Following a procession of municipal delegates, Bob Baker, from the Squamish Nation, offered a traditional song to help make the transition from old council, to new. The Snowbird Song, he said (warning the audience to not expect an Anne Murray tune) is sung to neutralize negativity and help with the process of moving forward in a good way. The singing of this song, as well as Oh Canada led by the community choir, was followed by an inaugural address by Joyce Ganong who told the audience at Cates Hill Chapel that the new council is like a box of chocolates: quite an assortment, she said, representing our collective tastes.
Ganong told the story of lying in bed in Italy, with death lurking not far from her, and tricking her brain into staying alive by asking what Bowen could do differently to move forward with ease and move beyond even the community’s current aspirations. The answers she came up with in response to those questions involved vision, and values.
Ganong says that she thought there must be some vision statement for Bowen Island, probably in the Official Community Plan, but she did not know where or what it was. She created her own vision statement for Bowen, but realized this was only one perspective.
Ganong added that if the vision is not displayed for all to see - visibly and constantly - personal agendas and goals will start to compete, rather than the shared vision. She offered an example:
“Have you ever been driving along with a car filled with people? The driver says, “Wow, look at that!” Everyone says, “Yah, wow!” Even the dog barks. Later when they talk about what they experienced, they are surprised at what is described… a mountain peak, a horse galloping, a kite flying, the surf, a bloody deer leg, the fun of the moment. Same place. Same moment. Different perspectives.”
The second answer Ganong provided to her question: what can we do differently, had to do with values.
“A community, a municipality, is no different than any other organization of human beings,” Ganong told the audience, “over and over again, it has been shown that organizations that are values driven, shine. Those that lose sight of their values, struggle.”
Ganong went on to consider some values. Prudence, she said, would require the municipality to carefully balance all aspects of community life. Creativity, she said, would allow us the ability to view those great pieles of legislation and regulation as pieces of permission rather than restriction.
Students from BICS, who see posters explaining different “virtues” throughout their school every day stepped up to help offer a few more values that our new mayor and council should take on.
Grade 6 student Sam Hayduk talked about gratitude.
“Being grateful and appreciative is more than just saying please and thank you. It is about appreciating nature, too. You don’t just build a house in the middle of an ecological reserve – the world should have a say. I think that a Mayor and Councillor without gratitude is like a 12 week old unrefrigerated pie. It can be fatal. Thank you.”
Grade 5 student Maya Grundy talked about responsibility.
“Responsibility means taking care of this island by making smart choices and doing your part of the job with excellence. Responsibility means you accept accountability for your actions and when you make a mistake, you offer amends instead of excuses. I hope that you will all bring the virtue of responsibility to this island. Thank you very much.”
Ganong presented a gift, crafted by Cocoa West, to the new council: a box of chocolates, made of chocolate, to be enjoyed in January when the members of council meet ot chart their course. Ganong said she wanted the council to remember that the gift represents a vision of Bowen, with all its potential; that being made entirely of chocolate, the box represents a melding of perspectives; and that the 28 chocolates inside represent core values.
To read Ganong's address in full, click here.
