Happy New Year all and looking forward to things getting back to a new and better normal!
The ECA (Elphinstone Community Association) January meeting will be on Wednesday the 13th at 7 p.m., by Zoom. Guest speaker Ele Molnar of Sunshine Coast Homelessness Advisory Committee will speak about the advocacy work this volunteer organization does. They have broad representation in the community and Ele will be happy to answer questions about the important topic of homelessness. For the Zoom code to the ECA meeting, please contact the association’s email at elphinstonecommunity19@gmail.com – everyone welcome!
Area E director Donna McMahon will also be on hand to give an update and answer questions. Her December newsletter (available on Everythingelphinstone.ca) is comprehensive indeed. She reports on the Zoom meetings held with locals to get their thoughts on trail improvements in order to “review our cycling and pedestrian transportation network. If there are any easy wins out there (high value, low cost) I want to make sure they are identified and prioritized.” Donna is especially interested in connectors to destinations like schools or bus routes, or options to get pedestrians off dangerous sections of road. An entertaining read, there’s loads of other relevant information.
Judging by the numbers of people I see on our local trails, many have been getting outside over this covidly quiet Christmas season. We’re lucky to have lovely areas to walk, but sometimes trails are besmirched by those irresponsibly leaving garbage behind. And why do people who go to the trouble of picking up after their dogs, then leave the “offerings” beside the paths? Please don’t! No one wishes to see those telltale plastic bags when they’re out walking. Instead, grab any nearby stick and flick the waste under a bush well off the trail. No stick? Find a bunch of leaves and do the same thing, but don’t leave a pet’s plastic-encased poop lying in our trails – please and thank you!
Who’s seen the Amazon ad featuring the Elphinstone Secondary woodworking shop? I bet a lot of us have been in that wood shop over the years. Pre-retirement when I was teaching at the school, staff advocated for state-of-the-art equipment and the shop became a popular place for evening woodworking courses. As the third richest company in the world, wouldn’t it be nice if Amazon compensated the high school, even just a bit?
Thanks to Val Pleasance (nee Watson) who contacted me about the house on the northwest corner of King and Chaster where her family lived in from 1942-46. Her older sisters had fond memories of their years on “Honeymoon Lane” as Chaster Road was then called. Her sisters remember Murray King (Chronicles Aug. 15, 2019) and his sister Iola; she sent along a photo from 1945 and got to speak to him from her home in the Okanagan. Murray had fond memories of the Watsons, telling me that they kept goats and bee hives and ran a Sunday school from their home. I also put Val in touch with current owners Hans and Charlene Penner, who had renovated the house. Built around 1930, it is one of few heritage houses of that era left in Elphinstone. If you know of others please let me know. I have a request to any readers who may have a photo of the old cannery that was on Henry Road. Please contact me at: author.ggneilson@gmail.com
