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Author Topic: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day  (Read 4454 times)

chris gadsden

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BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« on: September 30, 2008, 05:44:18 AM »

Well the seventh Chilliwack Vedder River Cleanup Coalition's BC Rivers Day cleanup and celebration is now history. I apologize for the late report but most of the directors involved were pretty tired after the day and work preparing for it, I know I was.

I am going to keep this report fairly short as others will add their observations both directors and hopefully those from this forum that were willing to give up one half of their weekend to pitch in. ( I see now on doing an edit it was not that short after all) ;D ;D

Rodney has some great pictures that will portray the day well and show some of what took part and when he gets a video done it will add to this thread greatly.

Some of us picked up the donuts and coffee at 6:30 am at Tims Hortons and headed for the Chilliwack Fish and Game Clubhose with me picking up Everyday on the way. Daylight was just breaking and we were so pleased to see it would be a bluebird day, not a cloud  not like last year when it rained all day but 200 brave souls took part.

On arrival tents were being put up and tables set up for the groups that were going to have displays. We had close to 20 people working on getting things up with and some took time to grab a sip of coffee and a donut or muffin as I am sure not many had breakfast before they left home. Fran and Tony help keep the donuts and coffee stocked, always a welcome treat for the volunteers to enjoy before they head out to do the cleanup. Nina and Rodney set up their display in conjunction with CVRCC, they have a great video running too. Gord, a CVRCC director and working that day for the FVRD is helping in both capacities this morning.

The setting is lovely for the event, we are next to a small creek, a creek that has a small return of coho in the late Fall, tall trees overhead present a perfect location for a day like today. Only the sound of the guns as hunters are sighting in their guns at the range behind us is a bit of a distraction but I found after a while I did not have them bother me.

You have to be there to see how well organized this group is as it runs like a well oiled machine and in no time everything is set to help get the display groups in their spots. Lew, Terry, Don, Dave, Denis and Everyday are registering the volunteers, giving them the location they are going to cleanup, giving them a safety sheet with fluorescent vests and pickup sticks. It sure was encouraging to see so many families attend especially with younger people. That will be the future of having a cleaner environment if we get more of the younger generation to buy into keeping our rivers,streams and streets clean. Will we succeed, time will tell but if we donot try it will never happen, will it?

Jack heads down to the Great Blue Heron Reserve to hand out bags to those groups that do not wish to drive to the clubhouse as their sections are down that way.

Milo and friends arrive as he knows he has been given the trickiest part of the cleanup, removing an abandoned Summer camp from a island in the middle of the river. I found out later the campers were crossing the river in a rubber raft to get to their temporay home.

Gwyn who is from the F&G club makes sure we have everything we need from their facility before he heads out to cleanup their section of river.

The display groups start to arrive as does the band Work in Progress as Bob, Maxine, Sandy and Bernadine are setting up their sound system. Ev and Frank are not far behind getting the BBQ ready that will start at 11:30, it is amazing how fast time goes when you are having fun.

The volunteers start to return, they mingle, visit, check out the several displays and enjoy the music before Ev and Frank are serving up the BBQ. We cut a cake that we bought to celebrate the CVRCC's seventh BC River Day, we have 3 young people do the honours.

Eileen from the Chilliwack River River Valley Citizen's On Patrol do their fund raising draw before Don starts his draws for the great prizes he and others have rounded up.

Eileen's group does great work and have similar visions as the CVRCC does.

With the prize draw complete it is time to take things down and 8 hours after we had started we are done another cleanup, number 25 is in the books.

It was another great day with the two dumpsters containing a few hundred pounds of garbage that was taken off our precious river by many great volunteers who care about preserving our waterways. I believe we had around 275 involved during the day and Lew will give us a breakdown on how many went out on the river. All can be proud of what was accomplished on BC Rivers Day in Chilliwack I know I was.

The highlight to me, last Sunday was seeing Everyday being so helpful that day, there is certainly light at the end of the tunnel for the future of our waterways and fisheries if more like him are willing to take part.

The future is in their hands, to carry the torch on.

« Last Edit: September 30, 2008, 05:53:33 AM by chris gadsden »
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Dave

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #1 on: September 30, 2008, 08:55:07 AM »

Good report Chris on a very successful day.  I too was impressed with the effort of Dan (Everyday) - he busted his butt helping out. It is good to see young anglers giving back. 
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Banny

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #2 on: September 30, 2008, 09:03:09 AM »

I was with Milo on Sunday, it was amazing how much crap was out on an island like that  ???

The day was fun and the turnout was great.

Jordan
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milo

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #3 on: September 30, 2008, 09:41:42 AM »

Always good to be there. :)
Jordan and Brian sure pulled their weight.
It would have been much easier if we had had Bobo Bronswyk around...we would have loaded HIM with the heavy bags. 
For an accomplished iron pumper it would have been a breeze! ;D
Sure missed you, buddy, but we had a great time as usual.

Waiting for our next assignment.
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Terry D

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #4 on: September 30, 2008, 10:13:02 AM »

A very enjoyable way to spend a beautiful Sunday morning and a nice feeling inside that you've actually done something positive and good for the environment.
A bonus subscription was icing on the cake.  Many thanks Rod, and to all the others behind the scene that it made it a great day..
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chris gadsden

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #5 on: September 30, 2008, 03:57:01 PM »

Chilliwack Progress
Solid turnout for Rivers Day 2008

By Jennifer Feinberg - Chilliwack Progress

Published: September 29, 2008 6:00 PM The similarities at the Rivers Day celebration were striking.

A new Chilliwack family at their first river cleanup, and a longtime organizer at his 25th on Sunday, displayed similar levels of all-out enthusiasm for the recreational jewel known as the Chilliwack/Vedder River.

“It’s just amazing to see all the volunteers who turned out to do their part today,” said Lew Chater of the Chilliwack/Vedder Cleanup Coalition beaming out at the crowd.

It was an unseasonable warm day that saw a whopping 244 volunteers show up for the World Rivers Day 2008 cleanup and celebration at the Chilliwack Fish and Game club on Chilliwack Lake Road.

Chater noted that there are lots of communities that now hold river-related celebrations, but Chilliwack is one of the few to host a river cleanup at the same time.

More than 200 cleanup volunteers got busy taking trash off the riverbanks earlier that morning, including anglers, scouts, kayakers, hikers, bird watchers, school and church groups, and families.

“I’m really pleased to see the number of children here today,” Chater said. “It’s important for them to see the value of what we are trying to save and preserve.”

He said there’s a clear desire among river users to maintain the access to the resource, as well as keeping it pristine, estimating that “95 per cent use it properly.”

It’s that pesky five per cent of garbage dumpers and habitat destroyers that make work for the volunteers during the thrice-annual cleanups.

One of the volunteers was at her first cleanup.

“I’m now a junior conservation officer, and a proud one,” said 10-year-old Kristyn Ross of Chilliwack, pointing to her badge. “I don’t know much about fish or fishing, but I want to learn.”

The Ross family was dropping off bags of garbage that they collected that morning into the massive bin in the parking lot, before checking out the education booths and the barbecue lunch offerings.

“We found some sort of tree fort, and a whole bunch of plastic cable coating,” Ross said.

But they also spotted what might have been bear and cougar prints, along with sightings of broken glass and rusty pipes.

The keen youngster, her parents and her three siblings recently moved from Regina, Sask. and were at their first river cleanup, chipping in, as a way to learn about the community and salmon habitat issues at the same time.

“We want to teach our children to appreciate the beauty that’s all around us,” said Angel Ross, Kristyn’s mother.

“We thought it would be a good way of teaching morals and values, as well as becoming part of the community,” added Barry Ross.

There were several kiosks doling out information and contact numbers, as well as prize draws, a barbecue lunch, and cake.

It was Tammy Syer’s second cleanup experience.

“I appreciate the river being there, and I always want it to be there, for my grandkids, and their grandkids,” she said.

Syer explained she doesn’t fish, but she thoroughly appreciates walking along the river. She was struck by the fact that some anglers made a point of thanking her for pitching in during the cleanup.

This year’s haul of trash included hazardous items like a bunch of car batteries, bottles, paint cans, and a huge bin full of assorted garbage.

jfeinberg@theprogress.com

Rodney

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #6 on: September 30, 2008, 07:28:05 PM »

Photos from last Sunday can be found at:

http://www.fishingwithrod.com/member/gallery/2008sepcleanup











Many thanks to all who came out and support the program on a warm sunny day when you could have been fishing throughout the entire day. I think Every Day should be a director soon. ;) He's local, energetic and young. The coalition can certainly use a few more directors, so Lew, Terry, Chris etc can get to go fishing more often... ;D

bbronswyk2000

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #7 on: September 30, 2008, 09:15:55 PM »

Always good to be there. :)
Jordan and Brian sure pulled their weight.
It would have been much easier if we had had Bobo Bronswyk around...we would have loaded HIM with the heavy bags. 
For an accomplished iron pumper it would have been a breeze! ;D
Sure missed you, buddy, but we had a great time as usual.

Waiting for our next assignment.

I miss being there and being the grunt labourer that I am.

I am so happy to see what a great turnout there was. To all of you a job well done!!!
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Lew Chater

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #8 on: September 30, 2008, 10:17:21 PM »

Thanks for your usual good writeup Chris!
Our 7th annual BC Rivers Day took a lot of planning and hard work by quite a few people but was obviously a success and very worthwhile. Many new faces and youngsters out along with the faithful volunteers that have been out for most of our 25 cleanups.

A special thanks to Milo, Jordan and Brian. I always look for that special tough area that needs a hard working crew to get the work done. We don't usually want our volunteers to be in the river or cross it, but this was needed as the old summer camp was deserted and on an island in the middle of the river. Milo is an experienced river wader, and could do the job. Thanks again.

Thanks to other members of this forum who helped out, especially Everyday. Nice to meet you and us older guys sure appreciated all the setting up and moving tables and chairs etc. that you did.

Upon leaving the Fish and Game Club after 3:00pm, it was amazing to see the number of people still on the river, and using the Chilliwack Vedder River on this glorious day. It certainly points out how heavily the area is now being used and makes it all the more important to preserve its integrity for all to enjoy.

Thanks to Rodney for his generosity in awarding members from this site who attended, a subscription to FWR. Rodney certainly does a lot for our fishing community and environment.

We look forward to planning for next year. Cleanups will probably be in April, July and September and exact dates will be announced later. Hope to include many from FWR again.
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leadbelly

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #9 on: October 01, 2008, 06:52:15 AM »

wow cake and no rain, sweet
congrats all who worked hard on this, job very well done.
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dennyman

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #10 on: October 01, 2008, 07:59:01 AM »

Good job and hats off to everyone who participated in the event . Hopefully the message about keeping the river clean of garbage and such starts getting through to some folks. Now if we could only do something about the vandalism and break ins.
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screeminreel

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #11 on: October 01, 2008, 12:28:14 PM »

Thanks for having me along, everyone.  It was a treat to follow the great leader, Milo, into battle.  The 3 of us worked well as a team to do a very dirty job, but our safety and the clean-up was first and foremost in our minds. 
Excellent set-up and organization by the F&G club, and the hospitality of the members was first class.  The energy level and ethusiasm of everyone at every age group was contagious.
Very much looking to attending next year, and seeing what new challenge Milo can adopt.

Thanks again

Dist. Chief Bryan Rees
Surrey Fire Service
Hall 7 - Port Kells
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Long_Cast

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Re: BC Rivers Day, Worlds Rivers Day And A CVRCC Rivers Day
« Reply #12 on: October 02, 2008, 10:29:02 PM »

I went to the event. I won a prize from BC Hydro when I answered three question correctly on how to save energy at home. 
Anyone here saw the RE/MAX hot air balloon? LOL, it had a rip so they had to cancel the free balloon rides! Better safe than sorry.
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