Cherry Carnival Auction

The auction was a great success and lots of fun.
Photos © Steven Draper Photography.

Rick was very busy calling prices out for eager buyers!

You are invited……..

A Dramatic Reading of. . .

You are invited to a Dramatic Reading of Hal Theriault’s new play The Bear River Story, Saturday July 28, 7:30 pm at the Oakdene Centre, Bear River. The play tells the stories of those who came here seeking a new and better life, from the earliest settlers to the influx of the 1960’s. ” They liked the life they found, here between the hills, and they settled in. It’s a trend which continues today.” Full production will take place August 18th and 19th. For information call Hal at 245-5629. ( Funding by Dept. of Tourism, Heritage and Culture and the Counties of Annapolis and Digby.)

Minutes, July 18, 2007

BRIDGS
(Bear River Innovation, Development and Growth Society)
July 18, 2007
Trading Post (Youth Centre)

Present: John Malmstrom, Tiiu Poder, Rob Buckland-Nicks, Norma Wagner, Cindy Harris, Hal Theriault, Susan Malmstrom, George Barron, Laurel Shishkov.

1. Call to Order/Adoption of Agenda
Meeting called to order at 7:30 PM.
MOTION to accept the Agenda. CARRIED.

2. Introduction of Minutes from Previous Meetings

3. New Business
Treasurer’s Report: Treasurer Rev. Ken Perkins is away on vacation.

Bear River Signage: The locations for the signs have been scouted; lumber is still needed. Hal found a reduced price (under $200 for 10’ 4×4’s). Rob will get in touch with Gerry, and then contact John with dates for putting them up.

Strategic Plan: Has been completed. The plan can be perused and downloaded from the blog. John gave a short review; essentially the plan identifies what is needed to move Bear River forward. Thanks to Gerry and Laurel for organizing the ideas; and to the other organizations in town that contributed much information, such as Bobby Benson of the Board of Trade. It also outlines which organizations should spearhead certain projects. The map is included for the sake of possible contributors. Part of Consultant Donna Hatt’s job is to now set up meetings with others for implementation. She strongly advises we take the plan to the new RDA and their development officer as soon as possible. This person should accompany John and Hal when they meet with potential funders.

Pageant Update: A free reading of the play will happen on July 14. The play will be performed in its entirety on August 18th and 19th with a reception on the 18th.

Youth Centre: A security problem was brought to our attention that on at least one occasion there was unauthorized access to the Youth Centre. This was not a break-in; it occurred when someone who was not authorized to do so used an extra key. A person was then let in, who spent the night and left with $12 in petty cash. We know who the people involved were, but there will be no legal action taken. The door and lock have been changed, and Glendean Parker of BREDS has been notified. Access will now be closely monitored.

Cherry Carnival Update: We’re ready with volunteers, but anyone else that wants to join us at the auction (12:30-4:30) is welcome. Rob and others will be doing clean up the next day, starting at 8 AM.

Service Canada Grant: We will have a fulltime employee starting as soon as possible. We have been awarded a Job Creation Partnership grant to staff the Youth Centre, and we are working with Digby Disabilities to fill the position. All tasks are delineated in the grant and reporting is required monthly by Service Canada. They will also be reported on a monthly basis at meetings to BRIDGS. (Hal noted that the Yarmouth office of Service Canada told us that it was possibly the strongest application they had ever received.)

Pageant Update: Currently Hal is looking for one more woman; two more men. July 28 is scheduled for a public reading, 7:30 PM at the Oakdene; free will offering. Rehearsals are in the evening. The costumes look great thanks to Carol White, and Sharon Trueman is doing a great job on promotion.

Directory Project: Cindy has a draft of the form with minor changes. John suggested that we use the blog for this, which could save publication costs. Cindy will give Laurel a copy of the current version.

Bear River Meeting Updates:
Health Clinic: The nurse practitioner is seeing patients ages 65 and over, not 55 as previously advertised. Dr. Goddard’s last date is August 15. Leslie Harris is creating a goodbye card and people are encouraged to drop into the clinic to sign it. He was only in the clinic once per week, so everyone should note that the clinic is not closing. The next regular meeting is September 4th and is open to all.

Board of Trade: Laurel attended the last meeting, where Canada day celebration plans and re-formation of the Bear River Music Society were discussed.

Music Society: John, Susan and George attended. The former Society is disbanding and reforming. If a new group doesn’t form, its funds will go to a separate bank account held by the Board of Trade. Bob Woods made it clear that that will only happen if a new society is not formed. The participants gave a history of the society. Although it has not been functioning in the last couple years, there was $1800 left behind, plus a sound system that needs some repair. At the end of the meeting, another meeting was called for July 31, at which time people will vote on whether to form a separate group or come under another organization.

Bear River Historical Society: Laurel was in attendance. They are going ahead with plans to renovate the Green Lantern with money from the municipalities. Funds required to accomplish this exceed what they currently have. There will be a fundraiser the first week of September with the Board of Trade, which will be a musical night at the Oakdene.

Tributary Support: John raised the issue of BRIDGS making a contribution to the Tributary. It is $5 per month ($60 per year). MOTION: Made by Cindy, seconded by Susan to support the Tributary at a feasible level, pending approval by the Treasurer. APPROVED.

Meetings’ Minutes: Since the meeting minutes for June were not made available to everyone prior to this meeting, they will be held for approval at August’s meeting.

4. Next Meeting
August 8, 2007 at 7:30 PM at the Youth Centre.

5. Adjournment
Motion made by Cindy for adjournment, CARRIED. Meeting adjourned at 9:00 PM.

Bear River Strategic Development Plan

[note: the Strategic Plan is 64 pages long and is presented here as a PDF document. What follows is text from the Introduction]
brsbp-final.pdf

Bear River Strategic Development Plan

1.0 Introduction

Over the past year the Bear River Innovation, Development and Growth Society (BRIDGS) has held a number of consultations within the community regarding revitalization and economic development.
Based on their consultations, a vision document was prepared that integrated the initiatives and opportunities that community organizations, businesses and residents felt were critical for their future growth and success as a community. This BRIDGS Vision document has served as the basis for the resulting Bear River Strategic Development Plan.

Developed as a community economic development strategy, it is important to acknowledge that the resulting plan takes into account and reflects those initiatives that were identified and considered critical by and for the community. At the same time, each idea, suggestion and initiative identified in the original vision document has been evaluated against research undertaken during the development process of the Plan. The resulting Bear River Strategic Development Plan represents a blending of the vision document with the most relevant and significant opportunities for the economic viability of the community.

It should also be noted that the Bear River Strategic Development Plan is a community wide economic development plan. Specifically, this plan establishes a profile of the area, identifies opportunities and offers an action plan that will be the responsibility of a number of organizations within Bear River. In the capacity of facilitator for the development of the plan, the Bear River Innovation, Development and Growth Society has channelled the energies and interests of a variety of community groups and organizations in Bear River.

Ultimately, however, the implementation of the resulting action plan rests with a number of “Lead Organizations” who have been identified in the plan. These “Lead Organizations” have been selected based on their existing (perceived and actual) role in Bear River. However BRIDGS, as the champion for the Strategy will continue to serve both as the “Lead Organization” in some projects while fulfilling the role of facilitator for the overall development and achievement of the actions outlined in the plan.

BRIDGS further acknowledges that the “Lead Organizations” identified in the action plan are in fact the same volunteer, not for profit organizations that have communicated that they are faced with ongoing operational challenges – financial and human resource. Therefore, BRIDGS will work to support and offer assistance to these organizations in an effort to enhance and expand their capacities to undertake the actions and initiatives.

The Bear River Strategic Development Plan, revealed on the following pages, has been developed by a Committee of BRIDGS consisting of three Board Members who have invested a significant amount of time and expertise. Donna Hatt Consulting was engaged to facilitate the development of the Plan over a
period of several weeks. The Committee had met on several occasions throughout the process to review research compiled and were active participants in the articulation of the plan. Strengthening the process were two public meetings in which research was shared and the community was engaged in the action planning process.

The resulting plan builds on the existing infrastructure and organizations in a manner that facilitates increased communication, partnerships and shared vision for the future.

Agenda, July 18, 2007

AGENDA
BRIDGS (Bear River Innovation, Development and Growth Society)
Wednesday, July 18, 7:30 pm
Youth Centre/Trading Post

Call to Order
Introductions/Call for Presentations & Delegations
Adoption of Agenda
Introduction of Minutes from Previous Meeting
Continuing Business
I. Treasurer’s Report (forwarded by Rev. Ken Perkins)
II. BR Signage Update
III. Youth Committee/Youth Centre
a) Cherry Carnival/auction/volunteer duties on Saturday
b) Youth Centre: JCP Grant (Susan Malmstrom)
IV. Strategic Plan (John Malmstrom & Hal Theriault)
V. Pageant/Play Update (Hal Theriault)
VI. Membership Update (Susan Malmstrom)
New Business
I. Support of Tributary
II. Updates of other society meetings: Health Clinic, Music Society, Board of Trade
Adoption of Minutes
Next Meeting
TBA
Adjournment