Tuesday, June 1, 2021

Moe the Pro, Prince Rupert's Gentleman of the Golf Course passes away leaving behind a legacy of golf and camaraderie on the North Coast

The Professional Golf Association of British Columbia
has marked the passing of Prince Rupert's Moe Hays, who
passed away in late May


One of the most familiar fixtures at the Prince Rupert Golf Course and in the community, Moe Hays has passed away, a passionate instructor of the game locally and strong community booster leaves behind countless numbers of local golfers who learned their love of the game during his time at the Ninth Avenue West club house.

A post from daughter Jackie Hays Touchet shared through social media shared word of Mr. Hays passing in Victoria on the 28th of May at the age of 74, with  further notes on how the community can celebrate his life to come at a later date.

The Professional Golf Association of BC shared the announcement today, noting of the tireless efforts of Moe the Pro to develop the sport of Golf on the North Coast.



The PGA of BC has prepared an impressive tribute to his career which you can read here. 

Their account is one part biography of his career and one part historical review of how he grew the sport in the region.

Hays was also well known for the welcoming environment he fostered at the club. He had an uncanny talent for remembering the names and faces of club patrons but was particularly accommodating of junior golfers. His influence undoubtedly resulted in a significant number of Prince Rupert juniors who either played at the club or worked in Hays’ shop going on to successful careers in golf. 

Among them was Canadian Golf Hall of Fame member and three-time LPGA Tour winner Lisa Walters, as well as several current PGA of BC Professionals such as Edd Boudreau (Gorge Vale Golf Club), Sandra Comadina (McCleery Golf Course) and Mark Strong (Sagebrush Golf Club) to name a few, plus former PGA members Ryan Webber, Ian Pattullo and Hays’ daughter, Jackie Touchet.

The passing of Mr. Hays will be one of much sadness and note for the local golf community, for the pro from the Prince Rupert course was much more than an instructor of golf; he was a larger than life presence at the golf club, serving many years as the glue that kept the sport alive during some challenging times.

He built the game through youth programs in the community and through his time as the Club pro assisted many golfers to better their game and become champions of the sport in the community.

Beyond his joy for the sport of golf he was a man generous with his time and and someone where a short back and forth chat could extend into a lengthy discussion of golf or any topic of the day. 

Condolences to his immediate family and friends on his passing, Mr. Hays another name in this year of passings of those who made a difference in the community.

The Prince Rupert Golf Course has noted his passing on their Facebook page, where you can leave comments if you wish, the Course has. not announced as of yet what plans it may have to commemorate his life, once they do we'll share the details.

You can review more notes from the Course from our archive page here. 
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MLA Rice ready to welcome back the Cruise industry ... when safe to do so

The giant vessels of the cruise industry will be passing by 
Prince Rupert this year, MLA Jennifer Rice looks forward
to welcoming them back post COVID, but recent events from
the USA may change the cruise narrative on the North Coast

The recent move of the US government to allow cruise ships to travel to and return from Alaska without need of a Canadian stop, dominated much of the Legislature time early in May and with a return to Legislative duties this week, North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice used some of her allotted time through her virtual session to address the topic.

The majority of her commentary was one that echoed much of the NDP government's recent approach, a handling of the issue which as we noted last month that did not particularly impress American political leaders or those of the BC Liberal opposition. 

Some  areas of her contribution to the debate were focused on the local tourism opportunities and some of the recent funding by the government to help tourism coming out of COVID.

"My home community of Prince Rupert is ready and willing to welcome Alaska cruise passengers when it's safe to do so. We have a breadth of attractions for adventurous souls, with world-class kayaking, whale- and bear-watching and cultural experiences. 

Our restaurants cover the gamut from international cuisine to locally caught seafood. 

While things are gradually opening up across the province, it's still not safe enough to open international and U.S. borders. This is for the health and safety of all Canadians. We are working with colleagues across the province, with the federal and U.S. governments. 

Premier Horgan is meeting Alaska senators on June 9th on this very matter. The Transportation and Infrastructure Minister has sent a letter to his federal colleagues around the logistics of technical stops. 

The Tourism Minister has met with the U.S. Consulate General in Seattle and discussed this issue. 

She has spoken to the federal Economic Development Minister on the matter, and she has met multiple times with Ian Robertson from the Greater Victoria Port Authority. 

Ian is also a member of our tourism advisory table. 

The B.C. intergovernmental relations team meets with the Seattle consulate weekly. 

The Provincial government shares a common desire with the people of Alaska to see a safe return to the cruise ship industry to the benefit of both of our regions. 

We're investing in tourism so  we are ready when the borders open."



At the end of May, the Prince Rupert Chamber of Commerce and MP Taylor Bacharach added their voices to the conversation on working to ensure that the local Cruise industry will remain a area for growth and employment.

What remains to be seen is if the sudden attention of the NDP and Federal government to the US concerns, late sit is now, will be enough to reverse the America mindset that there is no need to stopover in Canada anymore. 

Something which if it becomes more than just a one year temporary measure could have a serious impact on all of the industry planning of recent years.

More notes on the work of Ms. Rice in the Legislature can be explored here.

A wider overview of the Cruise industry on the North Coast can be reviewed here.

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Emergency Service Files: June 2021











Our Archive of items for the month of June , from the files of law enforcement and other emergency responders in Northwestern British Columbia.


For items related to Northwest Flooding concerns see our weather archive page here



From the North Coast Review

--
Prince Rupert RCMP release details and background to police pursuit along Highway 16 Friday
Prince Rupert RCMP look to reunite stolen items with owners from 4th and 5th Ave east area
RCMP investigating second graffiti incident directed at local Catholic Church facility
Canadian Coast Guard keep skills sharp with North Coast/Haida Gwaii training exercise 
RCMP investigate graffiti incident at Annunciation church

June 4 -- More mischief
June 4 -- Stolen Items recovered (RCMP statement)
June 28 -- Terrace Detachment Service Report (June 21-27)
June 25 -- Kitimat Detachment Service Report  (June 18-24)
June 22 -- Terrace Detachment Service Report (June 14-20)
June 21 -- Kitimat Detachment Service Report (June 11-17)
June 14 -- Terrace Detachment Service Report (June 7-13)
June 14 -- Kitimat Detachment Service Report (June 5-10)
June 10 -- Police seize suspected drugs following an arrest   (RCMP statement) 
June 7 -- Terrace Train death (video)
June 7 -- Kitimat Detachment Service Report  (May 27-June 3)
June 7 -- Terrace Detachment Service Report (May 31-June 6)
June 7 -- Wanted Person: Shayne William Robinson (RCMP statement) 




Ketchikan and Southeast Alaska




Miscellaneous notes



Archive of month to month review for 2021






 To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.





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Seafest Decorating Contest Now Underway Celebrates the Sun

Sunsets or Sunrise, the Sun will be the guide for this
years Seafest themes

Prince Rupert's Special Events Society wants Rupetites to get creative this month, with the countdown on now towards the June 11th start for Seafest, the community festival organizers want us to decorate our house, car or business in the themes of Summer with a focus on the Sun.

With this years Here Comes the Sun as the thematic device for the redesigned socially spaced Celebration, Sunshine will no doubt feature in much of the decorating to come, with the submission to the Special Event Society that receives the most positive feedback up for gift certificates to local residents.

Some of the ideas that the Seafest organizers suggest are such summer activities as tropical getaways, gardening, fishing and other outdoor activities under the Sun. 


To take part in the Decorating competition, all you have to do is Submit photos of your decorations to decorateprincerupert@gmail.com and Special Events will upload them to our Facebook event page.

You can  gather reactions by sharing your photos on your Facebook. 

The entries with the most likes and reactions will WIN amazing gift certificates to local restaurants! 

The competition opens today and carries through until June 11th, with noting closed on Saturday June 12th at 9PM

You can catch up with all of the Seafest planning from their Facebook page, twitter feed or website.

More notes on this years Seafest can be reviewed from our archive page.

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Prince Rupert/Northwest notes on the Kamloops Residential Schools Graves

 



An archive of some of the local coverage of the discovery of the graves of 215 children who attended the Kamloops Indian Residential School.



June 9 -- CityWest joins the many voices calling for action following Kamloops Residential School graves discovery NCR
June 7 -- Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach hails success of Opposition motion towards ongoing Reconciliation goals  NCR
June 7 -- Chamber of Commerce to expand work on Reconciliation both provincially and locally NCR
June 7 -- School District 52 speaks to the discovery of unmarked graves in Kamloops NCR
June 4 -- Talking to kids about residential schools (audio)
June 3 -- Statements of Sympathy and concern; calls for action from Prince Rupert Council following news of the Kamloops School Graves discovery NCR
June 4 -- On the Ledge: Residential schools (audio)
June 3 -- Re-evaluating the legacy of a Prince George Bishop (audio)
June 2 -- GoFund Me to probe more BC residential school sites raises $77,000 in two days
June 2 -- Smithers mourns children found buried at former Kamloops residential school 
June 2 -- Graffiti on Prince Rupert Church under investigation
June 2 -- RCMP investigate graffiti incident at Annunciation Church  NCR
June 2 -- How can the Catholic Church atone for its role in residential schools (audio)
June 1 -- Prince Rupert vigil (video)
June 1 -- In Sitka, Alaska an impromptu memorial honours mass burial discovered at BC boarding school 
June 1 -- Ellis Ross speaks on Residential school findings (video)
June 1 -- Prince Rupert residents hold vigil in the rain for 215 children found at residential school
June 1 -- Prince Rupert Chamber of Commerce calls on authorities to take action and confront history of Residential Schools NCR
June 1 -- Residential Schools Mass Graves of Kamloops theme of Monday's Legislature proceedings NCR
June 1 -- "I hear you calling'" A Kamloops Residential School survivor's poem (audio)
June 1 -- Calls to action from the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (audio)
June 1 -- Federal party leaders on residential school responsibility (audio)

May 31 -- Northwest responds to Kamloops Residential School (video)
May 31 -- Ceremonies held in Terrace, Prince Rupert to remember residential schoolchildren
May 31 -- Vigil for 215 Lost children
May 31 -- Photo gallery of commemorative ceremony in Prince Rupert
May 31 -- Prince Rupert tears for the 215 who never made it home
May 31 -- Kamloops Residential School graves discovery will put focus to reckoning of past, recognition of victims and families NCR
May 31 -- 'Cultural genocide happened': Connie Greyeyes on grappling with Canada's residential school system (audio)
May 30 -- Prince Rupert City Hall Flags will fly low May 31

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Prince Rupert Chamber of Commerce calls on authorities take action and confront history of Residential Schools


The Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce joined the chorus of those calling for immediate action  from political and religious authorities in the days following the discovery of a mass grave at the site of the Kamloops Residential School property.

The Chamber's statement and commentary from President Michael Gurney brought the issue close to the North Coast community, noting of the many families that had been impacted by the Residential School program as well as to address Prince Rupert's own history when it came to relations with Indigenous people.

"Prince Rupert is home to Indigenous Elders and families whose lives have been irreparably scarred by the experience of residential and day schools. The demonstrations of sorrow by members of our community show that the wrongs committed in Kamloops reverberate in cities and souls well beyond its borders. 

As a business community cognizant of its own history of segregation and suppression affecting Indigenous people, we grieve the racism and cruelty that led to deaths at the Kamloops Indian Residential School. Being discarded and forgotten by authority figures is an affront to the dignity of any human being"

The Chamber document also calls attention to the lack of action by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Federal government, with the Chamber to petition both to release any evidence related to the undocumented deaths.

The Full text of the Chamber of Commerce Statement can be explored below:


Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce statement
on the Kamloops Residential Schools Graves discovery
(click to enlarge)

Further notes from the Northwest Business Sector can be explored here.


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Residential Schools Mass Graves of Kamloops the theme of Monday's Legislature proceedings



The horrific news from Kamloops of last week carried much of the conversation of the BC Legislature on Monday, from Premier John Horgan to interim Liberal leader Shirley Bond and most passionately from Green Party MLA Adam Olsen, British Columbia's elected officials tried to best express, as best they could, the sense of heavy heart as the Premier stated at the reports of the unmarked mass grave.

Of the many speeches made in the Legislature on Monday (the full archive of commentary available here) it was Mr. Olsen's who most captured the sense of the reality of the Residential Schools story that the MLA's were addressing on the day. 

His statement to the House one of a personal journey, a history lesson that should be heard and a calling to account of the need for action from all Canadians


North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice was also part of the  Monday Legislature conversation, speaking prior to the  Legislature time allowed to the Kamloops  discussion. Her statement touched on a range of themes and was delivered from the MLA's Prince Rupert constituency at the start of Monday's afternoon session.



Skeena MLA Ellis Ross also addressed the Kamloops discoveries as part of Monday's session, his contribution coming in the Question Period for the day when he asked Premier Horgan what assistance that the BC government would be offering to the 203 First Nation communities to repatriate the children in the Kamloops grave.

"With all due respect, now is not the time to talk about UNDRIP or mandate letters from four years ago. It's not time for a stump speech. This tragedy is affecting Canadians, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal alike. People are crying. 

Put aside the politics for a second, everybody. The confirmation of an unmarked grave of 215 children has revived memories for many First Nations people. It confirms what many survivors from all over B.C., from 203 bands in B.C., have long said; there is a multitude of children who never made it home. For most of the history of these schools, the practise was not to send the bodies of students who died at schools to their home communities. 

My question. Can the Premier tell us, tell the province, tell the people of British Columbia, Aboriginal, non-Aboriginal alike, specifically what will this government be doing to work with the 203 First Nation communities in B.C. to repatriate these children?"


Premier Horgan noting with appreciation for the passion that Mr. Ross had in bringing the question forward, Mr. Horgan reinforcing previous themes of seeking true reconciliation.



The Skeena MLA next spoke to remind the Legislature that the discovery of the graves was not the burden of the Kamloops people alone to bear. 

"This is not my passion. This is my life. My parents, uncles, aunts, friends, acquaintances from other communities — from 203 communities in B.C.. This is not just a Kamloops issue. Children from all over B.C., from every single community, were sent to residential schools all across B.C. and Canada. This is not just the burden of the Kamloops people. 

They are to be commended for bringing this to light — for what we always were suspicious about, based on the stories of people like my parents. I look forward to everyone in this chamber taking the time to listen and act accordingly. Because I do agree that the time for action is long past. It's long past. I uncovered this in 2004. Everybody, at some point in their life, heard a story about this. 

The time for action is now, while the whole world is shocked and while Canadians want to know what is next. And so, for those who survived residential schools, for their families and friends who had to listen to the stories of the survivors and, of course, for the voices of the children that we will never hear. For the Premier. I hope he agrees, as I hope everybody in this House agrees, that we must do everything we can to return these children to their homes."

Mr. Ross has also been taking his commentary on the Kamloops story to his social media stream, recounting his own personal experiences through that information sharing platforms. 


More background on the work of the BC Legislature can be explored here.
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