Halloween is in the air!

Everybody enjoys the Halloween holiday whether they are young children looking forward to dressing up as their favourite characters and heading out trick or treating, or as adults getting ready for the big night of festivities. On Gabriola being a smaller community have an amazing Halloween line up for kids of all ages…

FIREWORKS
You may have seen the Gabriola Fire Departments rubber boots on display at various businesses as they collect monies to put on the fireworks display on October 31st 7:30 pm at Twin Beaches. Reminiscing on some of my favourite childhood memories on the island this has to be one of the most spectacular evenings, who can resist – goodies, hot chocolate, fireworks & hot dogs…


Gabriola’s SLEEPY HOLLOW
Halloween night could not be complete without a slow drive down the North Road area referred to islanders as the “tunnel” that comes lit up by the amazing display of carved pumpkins. With the homes on Gabriola being further apart, it’s a great way to display your pumpkin by dropping it off in the tunnel – the spectacular display usually is lit up for a couple of evenings post Halloween.


Trick or Treating
Well, the kids tend to have to put in a little extra effort in trick or treating on the island, with the long driveways and the homes having some distance between them, that said there are some popular areas of the island that kids & parents tend to find a little easier; the Strand, Malaspina Galleries, the Village core, are among some of the popular ghouling areas.



For the ADULTS
The Skol & Silva Bay both have events planned for the Halloween weekend. In addition if you haven’t taken in one of the radio after dark Halloween shows, they are not to be missed and usually tend to sell out quickly!



RADIO AFTER DARK
The Radio After Dark Troupe recreate the classic radio shows of the 1930s and 1940s, capturing the essence of those timeless gems with live sound effects, period costumes, passionate performances and the occasional hilarious blooper

Wednesday & Thursday, October 26 & 27 – Silva Bay Restaurant & Pub, Gabriola 7:30pm
Tix $15- , Gabriola tix available at Artworks,

Radio after Dark's Halloween Show catapults the audience back in time to the golden age of radio, bringing those gripping tales of suspense to bone chilling life. Don't miss this amazing experience!

Happy Haunting!

The Gabriola Ambulance Society…

Being on the Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department, and a member of the First Responder team for several years, I have had the opportunity to see the valuable services provided by the Gabriola Ambulance Society.

It’s comforting to know that when you are in a situation that causes you to place a “911” call that your membership covers benefits such as equipment loans, reimbursement for ambulance user fees & some home assistance, as it’s one less thing to think about.

The annual fee of $35.00 covers up to a family of five for a calendar year, and is available to all permanent resident of Gabriola Island & Mudge as well as season residents who are property owners of this area.

In addition to the three main benefits, the Society also provides a $2,000 scholarship annually to a School District 68 student entering into the medical field.. As well it helps support; local doctors, emergency services and hospitals by donating funds and equipment and provides a 50% subsidy for registration for first aid training offered by the Recreation Commission on Gabriola.

If you haven’t become a member, but are interested, the application form can be found online at: http://www.gabriolaambulancesociety.org/docs/AmbulanceSocietyMembershipForm.pdf . The membership fee must have been paid a minimum of two weeks prior to the use of any service for which a subsequent reimbursement is requested .

We are fortunate on the Island to have such an extremely valuable Society!

Gabriola - Events in May

As we approach May we have some exciting events happening around Gabriola, here are a few things that we thought are worth mentioning:

On Friday, April 30th the Surf pub, will re-open for the summer season with a party including giveaways, prizes free beer tickets, whiskey and Sea Cider tasting.

On Saturday, May 1st between 1-3, make your way down to the Folklife Village so you can throw your money in a hand painted trash can in the “SHAKE YOUR CAN” event, all proceeds go to the local non profit groups that created the cans. Randi, Jennifer and myself worked on the Gabriola Arts Council, Gabriola Volunteer Fire Dept, and Hot Lunch Program trash cans, so if you have any change those groups would love it (and so would we).

Suzy’s will become Robert’s place, the Grand Opening will take place on Saturday May 8th.

Celebrate Mother’s Day with us at the Surf Lodge on Sunday, May 9th. Brunch served from 10:30-1, followed by a live AUCTION of local ART and other fabulous items. Bid on a hand painted TRASH CAN, all benefiting local non profit groups. Auction starts at 1pm and will be hosted by Eric Boulton.

In the next month, we’ll see some of the businesses start to open at the Madrona Marketplace, it’s always great to explore and support new ventures.

We hope you get a chance to enjoy the outdoors and the community in the next month, check out the EVENTS calendar for more detials!

Gabriola's Sleepy Hollow

The Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department with the support of the Community held it's annual fireworks display last night at Twin Beaches, it was amazing - the weather couldn't have been nicer & the bon fire & hot cocoa kept the viewers warm.

From there it was over the haunted house, hosted by Deborah & Jim, there amazing halloween display this year, surrounded the suspicious untimely death of Sir Edgar Allen Poe. Year after year, this haunted house is more and more amazing, thanks to the tireless efforts of so many volunteers - you guys are amazing!

For the next few evenings, the pumpkins that were around the island, are dropped off on North Road, in an area that islanders refer to as the tunnels. Come dusk, they are lit up! Beware that cars travel much slower on North Road during these evenings, as they go through the tunnel stopping at nearly all of the carved pumpkins. This years display is exceptional - if you haven't taken a walk or drive down the tunnel at dusk - it's a must do! Have a spook-tacular evening...

Gabriola's Green Parade

Gabriola Islander Day was a huge success again this year, thanks to the efforts of the many volunteers! One of the most significant evolutions of the Fall Fair was the change to a “Green” parade, as thought up by one of the events committee members.

The idea behind the green parade was to park all the vehicles that would normally be traveling in the parade, turn the engines off, and instead have the on-lookers do the walking. This year the route went from the Village to the Gabriola Commons where much of the events took place. The Fire Department was at the start, so we had the opportunity to enjoy the drumming that was happening at the Village, and the amazing costumes that the stilt walkers wore, to lead the parade…

Even in it’s first year, the Green Parade was a hit, instead of the Fire Trucks driving down the road with sirens and lights, (which is my favorite part) we had the opportunity to show the public some of the equipment we carry on the truck, give tours of the truck and hand out public safety brochures…

In the afternoon the “green” parade shifted to a Fashion show, made up of local islanders on the runway, modeling an array of new fashions produced by the islands artisans, and gorgeous recycled outfits from GIRO (Gabriola Islands Recycling Organization) that looked like they were straight from the pages of the latest fashion magazines!

I’m looking forward to seeing what the many volunteers come up with next year in carrying the theme forward!

Firefighters Community BBQ a Huge Success!

Thanks to all the people who came out to support the annual firefighters community BBQ. The Kerplunks were a huge attraction for both kids & parents, their stage set against the shores of Gabriola was spectacular.

Our face painters did an amazing job, there were beautiful roses, butterflies, dragons & Sparky the fire dog - everywhere one looked. Our balloon entertainer, had a stream of kids following his every step!

On the grill Tim & team were cooking up hamburgers & hotdogs as dinner approached. We have to send out both HUGE thanks to Surf Lodge for not only helping facsilitate the whole event, but also having all the food donated through North Douglas - which was amazing.

Many of the islands local businesses got together to donate prizes for the silent auction table, and they were bid up & up, some by family members bidding against their significant others!

The dunk tank was a hit! After being nervous all day, I was so happy when my friend (who kept raising the dunk tank anti) showed up with a very overgenerous donation to by me out of the dunk tank, thanks Kazlowski family , I was so excited I must have told everyone there! Wow, am I blessed with good friends! Then when everyone knew, I watched Caroline a fellow firefighter take her spot on the seat, she was such a leading example, that I followed her lead… I had my husband who was nearly first in line, but I was thankful that his aim wasn’t as good as it normally is on the ball field, so I got dunked but by the kids mostly, and hey after the 5th dunking I was wet anyway for the 6th,7th, 8th & so on…

Thanks to the exceptional photography of Matt Simms, GVFD Firefighter, who took the photo I've posted today of me in the dunk tank (post dunking) & all the photos of the days events which can be viewed online through Budda Belly.

The Surf Lodge staff was exceptional… It was definitely the place to be on Sunday - thanks to all those who came out, who helped out, who passed on the word, who donated - this was a great kick off fundraiser for the community Halloween Fireworks put on by the Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department!

Gabriola Firefighters Fireworks Fundraiser

Bring yourself, your friends, company, visitors, family & appetite to the Surf Lodge this Sunday, 20 July 2008 where the Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department will hold their annual community BBQ.

Your local Fire Fighters will be serving up hamburgers, hot dogs & soft drinks, on the Surf’s new patio from 4:00 - 8:00 pm. The event features live entertainment of the Kerplunks, there will be face painting for the kids, and a Silent Auction.. There will also be the opportunity to dunk your favourite fire fighter or local island character in the dunk tank. (I’ve agreed that if the bounty is big enough even I’ll climb in the dunk tank - but it’s got to be a nice donation to make me climb in and get wet!)

Tickets for Hamburgers are $10.00 & $3.00 for kids Hot Dogs, with all net proceeds going to the Fire Fighters Fireworks Fund.

The Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department stages the Halloween fireworks display at Twin Beaches Park each year which is an evening for the community.

An Amazing Community...

I’ve always known that Gabriola’s community is amazing, having had the opportunity to be part of it for the past 29 years. Well this week, has really made me aware of just how important it is to be part of a community, especially one that is like an extended family.

Earlier this week my brother in law was involved in a single vehicle accident. The emergency crew on the island were first rate, starting from the Fire Department that arrived on scene only minutes after the accident, and were able to remove him from his vehicle. Many of the firefighters were friends, and it meant so much to our family to have them on scene, as hard as it was, helping out. The paramedics were there shortly after and did an amazing job getting him packaged up & ready for transport. I also have to thank Dr. Bossman, who often comes out on calls in the best interest of the patients, Gabriola is fortunate to have such caring Doctors.

Thanks to the great care he got early on in his accident, he is recovering well - on Friday he was moved out of the ICU. So we are feeling so fortunate!

The overwhelming support we have received from friends, co-workers, clients & fellow islanders, has been such a comfort. (At times, we've been hiding behind the sun glasses, yet it was nice to see so many frienly faces, even when we couldn't talk about it, it just made it easier to see everyone...) My sister extends her thanks to everyone who has sent wishes, food, offers of help, play dates, and so much more… We are truly amazed, and feel so fortunate for living on Gabriola and for the amazing community that everyone on the island is a part of.

Thank you Gabriola… & to Guy we're sending our love & best wishes!

Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department Open House

This week is “emergency preparedness” week, so today at the Firehall we had an open house & put on a fire extinguisher course. For those who haven’t had an opportunity to use a fire extinguisher, it’s better to know how they work so that in the event of an emergency you are better prepared.

Firstly, it’s important to know that there are different types of fire extinguishers for different fuel loads. Most of them will operate in a similar manner, but it’s good to read the instructions so you are familiar with the type you have.

If you have a kitchen fire in a pot, you might want to consider whether it is safe to slide a lid over it – this sometimes can deprive the fire of oxygen and put the fire out. ***Don’t try to pick up the pot to move it! If is unsafe to slide a lid over the pot, then you will need to make a quick decision on whether you can fight the fire with a fire extinguisher, or if you should call 911.

So, you’ve decided that you can fight the fire then grab your extinguisher, which you keep in a handy location to the kitchen, and remember the acronym “PASS”.

Pull the Pin at the top of the extinguisher. The pin releases a locking mechanism and will allow you to discharge the extinguisher. Try to squeeze the lever prior to trying to put out the fire just to ensure that it is working.

Aim at the base of the fire, not the flames. This is important - in order to put out the fire, you must extinguish the fuel.

Squeeze the lever slowly. This will release the extinguishing agent in the extinguisher.

Sweep from side to side. Using a sweeping motion, move the fire extinguisher back and forth until the fire is completely out. Operate the extinguisher from a safe distance, several feet away, and then move towards the fire once it starts to diminish. If this does not put the fire out call 911 right away, and make sure everyone is out of the house. Your safety is primary.

Once the fire is out, don't walk away! Watch the area for a several minutes in case it re-ignites.

Once you’ve used your extinguisher it will be important to recharge it after use. They can be recharged at MIFEL (Mid Island Fire Equipment Ltd.) at 273 Selby Street in Nanaimo, it’s the same place the Gabriola Fire Department refills theirs.

The Scavenger Hunt…

Today we held our Fire Departments, first Scavenger Hunt. What a great way to spend such a beautiful day trying to find obscure items, sliding down a slide (with an audience), & there were even points for having a coffee, upstairs in Artworks. Since we helped organize it, we spent our time at the coffee check in point, attempting to slow the teams down to chat as they came in. The event all ended back at the hall, where we tallied everyone’s amazing finds, and I think most of the participants found out something they hadn’t known about the island before, ie. the address of the “golf ball” home, the hours of the Museum, how far it is from the Hall to Peterson Road, and what is on the plaque at the end of Berry Point.

The kids who participated did an amazing job on coloring in fire trucks, as did some of the older kids as well. The event finished off with the flying of the paper airplanes that were created on route, we were amazed how many of them crossed the 20 feet “fire” line that we put out. Just another day of island life!