Yesterday was a joyful day for ORCA volunteers and coordinating staff: the first run of the ORCA bus! The bus had journeyed out on a couple of trial runs in early December, visiting a handful of daycares to get a feel for things, but yesterday marked the first run of the bus as a Powell River program. Volunteer Driver,Don Edwards, drove the bus to it’s morning locations, both south of town, while volunteers Mary-Lynn MacKamey and Jan Ruzicka worked with the children and mothers. Kim Barton-Bridges and Rita John worked their usual magic with everyone on board and the day was filled with jubliant, breathless stories of crazy gravel roads in washed out conditions, eager mothers and bright eyed children living in isolated pockets of houses far from anywhere and without transportation, making homes for their famlies in remote places. The kids put on the slippers knitted by volunteer seniors in the community and enjoyed a morning of Groundhog Day fun with coloring and cutting, stories and toys. The day was a testament to so many people having worked so hard for so many years to get the bus on the road. It was a day for the whole community to be proud of. Posted here are some photos of the bus with a few new additions – the Powell River Public Library donated a very generous collection of wonderful books for the children and new pieces are being added weekly. The electrical system will be installed in the coming weeks by some amazing local volunteer electricians and the volunteers are busy helping in all kinds of background ways. For more information or to volunteer please email: kim@successby6powellriver.ca

ORCA Bus wonder-team! Kim Barton-Bridges and Rita John

Thank you to the Powell River Library for the wonderful books!

 

 

What a weekend! On Saturday November 8 the ORCA Bus was launched and welcomed to the community.  There are still lots of things to do and details to finish but the bus will have it’s first run into the community on Wednesday, November 26. It will visit a few daycares and meet some of the first children to enjoy the Bus.  Splash, our ORCA Bus mascot, also arrived on the scene for the launch and we are looking forward to seeing Splash around community for many years to come!  All three local governments participated in the launch and signed the Charter as a commitment of local government to the community’s children and families. Rupert Legge of Plutonic Power spoke passionately about Plutonic’s commitment to supporting the ORCA bus. In the evening Splash visited the Horizon Business Awards and the Success By 6 team met local business people and were grateful for the opportunity to introduce the ORCA bus to our business leaders.  Lots of work ahead for us all as the ORCA bus begins the adventures of bringing fun and resources to the community’s children!  We’ll keep you posted!

 

Setting up the bus for the opening

Chief Clint Williams, Mayor Stewart Alsgard, PRRD Chair Colin Palmer endorse Community Children’s Charter

Little helper with presentation

Little helper with presentation

United Way’s Pat Hull addresses audience

Splash meets some children at the launch!

ORCA’s first young reader enjoys a quiet moment on the bus

A peek inside the refurbushed bus! Rita John here setting up.

The fabulous cake!

The Community Charter for Children will be displayed in a three local government locations.

Splash and Success By 6 visit Horizon Business Awards Night.

ENJOY THIS COLLECTION OF NEW PHOTOS BELOW…  Over the Thanksgiving weekend our volunteer work team scrubbed and cleaned to prepare for the floor installation, which is well underway as I post this entry. The inside of the bus is looking cleaner and smelling fresher.  (We expect to hold a fundraising contest that asks participants to guess the number of wads of gum we scraped from the floors and walls!!)  The decals on the bus were installed by Ed from King’s Collision – thank you once again Ed.  The bus is looking very showy and welcoming. Representatives from Human Resources and Social Development Canada visited the ORCA bus from Ottawa earlier this week, taking great interest in the creative approaches we are demonstrating in Powell River building our community, local businesses and government into Early Years issues.

Endless sweeping by Mary James and detail work by Rita John get the bus closer to being On the Road with Children's Activities.

Volunteers work hard over Thanksgiving weekend.

The outside of the bus with new decal work

Donald Nadeau and Liz Nieman from HRSDC Ottawa, here with Wendy Barker, view the ORCA bus under construction.

 

 

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The refit inside the bus began today with Nick Anderson beginning to remove the old heating system.  The ORCA bus project is a true testament to the goodness of people in communities like Powell River.  Volunteer Nick Anderson responded to an ad in the Peak asking for interested people with a bit of  time and a few skills to help get the bus on the road.  With a limited budget, community projects like the ORCA Bus rely heavily on people like Nick taking time to give back to their community.  Thanks Nick! Any community minded people who have a bit of time or interest and would like to be involved could call Kim at 604-483-8382 or Heather at 604-414-3939.      

    

    

The Orca Bus is looking less like a school bus and more like fun for kids.  The ORCA team chose soft metallic background colors of Sea and Sand to create an effective backdrop for the bright ORCA decal currently under construction. With a little elbow grease from a team of volunteers – including several hard working grade 7 students from Assumption School – who helped to prep the bus for painting, Ed from King’s Collision volunteered to paint the bus free of charge. Thank you Ed!    

Plutonic Power Corporation held their Annual Charity Golf Tournament in Powell River on September 13^th, 2008, and donated $22,000 of the proceeds to the ORCA (On the Road with Children’s Activities) Bus Project. 

Plutonic Power is committed not only to building a legacy of clean energy for the next generation, but it is also committed to ensuring the next generation has the skills and access to educational tools that it needs to grow and thrive. Their support of the Orca Bus program reinforces their commitment to the success of the community of Powell River for the long–term by investing in the success of its youth.

This is a blog of the adventures of getting an old school bus back on the road.  A group got together to sand the bus for painting by King Collision.

What is the vision for the ORCA Bus?

The ORCA Bus will be a mobile service that will help meet the needs of local families and children, and those that provide supports and services to them. Our bus will travel from Saltery Bay to Lund, including Texada Island, bringing information, programs, activities and fun to neighbourhoods along the way. Parents and care givers will meet and get acquainted. The bus will literally be a vehicle for early childhood development, for learning and connecting, and for bringing services like early literacy supports, information about health and nutrition, puppets, stories and cultural exchange to every nook and cranny of our region.

Why this project?
The idea of a mobile service for families and children seems to have taken on a life of its own in Powell River and in other communities in the province. By talking to local families and service providers, we know that getting around in our spread-out region can be time consuming and expensive. We know that people with kids need supports in the neighbourhoods where they live and play. A mobile “hub” of programs is a flexible and cost-effective way to provide service throughout the region.

Who is involved?
The Success By 6 Council of Partners has taken the lead in developing the project. Our planning team includes people from business, from the charitable sector, and of course people who work with and for families and children in Powell River. .

How can YOU get “On Board” the ORCA Bus?
We invite you to be involved too! Contact Success By 6 for sponsorship, partnership and programming opportunities. Let us help build your business or organization while we build our community!