Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Burnaby producer meditates on work

Here and Now column by Dan Hilborn
Published Dec. 3, 2003


Gabriela Schonbach has to be the busiest documentary producer in Burnaby.

Her most recent work, Quiet Mind: Meditation for Real Life, is currently playing on Vision TV, while she prepares for several other projects that are expected to hit the airwaves in the coming months.

Each episode of Quiet Mind looks at one of six different forms of mediation - Hatha yoga, Metta mediation, healing Qijong, Zen Buddhism, Miksang photography and Christian meditation - through the eyes of an acknowledged master of the craft.

The series was filmed in Vancouver, Halifax, San Francisco, Manila and Singapore, and is billed as the first series co- production between Canada and Singapore.

While most of the series has already aired, the final instalment on Christian mediation runs Saturday, Dec. 6 also at 7:30 p.m.

Soon after this series is complete, Schonbach will wrap up her next project - The Daniel Igali Story, a profile of the world champion and former SFU wrestler. That documentary is expected to be broadcast on the CBC's Life and Times in March 2004.

Schonbach is also working on a much-anticipated documentary based on the book Weird Sex and Snowshoes, written by Vancouver Sun film critic and CBC commentator Katherine Monk.

"I know it sounds strange, but I've assembled a really strong team for doing Weird Sex," she says in one of the more interesting press releases to cross this desk all year.

THE SHORELINE CLEANUP

Kudos to 80 volunteers from Toronto Dominion-Canada Trust who donned hip waders and carried shovels to help clean up Burnaby's shoreline earlier this fall.

The group, under the able guidance of project co-ordinator Jinette Elsen, picked up a grand total of 25 kilograms of garbage along a 425-metre section of shoreline in Burnaby as part of the Vancouver Aquarium's Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup campaign.

The program started in 1994 as a local initiative based in Vancouver and has now grown to include cleanup campaigns in all ten Canadian provinces and three territories. The project is also part of the Ocean Conservancy's International Coastal Cleanup program and data collected by Canadians is included in a global analysis of shoreline garbage.

According to a press release issued by the Vancouver Aquarium marine science centre, the volunteers also learn about the deleterious affects of aquatic garbage while they work to find solutions for keeping our oceans and waterways clean.

To register for next' year's project, which takes place Sept. 11 to 19, 2004, visit the aquarium's website at www.vanaqua.org/ cleanup.

DANCING FOR FOOD

Students from the Dance 'n Stars Studio will be collecting food for the food bank when they hold their Christmas recital "We share our gifts" at the James Cowan Theatre later this month.

The show, which features ballet, tap, Bolleywood, hip hop, jazz and breakdancing, plus a special guest appearance from the Burnaby International Folk Dancers, will be held at 7 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 20.

Tickets are just $10 plus a donation of one item for the food bank. for more information, contact Sonica at 604-721-3513.

RUN GROWS TO NEW HEIGHTS

The second Annual Heights on the Run, which was held in early September, has surpassed all expectations.

The run, which is sponsored by Scotiabank, enjoyed 36 per cent growth in both the number of participants and the amount of money it was able to donate to the Burnaby Firefighters Charitable Society.

A cheque worth $3,000 was presented by to the firefighters to help fund their CPR program, which teaches basic lifesaving skills to ever Grade 10 student in Burnaby.

On hand for the cheque presentation ceremony were Heights merchants kevin Perry of Scotiabank, Mymee Chow, president of the Heights Merchants Association, and Michael Hurley and Jim Peever, president and treasurer of the firefighters society.

Scott Fraser, executive director of the Heights Merchants Association said the event is rapidly gaining momentum thanks to the long list of participating sponsors. For more information on how to get involved in the fast growing community event in north Burnaby, visit the website www.burnabyheights.com.

GOOD NEIGHBOURS

Kudos to the board of directors at South Burnaby Neighbourhood House, which recently celebrated another year of growth in the city.

According to SBNH board chair Shelley Mills, the group was able to expand its level of service and add several new programs to the many worthwhile offerings they make available to families.

This year, Neighbourhood House opened a new kindergarten and before and after school care program in the Stride neighbourhood, offered summer day camp programs at four local schools, helped 454 low income earners with their income tax returns, and opened a new multi-lingual volunteer support program with assistance from the United Way, in addition to many, many other programs.

The number of people who benefited from SBNH programs included 3,100 children, 302 youth and 2,830 adults. There were a total of 293 volunteers who helped out and a total of 63,936 contacts were made with either those volunteers or staff.

The entire board of directors was reelected, including Mills, vice-chair Blair Fryer, treasurer Gladys Brundett, secretary Harman Pandher, and at-large members Lila Caldera, Dan Chapman, Harminder Sanghera, Surrinder Singh and Ava Turner. The lone new board member is Dina Tabuzzo.

"My first year as chair has been a rewarding and fulfilling one," Mills wrote in her annual report. "I am proud of what has been accomplished and the challenges that lie ahead."

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