Your hometown localty owned and operated rlewspaper ; Spare News |Arts & Entertainment Fe ea atures Ina prelude to puzziement, retiring Terrace fire chief Cliff Best opens a gift from city staff at a recent farewell party. The staff had bought him a recliner chair but it hadn't arrived in time for the event. What Best discovered inside the package was a toy chair occupied by a Barbie doll, The card attached to it told the chief, "Real chair to follow, blond not included." Best served the city for _ over 30 years, the last 17 as fire chief. Special Olympians mark decade of achievement Contributed by Joan Cox Special Olympics was incor- porated in the U.S. in 1968 by the Joseph P. Kennedy Founda- tion. Eunice Kennedy Shriver had started a summer camp for mentally handicapped adults and children in 1963 to provide sport and physical activities. She wanted to demonstrate the tal- ents of these athletes, so in 1968 the first International Special Olympic Games were held in Chicago. Athletes from Canada and 26 states participated. In 1988 at the XV Winter Olympics in Calgary an agree- ment was signed by the [OC of- - ficially recognizing and endors- ing the Special Olympics. B.C, Specia! Olympics was es- tablished as 4 chapter of Cana- dian Special Olympics in No- vember of 1980 and began with a floor hockey competition. It has grown steadily around the prov- ince and now has over 30 locals and 12 sports, Every athlete is valued and supported no matter what their skill level is. Competition is seeded by age and ability so everyone who wishes to compete can take up the challenge. B.C. has summer and winter Special Olympic games every four years. These provincial games serve as trials for the Canadian Special Olympic Na- tional Games, which were host- ed by B.C. for the first time this summer. Dave ‘Tiger’ Williams continued his long association Nei ee Leen RUN RE ISTO ag td a he ee SORT with the society by serving as honourary head coach to the over 800 athletes in attendance. Terrace is a fully accredited local of B.C. Special Olympics and we have about 30 athletes on our roster so far this year. Bowl- ing and swimming are now un- derway and we hope to begin floor hockey and powerlifting in the near future. We are looking forward to participating in the Northern B.C, Winter Games here in Ter- race, along with the B.C. Winter Games in Duncan and the B.C. Special Olympic Winter Games in Prince George. We also hope to participate in smaller meets across the north in bowling, swimming, powerlifting, track and field, and softball. Ksan House Society elects new board The san House Society generated enough community interest to name a full board of directors at its annual general meeting Dec. 5. On the board for the coming year are Evelyn Evans, Vera Henry, Lillian deBalihard, Jane Rage, Meera Nair, Bill Davidson, Terry Kantola, Corri-Layne Ashton, Lee Oates, and Shelley Taylor, who was elected chairperson. Executive director Carol Sabo said several other issues arose at the meeting. The membership agreed to review and improve the society’s three programs — the Terrace Transition House, Osborne House, and the Terrace Sexual Assault Centre. A report noted that the demand for services from the sexual assault centre is steadily increasing. The society has also identified a need for housing for people who use the Osborne House services, most of them suffering from vary- ing degrees of mental illness. A society member also noted that the exterior of the Transition House could use some renovation, Sabo said. She expects a commun- ity involvement push for improv- ing the looks of the structure sometime in the spring. Kitsumkalum prepares people for future In tourism business Contributed by Mary Swift The Tourism Supervisory De- velopment Program is presently being offered at the Kitsumka- lum Reserve by the Vancouver- based Native Education Centre. Tourism now ranks as B.C.’s number two industry, and it is growing. In an effort to raise the level of professionalism and to promote a high standard of training within the industry, TSDP was initiated in 1987. The Tourism Supervisory Develop- ment Progam was jointly devel- oped by Vancouver Community College, the Ministry of Ad- vanced Education and Job Training, the Pacific Rim In- stitute of Tourism, and the Min- istry of Tourism. Seventeen local native stu- dents are enrolled in the inten- sive 10-month course, geared specifically to the promotion of the local native tourism indus- try. Its objective is to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to obtain super- visory positions within the tour- ism industry and to assist native communities with tourism devel- opment. As well, the hiring of local in- structors will assist the greater community because these indi- viduals will enrich the growing pool of local tourism specialists. Instructors include Ginny Lowrie, a small business opera- tor and active member of local tourism associations; Dr. Ken Whyte, a community-based con- sultant; and Doug Smith, a well- known local public relations consultant and president of the’ Terrace and District Chamber of Commerce. The courses offered cover a wide range of industry topics: human relations, tourism mar- keting, community-based .tour- ism, basic computer applica- tions, hotel and motel accom- modations, adventure tourism, leadership skills and others. in addition, the students partici- pate in two practicums to give them ‘‘hands-on” experience within the various segments of the industry. After completing the pro- gram, the students will receive a joint certificate issued by the Native Education Centre and Vancouver Community College. So far, the program has been extremely successful, both in giving the students a foundation of knowledge and skills and in accessing the community’s tour- ism resources. The Native Tour- ism Supervisory Development Program will help establish a basis for further tourism indus- try training within the commun- ity and throughout the region. Local businesses associated with tourism are being asked-to take on practicum students from Jan. 2] through February 15, 1991. We are teaching the stu- dents that one of the most vital components of a successful tour- — ism industry is a community- based approach. Members with- in the industry must support each other to survive and flour- ish within this highly com- petitive market. The students are looking for- ward to applying their new knowledge and practical training io employment situations. Anyone interested in taking a practicum student can contact Mary Swift at 635-6177.