News & Upcoming Events
Re-circulated by the New Westminster & District Labour Council
Labour Movement mourns passing of two activists
Former fisherman, labour and NDP activist, CLC representative and Burnaby Citizens Association president, Gordie Larkin is being mourned by friends and colleagues after dying of COVID-19 on January 6th at age 78. Larkin was raised in East Vancouver and was a long time Burnaby resident.
He got his start in the labour movement through his work in the fishing industry, getting involved in the fisherman’s union, which ultimately became part of Unifor. He then went on to work with the Canadian Labour Congress and was active with the United Way through the CLC. He was also a member of the Board of the BC Federation of Retired Union Members (BC FORUM).
The New Westminster & District Labour Council sends our deepest condolences to Gordie’s wife Barb, and to his family and friends.
Glenn Girard passed away December 19, 2020 in Surrey after a long illness. Glenn was a dedicated IAM&AW LL 764 delegate to the NWDLC from May 2009 until October 2019. He was 65.
Glenn retired from Air Canada in 2019. He was socially caring, active in his Union and local politics, and a staunch supporter of the NDP. Condolences, memories and photos may be shared and viewed on Glenn’s obituary at www.McInnisandHolloway.com.
Memorial tributes to support research on early onset Dementia may be made to The Alzheimer Society of Canada. His family would like to express their thanks and appreciation to the Surrey Memorial Hospital staff for bringing comfort to him in his final days.
The NWDLC send our sincere condolences to Glenn’s family and friends.
Shared on behalf of Canada’s NDP
Earlier this year, the Proud Boys, a right-wing extremist group that promotes white supremacist views made international headlines after being bolstered by Donald Trump.
Since then, they’ve escalated their hatred. Members of the Proud Boys joined a group armed with deadly weapons as they led an assault on the U.S. Capitol – this was an act of domestic terrorism. Alarmingly, their founder is from Canada.
Add your name and join Jagmeet in calling on Justin Trudeau’s government to immediately ban and designate the Proud Boys as a terrorist organization.
https://www.ndp.ca/ban-the-proud-boys
Re-circulated on behalf of Take back Delta Hospice
The Hospice we know today are two buildings located in Ladner, B.C. beside Delta Hospital on Fraser Health Authority lands. The Delta Cares Capital Campaign was widely supported by the community, business and major donors and the Province of B.C., and the funds raised built the Irene Thomas Hospice and Harold and Veronica Savage Centre for Supportive Care, which were officially opened in January of 2010.
The Hospice was built to provide equal access to end-of-life care, grief and bereavement counselling for children, youth and adults since they were opened in 2010. Highly trained professional staff and volunteers supported patients and their loved ones with compassion, ensuring a meaningful end-of-life transition and support through the process of grief and bereavement.
However, the Board was recently taken over and the current Delta Hospice Board of Directors is pursuing drastic changes to the Society’s Constitution and Bylaws to suggest a very strict religious ideology. Because of the refusal of the new DHS Board to provide MAiD support the Fraser Health Authority is ceasing the relationship https://www.delta-optimist.com/local-news/health-minister-dix-fha-urged-to-prevent-sabotage-of-delta-hospice-3252953 Further, the Delta Hospice Board rejected hundreds of membership applications from Hospice donors, staff, volunteers, and concerned community members in an attempt to influence the results of the upcoming vote to change the constitution and bylaws of DHS. As a result the new Board lost a court challenge on memberships.
Take back DHS are urgently asking for community members (in Delta and across the Metro region) to join the society for $10 https://takebackdeltahospice.ca/membership/ and to be available to vote at the next AGM to return control of the DHS to local residents for whom inclusion and access are a priority, instead of foreign influences with exclusive ideologies.
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CLC winter school evening forums open to all
CLC winter school is on now and Forum nights are open to all labour activists through the CLC winter school Facebook page here: https://m.facebook.com/CLCWinterSchool/?tsid=0.030214730055013628&source=result
105-3920 Norland Avenue
Burnaby, BC V5G 4K7
Phone: 604-291-9306
Facebook: nwdlc Twitter: @nwdlc
