Month: April 2011

Garden looking sad and brown? Take a photo! Take several. Ugly yard? Capture it on film! (Visit OK Photo for some great service and equipment.)

Before you rake, weed, shovel, or plant this spring, take a photo of your space looking its worst. Go on now, we’ll wait……

OK, done? Now, go to town for some seeds, seedlings, shrubbery, edging, plant containers, garden tools, paint, fencing, or xeriscaping supplies. Get your property looking its best. We suggest contest sponsor Future Gardens! Or if you’re adding or renovating a water feature, we suggest arts council member Rod’s Aqua Pools Ltd.

Now take another photo. Doesn’t it look great? Take some more shots. Don’t forget the one of you smiling and holding the shovel, looking grimy but proud. (You look fantastic, by the way.)

Next, go to this link right here: Best Bloomin’ Garden Contest 2011 Entry Form Yup. The one saying Best Bloomin’ Garden Contest. Click on it.

Decide what category your “spruced up space” best fits into:

Is yours a residential yard or garden?

Outdoor Living Area? (deck, patio, water feature, etc)

Did you just xeriscape using drought tolerant plants and materials?

Are you a commercial, municipal or industrial property?

Email your entry form by May 31 to olivergardencontest @ hotmail.ca , drop it off at Paw Prints Studio and Gallery 148 Carr Crescent, Willowbrook, mail to the Oliver Community Arts Council P.O. Box 1711, Oliver BC V0H 1T0 or email olivercac@gmail.com for other entry arrangements. And don’t worry — you can keep on beautifying up to the last two weeks of June when judging by the Oliver Heirloom Garden Club takes place.

Entry forms are also available at Future Gardens, Heather’s Threadz Sewing Centre, Sundance Video and True Value Hardware.

The Best Bloomin’ Garden Contest is a Communities in Bloom project brought to you by the Oliver Community Arts Council, and supported by the Oliver Heirloom Garden Club.

Contest sponsors are OK Photo Lab, Future Gardens, Sherwood Trophies, Fortis BC, and Paw Prints Studio and Gallery (The Art of John Salsnek).

Come on, Oliver! Let’s get BLOOMIN’!

Workman checks roof in black shoes. Wire keeps him up. Photo through a patio door by Ernie Race.

On April 24, 2011 at approximately 1:10 a.m., an officer of the Oliver/Osoyoos RCMP on routine patrol, observed a grey 2005 Ford Escape traveling at a high rate of speed almost strike a dog that was in the middle of the intersection of 346th and 97^th, in Oliver. The officer tried to pull over the vehicle, but it failed to stop and continued at a high rate of speed.  The vehicle finally pulled over on Sawmill Road, near Elliott Rd. The driver and sole occupant, a 22-year-old Oliver male, exhibited signs of alcohol impairment and produced an expired driver’s licence.  The driver provided two samples into an ASD.  Both samples resulted in a “Fail.”  The driver was served a 90 day Immediate Roadside Prohibition, a Violation Ticket for ‘No Driver’s Licence,’ and the vehicle was impounded for 30 days.

On April 26, 2011 at 8:43 a.m., the Oliver/Osoyoos RCMP received a report of a single vehicle roll-over collision on Highway 97 at Sportsmansbowl Rd., just north of Oliver, BC.  The driver, a 33-year-old Oliver male, called to report that he had just rolled his red 1996 Honda Civic. Oliver/Osoyoos RCMP attended and spoke with the driver who stated that he was driving home from working a night shift in Penticton when he fell asleep, hit the ditch, and rolled his vehicle over.  The male presented with no apparent injuries and declined the assistance of an ambulance.  There was significant damage to the vehicle which needed to be towed from the scene.  No charges were laid.

On April 27, 2011 at 6:10p.m., Oliver/Osoyoos RCMP received a report of a two-vehicle collision on Highway 97 at Road 3, in Oliver, B.C.  Officers attended to find a grey 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee had collided with a brown 1995 Mercury Sable.  Witnesses at the scene indicated that the Jeep Cherokee was headed southbound on Highway 97 when the Mercury Sable suddenly attempted to turn northbound onto Highway 97 from Road 3; in front of it.  The 19-year-old Oliver male, driving the Jeep Cherokee, and his 23-year-old male passenger, were not injured by the incident nor was the 46-year-old Oliver male driving the Mercury Sable. All parties declined the assistance of on-scene paramedics.  Significant damage was done to both vehicles which were towed from the scene.  No charges were laid.

Anyone who has any information that relates to any crime or suspicious activity in their area is encouraged to contact the Oliver/Osoyoos RCMP at (250)495-7236 or South Okanagan Crimestoppers at 222-TIPS.

William is now married to Kate and he will be called a Duke.

Canucks win first game of their series with Nashville – this will a battle of goalies.

Advance Polls are closed – a lot have voted – waiting for Monday results.

That being said – let us get back to business here at Oliver Daily News

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Hello ODN! ~~Could you be so kind as to put the word out on your lovely little site that the Oliver Elementary School Parent Advisory Council (OES PAC) is having a bedding plant and BBQ in the Super Valu parking  lot on Saturday, May 7th from 10AM -2PM.  All proceeds are used to support students and the school with all the little extras like educational field trips, sporting equipment, smart boards, classroom supplies etc.  Thank you!:)~~Susan Antunes

2011 OLIVER YOUTH WEEK EVENTS

Sunday, May 1

12:00-4:00pm:  Canadian Tire 4-ON-4 Street Hockey Tournament
  Ages 9-14 welcome
  $20/team registration fee (Forms available @ Canadian Tire & Oliver P&R)
  Contact Teresa Garofalo at ctc698@telus.net or Carol Sheridan 250-498-4985

Monday, May 2nd

3:30-4:30pm Get Bent Belly Dancing Clinic
          Ages 10-16 welcome
          FREE
             
 
3-6:00pm: Lounge Lizards @ Oliver Youth Centre, Cadet Hanger
   Chill out, use the internet and catch up on school work.
    Okanagan Boys & Girls Club & Literacy Now
     FREE    
   Contact Laurene Sloboda 250-498-8844 or lsloboda@boysandgirlsclubs.ca

  
Tuesday, May 3rd  
        
 3:00-4:30pm Ultimate Frisbee Clinic @ Community Centre Park
  **Wear proper running footwear and bring water.  No experience required.
  FREE 11-14 years
Contact Carol Sheridan at carol@oliverrecreation.ca or 250-498-4985

  
Thursday, May 5th

12:45-1:15pm Planning Meeting for “Ollywood” Youth Dance on June 17th
  All Grade 9-12 students welcome
  Meet in the SOSS Cafeteria
  Contact Carol Sheridan carol@oliverrecreation.ca or Marli Mounsey

Friday, May 6th

6:00-10:00pm Youth Week Wrap-Up @ the Oliver Youth Centre, Cadet Hangar
 Come hang out! Featuring games of pool, Fooseball, Shuffleboard, XBox & more. 
Ages 12-17 Welcome
FREE
Contact Murray 250-485-2752

For more information:

Carol Sheridan

Recreation Program Manager

250.498.4985

carol@oliverrecreation.ca

Similkameen Elementary Secondary School Gymnasium

at Keremeos

 MC – John Terbasket A/D – Oly Bent

Friday:

Gather for event: 10:00am – 2:30 p.m.

Supper: 5:00 p.m.

Grand Entry 6:oo p.m.

Saturday:

Grand Entry 12:30 pm and 6:00 pm

Breakfast 9-11 am

Supper: 5:00 p.m.

~~~~~~~~~~SPECIALS~~~~~~~~~~

All Dance Categories
Jr. Girls Fancy – Chila Louis Coming Out Teen Girls Special
Jr. Girls JINGLE – Omarah Paul Coming Out Jr Boys Traditional Special
Tiny Tot- Gage Paul Coming Out
Teen All-Around Special (must be registered by 7:00 pm Friday night)

 

SIMILKAMEEN STILL

Young Warrior & PRINCESS PAGEANT
(ages 10-18 yrs)
All DRUMS will be paid an Honorarium and must have minimum of 4 singers.

REGISTRATION: opens FRIDAY & SATURDAY – 10:00am

Vendors WELCOME: $50 for Weekend and a DOOR Prize donation
Call Les Louis @ 250 499-2727 ext 233 or email: llouis@sd53.bc.ca

For Further INFORMATION CONTACT:
HELEN GALLAGHER: (w) 250-498–3415 (eve) 250- 498–4346
Sandy Terbasket (w) 250-499-2727 ext 231 or email: sterbask@sd53.bc.ca

Accommodations: Elk’s Motel – Keremeos (250) 499-2043
Or Hotels/Motels in Penticton (48km) or Osoyoos (48km)

The Pow Wow committee Members & School District 53 are not responsible for any injuries, thefts or lost items.

On to Nashville!

Councillor Marji Basso chaired last night’s Oliver Town Council meeting as Mayor Hampson was in Victoria. Council dealt with two gas tax matters:

1. For regionally significant projects – the RDOS has been given $4.27 million to distribute and Town Council has invited Area ‘C’ Director Allan Patton to sit in on priority discussions with regard to these choices at a meeting scheduled in two weeks. Two possibilitities were identified – a Regional Trail Master Plan or small water projects.
2. The government is also set to grant about 102 million dollars for the entire province for a different list of potential projects.  This programme is administered by the Union of BC Municipalities.

Oliver will apply for 1.36 million dollars to finish up phase three  of the water twinning projects. All homes in town and south of the core area  have been completed with independent potable water and metering. About 156 homes  north of the town still need to be serviced in a similar fashion and council hopes for funding approval to do this work.

-30-

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Easter Scavenger Hunt sponsored by the Oliver Business association. The following Oliver residents were the winners of the prizes:

 
Big Winner!
Dylan Rotlisberger (in photo, with Tracy above)
            $20.00 Gift Certificate Medici’s
            2 Small Pizzas from Almerios’s Pizza
            $50.00 Oliver Bucks to be spent at participating businesses
 
Barb Kilden (no photo available)
            $50.00 Oliver Bucks to be spent at participating businesses
 
Alyssa Sachmann (In photo, with her mom and Tracy below)

2 Dozen gourmet cupcakes from Oliver’s Bakery & Deli

Town of Oliver has issued a water quality advisory for System #1 for domestic water customers – west of the Okanagan River. System #1 is north of Oliver and includes areas that do not have “twinned” systems. Turbidity is the cause of the latest advisory.

Customers are not in Town – but are rural based customers. The first 3 digits of your account number indicate what system you are on.

For more info call 250-485-6213

School District #53 (Okanagan Similkameen)
BOARD REPORT

Student Achievement
Secondary School Apprenticeship: Over the past three years the district has benefitted from a grant ($15,000) from ITA to enhance participation in SSA. As a district we have done exceptionally well with 23 SSA’s in 08/09, 34 in 09/10, and we’re up to 18 this year. We will once again apply for this grant, the amount of which is not yet known.

Read/Rhyme and Rec: We will again be offering our very effective summer intersession/intervention reading program to K/primary students. All schools are on board and school administration will begin the consultation process with staff and parents over the next few weeks.

Donation to SOSS Basketball Team: The Oliver Parks and Recreation Society kindly donated $500.00 to the SOSS Senior Boys’ Basketball team to aid in the tournament expenses in the Provincial AA championships.

Innovation / Initiatives

DISTRICT‐BASED INITIATIVES

2011‐2012 School Staffing Process: Staffing allocations for 2011/2012 were provided to principals/vice‐principals on Monday, April 18th, 2011. Formulas were created that were student driven to create transparency and sustainability given fiscal challenges.

Enhancement Agreement Forums: at 6:30 pm

•    Tuesday, April 26                    Osoyoos Secondary
•    Thursday, April 28                  Okanagan Falls Elementary
Aboriginal Staffing and Budgets: Although a draft budget has been completed, Mr. Insley will need to consult with principals and firm up numbers before taking recommendations to the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council in May. Once approved, schools will receive the preliminary allocations of staff and budgets. Of course these may again be adjusted in September when final student numbers are known.

Pow‐wow: The district Pow‐wow is coming up fast, on:
   Friday, April 29 starting 10:00 am and going to 10:30 pm with supper break at 5:00 p.m.
    Saturday, April 30 starting at 12:30 to 10:30 pm with supper break at 5:00 pm (also, breakfast is served from 9:00 to 11:00 am).

The AEAC is sponsoring buses so that all grade 4 and Aboriginal ancestry students from around the district can attend the morning session on Friday. Helen Gallagher is arranging the bussing. The Pow‐wow is not only educational for students, staff and parents in understanding the Okanagan/Aboriginal culture, but the event also brings the culture into the schools creating a greater sense of belonging for our Aboriginal students as we show value for their past and present way of life. We encourage trustees to find time to attend this event, even for a brief period. You’ll find it to be interesting and fun. Bring your family and friends and the dinner is free!

Literacy Now Task Group Meeting: this meeting will be held on Thursday, April 28th at 1:00 pm in our School Board Office Annex. School administrators, trustees, and staff are welcome to attend.

Grade 1 Book Give‐A‐Way: Reminder that this is to happen during the week of May 2nd. All the books are in the schools.

SCHOOL‐BASED INITIATIVES

BC Green Games: Once again BC students have shown they can go green! 139 entries from 39 school districts across the province were received. Congratulations to Tuc‐el‐Nuit Elementary School for receiving Elementary Honourable Mention for their project on ‘Salt of the Earth’ and ‘Winging It’.

Operations

March 2011 Enrolment Report:  The March 18, 2011 enrollment report indicates that student enrolment is 2,245 which is a decrease from September 2010 of 22 students, and a decrease from February 2011 of 3 students.

School Calendar: The Board passed the school calendar for 2011‐2012. Legislation dictates that the school calendar be sent out to parents prior to the end of May. Schools will receive this shortly.

Twenty‐One Years of Service: Board Chair, June Harrington, was presented flowers in honour of her twenty‐one years of service as trustee for School District No. 53. June was recognized this past weekend at the annual BCSTA AGM.
The Next Board Meeting is Wednesday, May 25, 2011 at the SBO, starting at 7:00pm

photo collage by Ernie Race

Local politicians are flying out Tuesday with Chief Clarence Louie and his staff to demonstrate support for the Osoyoos Indian Band’s bid to have the provincial Correctional Facility located on Band land near Senkulmen Business Enterprise Park. Solicitor General Shirley Bond (left) is the point person for the government on this file. Osoyoos Mayor Stu Wells and Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS) Director Allan Patton are also expected to meet with the minister in Vancouver today.

The communities of Oliver and Osoyoos are committed to supporting the Osoyoos Indian Band in this effort to bring long term jobs to the area says Mayor Hampson.

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After that meeting Hampson shall be flying to Victoria with Director Patton to lobby Minister Ida Chong, Wednesday afternoon, for $2.4 million to complete Phase III of the Water Twinning project. This cost sharing arrangement with the Federal Governmentt and the province will include a portion from the Town’s water utility.

There are presently about 156 rural residents who are not connected to Town potable water says Mayor Hampson; “once the ‘twinning’ is completed all our water customers will have access to potable water and no one will be subjected to periodic Boil Water Advisories”.

Tuesday council – Acting Mayor Marji Basso in the chair
4 pm Committee of the Whole

Solid Waste Management Plan – presentation by RDOS coordinator Cameron Baughen

First Quarter Financial Report – presentation by David Svetlichny, CA. Chief Financial Officer

 7 pm Regular Council Meeting

Re-visit letter from Oliver Taxi requesting support for permanent license

Presentation by Lions Club on Purina Dog Walk

Presentation by Joe Dixon on 2011 Races in Oliver

Adoption of Tax Rates

Policy on Natural Features

Adoption of Climate Action Plan ( Public Hearing at 7 pm precedes this meeting )

“Make a difference” – the title of a pamphlet given to me by Mark Pankratz.

I first noticed Mark when he entered the real estate business. A young man with a big red car – a very busy guy lining up listings and hurrying to the next possible sale.

Mark has now become a customer of mine so I have taken the time to find out more… a lot more about the man behind the realty sign.

Mark’s father came to Oliver in 1985 and became the pastor of the Antioch Church on River Road and his son became a youth pastor. In 1990 Mark Pankratz met Rae in Vancouver and they married. They decided that it would be best, if beginning a family, to do that in a small town so they settled in Oliver and raised their children. Mark operated a satellite TV business for a number of years and helped to assist youth in trouble.

In addition to raising their own children, the Pankratz’s have spent about 7 years fostering young people in need.

When his father retired, both Mark and Rae became joint pastors at the new Living Way Church on the Antioch property.

Mark says many people have helped make him successful but he likes to think that all the folks he met along the way knew two things about him. He lives up to his commitments and he tries to make a difference in the world.

http://www.markpankratz.com/

http://www.livingway.ca/

First view – I see 3 buildings (icons) – name them – upper part of picture.

Second view – I see three other well known structures name them – lower part of the picture.

 

Who is wearing this colourful bonnet?

It’s Emily Frank of Kelowna. Could you put a bit more light on the subject!

Oliver Business Association and Parks and Recreation will co-host the annual Easter Egg Search and Scavenger Hunt Bingo.

The OBA event Saturday April 23rd, 12:00 noon to 2:15 pm. Fill in your Scavenger Hunt Bingo card and you could win:

Oliver’s Bakery & Deli – 1 dozen Gourmet Cupcakes
Medici’s – $20.00 Gift Certificate
Almerio’s Pizza – 2 small Pizza’s

Or two chances to win $50.00 Oliver bucks

Scavenger Hunt Bingo cards will be available at Oliver Parks following the Easter Egg Hunt , or at the following participating merchants: Amos Realty, Almerio’s Pizza, OK Photo Lab, Medici’s, Lauralee’s Treasure Chest, Beyond Bliss, Oliver’s Bakery & Deli & Alberto’s Decorating Centre.

You must pre-register for the kids event that will be held at 10 am -12 noon Saturday.