TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 8, 2015
KOOTENAY SAVINGS
KIMBERLEY DYNAMITERS
OUTDOOR MOVIE NIGHT
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THE BULLETIN PROUDLY SERVING KIMBERLEY AND AREA SINCE 1932 | Vol. 83, Issue 171 | www.dailybulletin.ca
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Expect bears With poor berry crop, bears moving closer to town FOR THE BULLETIN
Two juvenile grizzly bears are currently being monitored by conservation officers in an area off Mission Road, at the north end of the City of Cranbrook. The two grizzlies have been seen regularly by residents over the past few days, but are not causing any trouble, according to the Conservation Officer Service. Earlier this week, a mother bear and three cubs were seen in the Kennedy Road area,
while a lone black bear had been spotted in the same area feeding on choke cherry bushes before moving closer to the popular Rails to Trails pathway nearby. There are numerous reports of bear sightings in and around Kimberley. The Conservation Officer Service is expecting to see a growing number of bears and perhaps an increase in bear issues over the next month, as bears will be foraging for food for the winter. With the drought this summer, the berry crop is extremely poor and bears are moving closer to communities where food may be more easily accessible.
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City hires new Corporate Officer BULLETIN STAFF
A new Corporate Officer began work at Kimberley City Hall today. Maryke McGinn has worked in law for the last 14 years and has been legal counsel for the City of Calgary for the last seven years. Prior to that, Maryke worked for a development company and in private practice with a national law firm. Maryke and her husband Brendan grew up in Banff and have twin daughters. They have spent a lot of time in the Kootenays and are very excited about moving to Kimberley. “I am excited to add someone of Maryke’s caliber to our management team at City Hall,” said Chief Administrative Officer Scott Som-
PHOTO SUBMITTED
The Kimberley Seahorse Swim Club sent five swimmers to provincials in Victoria BC this August. The swimmers were Trent Walkley, Jackson Sorensen, Brooklyn Burki, and siblings Morgan and Kyle Dobi. Brooklyn Burki (centre) did an amazing job and came in third overall in the province. She medaled in the following events: Silver in 50 breast, Bronze in 50 Fly, Bronze in 100 IM and 4th in 100Free. Jackson Sorenson, second from right, also medaled. He got bronze in his breast stroke and placed 4th in his IM which was amazing because he went into his IM in 17th place. Congratulations to the team.
Refugee crisis a global responsibility, Friends of Burma says; Locals can help B A R RY CO U LT E R
Maryke McGinn merville. “Her experience in municipal law with the City of Calgary and her knowledge gained working for a development company will be an asset to the City of Kimberley.” Ms. McGinn can be reached at 427-9659 or at mmcginn@kimberley.ca.
The image of a drowned Syrian toddler, Alan Kurdi, washed up on a Turkish beach last week, has become a defining image of a refugee crisis widely regarded as the worst since the Second World War. Hundreds of thousands of people are fleeing wars in the Middle East and economic strife in Africa, for the most part trying to reach the countries of the European Union. But while Europe has been roundly criticized for the reaction to the situation, there is growing awareness that the crisis is a worldwide responsibility, and people even at the local level can help out. Shauna Jimenez is with East Kootenay Friends of Burma, an
organization that has been sponsoring and helping settle refugees in the area for 30 years. She calls the sudden attention on the crisis a reality check and a call to action. “People are wondering,” Jimenez said. “They saw the pictures of little Alan and are asking ‘what can we do?’” “One answer is, sponsor a refugee.” The refugee individual or family to be sponsored doesn’t necessarily have to be Syrian, Jimenez added. “There are 15 million bona fide refugees in the world [as designated by the United Nations High Commission on Refugees]. One million of these are Syrian — the number is growing every day.”
Jimenez says that “Fortress Europe” has been the term in the refugee community for a while now, describing that continents general reaction to refugees and migrants. But helping refugees is a global responsibility, she says. “The spotlight is on the Syrians, but it’s also brought attention to an issue that’s been huge in my heart for 30 years.” The East Kootenay Friends or Burma has been successfully welcoming people fleeing strife and oppression in other lands. Families and individuals from El Salvador, Cambodia, Burma, Eritrea and other countries now call the Cranbrook-Kimberley area home, and work and
raise their families here. This local success has been the result of the Friends of Burma’s own efforts and those of local Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAHs). However, in recent years, the federal ministry Citizen and Immigration Canada have adopted new policies and regulations that make it extremely difficult for groups at the local level to continue with this successful integration of refugees. “Canada is a compassionate country, but in recent years the federal government has really changed the rules about who and how many we can sponsor,” Jimenez said.
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