transportation modes, such as going from a ferry to a bus are also included.

The consultations for this project are being held during the month of June and are intended to eventually help inform the design of a new granting program to fund projects that come out of this study. This is a promising initiative for our island, and I hope you'll participate!

Besides the survey, you can also join in-person community sessions and in online virtual sessions. To access the online survey, go to CCEDAs website under the news and events tab at www.cceda.ca. The online session for Rural Island Communities is on Tuesday, June 27th, from 1 till 4:00 PM. The in-person sessions will be held with First Nations local governments, industry, local research organizations, and community groups across Vancouver Island and on the Sunshine Coast for Cortes Island residents.

The closest in-person community session is Campbell River on June 23rd. If you would like to be included in a session, you must send an email to [email protected]. To recognize your time being put toward the survey, five Visa gift cards worth $100 will be awarded at random to those who complete the survey by the deadline on June 30th. There are funds available to help cover travel costs for Indigenous people located in remote areas to attend the in-person engagement sessions.

For more information, please email [email protected]. Indigenous participants will be offered an honorarium for participating in these rural transportation engagement sessions.

Thank you for participating in this study, which will help inform better decisions about passenger transportation for our island.

This is Kate Maddigan with the Cortes Community Economic Development Association. You can reach me at [email protected].

Roy L Hales/Cortes Currents - The ‘Creative Spaces Garden & Studio Tour’ returns on Saturday, July 8. 


“This is a self-guided tour, and once you get your ticket, you can choose what gardens or artist studios you want to visit, in what order, and you can stay as long as you want at each place,” explained Nancy Kendel, a museum board member whose garden will be among those exhibited.


“We have 17 venues this year, 21 participating artists and gardeners,” added Managing Director/Curator Melanie Boyle.


Nancy: “When you drive around Cortes Island, what you see is driveways that go up into the forest. You don't really get an opportunity to see what other people are doing. Going on the garden tour allowed me to see what other people were doing and the beauty of other people's spaces because each garden is different and each garden is grown for different reasons, food production or maybe someone's just into roses.”

a list of the participants this year: 

Curious Art Studio (Fillipe Figuera)

Old Schoolhouse Art Gallery (Monica Nawrocki, Ester Strijbos, Janny Thompson)

Brian Hayden; Gabriel Dinim

Heritage Garden, the Cortes Island Museum

Sarah's Organic 'Rainbow' Garden

Gerri Davis and George Lerchs; Kristen Schofield-Sweet

Fairhaven Gardens (Laura Ellingsen)

Nancy and Ray Kendel's garden

Juniper Bluffs, (Elizabeth Anderson's garden)

Tennant Farm, (Loretta and Don Tennant),  

Sea Field Gardens (Martha Abelson),

Marion Cragg, weaving studio

Twilight Studio/Thistle Ranch (Jane Newman and Brian Scott).

Brilliant by the Bay (Connie Brill), 

 Bruce Ellington's Garden,

Nora Johnson and Jerry Preston's Garden

Hollyhock

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - At Wild Cortes: The Cortes Island Water Cycle

Wild Cortes came into being as a result of a series of interactions between Laurel Bohart and Lynne Jordan, former President of the Cortes Island Museum. They started in 2005, shortly after Bohart moved to Cortes Island.  

"I met Lynn Jordan on on the ferry. She had this parrot, an African Grey, and it was dead and frozen. She wanted to find a taxidermist, so I mounted her bird. That was the beginning of Wild Cortes, because we did 'Ravens Relations,' and put it up in the museum for a few years. People were absolutely enthralled. They wanted to know if we would have more animals, so we dreamed up the original Wild Cortes, the story of water," she explained.

"The story being that waterfalls on high places trickle down to lower places and eventually flow to the sea or swamps or lakes. That was so popular we had it up for three or four years and then of course the Board decided to do something else."

"So we took that down and there was a lot of upset because people were really attached to it. Lynne and I thought maybe we should recreate it. So we got a good size grant and recreated it here, and it's been growing ever since."

CC: When did ‘Wild Cortes’ open in the Linnaea Farm Education Centre?  

LB: It was 2017 when we opened.

CC: Take us on a tour of this display, from the bluffs right down to the ocean.

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Laurel Bohart has volunteered her time to mount or prepare the study skins of 100 birds, fish and mammals for the Cortes Island Museum. She is a member of the Board and one of the co-curators of Wild Cortes in the Linnaea Farm Education Centre. Bohart is also a professional taxidermist, whose interest can be traced back to her parent’s missionary years in Nigeria during the mid 1960s.


The first words she used to describe taxidermy were, “It's fun.”


To which she added, “It's a form of sculpture when you mount a bird or a mammal. It's better than a photograph, which is two dimensional. These are three dimensional.”   


“The first bird I did was a hawk which is like a Cooper's Hawk, only smaller.   I didn't know you had to skin the legs, the head, the tail, and the wings. So of course it became smelly and got thrown out. That was my first attempt. Later on I learned to skin them and pin them out and let them dry.”


“We came back to Canada in 1967, and my grandfather showed me how to skin birds and sent me back with eyes and material and wire and a lot of the things I needed plus a book to learn from. So I learned from the same book he did from the early 1900s when he was a boy.”

“My father was killed in 1970, and in 1971 our family came back to Canada permanently.  That's when I was able to learn more from my grandfather and mounted my first deer head. I think I helped him do a rug or something like that. I learned on the job and bought books that he recommended. I  talked to other taxidermists, did a lot of study and practical application on my own.”

“When I got better at it, I was able to start a business, ‘L and M Taxidermy Service’ in Duncan in 1984. I had  graduated from university by then. I had my master's in Museum Science and Ornithology, which is bird studies, but couldn't find a job in the local area. I was tired of traveling. I wasn't going to go back east  and I had just come back from Kentucky because I had finished my Master's Degree down there. I didn't want to go anywhere. I wanted to do what my grandfather did.” 

In the podcast Laurel Bohart talks about taxidermy, her life, coming to Cortes and a few of the species she has mounted at Wild Cortes.