The Comox Valley Record recently welcomed guest analyst Markus Ciastkowski for a preview of the 2022 World Cup of Soccer.  This year’s tournament host is Qatar. The 32-team competition runs from Nov. 20 — Dec. 18.  Markus, 15, is a member of the Comox Valley United Under-16 boys select soccer team. He also coaches and officiates the sport. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lewis Bartholomew is the project director of the HMCS Alberni Museum and Memorial. The museum, located on Cliffe Avenue in Courtenay, has welcomed more than 7,000 visitors to its exhibits that cover stories of Canadians in the war through present-day missions of all military and civilian service branches. For more information on the museum's Remembrance Day service, visit alberniproject.org.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Caila Holbrook is the manager of education and outreach with Project Watershed - an organization focusing on the protection and restoration of local watersheds and sensitive habitats One of their largest and perhaps most eye-catching projects is Kus-Kus-Sum on Comox Road, near the 17th StreetBridge where once Field’s Sawmill stood. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vince Ditrich spent 30 years as the drummer and later manager - of the hugely successful band Spirit of the West. After a life of music on the road, Ditrich turned to writing, and in 2021 he released the first of three novels entitled the Liquor Vicar. The lead character Tony Vicar is from Tyee Lagoon, a fictional Vancouver Island town. “He's a failed musician, he always had dreams of great to grandeur, but he was not able to achieve anything. He just wasn't sufficiently talented and he always held the dream," said Ditrich. “So many of the guys I've known through the years, they still have the same hairstyle they had when they were in Grade 11. Same pants, hearts of gold and wonderful guys but they just can't let go of that." The second book, The Vicar’s Knickers, is named after the pub that Tony Vicar has opened and is home to an interesting and colourful cast of characters. The author recently signed an agreement with Sugar Skull Films and together the two are actively pursuing a broadcaster for a television series for Tony Vicar and his cast of characters. Ditrich has not retired from the music biz completely. On this edition of Today in BC, he offers listeners of the podcast a track that he recently produced for Travis Matthews, son of Gordie Matthews, guitarist for k.d. Lang and Ian Tyson. It’s an original song, entitled 'Diamonds’. If you have suggestions or comments, send a voice message to podcast@blackpress.ca you may be part of our audio podcast mailbag segment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From books to thermal cameras and everything in between, libraries across the Comox Valley and Vancouver Island truly do have something for everyone, however, not everyone may know all that is inside. Joining us  are Comox Valley librarians Allison Trumble and Kris Ward, along with David Carson, spokesperson for Vancouver Island Regional Library to talk about the future of what libraries could be, as the organization is embarking on a new strategic plan. Valley community engagement sessions for the plan include:Community Engagement Session: Cumberland October 12 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm Community Engagement Session: Union Bay October 14 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pmCommunity Engagement Session: Courtenay October 17 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pmCommunity Engagement Session: Hornby Island October 18 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the next few weeks on Off The Page, we are doing something a little bit different from our usual format. With the upcoming municipal election on Oct. 15, we wanted to take a look at what you - our listeners and readers of the Comox Valley Record have to say, particularly on what you care about in this election. What is important to you? Are you planning on voting? Why or why not?  With the goal of finding out these answers, we’ve gathered different groups of people together to ask what’s on their minds as they prepare to cast their vote. In this episode, we’re looking at a student perspective while talking with Carissa Wilson, North Island Students’ Union executive director.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the next few weeks on Off The Page, we are doing something different from our usual format. With the upcoming municipal election on Oct. 15, we wanted to look at what you - our listeners and readers of the Comox Valley Record have to say, particularly on what you care about in this election. With the goal of finding out these answers, we’ve gathered different groups of people together to ask what’s on their minds as they prepare to cast their votes. In this episode, we’re talking with two business leaders - Robert Mulrooney and Tracey Clarke. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the next few weeks on Off The Page, we are doing something a little bit different from our usual format. With the upcoming municipal election on Oct. 15, we wanted to take a look at what you - our listeners and readers of the Comox Valley Record have to say, particularly on what you care about in this election. With the goal of finding out these answers, we’ve gathered different groups of people together to ask what’s on their minds as they prepare to cast their vote. In this episode, we’re talking with two seniors - Betty Donaldson and Tony Reynolds. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A member of the Gitxsan First Nation, Cindy Blackstock is an advocate who spent years building better protections for Indigenous children and their families through compensation for past discrimination. She is the executive direction of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada and is also a professor for the School of Social Work at McGill University.  On Oct. 12 at the Sid Williams Theatre in Courtenay, Blackstock will be honoured at the Campagnolo Dinner. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michael Yellowlees is our guest on the latest edition of Today in BC with Peter McCully. In 2021, the musician left Tofino, B.C., walking to Cape Spear in Newfoundland with his Alaskan Husky dog, Luna. Yellowlees, from Scotland, raised $80,000 for a 'Trees for Life' charity in Scotland and raised attention to the effects of climate change in his home country. The journey wore through five pairs of boots and two kilts and Yellowlees says they faced all types of weather conditions during the nine-month trip. “We were caught in snowstorms as we crossed the Rockies, walking over the Paulson pass and the snow is coming in sideways," he said. "When you are actually in that situation and the wind's blowing, the rain's falling down, the snow's coming sideways, it actually becomes exhilarating.”The musician is retracing his steps from the 2021 journey this summer in part, as a musical project. “It’s a way for us to relive the journey of last year and reconnect with all the friends that we've made throughout Canada," he said. "This is very much a musical project, so we're going try and collaborate with as many musicians throughout Canada as we can and raise awareness around what's going on in Canada, around climate change.” Funds raised on Yellowlee’s 2022 journey will be donated to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. Yellowlees has been working on an album of songs and invites musicians across the country to be involved. “We can either collaborate together, get together and play a song together," he said. "There's a whole mix of songs. But really the message for the album is to join the fight, is to stand up. One of the songs we're writing is ‘We've gotta wake up and start a Revolution’. I think that's really the message we have to do. This is such an important cause.” Listeners are invited to contact Michael Yellowlees through his Facebook page, 'Michael and Lena, a Rewilding Journey.' If you have suggestions or comments, send a voice message to podcast@blackpress.ca you may be part of our audio podcast mailbag segment.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Jim Pattison Group has grown over the years to now employ more than 51,000 people. It started more than 60 years ago with a three-pump gas station and a two-car showroom. On the latest edition of Today in BC, Jim Pattison explains he worked hard as an entrepreneurial teenager. “Before high school, I used to sell garden seeds door-to-door in the springtime and so then I got into selling magazine subscriptions for the Saturday Evening Post and the Ladies Home Journal," he said. "Then after that, I got a job working for the Vancouver Province, after school on the late edition.” With a $40,000 loan from the Royal Bank, Pattison was able to open a new Pontiac dealership, his first in 1961. As his businesses flourished, Pattison was involved in a wide variety of investments, including two hockey teams in the fledgling World Hockey Association, the Vancouver Blazers and the Calgary Cowboys. The league began in 1972 and folded in 1979. “I think it failed because the teams really didn't have financial sound owners," said Pattison. "They couldn't last. The NHL was THE league and this was the junior league. They didn't get the attendance and of course, to get the players, you had to have a lot of money. Other than the folks in Toronto they had money behind them, but the rest of us didn't have much money.” Pattison Group has 30 operating divisions, including the auto, grocery, media and entertainment industries. Pattison says that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost everything. “The whole distribution system and supply for manufacturing all over the country has some degree of trouble and it is a very big issue," he said. "We're gaining ground as far as supply is concerned, but the number one issue today is the supply to factories and then the factories to the retailers. Some industries are better than others, but the whole industry today, that at least the things we're involved in, the trouble is supply - everything is gaining ground, but overall we still are not back to normal in most businesses.” When asked about whether he thinks about retiring, the 92-year-old replied: “I have never thought about it. Not once. If you like what you do, why would you quit?” If you have suggestions or comments, send a voice message to podcast@blackpress.ca you may be part of our audio podcast mailbag segment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Darrell Fox has been working with the Terry Fox Foundation Research Institute for more than 40 years in various capacities and says they are Seeing more proposals coming forward than ever before. "So, every day is a great day to be associated and linked to Terry's legacy," he said. When asked on this encore edition of Today in BC what impact and progress the more than $800 million raised since 1980 has had, Fox said: “If Terry were diagnosed today, not only is there a really good chance that he would survive, but there's also the possibility that he wouldn't have lost his leg to cancer." Darrell accompanied his brother on the road for the Marathon of Hope, 42 years ago. “He was he was average in every way," said Darrell. "He was an average student. He was an average athlete. But look what he accomplished." Darrell Fox expects more than 9,000 schools to take part in the various 2022 Terry Fox fundraisers, and expects more than 10,000 events to be held this year. More than 50,000 pieces of memorabilia from the Marathon of Hope are currently in storage. “I think we'd very much like to maybe have a few artifacts on display," said Fox. "But if we could share the artifacts in a virtual way, that is a way as well. So there would be a need in terms of resources." If you have suggestions or comments, send a voice message to podcast@blackpress.ca you may be part of our audio podcast mailbag segment.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this edition of Today in BC, host Peter McCully chats with longtime actor and voice actor Jan Rabson, who has worked on thousands of commercials, films, TV shows, animated films, series and video games and who makes his home on Salt Spring Island. Rabson was a cast member of 'The Carson Mighty Players', part of The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, and was a working actor, appearing in television commercials and creating and mimicking voices for animation and film. Mel Blanc, the man of a thousand voices who created more than 400 cartoon characters alone, helped Rabson when he was starting out in Los Angeles by connecting him with an agent.  "I loved everything about his voice. I loved just even talking to him," said Rabson."When you talked to him, you heard a little bit of Bugs Bunny. He was like a second father to me, frankly. I used to speak to him easily once or twice a month. I loved him and he was a great guy.” As a working actor, Rabson appeared in episodic television shows like Knight Rider with David Hasslehoff.  “We had this scene where I come at him and he's supposed to grab me by my shirt, he grabs me by my chest hairs, and he's swinging me around - the pain on my face is so beyond real," said Rabson. When asked about working on Fatal Attraction Rabson tells the story of a Canadian version and a U.S. version of the movie, both of which he supplied voiceovers for. In his early days of working in Los Angeles Rabson worked in improv.  “I got to work with Robin (Williams) before Robin became a big star," said Rabson. "He was doing standup with a group called Off the Wall in Los Angeles. And asked us all to come down to the comedy store on Sunset Boulevard because he needed audience there. He was auditioning for a show called Mork and Mindy, so we all went down to watch him and help him out. And he was fantastic as usual. And obviously the rest is history. But I used to work with him, do some improv with him and doing the improv with Robin was, you were basically a prop.” Rabson shares characters he has created including Mulia Mild, the female chef created for My Little Pony. If you have suggestions or comments, send a voice message to podcast@blackpress.ca you may be part of our audio podcast mailbag segment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this encore presentation of Today in BC, Peter Kent of Qualicum Beach talks about being a stunt double for Arnold Schwarzenegger for 15 years. As you can imagine, he was tossed around, run over, and beat up - a lot. He talks with Host Peter McCully about his adventures as a stunt man, life with Arnold, and life after Arnold.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this encore presentation of 'Today in BC', host Peter McCully chats with Black Press columnist Bruce Cameron about going green, the popularity of electric vehicles and the latest on the Ballard fuel cell. “I think just the price of gasoline going up will drive a lot of people to really take a closer look at shifting to an electric vehicle, and I think people are realizing that with the targets that are set, it's a matter of time," he said. "It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when people shift over.” Todd Maliteare of Canadian Electric Vehicles has been building smaller electric trucks, (MightETruck) on Vancouver Island since 1995 for various industries and is currently working on a medium-duty electric truck. “The pandemic came along and shut down municipal budgets for a while," he said. "So our sales were reduced in that area and we focused back to our roots which is gas to electric vehicle conversion. We're seeing a lot of a renewed interest lately for obvious reasons, in those types of conversions.” Dr. David Suzuki and his wife Tara Cullis recently drove from Vancouver to Toronto in an electric car, their 'low-carbon adventure' was also an opportunity to stop and view several wind and solar power projects. “Change is happening, but it's way too late. We need this being done on a massive scale,” said Suzuki. Asked about the cost of electricity for the road trip, he noted: “I think the peak cost was less than $20 and we were charging three times a day. On average, I would say it's around eight to $10 per charge." :Most of the charges that we used were at PetroCan stations," said Suzuki. "I found it really humorous to watch these cars pulling up, their bills were over $100 and we were getting $8 and away we would go." If you have suggestions or comments, send a voice message to podcast@blackpress.ca you may be part of our audio podcast mailbag segment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this encore presentation of Today in BC, host Peter McCully chats with provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, who was asked what training she would have received in the Canadian Armed Forces that would serve her well in her current role. “I think there were a lot of things you go through when you spend time in the military with the training," she said. "Whether it's the basic training and then the medical training and then the work that we do. I think about it in terms of leadership in particular, understanding how to organize, how to make decisions in a crisis, having experience and having to do that.” Henry worked in Toronto and was the operational head on the response to the SARS outbreak as well as the Ebola outbreak overseas in Uganda. Those experiences made her uneasy when word started to come out of China about what was spreading there. “I was one of the medical officers of health at the City of Toronto working with Toronto Public Health when SARS happened in 2003," she said. "I think back a lot to late 2019, early 2020. What we were hearing was so similar to what we were hearing in late 2002.” Henry commented on the current conditions surrounding COVID-19. “We know this virus isn't finished with us yet and until we're in a good place around the globe, there's still possibilities that it's going to come back with a vengeance," she said. "It's likely to come back in the fall and part of what I'm doing right now, and my team's doing, is looking at is what does that mean? What are the possible scenarios we could be faced with?” McCully wondered if Henry was able to relax and get away and not think about the job? “Not yet, but it's in my future, it has been a long time," she said. "We have COVID as we've also had of course worsening of the toxic drug crisis. But I am planning on getting away, hopefully within the next few weeks, as long as everything stays as calm as it is right now. I think my challenge will be not thinking about the job and really trying to disconnect for a while.” A mailbag question from a Today in BC Podcast listener asked what could be done about the shortage of family doctors. Henry said this question was not in her area of having a lot of influence, but noted: “I believe we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to change the system." "This is not unique to B.C. or to Canada," she said. "I think around the globe, we're seeing stretched health care resources. During this pandemic, we've also made some big leaps ahead. Things like virtual care, it's expanded people's ability in more remote communities to get access to care. But we also know that you can't only see people remotely. We need to have that interaction in a safe space as well.”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ronna-Rae Leonard is the MLA for Courtenay-Comox since 2017.   Despite her lengthy political career, Ronna-Rae isn’t here today to talk politics - rather - something more personal: her hair and the loss of it due to alopecia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gregory Arkos is a professor in the department of physics, engineering and astronomy at Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo.  He is passionate about astronomy and helping students as they learn about the world and the larger universe. He’s here today to talk about the night sky, particularly this summer - and any particular astronomical events Island should keep an eye out for.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The winner of the annual Comox Valley Nature Society 'Tree of the Year' has been chosen by public vote. Kerri Scott is with Comox Valley Nature and the organization recently announced its Tree of the Year - an annual contest highlighting trees in the Comox Valley, now in its fifth year. Kerri is here to talk about this year’s winning tree - one that is more than 400 years old.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Irene Bayati is a Grade 11 student in the Comox Valley and was recently crowned as a finalist in the provincial qualifiers of the Miss Teenage Canada pageant. Despite the opportunity to head to nationals in August with the title of Miss Teenage Vancouver Island, Irene chose not to advance. She is here to talk about her take on pageantry today, her platform of mental health advocacy for youth and children and her vision of the community.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.