Wednesday, December 12, 2018 | Your community newspaper since 1916
CITIZEN PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN
Christmas wishes Prince George Fire Rescue Service chief training officer Norm Price and BC Ambulance paramedic Elly Schramm pile toys at the inaugural Christmas Wish Breakfast in the atrium at Kin1 on Tuesday morning. Organizers were happy with the success of the event, as nearly 400 people brought a gift or a cash donation in exchange for a hot breakfast. All the toys gathered and money raised will be going to the St. Vincent de Paul Society, Child Development Centre, Big Brothers and Sisters and the pediatric ward at the University Hospitial of Northern B.C. Organizers hope to make this an annual event to benefit local children.
New Parents Legal Centre aims to keep Indigenous families together Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff mnielsen@pgcitizen.ca
SCREEN CAPTURE IMAGE FROM A VIDEO BY PAUL LACASSE
City worker Ryan Gallo fights to shut off a fire hydrant spraying cold water up to 10 metres in the air.
City worker praised for hydrant heroics Citizen staff A city worker is receiving accolades for shutting down an out-of-control fire hydrant. A video posted on social media shows Ryan Gallo turning a valve while working in midst of water blasting more than 10 metres into the air. Gallo would give the valve a few turns, briefly step out to gather himself and then step back in to do battle once more. After about 2 1/2 minutes, his perseverance finally paid off and the hydrant was no longer spewing water.
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The video, posted by Paul Lacasse on the Hell Yeah Prince George Facebook page, drew the attention of Coun. Kyle Sampson, who made note of Gallo’s actions during Monday night’s city council meeting. “He was in there, in the freezing cold, soaking himself just getting that thing shut,” Sampson said. “It was like three minutes... really proud of working with the team here that has such great city employees.” Gallo’s heroics occurred on Monday morning on Great Street near Terminal Avenue in the BCR Industrial after a truck either clipped or backed into the hydrant.
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B.C’s provider of legal aid has opened a special office in Prince George to lower the prevalence of Indigenous children going into government care. Called the Parents Legal Centre, it’s located at 302-1488 Fourth Ave. in the Scotiabank building and is operated by the Legal Services Society. The office works to increase the chances of families staying together, whenever appropriate, by providing services early on, preferably when a government social worker first contacts a parent about concerns for a child’s safety. LSS lawyer Katrina Harry, who opened the first PLC in Vancouver in 2015, said a team made up of a legal assistant, advocate and a lawyer works with the family. “They will not only support people with their legal matters, but help them tackle some of the issues that often result in the child safety concerns in the first place,” she said. Services include a lawyer’s advice and representation at court, and at mediations and other collaborative meetings, and an advocate’s support throughout the process, including information, connecting parents to other services such as counselling, addictions treatment or housing, and advocating on their behalf. “The root of many such cases is poverty – not neglect,” Harry said. “For example, sometimes a family just needs a decent roof over their head, but because good low-cost housing is hard to find, parents may lose their children. If we can solve the housing issue for a client, then chil-
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dren can be at home.” In addition to Prince George, LSS has opened PLCs in Smithers, Campbell River and Duncan. PLCs will also be opened in Kamloops, Williams Lake and Victoria in 2019 and the LSS regional office in Terrace will also offer PLC services. The PLC model was first tested in Vancouver, and was followed by a location in Surrey. “Evaluations of the PLC in Vancouver showed a much more positive experience for clients going through this difficult and highly stressful legal situation,” said Harry. “As a result, we got funding from the Ministry of Attorney General to expand across the province.” While the PLCs will focus on Indigenous families, the services are available to anyone who qualifies for legal aid. “By focussing on the over-representation of Indigenous people in the justice system, LSS is taking a step towards reconciliation,” Harry said. Indigenous people represent only six per cent of B.C.’s population, but 60 per cent of Indigenous children in the province have been removed from their homes and placed in government care. Of LSS’s legal aid clients whose children have been removed or are at risk of being removed, 40 per cent of them self-identify as Indigenous. In Prince George, 103 of the 126 children in care, or 82 per cent, were Indigenous, according to Ministry of Children and Family Development data for 2016/17. The PLC in Prince George can be reached by calling 250-277-0100 or 1-866-577-2525 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday. For more about eligibility, go to lss. bc.ca/legal_aid/childProtection.php.
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