Gallery opens in an office

Here and Now column
By Dan Hilborn, Burnaby Now assistant editor
Published Aug. 16, 2003


There's an art gallery with a difference inside the Madison Dental Centre, located in the city's newest shopping plaza at Lougheed and Madison.

The photography of Norm Coridor, a longtime Burnaby resident who has Parkinson's disease, is gracing the walls of Dr. Karim Lalani's new place of business.

"When he was first diagnosed with Parkinson's, he could have folded his tent and said 'That's it,'" said Lalani, a longtime associate and friend of the photographer. "But, instead, that's when I started to see his more creative side blossom."

And blossom it has. About 20 of Coridor's photos of all shapes and sizes grace the walls of the dental office's reception area, hallways and five operatories - that's dentalese for the work rooms.

Most of the photos are nature shots, and they include images of Coridor's holidays in Hawaii and Victoria.

"Every time I look at his work, it gives me a feeling of peace and calm," said the dentist. "My patients are loving it."

And, besides, anything that soothes a person's mind before going into the dentist's chair has to be a good thing.

EMPTYING THE LAKE

If Burnaby Lake looks a little shallower than usual this week, it's not just your eyes playing tricks on you.

In their efforts to reduce the amount of unwanted purple loosestrife around the lake, officials at the GVRD have lowered the lake's water levels a few weeks ahead of schedule this year.

And that means the summer canoeing programs that were scheduled to take place over the next few weeks have been cancelled, and private canoe trips will be rather difficult to manage in the extremely shallow water.

Because of the low water levels, those who absolutely insist on canoeing (and who can blame them?) will have to find some place other than the popular Piper Spit launch site.

Also this summer, seismic upgrades are being conducted on the small Cariboo Dam, meaning people who hike the trail from Piper Spit to Avalon Avenue will occasionally be forced to walk the long way around. Notices will be posted in the park to outline the exact times when the walkway over the dam will be closed.

The GVRD canoeing programs will resume next spring.

TOASTING THEIR MASTERS

You'd think that a group that meets at 7 a.m. on a weekday morning might have a tough time finding new members.

Not so for the Outspoken Toastmasters, who have recently elected a new executive to oversee their work for the coming year.

Toastmasters is that nonprofit group that offers professional training, communication and leadership programs to people of all ages throughout the Lower Mainland.

The new president of Outspoken Toastmasters is Doug Manness of Deep Cove, past president is Andrik Moe of Port Coquitlam, the v-p of membership is Aaron Drozdiak of New Westminster, v-p education is Rachel Mens of New West, v-p public relations is Ange Frymire of Burnaby, the treasurer is Ron Knight of Burnaby, the secretary is Nikki Scott of White Rock, and the sergeant of arms is Ron Lee of Richmond.

"The early bird not only gets the worm at our club," said Manness, a manager at Creo Inc. "They also get free donuts or muffins, warm greetings from everyone and as many chances to speak or watch as they need."

People to join Toastmasters to improve their public speaking abilities, develop confidence and network. "Public presentation abilities progress dramatically, especially for those who start off shy," Manness said.

Outspoken Toastmasters meets from 7 to 8:30 a.m., every Thursday in the 16th floor training room of the Rogers AT&T Building, 4710 Kingsway, in Metrotown. Guests must register in advance by calling Drozdiak at 604-787-5795 or visiting the Web site www.outspokentoastmasters.com.