Fall Clean-Up
Autumn is a great time to clean up a couple of public areas that we postponed due to Covid. Let’s pitch in to remove the boat debris by the lakeshore at the old mill access area, plus clean up the public access at Adelina. We’ll meet at 9:30, Saturday, October 1 at the old mill site entrance, then divide and conquer. The YCA has funds to cover disposal fees and gas for hauling debris to Meade Creek.
Halloween, Youbou-Style
Finally, a face mask we want to wear—a spooky Halloween mask! Yes, Halloween is returning to Youbou hall with a haunted house, costume contest, ghoul-fish pond, and fireworks, all on Monday, October 31.
Haunted Hall: In addition to the haunted house, the Youbou Community Association will again be offering fishing opportunities at the magical ghoul pond, where everyone gets a bite!
Swordfern Trick-or-Treat: For those wishing to avoid the traffic of Youbou highway, trick-or-treating is again happening all along Swordfern Way from 5:30 to 7:00 pm. Thanks to the Swordfern homeowners for creating a safe, fun, and delightfully spooky event.
Fireworks: Not matter where you find your treats, be sure to be back at the Yount School field for the fireworks at 7:30 pm, courtesy of our own Youbou Volunteer Fire Department, with thanks to the new owners of the Yount school for letting this community tradition continue. It promises to be a blast!
Haunted Hall Decorating
The Halloween decorating committee can use your help in the weeks before the big day. We’re hoping to start on October 3, but please check out our facebook posts on the Youbou Community Association page to find out when we’re starting. The plan is to work Mondays and Wednesdays from 10 to 1 and Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 to noon. Fridays can be longer days. We’d love to have you join us, no talent required, just on-the-job training.
Witches Paddle
Float into the Halloween spirit by joining in with the Witches Paddle. Convene at Arbutus Park on Sunday, October 30 at 9 am. Paddles will be our broomsticks as we set forth from the beach and paddle around the protected bay and beyond. In addition to witches hats, please wear your lifejacket.
Horseshoe Champ
Congratulations to Youbou’s own Jerry Melissa, who won the Elders division at the Western Canada Classic horseshoe competition this summer, then took fourth at the Canadian Championships in Alberta. At 80 years of age, Jerry found himself competing against players who were a decade or more younger than him, but he kept his cool to finish with a 60% ringer percentage. You can find Jerry most days practicing his pitching at the horseshoe pit in Little League Park. Stop by to congratulate him.
New Year’s Eve Party
Welcome 2023 in traditional Youbou style by attending the big New Year’s Eve party at Youbou Hall. The Joints aka Eagle Eyes is returning to play for the hometown crowd. Yes, there will be balloons, noise-makers, pre-midnight buffet, and all the trimmings. Tickets (still $40 each) will go on sale in early November at your favourite Youbou businesses and Ed’s Coffeehouse in Lake Cowichan, plus YCA Board members will be selling tickets as well.
Fire Department Applause
Our volunteer firefighters are there when we need them and we’re grateful for their service. When you see them at the Halloween fireworks, be sure to say thanks, but from a safe distance, of course.
Chief Orest Smycniuk, Deputy Chief Cam Hamilton, Captain Grant Daly, Captain Faron Harvey, Captain Todd Vaughan, Lieutenant Bill Cheal, Lieutenant Stu McKee, Lieutenant Dave Sutfin, Lieutenant Ed Vanherwaarden, Jillian Bradley, Jarret Hambley, Lori LaFave, Richard Madill, Kim Smycniuk, Junior Firefighter Elijah Vaughan, Emily Vaughan, Justin Vaughan, and Madison Vaughan.
Area I Director Candidates
Four candidates are running to serve as CVRD Area I Director, so be sure to vote for your choice on October 15 at Youbou Hall. (There is early voting available if you’re busy that day). Below, in alphabetical order, the candidates tell us about themselves and their top three priorities.
Karen Deck: I moved to Youbou in 2017 after a career teaching children with extra needs, where I learned a lot about unconditional love, hope, and determination. Not long after, I made the commitment to serve the residents of Youbou and Meade Creek when plans were announced to log the forest above our community. I will never forget those who spoke so passionately about the risk of damaging slides, habitat destruction and the protection of watersheds. It wasn’t just about how it would affect them personally: people cared about the bigger picture, about the environment and wider community. As president of Save Our Holmes, I brought people together to successfully stop logging on the steep hills above town in order to protect our watersheds, preserve fish and wildlife and prevent dangerous slides. We can keep making a difference at the local level: we can create systems to keep food waste out of landfills, make more walkable communities, make public transportation more convenient, address the speed and noise of traffic going through our community, and promote the use of clean electricity to heat and cool new buildings. I believe in openness, neighbourliness, and community. If elected, I will listen to your concerns, communicate openly and consistently through in-person meetings, mailouts and digitally, and work tirelessly to make sure your voice is heard at the CVRD. What are the most important issues for you in this election? Message me at info@karendeck.ca and let’s talk about the future of this community.
Klaus Kuhn: I was born in Germany and immigrated to Canada in 1976. My career involved 31 years of banking, finance and investment plus 13 years in the financial planning business. I studied Urban Land Economics at UBC. I’ve lived in Youbou for 22 years and have served as Area I Director for 11 years. I’ve also been a member and chair of the Area I A.P.C. for 5 years. I was an initiator of the Cowichan Lake and River Stewardship Society and helped start the Youbou Community Association. My priority is to make Area I a livable area, which means to have residents of all ages, to have successful businesses, to have well looked after recreational facilities, parks and trails. I encourage business to locate here—we need jobs, especially for young people. I will continue to work to strengthen our partnership with Mosaic to open forestry lands for recreational use. Also, I will work towards Bald Mountain Park to become a Regional Park. This will reduce our costs of maintaining the park and trail system. The CVRD should not be involved with the upgrade of the weir. I am against local tax payers having to fill the gap that might develop because of a shortfall in funds. Please, vote in favour of the referendum on Regional Recreation. I spearheaded the idea of user-pay funding. If this passes, there will be a substantial reduction of the tax share to be paid by Area I property owners towards the Cowichan Lake Arena.
Max Russell: The past 40 years I have worked in the private sector in business administration, accounting, sales, management, fiscal planning and budgeting. I believe these attributes I would bring to the CVRD Board table as Area I Director would assist in better representing the diverse Area I lifestyles. My wife Gail and I have owned property and lived in the Meades Creek area since 2008. Due to both our business management and accounting backgrounds, we created GMR Accounting & Business Services, providing accounting and business consulting services to many businesses and individuals, both locally in the Cowichan Lake area and throughout BC. In addition, a portion of our property operates as a second business, Lake Cow Storage, providing storage to locals and seasonal property owners. Both businesses are doing well, which allows us the ability to support many local community initiatives. Both Gail and I have a difficult time hearing of a need in our community for an organised fundraiser for a family in need, a drive by a private respected citizen for pajamas or toiletries, Christmas gifts for kids in a remote community, or organizing a fundraising promotion for the Cowichan Lake Food Bank, the Kinsmen with a Lobster Sale to help with funding towards the Duck Pond Park or working towards an Emergency Shelter for the Youbou Community. Issues I feel are of importance to residents of CVRD Area I are:
• Property Taxes
• Financial Management
• Parks & Recreation
John Rudzik: I would like to acknowledge and thank the Ts’uubaa-asatx speaking nation (formerly known as Lake Cowichan First Nation) who lived around the shores of Lake Cowichan for millennia, prior to the arrival of Euro-Canadians. The English translation of the name Ts’uubaa-asatx is “People of the Lake.”
My name is John Rudzik, and I’m running for the Cowichan Valley Regional District’s seat for Youbou/Meade Creek Electoral Area I, in October’s municipal election. I moved to Youbou in June of 1995, next year will be 28 years. You have seen me working at many locations in the Valley, such as Canadian Tire 17 years, Duncan Meadows Golf Course, Country Grocer and currently at Home Hardware in Lake Cowichan.
I have lived in Youbou, long before the Elk moved into town. A time when Youbou residents had beautiful gardens, with rose bushes, hydrangeas, marigolds and many more plants. It was a sight to be behold.
With this in mind, my 1st priority is safety along the road of Youbou. The 2nd priority is replacing the old Meade Creek bridge, and my 3rd priority is future development, like having a seasonal water park and a year-round hotel, both by the gravel pit area. I look forward to serving the Youbou/Meade Creek Area I constituents and addressing any concerns going forward.
Recreation Referendum
Also on the ballot on October 15 will be a referendum concerning how CVRD funds recreation facilities. In the past, recreation centres, such as the Cowichan Lake Sports Arena, have been funded from property taxes based on assessment values. This has meant that Areas with high property taxes, such as Area I, have paid proportionately more for recreation facilities, while perhaps not using the facilities as much as other areas do. The referendum proposes to change that funding model. The new system will be based on usage, rather than assessment values. According to Area I Director Klaus Kuhn, who initiated the proposal, voting yes for this referendum will mean less of Area I property taxes will be subsidizing facilities such as the Cowichan Lake Sports Arena in the future. If the referendum passes, the savings will be phased in over a period of several years.
Welcome New YCA Board Members
We’ve elected another two new board members, so the Youbou Community Association board of directors is back to 11 members, ready to roll up our sleeves as we get ready for fall. We welcomed Monica Ash and Joelle Belanger to the board at our September meeting. Check out the full list of board members on the front page.
Are You a YCA Member?
The Youbou Community Association is involved in helping community activities happen, such as the monthly newsletter, crab fest, holiday decorating, and other events throughout the year. While we love our facebook friends, an official family lifetime membership in the organization is just $10 and involves filling out a form. It is a key to knowing what’s going on around Youbou as well as giving you a vote at our annual meetings. We’ll email you our colourful community newsletter every month. To join, reach out to cherylmtutor@gmail.com
Got News?
If you’d like to contribute news for the newsletter about a public event happening (or not happening) in or around Youbou and Area I, please send particulars about date, time and place to julia@raedwulf.org, by the 20th of the month, please. You can also check our web site at youbouyca.com and our Youbou Community Association facebook page for the latest information.
Dates
Saturday, October 1: Fall Clean-Up, 9:30, Old Sawmill Access
Saturday, October 15: Voting day, Youbou Hall
Sunday, October 30: Witches Paddle, 9 am, Arbutus Park
Monday, October 31: Haunted House and Fireworks, Youbou Hall
Your YCA Board
Chair: Julia Martinusen
Secretary: Randall Wilson
Treasurer: Steve Watt
Social: Eva Fearon
Garry Fearon
Membership: Cheryl Morgan
At large:
Monica Ash
Joelle Belanger
Sandra McAfee
Debbie Smith
Joe Tatham