Nine little babies were the stars of a recent celebration of newness at the Port Alberni Friendship Center on Oct. 25.

Darlene Leonew of the Port Alberni Friendship Center planned the celebration, complete with lunch for the proud parents, grandparents, and babies. 

“We did this in Spring 2024…we try to do it a couple times a year,” said Leonew.

The Port Alberni Friendship Center offers many programs and services including support for infants, children, and young families. 

The Alberni Athletic Hall was filled with delights on Oct. 23 and 24 as Nuu-chah-nulth members soaked up all the offerings at the 2024 Health-Ability Fair. 

Spots for free haircuts, massages, reflexology and mini manicures filled up quickly and after digesting a hearty fish soup and fish sandwich lunch, attendees spent the afternoon laughing and learning about inner strength with Indigenous comedy hypnotist Scott Ward.

Connecting families to traditional foods and traditional healers is a central focus of the inaugural Food is Medicine Diabetes Gathering on Nov. 2 at the Echo Centre in Port Alberni from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This free, drop-in event is for people living with diabetes, their family members, supports and anyone who is interested in overall wellness. A healthy lunch will be served, and no pre-registration is required.

Critch desperately wants to get clean.

An admitted crack and crystal meth addict for most of his life, Richard Anthony Dick, who everyone calls ‘Critch’, has been in and out of treatment facilities many times over the years. But as he heads to a long-term stint at the Pathway to Freedom recovery house in Surrey, he’s determined that this time the future will unfold differently. Dick envisions eventually living by his parents on the Tseshaht reserve.

A walk in the forest, or even a gander around your house, could yield a basket load of medicinal plants if one knows what to look for. That is what Darlene Leonew shared with a group of local elders wanting to learn about medicinal plants at the Port Alberni Friendship Center.

Surrounded by mason jars of dried leaves, roots, flowers and other concoctions, Leonew invited the elders to learn about each plant and what it is used for at a PAFC event held Oct. 21 at their Wellness Centre on 4th Avenue. 

In effort to increase transparency in policing and improve accountability, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Canada’s federal police force, will soon be equipped with body-worn cameras.

Frontline general duty officers that work in the communities of: Ucluelet, Ahousaht, Tofino, Mission, Prince George, Cranbrook and Kamloops will be amongst the first to start recording evidence from the first-person perspective or point of view (POV), according to B.C. RCMP, or “E” Division, senior media relations officerStaff Sgt. Kris Clark.

It been 22 years since Lisa Marie Young went missing after a night out with friends – a longer period than the young woman had been living when she was last seen. 

Lisa Young went missing June 30, 2002, following a night out with friends. 

Though family and friends have over the decades continued searching and working to keep Lisa in the public eye, they’ve accepted that sad fact that she is no longer living. They are now looking for information that will allow them to bring her home to her family.

The West Coast’s first major storm of the season became fatal over the weekend when the Sarita River overtook sections of the Bamfield Road, claiming the lives of two Bamfield residents.

The deceased have been identified as Ken Duncan and Bob Baden, victims of a rapidly rising Sarita River that had completely submerged the road in feet of water by the early afternoon on Saturday, Oct. 19. Duncan worked as a property manager for the Huu-ay-aht Group of Businesses, while Baden owned and ran a lumber store in Bamfield for many years.