Fine food going to the dogs

Fine food going to the dogs
Here and Now column by Dan Hilborn, Burnaby Now assistant editor
Published June 25, 2003

The Hart House restaurant at Deer Lake raised $600 for the SPCA during the Eat for Pete's Sake fundraiser late last month.

The restaurant, located in a gracious heritage mansion on the shores of the city's most charming little lake, was among six fine restaurants in the Lower Mainland to take part in the first annual event, said organizer Melissa Bragenstroth.

Diners travelled from as far away as Abbotsford to take part, she said. "We really appreciate the public's participation in it," Bragenstroth said. "We also hope that next year we have an even better turnout."

The money will go towards the Burnaby and Vancouver SPCA shelters that deal with an abundance of unwanted puppies and kittens. Bragenstroth also reminds the public to spay or neuter their own animals.

A HAPPY HUNDREDTH

More than 30 family members, fellow churchgoers, friends and former co-workers showed up at Dania Home last weekend to help Elsa Ross celebrate her 100th birthday.

Ross is well known for her goodwill to others, and that was more than apparent when five of the guests at the tea and cake social held in her honour were her former co-workers from her days with Jantzen Knitting Mills, makers of some of the finest swimsuits on the continent.

Ross raised her family in Winnipeg and Vancouver before retiring to Burnaby more than 30 years ago. She moved into Dania Home in 1998 and, even though she is in a wheelchair today, she is still active and healthy.

Congratulations, and many more.

QUEEN'S JUBILEE MEDAL

A belated 'Congratulations' goes out to Charles Cooper, who was instrumental in setting up the Abbeyfield House of St. Margaret of Scotland Society.

Cooper was a recipient of the coveted Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal in a ceremony in Duncan earlier this year, but the announcement got lost amid an ever-growing pile of paperwork on my desk.

A professor emeritus in metallurgical engineer at Queens University, Cooper turned his attention to gerontology and other seniors' issues when he arrived on the West Coast in 1989.

He's been involved in the local seniors housing group since its inception in 1992 and currently serves as secretary and a director for the board. Cooper also serves as secretary-treasurer of the Abbeyfield B.C. Trust Society, chair of the Abbeyfield B.C. Chapter, a director of Abbeyfield Canada and alternate director of Abbeyfield International.

Of the 29 Abbeyfield houses in Canada, 21 are in B.C. thanks to the work of Cooper and other dedicated volunteers in the field.

Put up your Dukes?

Local teen Khalil Lakhani, who rescued of a five-year-old girl from the waters of Green Lake in Washington State earlier this month, is not the only young person from Burnaby to receive a Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award.

In a ceremony at South Delta secondary school earlier this month, Lakhani was joined on the podium by city residents Karen Forsman and Max Bitel, who also received their DoE Bronze Awards.

Forsman and Lakhani received their awards for work completed as members of the 8th Northview Venturer company, while Bitel earned his as an independent participant.

The Duke of Edinburgh Awards are an international honour, sponsored by Prince Philip, husband to Queen Victoria, which aim to recognize young people who take part in community service, expeditions, skills and fitness challenges.

The awards are available to anyone between the ages of 14 and 25 willing to complete the sometimes gruelling list of requirements. In addition to the Bronze certificates, the program includes Silver and Gold level awards.

IMMERSED IN FRENCH

A mother of three who hails from Burnaby and has demonstrated a lifelong commitment to French language education has been awarded the Canadian Parents for French bursary for B.C. and the Yukon.

Annamarie Sember is in the final year of the French Professional Development program at Simon Fraser University, and intends to become a teacher of French Immersion in her hometown of Merritt.

A former graduate of Burnaby North secondary, Sember was among a record number of applicants for the CPF bursary this year. The other bursary winner was Nadine Evans of Castlegar.

Both winners received high praise from CPF B.C. and Yukon president Melanie Tighe-Lovsin. "Choosing the recipient for the bursary was so difficult this year due to the high calibre of candidates," Tighe-Lovsin said.

"Parents increasingly understand the growing importance of language in the modern economy," she said. "Whatever our children learn to do, learning another language will help them pursue their dreams. Having qualified teachers like Annamarie will help those dreams come true for our children."

Sember taught her practicum at Moscrop secondary in Burnaby last year, and her three children are currently enrolled in French Immersion programs at home in Merritt.

There are currently 31,990 students enrolled in French Immersion programs across B.C., and according to the CPF there is a nationwide shortage of qualified French Immersion teachers.