The Early Childhood Development Committee (for children ages 0-6) and the Middle Childhood Development Committee (6-12) are looking for input for their upcoming Summer Activity Guide. Do you have an event or group you’d like to share?

Tucked away next to the escalators inside River Market, Great Wall Tea packs a lot of taste into a tiny space. While initially I was disappointed not to have a coffee shop open at the Quay, the silver lining is that this has encouraged me to expand my hot drink habits and try tea instead.

Many afternoons or weekends over the past 12 years living on the Quay, I have seen amazement on the faces of children and elderly people pointing out on the river as they share tales of the past with a very knowledgeable person at one very special point on the waterfront. The place is the Samson V and the person is Mark MacKenzie, the smart man who devotes himself to the care of this wonderful ship.

Permaculture is a fascinating field of gardening expertise. By trying to replicate the natural systems of a wild environment within the garden, permaculture hopes to reduce or eliminate the need to add water, fertilizer and chemicals. If you’re interested in learning more about this holistic approach to gardening, you might want to check out the New Westminster Community Gardening Society’s upcoming presentation “Permaculture Principles and their Applications in an Urban Environment” with Jodi Peters, this Saturday, February 19 at Mary Mount Garden (121 East Columbia St.).

My memory of growing up around Lord Kelvin school and Moody Park area in the ’50s was mostly of unrestricted roaming and fun, with groups of boys and girls from the post-war baby boom filling the neighbourhood houses. Younger kids would move through the back lanes, neighbourhood streets, over back fences and through yards and the neighbourhood streets in packs, older kids in groups of 4 or in pairs. This was all without supervision of course, at any age, but there was a curfew for children in the 50s.

Jarrah Hodge checks out the 65 Red Roses Benefit concert featuring Dan Mangan, Hannah Georgas, David Vertesi, and The Zolas.

Family Place has a great new location at FW Howay just east of McBride Boulevard off Cumberland. Check it out!

Yesterday I launched Tenth to the Fraser’s first readership survey, and although it hasn’t been up long we’ve gotten a great response already! I thought I’d share a few of the highlights of the early responses with you all.