Thursday January 3, 2012 (Vol. 38 No. 2)
V O I C E
O F
W H I T E
R O C K
A N D
S O U T H
Banner year in sports: From jockey Mario Gutierrez’s improbable run at horse-racing’s vaunted Triple Crown, to Olympians scooping more medals than ever before, 2012 was a year to remember. › see page 27
S U R R E Y
w w w. p e a c e a r c h n e w s . c o m
VPD bravery awards for Peace Arch Hospital workers who risked their lives to help victims
Medical staff lauded for role in riot Tracy Holmes Staff Reporter
Catherine Mastine remembers expecting to walk into festivities on the night she and a few colleagues headed into Vancouver after watching the Stanley Cup final at a home in False Creek. It didn’t take long for reality to hit the South Surrey resident – for Mastine to realize that what was unfolding on the city’s
downtown streets that June 15, 2011 was anything but festive. “It did get pretty frightening,” Mastine said Wednesday, recalling the chaos that erupted following the Canucks’ loss to the Boston Bruins. “Things turned quite sour. There were people running everywhere.” Mastine, who is a licensed practical nurse at Peace Arch Hospital, is among eight locals
– seven of whom are hospital employees – who are to receive the Vancouver Police Department’s highest civilian bravery award next week for their efforts to help those injured during the riots that night. Along with clinical nurse educator Jennifer McDuff, Anna Csepregi (registered nurse), Kam Dhami (patient care co-ordinator), Lisa Snider (geriatric emergency nurse), Tina › see page 4
Contributed photo
Off-duty PAH staffers on the day of the riot.
Interactive tour
Priciest homes span the spectrum Jeff Nagel Black Press
Tracy Holmes photo
The crowds showed up in force to begin the New Year with a splash (or at least watch others do so) at the annual White Rock tradition Tuesday.
Polar Bear Swim draws hundreds to White Rock
Wicked cool way to kick off the New Year Tracy Holmes Staff Reporter
John Stuart photo
George Pajari prepares for his first of four dips.
HAPPY
Plain, old swim shorts were far from the norm on White Rock beach Tuesday, as New Year’s Day revellers turned out in droves to partake in the 2013 Polar Bear Swim. Some put sparkle into their chilly experience, with glittery wigs. Others brought a Hawaiian feel, dashing into the briskness of Semiahmoo Bay decked out in colourful grass skirts. There were dippers wearing super-hero masks, many in festive hats and even an
from the management & staff of the
“orange polar bear,” a.k.a. George Pajari who made the rounds of four Lower Mainland dips – including Vancouver, Deep Cove and Port Moody – dressed head-to-toe in orange. “It was great, unbelievable,” said Ed Alp, a member of the White Rock Lions Club that hosts the annual swim. The exact number of swimmers hadn’t been tallied, but Alp is certain this year’s turnout was one of the best seen in the past decade. “It was such a beautiful day,” he said. The plunge was the club’s 43rd.
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Surrey’s top valued residential property – a $14.1 million acreage in the 17100-block of 20 Avenue – would place a mere 64th in Vancouver. And the top 10 priciest homes in the Fraser Valley don’t even rank in the top 100 within the much more expensive Vancouver/North Shore/Sea-to-Sky region. B.C. Assessment has released lists of top 100 highest assessed homes in each sub-region in the province. The South Fraser region is dominated by homes in Surrey’s Ocean Park neighbourhood, mostly ranging from $4-10 million in assessment. The North Fraser list runs from $2.4-9.8 million. In Vancouver, a Point Grey house at 4707 Belmont Ave. is the highest assessed this year at $39.3 million. Use our interactive map at www. peacearchnews.com to view the top 10 assessed properties in the four Lower Mainland sub-regions, and use the Google Streetview function to virtually wander the neighbourhoods.
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