Canada’s nation house in Whistler welcomes 1500 people for its latest open house

Whistler Canada Olympic House (WCOH) was bustling Saturday as it opened to the community for a hearty pancake breakfast and a morning of entertainment and sustainability education.

“I’m very happy with the turnout. We’ve had 800 people through the door in the first hour,” said Julie Morris from Whistler Canada Olympic House. “The feedback we are getting is all positive.”

Activities included a visit from Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) spokesbeaver Woody, live entertainment from North Vancouver children’s singers Bobs and Lolo, a sustainability talk from the Whistler Centre for Sustainability, and a book reading from Whistler author Sarah Leach. Leach is the author of Mountain Machines, a children’s counting book.

About 100 young fans were on hand for the morning’s events which included singing, dancing, and making cow bells out of recycled tin cans. “My favourite song is the one about the jellyfish,” said Whistler resident Jaden Richer, 5, and newfound fan of Bobs and Lolo.

Cheeying Ho, Executive Director of the Whistler Centre for Sustainability, was on hand to talk about the Centre’s role in helping communities create their own sustainability plans and to showcase the Centre’s new video, available at www.whistlercentre.ca

By the end of the morning WCOH saw over 1500 people attend its third open house of the Games. The next community pancake breakfast will take place Saturday, February 27, from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

WCOH serves as a meeting and celebration space for Canadian Olympic athletes and their family and friends. It is also a place to showcase Whistler, British Columbia and Canada, host international guests, and hold events. Outside of community events, access is by accreditation or invitation. WCOH is a partnership between the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Resort Municipality of Whistler, the Province of British Columbia, and the Government of Canada.

Heather Paul

Whistler torch bearer is a champion of local arts

Whistler’s Heather Paul is a long-time resident who helped theatre find a home in the resort community. Paul was also one of Whistler’s community torchbearers and she ran in pink John Fluevog boots – the same ones she wore to her wedding.

Paul was born and raised in Ottawa but now calls Whistler home. Her story is one told by many residents of Whistler. She arrived 10 years ago intending to stay for one season, and she never left.

Instead Paul started a theatre company, bringing the arts to a mountain town known more for skiing and snowboarding than culture. Paul was part of the Whistler’s arts and culture revolution.

“Whistler is the only community I know of where someone has an idea like starting a theatre company and the whole place rallies around you,” Paul said. “Ideas come to light within weeks in this place.”

Whether it’s mentoring high school acting students or singing at the top of her lungs, Heather Paul’s passion is infectious.

“Whistler residents are extremely supportive of the arts in their town and something that’s done for locals sells out every time.”

Paul is also a computer systems genius and works in the IT Department for the Resort Municipality of Whistler. She openly professes a love for computer systems, reading code and the layers and depth of ones and zeros found in the computing world.

Watch for Paul’s pink boots and red mittens around Whistler. If you listen closely, you might even catch her singing.

Promoting conservation with Woody the spokesbeaver by Naomi Devine

I like riding the bus. I know, this makes me an anomaly, but I do it in the hope that it will make a small positive impact on our community’s effort to promote sustainability and fight climate change.
One of the spin-off benefits is that you have interactions that just aren’t possible when driving alone in your car.

Janice Tedstone, VANOC volunteer and part-time Whistler resident, had one such experience.

“I was on the bus, chatting with people as I usually do, and I heard this woman say that a beaver was her roommate,” said Tedstone. “She invited me to come meet the beaver at the community pancake breakfast, and I knew I had to.”

The beaver in question is the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s spokesbeaver, Woody (otherwise known as Woodrow). Woody was in Whistler Saturday to promote conservation and the next generation’s set of Hinterland Who’s Who segments.

Most Canadians my age grew up learning about Canada’s wildlife through 30-second vignettes called Hinterland Who’s Who. Most of these were produced in the 1970s, and they influenced the way a generation learned about Canada’s wild animals.

Tedstone’s transit adventures have not just involved spokesanimals – earlier in the Games she met Norwegian Bronze medal winning cross-country skier Petter Northug. “I felt like he was my adopted son when I saw him on the podium,” said Tedstone.

You never know what adventures await you while riding the bus.
 

A taste of the Sea to Sky region awaits your tastebuds at local eateries

You’ve heard the saying: “You are what you eat”. It’s true – so why not focus your efforts on putting the best of what this region has to offer into you?

Eating is the most impactful thing we do on a daily basis that connects our choices directly to the health of both our bodies and the environment. Eating local can provide multiple benefits to you and your community.

The 100-Mile Diet concept originated and was made popular here in British Columbia, taking the local food movement to a whole new level, and the Sea to Sky region offers some of the best local food choices out there.

Whistler is home to an impressive array of restaurants, and is home to a community of chefs and farmers who work together to bring fresh and seasonal ingredients to your plate.

This is all a good start – but we need to go further. Food is one of Whistler2020’s 17 strategy areas, and also one of the most popular, and local food is something that they work hard to promote. Through this task force, Whistler has formed a coordinated, collaborative regional effort to create stronger bonds between food producers, retailers, and eaters.

A menu of events and programs are tied to Whistler’s Food Strategy: the Slow Food Cycle in Pemberton, the Whistler Chef’s Challenge, the local Sunday Farmer’s Market, A Taste of BC at the peak of Whistler, Cornucopia’s annual four days of wine, food and tastings, Aboriginal flavours at the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre, 100-Mile Menus at selected restaurants, Feast in the Mountains, community greenhouses and the Green Table Network.

Next time you are out for a meal, ask what’s local on the menu; choose local produce at your grocery store; and remember that each time you eat, you can choose to help create a strong and sustainable food network.