The sa国际传媒 SPCA鈥檚 ninth annual Wildlife-In-Focus photography contest is open, with a goal is to capture the best of British Columbia鈥檚 wildlife through the lens.
All amateur photographers at least 14 years of age are invited to enter the competition, which runs until Sept. 15.
鈥淔rom bear cubs locked in a warm embrace to mother songbirds feeding their young, the images are stunning and make it hard for our judges to choose the winning photos,鈥� said Sara Dubois, chief scientific officer. 鈥淚n addition to the judged photos, we are excited to continue offering the wildly popular People鈥檚 Choice Award.鈥�
Prizes are awarded for the top three photos in each of two categories: Wild Settings and Backyard Habitats.
Photos have been featured in the sa国际传媒 SPCA鈥檚 Animal Sense and Bark! magazines, educational materials, local newspapers, websites and social media. This year, the top 52 photos with the most votes will be featured on a deck of playing cards.
By donating to vote, those who cast a ballot for their favourite images will also help animals in need.
Proceeds support the sa国际传媒 SPCA鈥檚 Wild Animal Rehabilitation Centre (known as Wild ARC) on Vancouver Island, where more than 3,000 orphaned and injured wild animals are cared for each year.
All photos of wildlife entered must be taken in sa国际传媒 and submitted digitally. Wildlife includes free-living birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, fish and insects, but not exotic, feral or domestic animals, or wildlife in zoos or rehabilitation facilities.
For more information, and to view past winners鈥� images, go to spca.bc.ca/wildlife-in-focus or email [email protected].
Photographers can also find inspiration online, with the 24/7 live-streaming Wild ARC Critter Cam at spca.bc.ca/crittercam.
Youth at risk benefit from fundraiser
Local Home Depot stores help provide transitional housing for at-risk youth by raising almost $14,000 for the Threshold Housing Society.
The money was raised through the store鈥檚 Orange Door Project Campaign.
Between June 1 and July 2, customers were asked to help by donating $2 in exchange for paper orange doors. All 182 Home Depot stores in sa国际传媒 took part and raised a record total of nearly $1.3 million for 121听youth shelters, drop-in centres and aid organizations across sa国际传媒.
鈥淕iving back is an important part of our core values,鈥� said Jeff Kinnaird, chairman of the board of directors of the Home Depot sa国际传媒 Foundation. 鈥淲e鈥檙e proud that 100 per cent of donations will stay in the community to help prevent and end youth homelessness.鈥�
Threshold Housing Society will use the donations to provide transitional housing for at-risk youth, as well as providing a comprehensive life-skills program. It hopes to build the capacity of youth to become independent and self-reliant.
鈥淭hreshold is especially grateful to the Home Depot sa国际传媒 Foundation for the corporate vision they espouse, that is: 鈥楤y helping our vulnerable youth today, our communities will be stronger tomorrow,鈥欌�� said Mark Muldoon, executive director of Threshold Housing Society.
The Orange Door Project campaign was established by the Home Depot sa国际传媒 Foundation to help prevent and end youth homelessness in sa国际传媒. The company covers the campaign鈥檚 administrative costs, and matches the donations raised at its top 10 stores.
For more information, go to orangedoorproject.ca or thresholdhousing.ca.
Growing Chefs teach about healthy food
Children, families and the community will learn more about healthy food and healthy food in the upcoming school year thanks to a $10,000 donation by Telus to the Growing Chefs Society.
The society teaches young people about healthy food and healthy food systems. In the last school year, it delivered Classroom Gardening and Cooking programs to five classrooms in Victoria.
Other supporters of its mission include the Island Chefs Collaborative and the Horner Foundation via the Victoria Foundation.
For more information, go to growingchefs.ca.
Stelly鈥檚 graduate receives听Terry Fox Award
Jordyn Heal, a recent graduate of Stelly鈥檚 Secondary School, has been chosen to receive the Terry Fox Humanitarian Award.
The award, valued at up to $28,000, is granted to students who have demonstrated courage and determination through their excellence in academics, athletics and civic life.
Heal is one of only 20 students chosen from almost 660 applicants from across sa国际传媒.
Established in 1982, the Terry Fox Humanitarian Award was created to honour and advance the humanitarian legacy of Terry Fox. The scholarship鈥檚 aim is to encourage young Canadians to seek the high ideals that Terry Fox aspired to, through the pursuit of higher education.
Heal will pursue an interdisciplinary bachelor of arts and science in biology and international development at McGill University in Montreal. She aspires to work with the Red Cross or United Nations in the field of humanitarian medicine.
The Terry Fox Humanitarian Award is open to any Canadian student pursuing their first undergraduate degree. The application deadline is Feb. 1 of each year. For more information, or to obtain application material, go to terryfoxawards.ca.
Drawing and nature go听together
Children can learn more about how they can help look after the environment, while getting a chance to draw what they see at Drawing Habitats, a workshop presented by Swan Lake Nature Sanctuary and Open Space, on Aug. 10.
Educators from both Open Space and Swan Lake will facilitate the workshop, which is suitable for children between eight and 12 years old.
The afternoon starts with participants exploring the nature sanctuary鈥檚 wetlands from different vantage points. They will learn about the various Vancouver Island ecologies and how they fit in both natural and urban systems.
After the outing, participants will be taken to Open Space where they will meet artists Jim Holyoak and Matt Shane. Participants will be able to talk to the artists about shared experiences of nature and about drawing the land and the environment they experience.
The cost for the program is by donation, but pre-registration is required. It runs noon to 4 p.m. on Aug. 10. For more information, go to openspace.ca. To register, email [email protected].
Island man hits the road for multiple sclerosis
A Vancouver Island man plans to ride 10,000 kilometres across sa国际传媒 to raise awareness about the prevalence of multiple sclerosis.
Brian Chapman has pledged to ride across sa国际传媒 on an electric bicycle in 2018 to raise awareness about the prevalence of the disease, which affects 100,000 Canadians.
鈥淓very 100 metres I pass represents a person with MS,鈥� said Chapman, whose two aunts and wife have been diagnosed with the disease. He has dubbed his website everyhundredmetres.ca for that reason.
Growing up, he remembers knowing his two aunts had multiple sclerosis, but not really knowing what it meant. He learned a great deal more when his wife was diagnosed 12 years ago with relapsing remitting MS.
The incurable disease affects everyone a little differently. Chapman鈥檚 wife, for example, works full-time, chases her five-year-old active daughter around, and spends weekends pushing her limits as much as possible.
鈥淚 have to remind myself that literally everything she does is harder for her than most people,鈥� said Chapman. 鈥淚f we want to go for a hike or go shopping, she struggles. A lot of days I have to remind her to slow down.鈥�
While his wife鈥檚 challenges are relatively hidden, others live with symptoms including partial paralysis, blindness or dementia. Symptoms might get progressively worse, or could disappear for years at a time. For some, the disease鈥檚 unpredictability is the biggest challenge to overcome.
sa国际传媒 has the highest rate of multiple sclerosis in the world. Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 40.
You can follow Chapman鈥檚 journey on his website at everyhundredmetres.com, and join him and hundreds of others at the MS Bike Cowichan Valley ride on Aug. 19 and 20.
For more information and to sign up, visit msbike.ca.
Give children a Fair Start for school year
Children from families in need will go to school better prepared as the Mustard Seed Street Church distributes its Fair Start for Kids kits this week.
Families who know poverty also know hunger and know what it means to struggle to put a child through school. Parents and educators believe that a quality education, numeracy and literacy are their most likely tools for escaping a cycle of dependency.
The Fair Start for Kids, kits filled with essential school supplies make that possible. Since 1998, it has provided hundreds of children, from kindergarten to Grade 12, with the tools they need to succeed.
You can help support by sponsoring a school supplies kit for $30, $45 or $90 鈥� or a donation of new school supplies, clothing and shoes. The program is a partnership with Monk Office.
The kits, almost 770 of them, will be handed out to parents and students at the Mustard Seed Street Church, 625 Queens Ave. For more information, or to donate, go to mustardseed.ca/ fair-start-for-kids.
Victoria Mela celebrates Indian culture
Join the India sa国际传媒 Cultural Association as it hosts Victoria India Mela, a cultural festival that takes place Aug. 11 to 13 in Centennial Square.
A mela (a Sanskrit word that means meet) is a gathering or a fair that incorporates arts, culture, music, food, sports and other celebratory elements. It is a way of life in India 鈥� an opportunity to share the richness of the Indian culture, create community partnerships and demonstrate a healthy way of life.
This is the eighth year of the event, the highlight of the year for the ICCA, which was founded in the early 1960s. Many in the community association are descendants of some of the first people who immigrated to sa国际传媒 from India in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The three-day event includes dance performances, music, a children鈥檚 corner and cultural exhibits.
The event is free to attend. It听runs noon to 7 p.m. Aug. 11, 11听a.m. to 8 p.m. Aug. 12 and 11听a.m. to 7 p.m. Aug. 13 in Centennial Square.
For more information, go to iccavictoria.com.
