Faith Villareal will soon see her artwork adorning one of the city’s collection trucks.
Grade 5 students in New Westminster were recently invited to participate in an environmental poster contest that showed the importance of conserving the region’s water and illustrated ways to conserve it.
“This year’s theme was Watch Your Flow H20,” said Mayor Jonathan Cote. “The contest provided an opportunity for students to participate in environmental learning opportunities that coincided with Earth Day on April 22.”
Now in its ninth year, the contest garnered 222 entries from students at seven elementary schools in New West. Villareal took first place, with Matiss Osborne in second and Mercel Bunuan in third.
“The students here this evening should be very proud of the work they did to get here,” Cote said. “The quality of the entries speaks to the leadership of our youth on environmental issues.”
Helping Monarch Place
Coun. Lorrie Williams lucked out at the Lower Mainland Local Government Association in Whistler, but Monarch Place ended up being the real winner.
While attending last month’s conference, Williams’ name was drawn as the recipient of a $1,500 donation from Fortis B.C. to go a charity of her choice. Williams asked that her money go to Monarch Place, a transition house in New Westminster that helps women and children fleeing domestic violence.
Calling Douglas College retirees
The Douglas College Retirees Association is on the hunt for former employees who may want to attend an upcoming picnic.
The association is organizing a picnic for Tuesday, July 5 from noon to 2 p.m. at the lower Hume Park picnic shelter. Former employees are asked to bring a picnic lunch, with organizers bringing tea and coffee and door prizes to raffle off.
RSVP to Diana Wegner at [email protected].
Hyack heads to Portland
Shane Ward took a ride through Portland in a mini float as part of her duties as Hyack Princess 2016.
During Portland’s Grand Floral Parade on June 11, Ward rode in New Westminster’s mini float entry, joining three other American community ambassadors riding in mini floats in the parade. The event is part of the Portland Rose Festival.
"Spectators were very gracious and welcoming," she said after her ride in the parade route.
Alan Wardle, president of the Hyack Festival Association, said several volunteers built and decorated the mini float. The city’s big float didn’t qualify for the parade because of the cost of retrofitting it to meet the requirements of ensuring that all visible materials adorning the float being organic or floral.
“The cost to retrofit the float would have exceeded $25,000, so we slipped into the parade with a golf cart chassis and a crew that went to Portland a week early to build and decorate a mini float. There were 10 communities that entered in this category. Four were in a theme of floral covered dresses that our ambassadors perched into a small opening at the top of the dress to appear that she was ‘floating’ down the parade route,” Wardle said “This is the first time in decades New Westminster Hyack Festival has been in the Portland Grand Floral parade with Fox TV coverage.”
