32 YEARS AGO (1988): While it was delayed by five hours, the vintage No. 3716 engine pulled 13 passenger train cars from Prince George to 100 Mile House. About 350 people rode the train to 100 Mile House, arriving at 10:30 a.m. at Exeter Station. Hotels and motels in town were filled to capacity as passengers from the train slept in 100 Mile House overnight and dined at the community hall before leaving the following morning at 7:20 a.m. Around 150 onlookers gathered at Lone Butte to watch the engine pass the historic water tower, belching black smoke.
16 YEARS AGO (2004): The South Cariboo Chamber of Commerce and the 100 Mile Free Press partnered together to present the workshop Jobs, Walmart and Survival to the community. Those who attended the workshop and the following meeting were told that 100 Mile House, especially its local business community, needed to take charge of its economic future if it wanted to avoid the issues that often arise when a big box store comes to town. An emphasis on providing quality customer service was pushed as a way for small businesses to survive and thrive.
8 YEARS AGO (2012): The Youth Excellence Society (YES) ran a pilot program at Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School called Change It Up. The purpose of the program was to create a more caring and respectful environment in B.C. secondary schools. After attending a presentation on how to form connections, students were invited to write things on two large canvasses they don’t want to see in their school and ideas on how to make it happen. Both YES and PSO teachers said they were confident the program was effective in making the school better.
4 YEARS AGO (2016): The memorial service for Fire Chief Bob Felker was well attended. The Canadian Fallen Firefighters Firefighters Foundation agreed to recognize his death, caused by a battle with cancer, as a Line of Duty Death. The longtime Forest Grove Volunteer Fire Department chief’s name was to be engraved on the Fallen Firefighters Memorial in Ottawa in September 2017. Dozens of search and rescue vehicles paid Felker tribute in a solemn memorial convoy along the Canim-Hendrix Lake Road, which residents watched in silence.
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