Education Young at Week Heart SD 64 schools & INSIDE A nnivers arary programs. B section 1960-2010 GULF ISLANDS Wednesday, March 17, 2010 — YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER SINCE 1960 50TH YEAR ISSUE 11 $ 25 1(incl. GST) COURT ACHIEVEMENTS Island man Province nnivers ary recognizes enters guilty Murakami generosity plea in Richard Murakami one of 45 B.C. Community knife attack Achievement Award winners Kitchen knife used in throat BY SEAN MCINTYRE DRIFTWOOD STAFF slashing At this rate, the province’s Lieutenant Governor should BY SEAN MCINTYRE just hand over the house DRIFTWOOD STAFF keys. “You have to come over, something terrible has Less than a year after Salt happened,” Simon Teskey told his mother in a Spring’s Richard Murakami telephone call only moments after a March 2009 visited Victoria’s Govern- drug deal took a turn for the worse. ment House to meet the Teskey was in Ganges Provincial Court last Emperor and Empress of week facing charges of attempted murder and Japan, he’s been asked to aggravated assault stemming from an incident in come down and make yet which Crown counsel said he used a “ridiculously another appearance. big French chef’s knife” to slash the neck of an This time around, acquaintance who had come to collect a $200 drug Murakami and 44 other Brit- debt. ish Columbia Community Court heard that Teskey, 30, had been partying Achievement Award win- off and on with the victim and three other island ners will be celebrated as the residents since the previous day when the early guests of honour during an afternoon incident took place at Teskey’s Bull- April 28 gala. ock Creek Road cabin on March 20. “You’re kidding,” Muraka- It was revealed that the partygoers had been mi said upon hearing the drinking and using cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy news at his collision repair and Ketamine (a tranquilizer/painkiller used in shop on Tuesday morning. veterinary procedures) throughout the night pre- “I guess I’ll have to spray my ceding the attack. shoes with a spray bomb to Justice Adrian Brooks accepted Teskey’s guilty PHOTO BY DERRICK LUNDY shine them up again.” MADE-UP: Trinity Forbes is transformed into this Avatar-like creature by make-up artist Fiona Ken- Murakami said he’ll dust COURT continued on A2 nedy (see “before” photo on Page 27). Kennedy was demonstrating her skill at the Salt Spring Craft Bazaar off his suit and attend the on Saturday. ceremony even if it means DEATHS having to take another big trip off the island. An announcement by the Former resident killed in motorcycle accident British Columbia Achieve- ment Foundation states Island friends remember Hunter fi rst came to Salt Spring from Ontario and was the young mother of a daughter when Murakami was selected as a around 20 years ago, said Cherie Geauvreau, she moved here. result of his “selfl ess acts of Sandra Hunter’s life who remembers hiring the young woman as a Geauvreau recalls Hunter as being one of the generosity, large and small.” short-order cook for the Fulford Inn pub. six founding members of SWOVA as well as an “Richard supports youth, BY ELIZABETH NOLAN Friends remember Hunter as a vibrant char- original member of Salt Spring’s marimba band the hospital foundation, the DRIFTWOOD STAFF acter with many artistic talents, a gardener who and of Samba du Soleil. Heiwa Peace Park and most Salt Spring residents are mourning the death loved animals and a proponent of social justice. “She was a fabulous painter, she was a poet, signifi cantly, and the initia- of Sandra Patricia Hunter, a former long-time “She was a fiery social and environmental she could write, she could sing and I’ll never tive that will affect the com- resident of the island who was killed in a motor- activist,” said Wendi Gilson. cycle accident last week. She noted Hunter had lived in India as a child HUNTER continued on A7 MURAKAMI continued on A7 The LOWEST INSERTS INDEX North End MORTGAGE RATES! Ask Arlene! • Country Grocer Arts ............................................................ A15 Ferry Schedule ...............................A32 Fitness FISH U GRILL U VIEW • Ganges Pharmasave 250-537-5217 Bus Schedule ...................................... A4 Letters ....................................................... A9 BRUNCH • Thrifty Foods SAT & SUN 10 am – 4 pm • Home Hardware Classifieds .......................................... A35 Sports ......................................................A32 pancakes & french toast ....................................................A8 • WestCoast Farmer Editorial What’s On........................................... A16 eggs benedict & omelets • Sears • The Source • Home Depot www.northendfitness.ca Arlene 250-537-4090 email: [email protected] 250.537.9933 website: www.gulfislandsdriftwood.com 537-5041 WIN AN OUNCE OF GOLD! DETAILS PAGE A22 ECO SPEC DETAILS PAGE A19 ZERO-VOC PAINT COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER PARTY! 99 $35 gallon 250-537-9736 A2 | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 17, 2010 | GULF ISLANDS DRIFTWOOD CALL GAIL, SEAN OR AMY IF YOU ICBC CLAIMS - NEWSBEAT SEE NEWS HAPPENING 2505379933 PERSONAL INJURY MEDIA NEWS • 25 years successfully representing injured persons • NO FEE until you collect • Free conÀ dential consultation Best in Canada: three in a row for Driftwood PAUL B. JOYCE Newspaper earns without their support,” said regarding paid versus free celebrates its 50th birth- publisher Peter McCully on newspapers place the Drift- day on Wednesday, March Barrister & Solicitor 12 awards in 50th Monday. “To be recognized wood, with a circulation of 24. Next week’s paper will 250-537-4413 (24 hours) by our peers in the industry 4,004, in the 6,001 to 12,000 include a special supple- anniversary year is just icing on the cake.” circulation category for com- ment featuring top stories The paper also earned sec- petition purposes. and content from every year The Gulf Islands Driftwood ond-place awards for edito- Last year it finished sec- since 1960. Become a Fan! has topped its circulation rial page, front page, special ond, behind the Whistler Driftwood staff have been www.facebook/gulfi slandsdriftwood.com category in a Canada-wide section (Aqua magazine) and Question paper. working hard on the proj- newspaper competition for its Owners’ Manual in-house Also in the finalist round ect and encourage readers to the third year in a row. ad campaign. Support for the for 2010 awards are the Der- pick one up when it hits the 250.537.9933 Results from the Better island’s Residents’ Card pro- rick Lundy Retrospective streets. Newspapers Competition motion earned a third-place (special section), Aqua mag- Everyone is also invited to driftwood@gulfi slands.net of the Canadian Commu- community service award. azine (special publication), an open house celebration in nity Newspapers Associa- Awards are distributed at John Cameron’s tiny baseball the ArtSpring gallery space tion were released Monday, the AGM and conference of player photo (sports photo), on Friday, March 26, with with Driftwood winning first the CCNA in Toronto in mid- Day in the Life of Salt Spring historic displays related to TIERNEY’S place in the 4,000 to 6,499 May. Island (for photo essay) and the past 50 years from both circulation class in a field of The Driftwood is also a the Driftwood Owners’ Man- the newspaper and organiza- WHOLESALE LTD. 26 papers from across the top-three finalist in six cate- ual ad campaign (newspaper tions and businesses dating “PAPER & PACKAGING country. gories for this year’s B.C. and promotion). back to 1960 or earlier. PRODUCTS” “The staff at the Driftwood Yukon Community Newspa- First, second and third- produce the best newspaper pers Association Ma Murray place awards are announced we can each and every week Awards, including best all- at a BCYCNA gala event in Post your comment to this story Supplying your business for our readers and adver- around paper. Richmond on April 10. online at needs for: bakery, café, tisers and we couldn’t do so BCYCNA regulations The Gulf Islands Driftwood www.gulfislandsdriftwood.com cleaning, food service, grocery, hotel, institutional, retail, restroom, shipping & more! Custom print & Who reads us? biodegradable products. Aggravated assault guilty plea 88% of Islanders read the Locally owned & operated COURT treated for a six-centimetre lac- Since the incident, Teskey has Driftwood each week. continued from A1 eration extending towards his kept himself drug free thanks to -Combase survey throat from the left side of his a residential treatment program 250-538-0111 plea to aggravated assault neck. and strong family support. midway through Wednesday’s According to a medical report Conditions of Teskey’s sen- trial based on a joint submis- presented to the court, the tence require that he attend fur- NOW OFFERED sion from Crown counsel and injury came within millime- ther counselling as requested defence counsel John Green. tres of penetrating the victim’s by his supervisor, seek employ- @ $449,000 +gst. Teskey’s lawyer maintained left carotid artery, something ment or attend school, refrain that his client had acted in self- that would have undoubtedly from alcohol and drugs, and not GOOD VALUE defence based on fears that his caused the victim to bleed to travel to Salt Spring Island. acquaintance’s efforts to reclaim death on site. Justice Brooks called Teskey’s the debt would turn violent. One full year after the inci- acceptance of responsibility for Compounding matters was dent, the victim reports contin- the incident “critically impor- the victim’s discovery, ear- ued psychological and physio- tant” and a major factor behind lier that morning, that Teskey logical effects from the incident. the judgement. had “become intimate” with a Police arrested Teskey “with “He’s intelligent and well-edu- woman who happened to be in blood on his hands” later that cated except he’s wasted the past a “romantic relationship” with afternoon after receiving reports 10 years of his life,” said Brooks AN IDEAL ACREAGE FOR A SUSTAINABLE LIFESTYLE; the victim.