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4 Page 4 West Vancouver Historical Society November 2001 SOCIETY NEWS CURRENT AFFAIRS AND NEWS OF GFNFRAL INTEREST TO MEMBERS Special Events Activities By: Laureen Jones Director, Special Events West Van Heritage Weekend September brought our Heritage Weekend festivities which, as usual, attracted many visitors. Society directors helped to set up an information booth, with brochures, books and panels illustrating much of West Vancouver’s past liistory. They also, along with members of the Hollybuni Heritage Society, sponsored a Heritage Walk on Hollybum Mountain. The WVHS and HHS work in conjunction with the W.V. Heritage Advisory Commission to protect our past and remind future generations of how our municipality was formed and grew over the years. On page 5 you will see our invitation to you all to come and join us in celebrating Christmas at Spuraway Lodge. We are sure to have a lovely evening, celebrating in the old-fashioned way - chatting with friends old and new, and singing carols - and don't forget the food and drink! We all eagerly await Santa’s appearance. Be sure to come and coax him into joining our party. Christmas Gifts President David Barker writes: - Here is a great Christmas Gift idea for friends and relatives - a year’s membership in the West Vancouver Historical Society. For only $15 ($10 if the recipient is 60 or over) you will give them an annual membership in a society that promotes the history of West Vancouver and actively supports the West Vancouver Museum and Archives. As well, they will receive 5 issues of the Society's newsletter that is jam packed with articles on West Vancouver, tlien and now, and information on our bi-monthly speakers. Included is a Society member decal, a Gertrude Lawson House Christmas Card, and your signed card. You wilt receive an Income Tax deduction and tlie knowledge that you have introduced someone to tlie pleasure of belonging to tlie West Vancouver Historical Society. See the enclosed flyer for more details. Membership Report By: Joan Skipper Membership Chair Joan is off on her travels at the moment, but will be back in good time to process all the membership renewals, as well as those Christmas present memberships which she hopes you will all buy - perhaps for the younger members of your family. It is one way of capturing their interest in family history and sometimes has surprising results. Our recent lighthouse story is a case in point. A Nostalgic Voyage to a Better Time On the subject of membership drives, Hugh Johnson sends us extracts from the Vancouver Sun of June 1981: the Denny Boyd column "ABOUT A YEAR AGO, WEST VAN freelance writer John Broderick wrote a fond, nostaglic piece on the old ferries for Western Living. The story ended with the wish that one more trip could be made. The piece was published about the time that the West Vancouver Historical Society was incorporated with the help of the West Van Rotary. West Vancouver Archivist Rupert Harrison, Broderick’s schooldays chum, with the help of Historical Society members Eugene Scott and Hugh Johnston, fired up the boilers for Saturday’s trip. They left from the foot of Denman Street, old West Vancouver residents and nostalgiacs who had come from Seattle, Williams Lake, Kelowna and Victoria. Among the passengers were two former skippers of the line, Capt. Roy Barry and Capt. Gerald Lancaster. They cruised the harbor, went under the bridge with mixed emotions while Harrison did a bullhorn narration and the West Vancouver Adult Band played appropriate music. Of course, there was no stopping at the foot of 14th, but they did circle three times at Dundarave while a piper saluted the passengers from the tip of the pier. "Oh, my, but it was so fine", said John Broderick." According to Hugh, everyone paid $10.00 to take the trip 'andpassengers were told, jokingly, that they would have to pay for a membership in the West Vancouver Historical Society before they could disembark! In fact, new membership did get off to a very good start, as they enrolled almost 100 enthusiasts that day. Were you, by any chance, one of those passengers? Write in to tell us.