With a history that goes back 6,000 years, Hupacasath is regaining ancestral land, formerly known as Gill School.

Over the period of the last year Hupacasath Chief Councillor Brandy Lauder had been in conversation with the Ministry of Education and Child Care, the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, as well as the new superintendent of School District 70, among others, to which they unanimously agreed to the sale of the land back to Hupacasath, explained Lauder. Gill Elementary School ceased operations in 2015 due to declining student numbers.

Just as west coast residents began scrambling for alternative transportation after Tofino Bus announced suspended services last month, Islandlink comes to the rescue.

“Islandlink will start offering bus service between Nanaimo and Tofino three times a week starting on January 30, 2023,” they stated in a news release dated Jan. 12.

This comes as welcome news to residents of outlying communities who rely on the bus service to get to medical appointments in the region’s cities. The bus will also stop at intermediate points in Ucluelet and Port Alberni.

This past holiday season saw what seemed like endless snow filling communities throughout Vancouver Island. As the snow fell, the social services sectors worked hard through the month tending to weather and holiday needs of vulnerable people.

Among some services that were needed was the Salvation Army’s emergency weather response program, which provides extra mats in shelters to meet the demands of unhoused folks.

A routine Sunday drive home from Port Alberni to Macoah could have turned tragic, were it not for two men who remained at the site of a rock fall that left an enormous boulder blocking a lane of Highway 4 near the Taylor Rest Area.

Robyn Rea was traveling westbound on Highway 4 along Taylor Flats at the west end of Sproat Lake when she noticed an oncoming vehicle flash its lights at her.

“First I checked to make sure my high beams were off then I prepared for whatever could be up the road,” said Rea.

A longitudinal project delving into the factors that determine a person’s lifelong health has received a large grant to study the early years of Nuu-chah-nulth participants.

BC Housing has served notice to the Port Alberni Shelter Society (PASS) that it will end agreements for supportive housing, effective March 30, 2023. The decision was announced at a Jan. 5 meeting in Port Alberni. No reason was given.

At its Dec. 14 board meeting, the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District (ACRD) passed resolutions on initiatives aiming to increase local Indigenous influence at the Long Beach Airport. And the Board also announced that it will be applying for a provincial government grant aimed at more fully developing the 835-acre airport site.

The ADSS senior boys basketball team have taken home the Totem championship after rallying together to beat the defending champs, Carihi.

At the start of the final quarter on Jan. 7 the two teams were tied, and the Alberni District Secondary School team took to the court determined. As the minutes went on the crowd grew with intensity, alternating between cheering and chanting, as the two teams battled for the win.

The ADSS senior girls basketball team took home third place at their Totem tournament, after giving it their all.

“The girls played hard,” said Steve Sperger, coach of the Alberni District Secondary senior girls basketball team, reflecting on the Jan. 6 game against Belmont. “They worked all game long, gave their best effort. And that's all I can ask really, as a coach.”

Sperger said that the team is disappointed. They had won the Totem title last year, and aimed to win it again, he continued.