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Tuesday, October 2, 2018 | Your community newspaper since 1916

Sentences issued for possessing stolen property Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff mnielsen@pgcitizen.ca

HANDOUT PHOTO BY MARIANNE KOOPS

Leora Wildi, wearing pink in the centre, shares a special moment with her sister Sarah, left, and the Prince George Secondary School teachers who made such an impact on her life as she struggled to graduate secondary school while battling cancer a few years ago. The teachers and several others were invited to share a traditional Thanksgiving dinner at Northern Lights Winery last week as Wildi showed her appreciation for those who helped her through her cancer journey.

Cancer survivor gives back to teachers who helped her Christine HINZMANN Citizen staff chinzmann@pgcitizen.ca Although certainly not unscathed, Leora Wildi is a cancer survivor who has surpassed many serious health challenges and is now a thriving college student who just turned 23. Wildi was diagnosed with two kinds of leukemia at the age of 14 and was near death when she and her mom Lynn were flown by air ambulance to B.C. Children’s Hospital just hours after her diagnosis on Dec. 30, 2009. As a friend of the family for the last 18 years, I have only seen a few of the ups and downs and mostly from afar as Leora was treated in Vancouver while she and Lynn lived in Ronald McDonald House during the extensive two-year-orso treatment which was required to save Leora’s life. Low points like when she stopped breathing during surgery, received the maximum radiation treatments a body can endure and experienced many bouts of excruciating pain that came with the side effects of the many medications she was forced to take to combat cancer and the ailments that come with it were so very hard to watch – even from a distance. But nobody likes to dwell on those memories and there were great

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moments of triumph as well. One that stands out in my mind in particular was when I traveled to the Lower Mainland in 2013 to visit family and was able to connect with Leora and Lynn as Leora attended a G.F. Strong intensive rehabilitation program that offered an eight-week blast of physiotherapy to combat yet another side effect. Leora’s tendons were seizing up, so walking heel-toe like the rest of us lucky ducks was impossible and using her hands that had curled up into little balls that got tighter and tighter over time was also a huge challenge. Leora was forced to walk on tip toe at an awkward angle that offered almost zero stability. But I must add that tenacious young lady teetered along as best she could whenever she could. During my Vancouver visit in the summer of 2013, I was delighted when the two dynamic ladies accepted my dinner invitation to a small restaurant in the heart of Vancouver. Lynn brought Leora to the restaurant using a wheelchair, a regular sight, as uneven sidewalks would pose a challenge and a fall could be devastating to the fragile, cancer-recovering young lady. It left me stunned when we were all seated and Leora placed her hand on the

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table and it lay flat. Once I knew I could talk about it without sobbing, I quietly made mention of it. Lynn leaned over to me and told me that Leora could walk with her heels down on the ground, too. It was all thanks to the wonderful staff at G.F. Strong that made this small miracle happen. (Not to get too preachy but that’s what physio does for a body in need – we don’t have nearly enough physiotherapists to meet the demand in Prince George – that’s why Leora had to go there to begin with.) When we left the restaurant Leora proudly walked down the street unassisted and flat-footed and we all cried with joy. In this one little story, I cannot tell you the number of times this young woman just kept amazing all those who are privileged enough to be part of her world but let me just say she is an astounding, outgoing, feisty woman who wouldn’t be alive today if she didn’t will it to be so. Leora is surrounded by dedicated family, including the unwavering support (and I mean never-leave-her-side support) of mother Lynn and younger sister Sarah, who steadfastly stood by the side of her sibling through her many, many struggles. — see LEORA, page 3

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Two men caught with a trove of property stolen from homes on Norman Lake and area were sentenced Friday. David Michael O’Neill, 31, was sentenced to a further seven months and 23 days in jail for break and enter with intent to commit an offence and possessing a stolen weapon, along with concurrent terms of three months for possessing a weapon contrary to an order, 58 days for possessing stolen property under $5,000 and 30 days for resisting police. O’Neill was also sentenced to 18 months probation on the counts. Gary Edward Felix, 31, was sentenced to 18 months probation on the same counts as well as fleeing police and assaulting an officer with a weapon. Felix had remained in custody since he was arrested on Aug. 16, 2017 – a total of one year, one month and 13 days. O’Neill had spent 86 days in custody following his arrest. Over the four days that led up to their arrests, RCMP had received a number of reports of break and enters on homes on Norman Lake and other rural locations west of Prince George. A member of the Prince George RCMP’s general duty section was returning from investigating one of those break-ins when he saw a suspicious vehicle traveling on Norman Lake Road – a cube van from a rental company. When the officer tried to pull the van over, the driver refused to stop and instead headed back towards Highway 16, then east towards Prince George, then north on Telachick Road, where a spike belt was used to stop the vehicle. By then, about 10 minutes had passed. O’Neill and Felix fled on foot and ammunition was found in the cab of the van leading police to believe the suspects may be armed. Police called in a tracking dog and handler and, despite feeling the effects of bear mace in the area, RCMP found and arrested the two. Dozens of items were found in the van, including a SKS rifle, a revolver handgun, power tools and an ATV. Police followed up with a search of a Wilson Crescent home where they found dozens more items including a rifle, a shotgun, ammunition, power tools, bicycles, chainsaws and computers. And a subsequent search of a van found on the property uncovered two outboard motors, a generator, a compressor and a vacuum, among other items.

Lumber industry praises trade deal Frank PEEBLES Citizen staff fpeebles@pgcitizen.ca Lumber manufacturing is the cornerstone industry of the Prince George area. When the announcement was made that the governments of Canada, Mexico and the United States had come to mutual agreement on a new trade pact, the forest sector’s biggest local players issued a joint statement on the breakthrough. “B.C. lumber producers congratulate (Minister of Foreign Affairs) Chrystia Freeland and the Government of Canada on reaching a renewed trade agreement that preserves the dispute resolution mechanism previously contained in Chapter 19 of NAFTA,” said Susan Yurkovich, president of the B.C. Lumber Trade Council. — see ‘HAVING A ROBUST, page 3, related story page 23

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