“I just dropped him off for a visit and was supposed to pick him up,” said Iris Clarke through her tears as she clutched framed photographs her son to her heart.

Clarke is the mother of 20-year-old Clifton Johnston, who was found murdered in front of the Port Alberni Friendship Center on the morning of Saturday, Mar. 27. He had been stabbed to death.

Clarke, who lives in Abbotsford, BC, invited friends and family to a candlelight vigil on Monday, Mar. 29 to remember her son and to support one another as they grieve his loss.

Educators want to engage parents and caregivers in an online Zoom session focused on helping secondary students in Grades 8-12 get to graduation and beyond.

“We would like to increase the success and decrease the stress,” said Dave Maher, district principal of Indigenous education and Eighth Avenue Learning Centre in Port Alberni.

“We want to inform Nuu-chah-nulth families about what graduation will look like this year and what students have to do to graduate,” said Richard Samuel, NTC’s cultural development supervisor.

A spike in COVID-19 cases in the province has health officials taking preemptive action in order to protect people.

“Rising case levels, variants of concern, increased transmission and an increase in more severe cases are huge concerns,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health. “B.C. public health officials are making the tough choices now to break the chain and protect our communities.”

On Mar. 29 the province’s latest case numbers showed an additional 805 new cases, bringing the total number of cases to 98,156 with 87,866 recovered and 1,455 deaths.

The young man found deceased outside the Port Alberni Friendship Center on Saturday, Mar. 27, had been identified as 20-year-old Ahousaht member Clifton Johnston.

 – A two block section of Fourth Avenue in Port Alberni was cordoned off as police investigated the death of a man found lying near the entrance of the Port Alberni Friendship Center early Saturday morning.

In an RCMP statement issued after 4:00 p.m. on Mar. 27, 2021, officers responded to a call to assist Emergency Health Services in the 3500 block of 4th avenue.

Outside of their Port Alberni home, Hesquiaht elected chief Joshua Charleson and his wife, Letitia, were busy at work preparing herring for their smokehouse.

Having only smoked herring once before, Letitia was supported through the process by Charleson, who was taught by his mother.

Growing up in an urban setting outside her traditional territory, Letitia was never exposed to the tradition. Despite being well-versed in smoking salmon, she said herring is entirely different. 

Construction of Ahousaht First Nation’s new wellness centre has been at a stand-still for one year.

The project was brought to a halt last March due to COVID-19 restrictions but was recently resurrected. 

Since January, a crew of six Ahousaht members have been clearing the site, where the Ahousaht Indian Residential School used to stand. 

“When you are approaching Ahousaht [the wellness centre] is going to be forefront,” said John Caton, Maaqtusiis Hahoulthee Stewardship Society (MHSS) general manager and project lead.

It has been a year since the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the closure of soup kitchens and other organizations that delivered services to the less fortunate in the community, but Cyndi Stevens, Executive Director of the Port Alberni Friendship Center (PAFC), is proud to say that they have never closed their doors. The PAFC continues to deliver comfort and services to anyone needing it, safely, under the protocols set out by the Provincial Health Officer.

Born inside the house his grandfather built on Meares Island, Joe David was only moments old when his grandmother said, “this boy is going to be an artist.”

It wasn’t until decades later when David was working as an artist that his father recounted him the tale. Unbeknownst to David at the time, his parents had consciously raised him to support his creative journey.

If an artist was attending a gathering, David’s parents made sure he came in contact with them. Placing him in their arms, he became “part of that energy.”

BC Housing has received recommendations from a third-party review that looked into operational concerns surrounding the Port Alberni Shelter Society’s (PASS) management of two Port Alberni shelters. 

The final report identifies 10 key recommendations for the shelter to better serve Port Alberni’s homeless community and enhance services. BC Housing said they will be accepting all the recommendations, and are already working on a number of them.