In with one year and out with the other. Happy New Year everyone.
BFI Canada is changing its name to Progressive Waste Solutions.
For more than 35 years, BFI, a community and locally based company with its head office located at 4-150 Campion Road, has been providing garbage pickup for commercial, industrial and residential clients. Tom Loewen, district manager for the B.C. Interior and who has been with the company for 35 years, said the company has moved in the direction of recycling in a large way over the last seven years and has been at the forefront of recycling and waste diversion projects throughout the region. Sales manager for the B.C. Interior, John Snelling, said the change of name from BFI to Progressive reflects the company’s approach to handling waste and recycling in the Valley with its progressive approach to how it looks at a customer’s waste stream and always trys to find the best way to minimize garbage and maximize recycling.
Loewen has been at the grass roots of recycling and was responsible for contracting with the regional district the first material recycling facility in Kelowna with a real vision and much ahead of its time for our city. The company currently employs more than 100 people in the Okanagan and the Kamloops andShuswap areas. Call 250-765-0565.
The new Shoppers Drug Mart in Glenmore, at 1972 Kane Road, will celebrate its grand opening on Jan.12 at 8 a.m. Associate owner Nathan Klaassen has been with the company for five years and was previously at the Rutland outlet for a year. The Glenmore store has close to 9,000-square-feet of floor space, including a post office and pharmacy. The management team consists of Renee Tompkins (front store manager), Barb Stiewe (cosmetics manager), Kelly Yakimchuk (assistant front store manager) and Graham Foster (pharmacy manager). Forster was formerly with Paragon Pharmacy. For the grand opening, there will be several gift card draws, prizes and basket draws all day long. The first 200 people that enter the store will receive a welcome gift of an ECO bag.
After five years at Wickerland Patio and Home, Karen Belshaw has left her job there and has joined Jim and the family at their business, Roy’s Footwear and Shoe Repair at 1627 Ellis St. Karen has been at Roy’s for the past couple of months and is really enjoying her new position. Roy’s is also hiring and looking for an individual who is great with people and interested in full or part-time work. A mature person with sales experience would be an asset. If you think you might be a fit, drop your resume off at the shop. Call 250-763-5696.
Treehouse Interiors at 1901 Windsor Rd., is expanding. Owned and operated by Rob and Karen Horner, the renovations will start in mid-January. The store will not be closing and the contractors will be working around the customers. Treehouse is adding a second floor, which will enhance its space with an additional 7,000 to 8,000-square-feet. An elevator will be installed for access to the second level. Call 250-860-2338. www.treehouseinteriors.ca
Congratulations to both Annette Lipkovits of Century 21 Assurance and Dino Gini of Realty
Executives who have been named the Central Okanagan Realtors Care Award winners by the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board. Annette received the award for her work with the Easter Seals Campaign and Dino for his many hours and relentless commitment to community sports and young athletes.
NeuMovement Pilates and Physiotherapy Studio, located at 2-538 Yates Road, is a new Pilates studio opened by certified pilates instructors Hayley Harkness, Kate Watson and Lara Yanik, along with registered physiotherapist Jen Gulley. They are the same people who brought you NeuSpine, a product that helps users find their true core and neutral spine. This is their third location, with the company having other outlets in Salmon Arm and Vernon. NeuMovement provides classes that are not only fun but also give clients the tools to help themselves. Classes are small and intimate, with reformer classes holding a maximum of four students, allowing for individualized attention. Call 250-712-0678 or www.neumovement.com or www.neuspine.com.
A few years in the making, local HR consultant Pat Walls has now initiated his new web-site art project. His photographic art work has been called “phototherapy,” blending his long-time career path in industrial-organizational psychology and his love of photography. He has now launched his photographic art web-site www.phototherapy.jimdo.com. Pat is adding new images and categories every day, with the images taken in a number of European countries, The United States (including Hawaii), various parts of B.C. and here in the Okanagan Valley. Take some time to take a little photographic art journey through his lens. Call 250-878-4413.
The Glenmore Business Association, founded two years ago, has representation from businesses large and small throughout the greater Glenmore area. Its goal is to promote living, working and doing business in Glenmore. It holds its meetings at 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday mornings, once monthly at Sandalwood Retirement Resort or hosted at one of its member businesses. Visitors and guests are welcome. For more info or for the next meeting time call Dennis Campbell at 250-717-1884 or dennisc@regencyresorts.ca.
Christy Lovig is the clinic coordinator for the 2013 Sun Run InTraining program, starting Wednesday, Jan. 23 at the Kinsmen Media Centre at the Mission Sports Fields, in the evenings. The clinic will be a great opportunity for anyone who would like to learn to run and compete in the Vancouver Sun Run, whether for health reasons, love of the sport or simply to check something off your bucket list. SportMedBC, in partnership with the Vancouver Sun, coordinates the clinics at more than 65 locations across B.C. The aim is to motivate and assist a significant number of new runners and walkers to take part in the Vancouver Sun Run on April 21, through participation in a 13-week graduated training program. The cost is $139. Register by calling 250-469-8800 or online at www.kelowna.ca/recreation (course code 126847).
Executive director Marvin Dickau of the The Kiwanis Performing Arts Festival has announced that the dance discipline is back and the festival has added a new rock n’ roll discipline this year. Online registration is now open at www.kelownakiwanisfestival.com and will remain until Jan. 21. Payment can be made by PayPal. More information and dates of disciplines is available in the 2013 syllabus on the website or from the festival office at 250-860-5033.
Car sharing has come to downtown Kelowna. With the launch of the Okanagan Carshare Co-op, downtown businesses have a great opportunity to save money, while providing benefits to customers and staff. By offering a pay-as-you-go alternative to fleet vehicles, car sharing gives you the use of a vehicle when you need it, without all of the costs associated with ownership such as insurance, maintenance and gas. Whether you need access to a small car for attending a meeting or a pick-up truck to haul supplies, there will be different types of vehicles available for members, making it easy to accommodate all needs. Vehicles will be kept at easily accessible locations downtown and members simply book a vehicle online or on their smart phones and open the car with their special key fob. To sign up your business, or for more info, contact Christian at 250-864-0560, e-mail Christian@ogocarshare.ca or visit www.ogocarshare.ca.
Okanagan College will be working with one of the nation’s most renowned architectural firms after selecting Diamond Schmitt Architects
to lead the design of the $33 million Kelowna trades’ facility expansion. Based in Toronto, the company is a full-service architectural firm that specializes in sustainable design. The college is being recognized as a national leader in green building design after successfully completing projects such as the LEED gold Centre for Learning in Kelowna and most recently, the Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Building Design and Renewable Energy Conservation, a project that is seeking living building status from Canada’s Green Building Council.
We all know that Father Pandosy settled the first Oblate Mission that eventually gave rise to the city of Kelowna. But how much do we really know about the man? Edmond Rivere is a UBCO professor and a native of Marseilles, France. When he moved to Kelowna, he was struck by the coincidence that Pandosy was also a native of Marseilles and so began his interest in this early Kelowna pioneer. The result of his research is a new book titled Father Pandosy: Pioneer of Faith in the Northwest. For more info or to purchase the book contact Nancy Wise at Sandhill Book Marketing at 250-491-1446 or info@sandhillbooks.com
The Diabetes Support Group for adults with diabetes and their support person will be held on Jan. 8 at 6:30 p.m. at the Green Bay Bible Camp building, 1441 Green Bay Road in West Kelowna. Participation is free and drops-ins are encouraged. Call Gabriela Stuerle at 250-575-9291 or gstuerle@hotmail.com for more info.
The annual Investor’s Group Walk for Memories is Jan. 27. The walk is a cherished community event for those living with Alzheimer’s disease or another related dementia and their caregivers. There are more than 70,000 British Columbians living with dementia diseases. To register visit www.walkformemories.com or call Jessi at 250-826-7822.
Birthdays of the week: Happy 85th Nick Kardynal, my second dad (Jan. 11); Tracy
Nyboe, my sister, RE/MAX Kelowna (Jan. 19); Lynda Gibbs, Phoenix, Arizona (Jan. 9); John Estephan (Jan. 10); Mort Downey, TAC Solutions (Jan. 12); Mary Anne Livingston (Jan.13); Ron Pidskalny (Jan. 14); Gerry Ellchuck (Jan. 16); Dina Kotler (Jan. 17); Ross Gilley (Jan. 17); Joyce Prowse (Jan. 17); Al Strachan (Jan. 18); Melonie Dodaro, Top Dog Social Media (Jan. 19).
I will not be doing a column for the next couple of weeks. Keep sending your information. See you soon.
Maxine DeHart is a Kelowna hotelier.
