SINCE 1977
0 COPIES
8 PAGES, 80,00
TV Host
Real Estate On with the Victoria show
HY AMY McGEAC
trend n!
Read her new colum Tips and trends for . your home design THIS WEEKEND’S
PAGE
6
Oak7 Bay Beach Hotel Pullhosts Out event for Downton Abbey on Page 9 Page A3 PAGE
2015 FRIDAY JAN. 2,
ONLINE ALL THE
TIME
revweekly.com
L H JVUKV `V\ T\Z[ )LMVYL `V\ W\YJOHZ VM [OPZ WYVQLJ[ -09:; ZLL [OL X\HSP[` de:
Features inclu
Z UP[L JV\U[LY[VW )LH\[PM\S NYH HUJLZ LZZ Z[LLS HWWSP 8\HSP[` Z[HPUS YTV\U[ ZPURZ +V\ISL \UKL LPSPUNZ [VW Å VVY ]H\S[LK J M[ M[ JLPSPUNZ [PVZ Y KLJRZ HUK WH L_[LYPV 3HYNL PSL Å VVYPUN SHTPUH[L HUK [ /PNO X\HSP[` HJJLU[ SPNO[PUN PVY KLZPNU ^P[O *\Z[VT PU[LY JVUKV HNL ^P[O LHJO L WHJR -\SS HWWSPHUJ
NEWS: Mayor sees challenges ahead in 2015 /A3 ARTS: Author and artist a perfect fit for mystery /A5 SPORTS: New Year’s Classic returns to Oak Bay /A6
OAK BAYNEWS A TERRACE
LAMEEN
LD Now 60% SO$289,900 ,900 to
Priced from $199
KLU ILKYVVT WS\Z ILKYVVT [V WWSPHUJL WRN .:; PUJS\KLK M\SS H
ZXM[ P[Z \W [V :WHJPV\Z \U YLK WHYRPUN :LJ\YL JV]L YHNL SVJRLYZ :LWHYH[L Z[V
)PRL Z[VYHNL ^HYYHU[` `Y OVTL K .:; PUJS\KL
2655 Sooke
250-508-1551
OPEN HOUSE
Friday, Saturday
& Sunday 1-3
Setting A New
ay 2-4 Saturday & Sund n Rd.
Road - Just
past Jackli
6785565
Open House
osun Re/Max Cam
s.com
ondo www.nicebigc
twood Bay
Standard - Bren
The Cedars @
PRICING FROM
0 $370,00 N ET GST
I NCLU DI NG
Square
Road 7182 West Saanich (located in the Heart Village) of Brentwood Bay 2 Bedrooms, 2 Full Baths 947-1601 Sq.Ft. Available Now! Exceptional Quality S/S Appliances Quartz Countertops Secure U/G Parking Award Winning Builders Designs Kimberly Williams
Realty Coast Capital OPERATED OWNED AND
OL 0XQ 0XUUD\ /DZVRQ $O
UR 6XVDQ (QJOLVK
250-477-5353
6775758
Roundabout
INDEPENDENTLY
Friday, January 2, 2015
www.oakbaynews.com
Girl Guides mark a century in Oak Bay Christine van Reeuwyk
Did you know?
News staff
Fun that breeds gut-busting laughter. A sisterhood building lifelong memories. These are foundations of the Girl Guides as much as their Guiding Law: to be honest and trustworthy; use my resources wisely; respect myself and others; recognize and use my talents and abilities; protect our common environment; live with courage and strength; and share in the sisterhood of Guiding. This year marks a century of sisterhood with the 1st Victoria Guides, one of the units that meet at Bowker Hall in Oak Bay. “It’s fun. There are a lot of different activities we do,” said current member Katrina McLaughlin. Among the 11-yearold’s favourite activities is the longtime Guide standard: camping. “We get to do activities there we can’t do at the hall. Also I just like sleeping in tents and cabins. You can actually cook your own food over the fire which is really nice,” Katrina said. Camps such as Kingswood on the Saanich Peninsula have “lots of space to run around” during annual functions. They hold memories, like waking up at the bottom of a hill after sleeping too near the door of her tent, or waking sporting a felt-pen moustache. Among its many outings, the programs provide epic sleepovers at the observatory, aquariums and overnights at Science World. The memories are theirs as well, like creating a jello tree for their girls to ‘find’ in the morning. “You’ll bump into those kids 10 years later and they’re still talking about it,” Finnigan says. Katrina interjects a tale of the recent vote to go outdoor skating at the Empress as opposed to an
n Well-known former Girl Guides include: Dr. Roberta Bondar (Canada’s first female astronaut who juggled Girl Guide cookies in space), Margaret Atwood, Sheila Copps, Elisha Cuthbert, Celine Dion, Feist, Hedy Fry, former governor general Michaëlle Jean, Karen Kain, Sarah McLaughlin, Dini Petty, Dina Pugliese and Mary Walsh.
Christine van Reeuwyk/News Staff
Katrina McLaughlin, 11, third-year guide and member now of the 1st Victoria, is flanked by former leaders Sheilagh Finnigan, right, and Sharon Doty, who now serve as commissioner and deputy commissioner respectively, and her leaders at 1st Victoria Anna Dzioba and Heather Shiedel. All admire Doty’s badge-laden guide blanket. outing to the pool. “We can actually choose what we want to do,” she says. All activities are “choice based,” agrees current 1st Victoria leader Anna Dzioba. “If you’re comfortable you can join in. They don’t have to be the one presenting a pet badge, they can watch and participate next time.” That growth, the build up of a girl’s esteem and character, is a gift for the leaders. “Watching girls that start off really shy and don’t have a voice and seeing them blossom is amazing,” said Doty. “It builds self esteem. It’s a really empowering thing,” Finnigan added. They strive to be as inclusive as possible, points out current co-leader Heather Shiedel. “If
For Everything You and Your Family Need to Live Well • FREE local prescription delivery • Full Service Cosmetics • Blister packing service • Transit passes • Postal outlet • And MUCH MORE!
we have a shy girl, girls with disabilities, they’re all included and we all get along,” she says. The 1st Victoria Guides is the first to mark a century in the Victoria District but many started as the First World War broke out in 1914. By 1915 there were five companies in Victoria. “It started and it just ‘bam’ took over,” said Doty. “They learned a lot of life skills.” Oak Bay owns the Bowker Halls that house the guides and scouts adjacent to Fireman’s Park, but Kiwanis purpose-built them in the 1950s. The program over the past century has not only survived, but thrived. “There are over 10 million members in 147 countries,” says Finnigan. “You can start when you’re five,
Quit smoking!
r a e Y w e N ons...
Reso l ut i
Oak Bay PHARMASAVE 2200 Oak Bay Avenue oakbaypharmasave.com (250) 598-3380 PHARMASAVE ®
Mon - Fri: 8:30am - 8pm.
Sat: 9am - 6pm. Sun: 11am - 5pm
®
Get organized!
Have ! more fun
and we have women in our Trefoil Guild who are 94,” adds Doty. Guilds support the Guides by offering their skills in lesson form, or fundraising for activities in a lifelong sisterhood that spans generations. When 1st Victoria used to visit Aberdeen, an Island Health residential care facility on Hillside Avenue, they shared stories with residents there who were guides as young girls, both in Canada and England. Many memories were stirred by the uniforms, the leaders say. It’s something that happens a lot. “A lot of people keep their uniforms,” said Doty. “It marks a passage of time that’s bigger than yourself, broader than yourself,” said Katrina’s mom Christine, who
Lose 10 lbs!
was also a guide as a child. As part of her uniform, Katrina sports a hat covered in “traders”, small crafty works the embody memories of camps or outings. Tiny drinks, a small roll of toilet paper, a teeny plate of brownies all affixed with safety pins. Doty brought her badge blanket crowded with badges and crests from overseas trips to provincial campouts to local sleepovers. The two commissioners remember taking the 1st Victoria on a trip where every girl got a hat, and within 15 minutes were back in the tents madly pinning their “traders” on. “Trading sessions were epic,” Doty says. It all leads back to the empowerment of girls. All of the adult women say they’ve seen girls come out of bullying situations, emerging with a group of close friends. While the songs and uniforms of Guides may change, that foundation of sisterhood and friendship doesn’t falter. “[Guiding] changes with the times, but it retains its roots,” Doty said. “The core values and rules,” Finnigan added. “If you follow the basic rules, you’ll be a confident, self-assured, nice human being.” cvanreeuwyk@oakbaynews.com
Hap p y ! r EATier! N e w Y ea Health
SAVE Money!
Change my life! Learn g somethin ! W E N
our nd see t a e m o C ou cists ab Pharma your off Reade kicking healthy mor s! ar e New Y s! book n resolutio
EARN POINT S & SAVE !
EARN POIN TS & SAVE! See stor e for details .