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ASK Salt Spring Bids a Sad Farewell to MLA Adam Olsen
July 5, 2024: Twenty-six joined this ASK Salt Spring gathering to welcome Laura Parker, Outreach Coordinator, and to bid a sad farewell to MLA Adam Olsen who has decided not to run again. The clear message throughout our time together was our support for his decision to focus his attention on family and personal opportunities as well as heartfelt appreciation of the terrific job he has done representing us over the years. We began our conversation with Adam’s Territorial Acknowledgement , reminding us of the uniqueness of our islands and that it should be our privilege to belong to them rather than owning…
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Building Community Connections Through Sharing Meals, Grief, and Laughter. . .The Chuan Society Does This and More
June 28, 2024: Twenty-one gathered to welcome the Chuan Society to this ASK Salt Spring gathering. Special guests included chairperson Kajin Goh, council members Lauren Porter, Jenny McClean, and Stephen Carey, and Gabriel’s Kitchen team members Cheryl Roehlig, Kristin Norget, and Keith Delaney. After his Territorial Acknowledgment (suggesting that Land and People Honouring might be an added term), Kajin spoke of his “excitement and delight” with the “People Power” being created from small seeds. These seeds are continuously nurtured by the excitement, energy, and hard work of so many volunteers, many of who had joined us for this conversation. Working alongside a non-hierarchical Chuan…
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Learning About the Wonders of HomeSharing
June 21, 2024: A small group gathered to welcome Max Baron-Veale, Salt Spring’s Housing NOW Coordinator and to learn about HomeSharing. After Max’s moving Territorial Acknowledgement, we each took a few moments to introduce ourselves, most adding the Indigenous-like acknowledgement of our parents and roots. Max then told us what “excited and delighted” him. On his mind was his imminent departure for his first ever jujitsu competition. Clearly a gentle soul, he was a bit nonplussed by the combative aspects of his newfound sport. Professionally, he is very excited about the potential of HomeSharing on Salt Spring, anxious to further explore its as one…
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The One Year Anniversary of Salt Spring’s Local Community Commission: A Focus on Housing
June 14, 2024: While the gathering welcoming Local Community Commissioners (LCC) Chair Earl Rook and Electoral Director Gary Holman was small, those who participated expressed their appreciation for our housing-focused conversation. After our Territorial Acknowledgement, facilitator Grant Fredrickson asked our guests what “Excited and Delighted” them. Earl began by expressing pleasure that the long, dark days of winter have been replaced by our spring/summer weather. He also spoke briefly of his appreciation for the community support for the LCC, approaching the one-year anniversary of the swearing in of Salt Spring’s first Local Community Commissioners on June 20, 2023: Gary continued this theme…
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Local Businesses as Positive Social Change Agents? “Yes!” Says our New Chamber
June 14, 2024: Eleven (including the fun addition of Jason’s young ones) joined us at this ASK Salt Spring gathering to welcome our Salt Spring Chamber of Commerce’s new Executive Director, Matthew Quetton, and new President, Jason Roy-Allen. After our Territorial Acknowledgement, Jason and Matthew told us a bit about themselves and what “excites and delights” them. Jason began by telling us that, a new arrival to Salt Spring, he and his wife own Hen and Hound Farm (complete with farm stand and B&B), the Brasserie (the old Fernwood Café), and, most recently, the Feast (the old House Piccolo). An experienced startup…
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A Better Way to Address Conflict? What About Restorative Justice?
May 31, 2024: Nine joined us to welcome Laura Dafoe, a Restorative Justice volunteer, to this ASK Salt Spring gathering. We were especially glad to welcome Laura as she was unexpectedly filling in at the last moment for Restorative Justice Program Coordinator, Jessica Terazakis, who was ill. Although she had not planned to be our special guest this week, Laura led us on a rich journey of learning about Restorative Justice, saying that she was glad to do so in appreciation of all the good things ASK Salt Spring does for our community and for the opportunity to tell us about Restorative Justice. During her…
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OCP? LUB? CCA? Lots of Letters Tell the Story of Some Exciting New Islands Trust Projects for Salt Spring
May 24, 2024: Nineteen joined the ASK Salt Spring gathering to welcome Islands Trust Planner Jason Youmans, and Trustee Laura Patrick to provide an overview and answer questions about two important Local Trust Committee land use planning initiatives: the Complete Communities Assessment; and updates of the Official Community Plan (OCP) and Land Use Bylaws (LUB). During her Territorial Acknowledgment, Laura spoke briefly about her own personal journey learning about reconciliation and referenced Culturally Connected as a good resource. (You can learn more about Culturally Connected and reconciliation here: (https://www.culturallyconnected.ca/). When asked what “excites and delights” him, Jason told us that, personally, he loves the return of…
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All That You Ever Wanted to Knows About the Spongy Moth. . . and More
May 10, 2024: This ASK Salt Spring gathering welcomed CRD Local Community Commissioners (LCC) Brian Webster and Gayle Baker. After his Territorial Acknowledgement, Brian, wearing his apple-farming hat, leapt fearlessly into the currently raging spongy moth spraying controversy. Brian brought science into the discussion, warning us against letting fear and assumptions overwhelm science-based conclusions. We learned that the spongy moth, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lymantria_dispar) is, in the first phase of its life cycle, an invasive leaf-eating caterpillar that defoliates trees. Trees that are already stressed due to climate change and other challenges, can die from this defoliation. While all deciduous trees are at risk, of particular…
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Welcoming MLA Adam Olsen: “Who Do We Think We Are?”
May 3, 2024: The first ASK Salt Spring gathering in May welcomed MLA Adam Olsen and Constituency Advocate Jerram Gawley for a rich and diverse conversation. Adam used his most recent weekly two-minute speech to the Legislature (https://adamolsen.ca/2024/05/my-duty-to-stand-up-for-the-salish-sea-never-diminishes/) as his Territorial Acknowledgement, speaking of disturbing changes to the waters surrounding us. The site of one of the world’s most biodiverse regions, this once-rich region has become noisy and polluted. Local fishing, once our First Nations’ economic foundation, is now only a pastime. This Acknowledgement of a marine environment that was once far richer led us to a discussion of our local harbours. Adam…
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Firehall Construction Begins!
April 26, 2024: A total of 13 joined us to welcome Fire Trustee Chair, Rollie Cook, and Chief Administrative Officer, Rodney Dieleman, to this ASK Salt Spring gathering. While the numbers were not large, the conversation was lively and rich. After our Territorial Acknowledgment, we asked our guests what excited and delighted them. Rodney spoke briefly about his joy living on Salt Spring and all the new opportunities awaiting him. Having just purchased a boat, he is looking forward to exploring our coast and learning entirely new ways of fishing. A world quite different from the rivers of his former Alberta home, he is looking…