October 7 2002 Over The Ed: e3 AIDS Walk Prince George by Tara Rogers On September 22nd the AIDS Walk took place at Fort George Park with about 80 people participating. Rain threatened a wet walk but the sun peeked out while several key figures gave speeches. Acting Mayor Dan Rogers and MLA Shirley Bond reiterated the importance of education and awareness about HIV/AIDS while Rick Smith, chairman of the AIDS Prince George office, gave a heartfelt speech about the hard work and time the volunteers had put in. Client Services Co-ordi- nator Catherine Baylis spoke about people in the area living with HIV/AIDS and how hard it is to come forward when infected with the virus. Other speakers included the President of the United Way, Anna Krausenek, and Kathy Macdonald from the Northern Health Authority. The walk began at the park where we made our way downtown, past the court- house, and then past the casi- no. We paused in front of city hall for refreshments, and then walked back to the park. During the walk our entertain- ment was two teenage boys who sucked helium out of bal- loons that Aldo, one of the national sponsors, had sup- plied. You couldn’t help but laugh at the pair. Back at the park, pizza from Panago (another sponsor) and hotdogs were served, along with Starbucks (another spon- sor) coffee. There were more speeches to be given, plus a drawing for coffee and a gift basket from Ave Maria. Whenever a name was called for the coffee, a kid took the prize. Not our helium-sucking friends, but like they needed the caffeine. The amount of pledged money raised was $1710, with Starbucks raising the most money. Aldo came in second. Next year, AIDS Prince George hopes to have more teams involved for pledges and to double the amount of people participating in the walk. BC Rivers Day By Dana Schwehr Sunday, September 29th, was the BC Rivers Day Music Festival in Fort George Park. This event was part of the BC Rivers Day celebrations that were taking place around the province. With five bands, edu- cational booths, a farmer’s market, and many children’s activities, this year’s festival was a great place for people of all ages to spend a day cele- brating BC’s rivers. BC Rivers Day was started in 1980 to raise awareness of the need to protect BC’s rivers. Events to raise money for research and enhancement projects, educate the public, and just have fun now occur on the last Sunday in September around the province. The BC Rivers Day Music Festival is an event that is exclusive to Prince George. This years event was a huge success, with roughly 3.000 people attending. There was a wide variety of interac- tive educational booths, from organizations such as Fisheries and Oceans Canada, CBC Radio One, covering a wide range of top- ics from bike helmet safety to the need to protect the Goat River area. There were many activities geared towards chil- dren, with face painting, crafts, Continued on page 4 Sales: (250) 562-9391 Parts & Service: {250) 562-4744 Fax: (250) 562-5151 Exnail: info@hondanorth.ca Shineram By Genevieve Young In the wee hours. of September 21, (a Saturday, no less) hoards of UNBC stu- dents lined up for the free breakfast of pancakes, punch, and coffee. Everyone was there for Shinerama, an annu- al fundraiser (active since 1964) with its focus being the one day shoe-shine blitz for Cystic Fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis is a fatal, genetic disease affecting mainly the lungs and digestive tract. Although an increasing number of patients are living into adulthood, (the average life span has increased from 4 years in the 60’s to 35 years. today) many young Canadians die from this disease each year. All money raised goes to the Canadian Cystic Fibroses Foundation (CCFF) , an organisation whose objectives include: * Conducting research into the improved care and treat- ment of CF * Seeking the cure and/or an effective control for CF * Promoting public aware- ness * Raising funds for all of the above Students were divided by their clubs, and in turn, each club was given a specific spot to ask for donations. On top of this, there was also added incentive by the promise of an extra $500 in funding to the group of the most money a! raised per person. | was fortu- nate enough to hitch a ride down to the Parkwood Mall with members of the Medieval Club who promptly ‘set up shop’ (so to speak) in front of the Overwatea, Liquor Store, and the Bay. Despite the drea- ry weather, this club still man- aged to attract a large number of donations from people who were either attracted by the costumes or the mock fights stages at numerous locations in the parking lot. In total, Shinerama was a success, raising almost $8200. Of this, the Medieval Club fundraised $1291.34. Needless to say they won the extra funding. Stephanie Wilson photo The new Bently Centre was officially opened on the 28th of | September with presen- tations made by Charles 1 Jago, Andy Clough and 7 Peter Bentley. Public | talks were presented by 4 UNBC faculty on the theme of “Science and People.” Talks highlighted inno- vative UNBC research |} and demonstrated the relevance of scientific research to northern BC. | Five presentations in | total were given and var- ] ious displays were set up around Student Street.