Carol-Ann Leidoff, School District #83 's Director of Instruction (Inclusive Education) and Jeff Abbott, Principal of Grindrod Elementary School updated us on our Rotary lunch program.  Carol Ann explained how food insecurity is a huge problem in the district, and how the lunch program goes a long way to alleviate the insecurity and improve the children's behaviour and learning capabilities.  She also noted that the need has grown tremendously over the years.  

 

Our speaker, Brett Barnard of Mt. Ida Nursery gave a very informative  talk  on the history, structure and operation of this company.  He described how silviculture and the harvesting industry work. His company starts seeds in the spring and grows the seedlings over the summer. In the fall they are  harvested, packaged, and frozen over the winter. In the spring they go out to the tree planters.  Of the 300 million seedling trees planted each year in British Columbia, this company provides 10 million.

 

 

 

 

Salmon Arm Fair Manager Jim McEwan from the Salmon Arm & Shuswap Lake Agricultural Association provided information about the upcoming Fair.  He explained that planning has been ongoing since March with a combination of virtual and live events.  He described several of the new activities and displays, such as cooking demonstrations and medieval jousting. A Barn Dance will be held for two evenings. The theme is ‘Resiliency’ with emphasis on a ‘community fair’. His enthusiasm for the event was very evident during his talk.