(Author’s note: This column is an open letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier Christy Clark and has been sent to them by snail mail.)  “A human being would certainly not grow to be seventy or eighty years old if this longevity had no meaning for the species to which he belongs.”         ...

April is Parkinson's Awareness month. I would like share my story with you to hopefully help bring a better understanding of what it is like to have Parkinson's Disease. In April or May of 2013, I noticed a couple of things with my left hand/arm which didn't seem normal. I noticed my left arm didn't swing normal when I walked....

Honourable Minister McCallum, The West Kootenay Friends of Refugees agreed to sponsor a Syrian family of four, through the BVOR program, on Jan.6/16.  As you are probably well aware, this is an exciting commitment for dozens of people in any sponsoring community.  We have spent countless hours fundraising and preparing the community of Rossland BC to welcome this […]

Dear Editor, This week, all School District #20 employees received an email from our superintendent delineating another example of our government manipulating funding formulas to extract every possible penny from Boards of Education. Our School District's 2016/2017 projected budget deficit increased from $650,000 to $950,000...

Canadians had high expectations for change but instead of help, this budget is marked by the Liberals backtracking on their promises to tackle inequality. In particular, breaking promises to First Nation children, just like so many previous Liberal and Conservative governments “Residents of South Okanagan — West Kootenay were...

“Your Donation Boomerangs Back To You” – what does that mean? We don’t have a hospital anymore! We did before! This was overheard being said in frustration by a person as they passed the elevator in the Castlegar & District Community Health Centre. I assume that this person was on their way to get bloodwork done, or an ...

“March 8 is International Women’s Day (IWD) and this year we are hopeful that justice for Indigenous Women will move forward with the government’s announcement of the long awaited inquiry on missing and murdered aboriginal women,” said Debbie Bird, President of the West Kootenay Labour Council. “Every year women and men around...

I am now back in Victoria at the Legislature until the end of May. While there are many events and meeting requests that come across my desk, I am only in the constituency on Fridays and Saturdays and quite often that time is limited by weather and other unforeseen issues. I depend on my very resourceful and knowledgeable...

As the NDP critic for post-secondary education, I’ve met with a number of groups over the past weeks and months to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing universities, colleges and technical institutions, as well as with the students who are working hard to better their futures.  And the benefits to post-secondary ...

I am sending you a news release from the Wildlife Stewardship Council that is a reminder to all British Columbians that First Nations have the leverage to demand their constitutional right to harvest a fair share of the province’s wildlife resource! How many BC First Nations bands are going to ask in the immediate future the...