Renfrew-Collingwood Community News

News stories from the Renfrew-Collingwood community in East Vancouver

Category Archives: History


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Why I love Renfrew-Collingwood: Livable, accessible, friendly

A spring day on a quiet street in Renfrew-Collingwood, with Grouse Mountain and Seymour Mountain in the background. Photos by Julie Cheng

A spring day on a quiet street in Renfrew-Collingwood, with Grouse Mountain and Seymour Mountain in the background. Photos by Julie Cheng

BY JULIE CHENG

Renfrew-Collingwood is a special place where its warm and friendly residents of diverse cultures—pioneers and newcomers, young and old—live together in harmony and feel like they belong. The locals come out in droves to two annual festivals to celebrate this diversity: Collingwood Days and the Renfrew Ravine Harvest Moon Festival.

Still Creek runs through Renfrew Ravine.

Still Creek runs through the heart of Renfrew Ravine.

This historic residential neighbourhood is tucked away on the eastern edge of Vancouver on the border of Burnaby, B.C. The neighbourhood is home to hidden gems, from unexpected sweeping mountain views and the Renfrew Ravine (an urban forest with a salmon-bearing creek running through it) to Carleton School (one of the oldest schoolhouses in Vancouver) to many authentic, ethnic restaurants including Chinese, Japanese, Malaysian, Filipino, Italian and Indian.

Residents travel by Skytrain and cycle paths alike in Renfrew-Collingwood.

Residents travel by Skytrain and cycle paths alike in Renfrew-Collingwood.

It’s always been an easy neighbourhood to get to. In the 1890s the interurban tram connected Renfrew-Collingwood to the rest of Vancouver. Today two Skytrain lines run through it, carrying residents to and from work in a matter of minutes, north to Port Moody (on the brand-new Evergreen line), east to Burnaby and Surrey and west to downtown Vancouver. Walking or cycling is a great way to discover the neighbourhood.

Why do you love Renfrew-Collingwood? Please let us know! Email rccnews-editorial@cnh.bc.ca.

Julie Cheng has loved living in Renfrew-Collingwood for 20 years. She is the editor of the Renfrew-Collingwood Community News.

Copyright (c) 2017 Renfrew-Collingwood Community News


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Multinational corporation pays $15 a day for Hope water

BY CINDY CHEN, JESSICA SUN AND ALYSSA YAN

The earth’s surface is covered by 70% water. Only 3% is fresh water,and less than 1% is accessible for personal uses.

How would you feel about a brand name company being able to access your water supply in the middle of a drought, while withdrawing the water that you and your community rely on for only a price of $2.25 per one million litres?

You may be familiar with the brand name Nestle, known for their countless products ranging from food to cosmetics. The Switzerland-based company is currently extracting millions of litres of water from Hope, B.C., and profiting through their bottled water industry and much more.

Up until 2016, Nestle has been profiting off our water for free, until they were required to pay $2.25, which only covered their access fee, per every million litres. However, this enormous corporation withdraws millions of litres of water while paying Hope less than $15 a day.

Their plastic water bottles alone are sold around the world and back to the citizens of Hope for over $6 for a pack of 12 bottles. What is supposedly a human right for everyone is being taken by large corporations like Nestle, and sold back to us without us even considering where the water comes from or why we buy it.

Troubled by this, a group of 30 youth is taking action and raising awareness for this problem through social media, newsletters, petitions, videos and more. By doing this, we hope Nestle will stop stealing our water and take responsibility of the damages they have created on Hope.

Cindy Chen, Jessica Sun and Alyssa Yan are Grade 11 students in the Leadership program at Windermere Secondary. Cindy enjoys learning about social justice and sustainability. Jessica is passionate about environmental sustainability and social rights. Alyssa is dedicated to giving back to her community through volunteering ranging from organizing community events to teaching kids piano.

Copyright (c) 2017 Renfrew-Collingwood Community News


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Still Creek Stories – Book launch

Still Creek Stories preorders

Preorders for the book were sold at this year’s Renfrew Ravine Moon Festival. Photo by Kaitlyn Fung

BY EMILY CHAN AND KAITLYN FUNG

Over the past three years, Still Moon Arts Society has been producing a book to share memories about our beloved local Still Creek, which runs through the heart of the Renfrew Ravine. Artistic director Carmen Rosen started the project to chronicle the amazing stories of our neighbourhood and, together with her team, has gathered numerous stories from residents of various ages, experiences, cultures and length of time living in Renfrew-Collingwood.

From childhood memories in the ravine to the celebrated return of the salmon to our waterways, the book will feature the many experiences of art, nature, stewardship and more from Still Creek, as well as the community that has made it blossom. The stories have now been curated into a book that can be enjoyed by families, children, elders and everyone in between.

A preview of Still Creek Stories. Cover design by January Wolodarsky

A preview of Still Creek Stories. Cover design by January Wolodarsky Cover design by January Wolodarsky

Everyone involved in the project was so proud to take preorders for the book at this year’s Renfrew Ravine Moon Festival in September. After the years of story collection, it is an honour to share the incredible stories about Still Creek and Renfrew Ravine, some of which were previously forgotten, unheard or lost, and others that had yet to be discovered.

The book will be launched in January 2017. If you are interested in learning more about the project and preordering Still Creek Stories, you can visit squareup.com/store/still-moon-arts-society.

This project has been the culmination of many peoples’ hard work, thoughtful comments and heartfelt commitments to making these stories heard. It also could not have happened without access to the beautiful, rugged, loved, exquisite piece of nature that is Still Creek.

A big note of appreciation to everyone that has loved and protected the creek, therefore allowing this project to come to life.

Copyright (c) 2016 Renfrew-Collingwood Community News