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6 • The Columbia Valley Pioneer November 30, 2012 perspective By Greg Amos The spirit of giving it’s easy to get lost in all the hype and speculation surrounding last week’s announcement about the Jumbo Glacier municipality. Buried beneath the headlines was another major news story for the valley: one canal Flats man’s posthumous donation of more than $2 million to the local community foundation. That’s a staggering amount for one person to leave behind for the benefit of their community. Former logger, forester, prospector and investor Arnold ellis deserves a lot of thanks — through his contribution and the scholarship fund in his name, many valley high school graduates will get a head start on some great post-secondary programs running the gamut from academics to trades. i’m impressed by men like ellis, who define what humility is all about. it’s not about being seen to make the big donation; it’s about actually helping build the community, whether you are recognized for it or not. Then there are those like syd Belzberg, a prominent businessman and owner of many vancouver-area Budget car rental franchises. While he’s an award-winning philanthropist, recent news suggests that his wealth is partly a result of charging exorbitant repair fees for minor damage on rental vehicles. That’s obviously not where philanthropy should come from. There are many famous philanthropists who’ve succeeded in business and are now focused on how to put the wealth to good use. Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are two good examples: in 2006, Mr. Buffett agreed to the biggest donation ever, promising the bulk of his fortune (more than $30 billion) to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation aimed at enhancing healthcare and reducing poverty. Nothing wrong with that, but in a way, i’m more impressed by Mr. ellis’ work. His gift alone now makes up more than 70 per cent of the funds the columbia valley community Foundation has to work with, and that’s an endowment that’s guaranteed to benefit the valley for a long time to come. The Columbia Valley pioneer is independently owned and operated, published weekly by Misko Publishing Limited Partnership, Robert W. Doull, President. Box 868, #8, 1008 - 8 th Ave., Invermere, BC V0A 1K0 Phone: 250-341-6299 • Fax: 250-341-6229 Email: info@cv-pioneer.com www.columbiavalleypioneer.com Rose-Marie Regitnig Publisher Historical Historical Lens Lens Donor’s generosity will be remembered Dear Editor: Celebrating the David Thompson Memorial Fort, 1922 In this image, dated 1922, nine local men raise the paddles of their war canoe in salute as part of the pageant of the official opening of the David Thompson Memorial Fort on Lake Windermere. Photo (A997) courtesy of the Windermere District Historical Society. I had a conversation the other day with Emile Morin, a director with the Columbia Valley Community Foundation. Emile is currently a resident of Calgary, but lived in Canal Flats for 12 years. The subject of our conversation was the Arnold Ellis Scholarship Fund, which both local papers ran a story on recently. I have been working in connection with public schools since 1985, and I have seen many young people, full of promise, cross the graduation stage. I have very much admired, in all the communities I have worked, the generosity of friends, families, businesses and organizations that seem to go out of their way to ensure that our youth pursuing further opportunity Greg Amos Editor Kate Irwin Reporter/ Special Publications Editor Kristian Rasmussen Reporter have the help they need to get started. The students in the Columbia Valley have traditionally had access to over $50,000 of assistance because of this generosity. Now, because of the expanded endowment fund created from Mr. Ellis’ estate, the opportunities for assistance for local youth to pursue higher education will be greatly enhanced. Mr. Ellis leaves an incredible legacy to our communities, and on behalf of the Board of Education and staff of School District 6, we wish to express our gratitude for this and also to the Community Foundation for its work in administering the fund. This is great news for the students and families of the valley. Paul Carriere, Superintendent School District No. 6 (Rocky Mountain) Dean Midyette Advertising Sales Angela Krebs Advertising Sales Emily Rawbon Graphic Design Amanda Diakiw Office Administrator/ Classified Sales
November 30, 2012 The Columbia Valley Pioneer • 7 Dear Editor: LETTERS The evolution of a dream The opportunity to design the best ski resort in North America is a dream project that I was hoping would crown my professional career when I started it, more than twenty years ago. It was the best project I was ever given. It also became a much more challenging job than I and many other people ever anticipated, taking a very long time, with controversies that seemed to go beyond reasonable proportions, but I feel that with the final approval, the goal has been achieved. We will be able to bring people to the highest point in Canada to ski year round and to comfortably look at a mountain scenery that anywhere else would only be available by helicopter. This will match and surpass the Eagle’s Eye restaurant that has become so popular near Golden, where I was able to create a similar project (Kicking Horse Mountain Resort) on a smaller mountain in a much shorter time. Like in that project (and for that matter, like in the example of Blackcomb after Whistler was created), we know that the success of providing access to Glacier Dome and to Jumbo Mountain will not take anything away from the success of the other destinations. I am pleased that the design team is still focused on the project and ready to bring it to the construction stage. The creation of the Jumbo Glacier Mountain Resort Municipality completes the process started in 1991, in accordance with the land use designation of the East Kootenay Commission on Resources and Environment (CORE) table endorsed by the province in 1995 and by the East Kootenay Regional District by unanimous vote and request in 1996. The municipality allows us to move forward according to the mandate of the Environmental Assessment certificate (2004) and on the basis of the approved Master Plan (2007). We have been incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to develop a great relationship with the Shuswap Band of Invermere and to move forward on the basis of a trend setting Impact Management and Benefits Agreement. I was fortunate also to meet Grant Costello, the visionary proponent of Farnham Glacier skiing, who gave us incredible support in the local community. To him and to all those who helped bring the project to this point, I wish to convey my deepest feelings of gratitude. To those who disagreed, I wish to say that I hope we can persuade them with facts that their fears were not necessary, and that at some point we will agree that this is a very good project. We look with confidence at the cooperation with Panorama Mountain Village as a vital step for this project to become, with local support, the iconic destination for North American skiers, skiing year round, in British Columbia. Oberto Oberti Oberti Resort Design, Vancouver We want to hear from you Email your letters to info@cv-pioneer. com or visit our website at www.columbiavalleypioneer.com. Mail your letters to Box 868, Invermere, V0A 1K0, or drop them in at 1008-8th Avenue. Letters to the editor should be sent only to The Pioneer, and not to other publications. We do not publish open letters or third-party letters. Letters for publication should be no longer than 400 words, and must include the writer’s address and phone numbers. No attachments, please. Letters continued on page 8 . . . Letters may be shortened for space requirements. We reserve the right to edit for space, clarity, civility and accuracy. Please ensure that the facts cited in your letter are accurate. You are entitled to your own heartfelt opinion, but not to your own facts. Errors of fact mean either that we can’t run your letter or that we will have to run it with an accompanying correction. Opinions expressed are those of the “Save the deer for the hunters” BEFORE AFTER Drive safe this Holiday Season ’Tis the season and our elves have been busy! Chocolate Christmas Trees Custom Gourmet Food Hampers Mincemeat Tarts • Christmas Cake (gluten free goodies too!) Gift Certifcates Take Me Home Tonight Christmas Dinner New Seasonal Items in our Product Line hours: Closed Mon. Tue. & Wed. Open Thu. - Fri. 11am - 8pm Sat. & Sun. 9am-8pm ADVANCED FACIALS 15% off with prepaid series of 3 treatments to be completed prior to December 15, 2012. 3 x 60 minute Diamond Radiance Facials Diamond microdermabrasion to even out your skin tone and texture, hydrate and reduce ne lines. “Quality Guaranteed” LBO AUTOBODY Complete Restoration & Auto Body Repair Light up someone’s Christmas with Headlight Restoration. (Price includes Kit, Labour and taxes) Quality Guaranteed • Call or visit today! #35 - 109 Industrial RD #2, Invermere • 250-409-4385 Fairmont Hot Springs’ very own! Join us for a Festive Feast Kitchen Party Thursday, December 13, 6:30pm Space is limited so call early to book your seat! Pancetta wrapped sausages A little nosh for when you arrive Roasted Butternut Squash Soup Stilton Salad Mixed greens with pomegranate, stilton cheese and walnuts finished with a honey dressing Traditional Roast Turkey & Ham With brussel sprouts, wood oven roasted maple parsnips, chestnut stuffing & roast potato, served with traditional British bread sauce (it’s a type of gravy) & cranberry vodka sauce Christmas Pudding with Brandy Butter Choice of Coffee or Tea per person + tax & grat $3695 3 x 75 minute Advanced Anti-Aging Facials Diamond microdermabrasion as well as the lightening and healing e ects of cold laser. Book now at the following locations: Fusion Wellness Spa 250-341-3511 Fusion at Copper Point Resort 250-341-3522 Gift Certifi cates Now Available $ 89 99 writer, not The Pioneer. Unit 8, 5019 Fairmont Resort Road | 250.345.0008 | www.fromscratchfood.com
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