¢ Caravan particpant John Stace-Smith from 150 Mile House helps unload truck at warehouse in Golden. Cariboo Communities Coalition lends hand to people of Golden Working people and their families in the forest industry dependent com- munity of Golden, B.C. had their holi- days made a little merrier when a car- avan of trucks and vans carrying food and toys arrived nine days before Christmas. The caravan, organized by the Cari- boo Communities Coalition, was wel- comed on December 16, in a parade- like atmosphere as fire trucks from the community of Golden escorted the vehicles through the town’s main street. On the side of the streets were kids with their parents who greeted 15 members of the Cariboo Coalition who brought tons of Christmas gifts and food. The caravan consisted of a five-ton truck, three one-ton vans, a cargo van and a pickup truck that were filled with goods from the communities and surrounding areas of Williams Lake, Quesnel and 100 Mile House. The Golden Economic Information Centre, set up by volunteers, had a list of 217 families who requested assis- tance from the caravan. The whole effort to put the aid ship- ment together began in late November when members of the Coalition were meeting in the .W.A. CANADA Local 1-425 boardroom, where they usually assemble. Discussion turned to the events tak- ing place in Golden, where about 600 people were still on lay-off since Octo- ber 7. Efforts to revive the Evans For- est Products Ltd. plywood mill suc- ceeded when the operation reopened on December 19 (see story page one). “The needs of the community are many,” says Local 1-425’s Second Vice President Terry Tate, one of the cara- van’s organizers. “We thought we would do our best to lighten their load at Christmas time.” Brother Tate and Local 1-425 Finan- cial Secretary Wade Fisher sit as rep- resentatives on the Cariboo Commu- nities Coalition, which was founded during the Commission on Resources and Environment process in 1993-94. The Coalition meets on a regular basis to oversee implementation of the “Made in the Cariboo” land-use plan which replaced the CORE report. “In the Cariboo we are very depen- dent on the forest industry and we un- derstand the devastation that can hap- pen to forest dependent communities like Golden,” says Tate. “We feel a great deal of sympathy for the people and what they have been going through.” Altogether the Coalition took about. $40,000.00 worth of food and $3,000 worth of toys, says Tate. It was a big organizing job:in which entire com- munities pitched in. One key way of raising money was by payroll deduction. Coalition repre- sentatives approached both union and non-union mills in the Cariboo, includ- ing Local 1-425 operations (the Lignum sawmill, West Fraser planer mill, Weldwood Plywood plant and TimberWest sawmill in Williams Lake, and the Weldwood sawmill in 100 Mile House). Also approached were Ainsworth and Riverside operations. “We are very proud that many of our members agreed to help the Coali- tion in its fundraising effort,” says Lo- cal 1-425 President Brian Symmes. “The people in the Cariboo have big hearts and they reached out to work- ing people in Golden.” Part of the fundraising efforts was done by West Fraser truck drivers and other Cariboo log haulers, including eee Evans Forest Products Continued from page one The cedar mill is a stand alone op- eration, says First Vice President Doug Pockett. “It is a very profitable operation, and we have no doubt that it could survive on its own,” he says. This year the company spent $3 mil- lion on a new small log line which should add another shift and about 30 new jobs, says Brother Pockett. In April of this year the company shut down its burner, due to environ- mental regulations. Now it can only store waste for a period of 2-3 days. The waste goes to the old mill site in Donald for bagging. In February of this year, the Donald mill went down for good due to lack of timber supply, when it laid off the last of 160 I.W.A. employees. To assist the employees at Malak- wa, the local union allocated $20,000 and then went to its mills for payroll donations in support of the Evans workers. Golden. those who haul for Weldwood, River- side Forest Products, Lignum and TimberWest. Local 1-424 members played a key role in going to mills in Quesnel to seek payroll deduction donations from workers. Local businesses, ranchers, miners and other chipped in. Vehicles for the caravan were donated by Ryder, Bud- get, Lake City Ford and B-Line Couri- ers. The aid shipment included 8 sides (about 1,300 lbs.) of beef, four sides of pork, 200 lbs. of bacon and 200 pounds of coffee and tea along with a large list of perishable food items. Each needy family in Golden re- ceived three boxes of non-perishables and at least ten pounds of meat for Christmas, along with toys for their kids, When Brother Tate arrived in Gold- en, some kids helped unload the van full of toys he was driving. Photo by Petra Musik - Golden Star ° Left to right are Williams Lake mayor Walt Cobb, and Local 1-425 members Greg Brown, Terry Tate and Garfield Lamb, who discuss upcoming caravan to “Tt really puts a lump in your throat to see the kids and the fact that our efforts will really make a difference at Christmas time,” says Tate. Although they didn’t expect it, the people in Golden put the caravan up in a hotel, fed them and gassed up their vehicles for the return trip to the Cariboo. “It was a trip we won't forget,” says Tate, who, along with Coalition Presi- dent Brian Goodrich, accepted a plaque from the community of Golden which gives “heartfelt thanks” to the communities of the Cariboo. Local 1-405 President Bob Matters sends his thanks to the Cariboo Coali- tion. “The wookworkers and commit- tees in the Cariboo have shown soli- darity which our members deeply appreciate,” says Matters. He also said that Local 1-405 raised over $20,000 to assist workers in Golden, and that members dug deep into their pockets to do so, Local 1-405 members on the veneer lay-up line at Evans mill in Golden, B.C. e Local 1-85 President Dave Haggard National Election Continued from page one last day of the convention (November 7). Each local union has since been conducting the secret referendum bal- Jot in their plants, camps, other work- sites and offices. All ballots must be returned to the ° Local 1-71 President Darrel Wong national office in Vancouver no later than January 6, 1997 where a final count, conducted by the National Bal- loting Committee, will be tabulated. Outgoing President Gerry Stoney will officially hand over the gavel to the new President during the next Na- tional Executive Board meeting to be held in Vancouver on January 30-31. At that time all officers will swear al- legiance to the union. 2/LUMBERWORKER/DECEMBER, 1996