Beta Sigma Phi members celebrated 50 years in the Cowichan Valley recently. One hundred seventy members of the women's service organization from around the Island and Lower Mainland came to help celebrate this anniversary at an area conclave. All Cowichan Valley chapters were involved in putting on the celebration.
On May 29 registrants were welcomed at the Cowichan Valley Inn where they received a goody bag full of local trinkets, donated items from many local businesses and Beta Sigma Phi members. The highlight of this evening was the camaraderie shared by those attending and the photo booth where participants could capture the moment with friends on a book mark memento.
On May 30 we all gathered for a continental breakfast at the Quw'utsun' Cultural Centre. These beautiful surroundings were the venue for our day. A welcome was given by the conclave chairs Joanne de Lure, Billie Vanderlinde and Jean Dunbar. Jean Crowder, our local MP, was the morning guest speaker. She told us of her experiences as a "Female in the World of Politics". Wendy Bowen spoke in the afternoon about the "Secrets of Aging Wisely". Both were very informative and were well received.
Participants were also able to choose from a variety of forums during the day:
50 Nifty Stitches -Darlene Potts from Creative Quilting
50 Nifty Key Strokes -Cowichan Technology team
50 Nifty Compass Points -Sandy Nixon and Sheila Nixon took 24 ladies on a geocache of downtown Duncan
50 Shades of Duncan -Time for shopping and the market
50 Nifty Cowichan Stories -John George gave a tour of the Quw'utsun' grounds, shared some personal stories and showed a multi media presentation Lunch was catered by the QCC and featured local seafood in the chowder and salmon sandwiches along with many other options. Dessert was the delicious blackberry tarts.
Every person attending had a wonderful day, reconnected with friends and went home with a door prize. We thank all of those who donated to this event. Mostly everyone went home having felt the warmth that is the Cowichan Valley.
Cowichan area Beta Sigma Phi also provides four local high school bursaries and we are pleased to announce this years' recipients: Joshua Jones, Cowichan Secondary School; Lauren Kathleen Frost, Lake Cowichan Secondary; Jesse Paras, Frances Kelsey Secondary and Sonja Lindberg, Chemainus Secondary School. We wish all of these students the very best in their future studies.
Beta Sigma Phi bursary winners:
JOSHUA JONES, Cowichan Secondary
LAUREN KATHLEEN FROST, Lake Cowichan Secondary
JESSE PARAS, Frances Kelsey
SONJA LINDBERG, Chemainus Secondary