British Columbia has the highest child poverty in Canada…again…or as usual?
British Columbia had the highest child poverty rate in Canada for the sixth year in a row in 2007, according to a child poverty report card released this week. The provincial report, released along with a national study, marks the 20th anniversary of the Canadian parliament’s unanimous vote to end child poverty by the year 2000.
“Both the federal and BC governments are guilty of ignoring the research evidence, the public desire for action and the proven solutions” in dealing with child and family poverty, the report card states. The result is that in future, society will experience rising costs in health care, criminal justice, and education services. (more…)
Scouts Canada’s chief commissioner has announced an ambitious action plan designed to grow the organization and change perceptions about Scouts Canada being a “traditional, old-fashioned organization.”
The Road to God Knows is an original graphic novel about hope, friendship, mental illness, schizophrenia, and a young teenage girl coping with her life and coming of age in a broken but loving family
Island singer-songwriters Bobbi Schram, Jerry Paquette, Island Hue, Brian Hazelbower, and Alyse Paquette have gathered their considerable talents for a special fundraising concert in Nanaimo this Friday, November 20th. The Benefits of Song will raise much-needed funds for the 7-10 Club, which offers hot breakfast to the needy on weekdays.
The Charter for Compassion is a cooperative effort to restore compassionate thinking and compassionate action to the centre of religious, moral and political life. The Charter was crafted by people from around the world and drafted by a multi-fath, multi-national council of thinkers and leaders. It seeks to make compassion a key word in public and private discourse—making it clear that any ideology that breeds hatred or contempt, whether religious or secular, has “failed the test of our time”. [source: 
The City of Nanaimo has proclaimed November 16 to 21, 2009 as “Nanaimo Sexual Abuse Awareness Week.” Sexual Abuse Resource Committee (SARC) spokesperson Jacqueline Gautier said, “The issue of child sexual abuse is a very serious one that tremendously impacts our community; it crosses all boundaries of race, creed, gender and socio-economics.” A community forum will be held Wednesday November 18, 2009 at Vancouver Island University’s Nanaimo campus. 