Response to Post on Facebook - Dated October 17, 2014

8/10/2019 Response to Post on Facebook - Dated October 17, 2014

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Heloise Dixon-WarrenCandidate for Electoral Area B Director, Cariboo Regional District

BLOG: http://heloisedixon-warren.blogspot.ca

Dated: October 24, 2014

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RESPONSE TO A NOTE POSTED ON MY PERSONAL FACEBOOK

PAGE WHICH WAS THEN PUBLICLY CIRCULATED VIA EMAIL

On October 17, 2014 the following note was posted on my personal Facebook page by Anna Eastman.

Today it came to my attention from another CRD Director that the post, or something similar, has been

circulating via email. Mrs. Eastman is a previous resident of Area B. She was a long-time resident of

Bouchie Lake. I responded to her note in a private message but as a post has gone public, I shall

respond to it publicly. In my response I will focus primarily on facts.

A good job should be decided by the Area B community..IN MY OPINION..you have managed to discredit

and destroy the Community Association. You have turned the upstairs of the BL hall into your office.

Actually your predecessor Roberta Faust began the decline of volunteerism and you have successfullyfinished it. Our Seniors Dinner that was started 31 years ago, has been on the Destroy list for 6 years

now. The annual children's Halloween Party has been destroyed, couldn't use the hall that Area B

residents pay taxes for. In order to have a BL Stewardship meeting without charge for the hall, you had

to have your agenda presented. I think it is time Area B had a director that was interested in the

Community, not it in themselves. We were very lucky to have Andy Motherwell for years and Ken Falloon

did a great job. I am very sure Gerry Bruce will rebuild the community spirit so desperately needed,

especially in the Bouchie Lake Area.

For each of her above points, I am providing a response:

(i)

You have managed to discredit and destroy the (Bouchie Lake) Community Association;

MY RESPONSE: The Bouchie Lake Community Association / BLCAis independent of the Cariboo

Regional District in that it has its own mandate (constitution). It is a user group of the Bouchie Lake

Hall and Recreation Grounds of which there are several (Bouchie Lake Gymkhana Club, Quesnel &

District Riding Club). This organisation is a registered not-for-profit society with BC Registry and has

been in existence since 1991. The relationship between the CRD and Bouchie Lake Recreation

Commission / BLRC (governed by a CRD Bylaw; formed in 2007) and the BLCA is complicated.

The BLCA was formerly called the Bouchie Lake Recreation Commission and was originally responsible

for managing the Bouchie Lake Hall and Recreation Grounds. Prior to 2007, the CRD supported the

properties through the North Cariboo Recreation and Parks taxation function by way of a contribution

agreement with the CRD covering 60% capital and 40% operational funds. The group was also at one

time actively accessing BC Gaming Funds. In 2007, the CRD passed a bylaw for the establishment of the

BLRC whose mandate was to manage and operate the Bouchie Lake Hall and Recreation Grounds and

other associated properties (e.g. Claymine Trails, BouchieMilburn Community Park). Now there were

two groups with identifiable names and very similar mandates a BLRC governed by a CRD Bylaw


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with appointed members and another BLRC, governed by the Society Act of BC and its own

constitution, with paid members.

At the beginning of my elected term (November, 2011), I reached out to the community for people who

wished to be appointed to the BLRC by the CRD board of directors. Several volunteers came forward;

some of them had experience on the previous commission. In January, 2012 the BLRC came together

and it was identified that it would be beneficial to have programs (e.g. yoga, Zumba) offered at Bouchie

Lake Hall. These would bring people into the hall and generate some revenue for BL Rec. The first 6-8

week sessions were supported by the BLRC. It later came to the attention of the BLRC that offering

programming was not within its mandate; rather programming should be offered by a user group. It

became very apparent that for BL Rec. to function well and thrive an active community based

organisation was key.

Although the BLRC (not for profit group) was still operating, membership was small and efforts were

being put to supporting annual events such as the Seniors Luncheon, Halloween Celebration, and

Christmas Community Potluck. The organisation had not taken on program development. Upon review

of the status of the organisation, it was found that the constitution under which the group was governed

by was no longer applicable. There was also some confusion as what bylaws were the correct ones. A

group of volunteers comprised of both BLRC (CRD) and BLRC (not for profit) came together and an

evaluation was done on the purpose of each of the two groups and how they could function by

supporting one another. The BLRC (not for profit) undertook a name change to the Bouchie Lake

Community Association and adopted a new constitution by passing a Special Resolution. Much of the

programming offered at the hall since then has been done by the BLCA. This includes yoga, Zumba,

dance, watercolour painting, and lawnchair travel.

An MOU / Memorandum of Understanding was drawn up which discussed how the two groups were to

operate and support one another. For several reasons, this MOU was never adopted. I would suggest

that this be re-visited as there continues to be confusion as to the specific roles of the two groups and

how the BLRC and BLCA can support one another. .

(ii) You have turned the upstairs of the BL hall into your office.

MY RESPONSE: this is simply untrue although any of us would love to have an office of that size. The

BLRC has an office upstairs of the hall which has been in existence for 4-6 years. The BLRC, along with

other groups, has been using the upstairs as a meeting room. Childrens dance and watercolour painting

was also held in this room. The BLRC has discussed a renovation to the room so it could be a multi-

media room. This room could be much more functional than it is now. It could also be an asset which

the community could be proud of and be generating revenue. West Fraser Mills has donated two

computers and West Road Consulting a laser colour printer; all of these are waiting to be installed so

they can be used by the community.


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(iii) Actually your predecessor Roberta Faust began the decline of volunteerism and you have

successfully finished it. Our Seniors Dinner that was started 31 years ago, has been on the Destroy listfor 6 years now. The annual children's Halloween Party has been destroyed, couldn't use the hall that

Area B residents pay taxes for.

MY RESPONSE: Firstly, I too am an active volunteer in that I participate and support several not for

profit groups. I also volunteer in Bouchie Lake and am active user of the facility. Volunteering has been

on the decline for many years and there are a great number of reasons for this. This is trend that has

been recognised across Canada and unfortunately, our community is not immune to this trend. Our

rural communities have changed. There are many challenges which may affect volunteerism: aging

demographics, many young families with two working parents, families with one spouse / partner

working out of the community, neighbourhoods are disconnected, many people travel into town to

access services, aging infrastructure, and not sufficient resources. Volunteers are relied upon for

almost everything and this is simply proving to not be sustainable. None the less, many events and

programs have been held, and continue to be held, at the hall due to the efforts of volunteers. This

includes the SeniorsLuncheon, Halloween Celebration, Christmas Potluck, Home based Business

Market (Nov. 2013), Equine Extravaganza (May, 2014), and many types of programs (yoga, zumba,

lawnchair travel, childrens dance, watercolour painting, Seni-Art, etc.). In fact, more programming has

been offered at the hall these past 3 years than in a very long time. For the Seniors Luncheon in 2014,

folks attending were encouraged to make a donation with hopes of paying it forward. I believe a

similar format is planned for Halloween. This way, these events will be sustainable and will be more

likely to continue.

(iv) In order to have a BL Stewardship meeting without charge for the hall, you had to have your

agenda presented.

MY RESPONSE:On October 31, 2013, I met with Mrs. Eastman and a couple of other Bouchie Lake

residents to discuss their proposal that the Bouchie Lake Stewardship Committee / BLSC host a meeting

at the Bouchie Lake Hall on December 4, 2013 in partnership with the Baker Creek Enhancement Group

and Bouchie Lake Recreation Commission. By partnering with the BLRC, no rent was charged

(http://bouchielakerec.ca/rental-policies/). As the BLSC wanted to do a mail out, I suggested the

opportunity to access some funds through the CRDElectoral Area B Special Projects Fund to supportthe printing and distribution of the mail out. I submitted a request to the CRD and was able to access

$600.00 through this fund, at the November 7, 2013 meeting (http://www.cariboord.ca/agendas-

minutes/agendas/crd-board-agendas).
http://bouchielakerec.ca/rental-policies/http://bouchielakerec.ca/rental-policies/http://bouchielakerec.ca/rental-policies/http://www.cariboord.ca/agendas-minutes/agendas/crd-board-agendashttp://www.cariboord.ca/agendas-minutes/agendas/crd-board-agendashttp://www.cariboord.ca/agendas-minutes/agendas/crd-board-agendashttp://www.cariboord.ca/agendas-minutes/agendas/crd-board-agendashttp://www.cariboord.ca/agendas-minutes/agendas/crd-board-agendashttp://www.cariboord.ca/agendas-minutes/agendas/crd-board-agendashttp://bouchielakerec.ca/rental-policies/


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(v) I think it is time Area B had a director that was interested in the Community, not in

themselves. We were very lucky to have Andy Motherwell for years and Ken Falloon did agreat job. Ms. Eastman is very sure Gerry Bruce will rebuild the community spirit so

desperately needed, especially in the Bouchie Lake Area.

MY RESPONSE:It is great that there are two candidates running for Electoral Area B on November 15,

2014. This is the benefit of our democratic society; choice is good. Many people could do the job as

Electoral Area Director. Some directors get more involved in the communities they live and /or

represent whereas others choose to be less engaged. There is no job description and each Director has

a different approach to the tasks at hand.

The Electoral Area B Director has a much greater responsibility than simply rebuilding community spirit

in the Bouchie Lake area. They represent the ~4,000 residents of Area B (Bouchie Lake to Strathnaver)

at the Cariboo Regional District. In my opinion, the best governance includes engaged communities

whereby residents participate in the sharing of ideas, finding solutions, and in the decision making

process. An elected person is only a single voice and processes can be much easier implemented and

changed if communities express their collective voices. Solutions rather than criticism and /or

complaining can be effective at implementing change.

Response to Post on Facebook - Dated October 17, 2014

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