INSIDE
COMMUNITY
EVENTS B2

“AT. THE LIBRARY ©
SHEELAGH MEIKLEM

Read your way
to Christmas

HRISTMAS again. It’s either a

time of great anticipation or else

yct another sign of the slow drip-

ping down of our days. For some of
us, it is a time of year with special meaning,

In my famify it is a celebration of the anniver-
sary of our own miracle, Two years ago my son
spent five days at paint 3 on the Glasco coma
scale, basically a state of non-existence, caused
by a morphine overdose during knee surgery.

The neurologist advised us that there was no
hope of recovery. But a few days before Christ-
mas he opened his eyes and indicated with
blinks that he was alive. To the nurses in I.C.U,,
and the family and friends who had maintained
a twenly four hour a day vigil by his bedside,
there was no doubt that it was a miracle.

We gathered for Christmas dinner in the hos-
pilal cafeteria, wearing silly hats and toasted to
better days with our water glasses. A gift that
we all received that year was a renewed sense of
the power and importance of love and the
strength of family.

Christmas is a time to show our love in vari-
ous different ways. Jane Newdick’s Ultimate
Christmas is a new book with lavely shiny pic-
tures that show how to make omaments,
wreaths, stockings, table seltings and also in-
cludes recipes for international dinners.

Along the same lines is a Reader’s Digest

book: Traditional Christmas Cooking, Crafis & ,

Gifts. Also by Reader’s Digest is Cookies! A
Cookie Lover's Collection. This book is not for
the weak willed — J gained five pounds just-
gazing wistfully al the pictures! And then Joy of:
Cooking has produced Christmas Cookies, an-.
other feast for the cyes! ;
For creative folk there is Malcolm Hillier's
Wreaths and Garlands which gives step by step
- instructions using a variely of materials from
moss, wheat sheaves and raffia to peonics and
sweet peas. Crafis and Creations far Special
Days by Rachelle St.Onge has one hundred
quick projects for all ages.

If you are thinking of books as gifts,
there is an incredibly beautiful new
book, Robert Bateman’s Natural
Worlds. This has paintings depicting
natural history from Vancouver Island
to Central America and the Serengeti
Plains. I've never been a big fan, but
some of the paintings in this book
knocked my socks off?

If you're looking for a very comprehensive
and interesting book full of useful suggestions
on every aspect of the season, pick up 365 Ways
to Prepare for Christmas by David Mann. He
has included original ideas for gifts and recipes
for exolic things such as Athol Brose — a Scot-
tish treat that involves 3 cups of heavy cream
and 3 cups of Scotch whiskey!

Christmas is for children so we have A Pus-
sycat’s Christmas by Margaret Wise Brown, a
colourfully illustrated tale of a traditional
holiday from a cat’s point of view.

Pavlova’s Gift is a lovely book that blends
history and fantasy in a story of Czarist Russia,
Necklace of Stars by Veronika Martenova
Charles also has wonderful illustrations that
capture the [cel of the Andes in this mystic tale,

The Fish Princess by Irene N. Watts is a new
version of the Frog Prince story. Here the king

‘of the salmon turns into a handsome Prince. [
don’t know about that... kissitig frogs is bad
enough!

If you are thinking of books as gifts, there is
an incredibly beautiful new book, Robert
Bateman’s Natural Worlds. This has paintings
depicting natural history from Vancouver Island
to Central America and the Serengeti Plains.
I've never been a big fan, but some of the paint-
ings in this book knocked my socks off

For mystery lovers wha want to read about
wiiter as well as live in tt Sue Henry has an
engrossing series about Alex Jensen, an Alaskan
Slale trooper. These are full of local colour and
details of Alaskan life. The tiles so far are:
Murder on the Iditarod Trail, Termination Dust
and the new one, Sleeping Lady.

Have a wonderfil Christmas, cherish your
loved ones atid remember that the library ac-
cepts donations of Christmas goodies!

TERRACE’S MUSIC pro-
gram has received national
recognition in the past, and
now it looks as though one
school might receive inter-
nalional recognition.

The Thomhill Junior
Secondary band and its
director Mike Wen have
been. nominated for the
prestigious Sudler Cup, an
American award given to
oulstanding junior high
school bands,

“It’s very
nominate

rare ta
Canadian

honour,

He was tominated by
Keith Mann, the Canadian
representative for the
awards program foundation,
The band’s performance last
May at MusicFest Canada, a
national music festival
where the students won
gold, was the clincher.

Mann described Wen as
“one of Canada’s outstand-
ing band directors.’’

No other band or director
in the northwest bas been
Nominated, said Wen. He’s
pleased that a band from
Terrace is getting interna-
tional recognition.

‘And the kids were really
thrilled,’’ Wen added.

The Sudler Cup award has
been around since 1985, and

_tecognizes bands which
have demonstraicd
“particularly significant

high standards of excellence
in concert activities over a
period of several years."
‘Wen started out as director
of the Thornhill Jr. music
program in 1987. At that

| Thornhill band d
| Band nominated for
international award

point the music program had
disintegrated, However,
Wen said the principal at the
time wanted to recreate the
program, and he and Wen
found 16 eager students, but
with very little experience.
By 1989 there were over
30 students in the program
aid the level of quality had

_ Tisen. Wen started laking the

groups,” said Wen of the —

positive

band on trips to create a
attitude — toward
music,

Ja 1990 the band received
its first invitation to perfor
at the Gala night for the Pa-
cific Northwest Music Festi-
vai, The next year Thornhill
Jr. was given an invitation
to MusicFest Canada, but
they couldn’t afford the trip.

During the next few years
the Wen developed close
community contacts, The
band participated in two
cooperative ventures with
Veritas School, resulting in
the musical productions
Anne of Green Gables and
Robin Hood.

By 1994 the band was
firmly established in the

community, and it received
its second invitation to
MusicFest Canada. In 1995
another invitation followed,
and that year the band
travelled to the festival, held
in Alberta, and won a silver

award. And last year of

course, the band won gold
in Toronto.

But Wen has not restricted
his musical activities to the
school band. He _ plays
french hom with the Terrace
Symphony Orchestra.

In the past Wen has also

Around Town

SECTION B
CRIS LEYKAUF
638-7283

THORNHILL JR. Secondary's brass quartet practices for the upcoming desert

concert, this Friday. That's director Mike Wen, giving a tew pointers to Kari Assel-
Stine and Heidi Ruchatzke. Events like the desert concert give the band goad
community exposure, and help raise money for band trips.

solo recitals and concerts
over the years.

been a member of the Ter-
race Communily Band, the
Northwest Singers and the
Knox Uniled Church Choir.
He’s performed’ numerous

able to. add the Sudier Cup
to his growing list of. ac-

As for whether he will be

complishments, Wen will

have Io wait for December

for that answer. Judging for
the award will take place in
Chicago next month.

Odell pulls up stakes

THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of the Ksan House
Society is resigning. Paul Odell is heading off to Nanaimo
where his wile, a nurse, has a new job.

sae cece] = ““We moved up
4 here for my work
and now we're
leaving for hers,”’
said Odell last
week of the move
south in January.

Odclt’s been the
executive director
of the society since
January 1993, save
for a brief absence
in 1994,

The society runs
a women’s sheltcr
and, until recently,
the Osborne home
a for mentally chal-

io lenged people.
That's now being run through the Terrace Regional Health
Care Society.

It used to operate a crisis line but abandoned that when
the line became a regional service wilhoul the needed extra
money to sustain it,

Single parents join up
Attendance has been growing at the single parents support
group at the Family Place.

The group talks about self-esteem, anger and about free
or cheap things to do with kids. Other topics are welcome
too say organizers.

The group meets every Thursday from 9:30-10:30 a.m. al
the Family Place, 4553 Park, across from the pool. Super-
vised children’s activities are available.

Tf you'd iike to go, but the time isn’t good, call Niki at
638-1863,

Better than fingerpainting

» IF YOUVE ever felt the urge to get creative with a t-shirt,
then you might want to check out this event.

The women’s centre is holding a t-shirt painting session
for people who want to take part in a unique tribute on De-
cember 6, the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre,
People whose lives have been affected by violence are
asked to decorate the shirts to reflect their own experience.

. They can paint a shirt for themselves, or for their friends,
mothers or sisters,

Called the Clothesline Project, the shirts will be on dis-
play at the Skeena Mall on Dee. 6.

Drop by the women’s centre at 4542 Park Ave. from 1-3

.Pm, on Dec. 5, The centre is providing shirts; paints and
other decorations, —

made two goad finds,
book,

— Bea bookworm

PARENTS AND children were out in force to check out book fairs gaing on at
schools across the town, Samuel LeBlanc,

sie

a grade four student at Cassie Hall,
He picked up Drawing Cartoons, and a Goosebumps