DINNER IN BLACK: Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»artists George Vergette and Graeme Berglund brought back their DIY party due to popular demand. Billed as the no-chic alternative to the posh Dîner en Blanc, Ce Soir Noir returned for its sophomore staging at Crab Park. Unlike last year’s event which was staged the same night as Dîner en Blanc, the free Downtown Eastside gathering was held two weeks after the Paris-inspired spectacle that drew 6,000 partygoers. A much smaller crowd, dressed in black, convened for the informal, family-friendly picnic. Armed with their own food, blankets and a non-perishable food item for Backpack Buddies, a meal program for hungry school children in the Downtown Eastside, revellers staked out their spot for the counter-culture clambake.
PADDLE PLEASER: In 2006, Mark Starkey created Kayak for a Cure in his grandmother’s honour after she had been diagnosed with leukemia. The first year saw a handful of paddlers hit the waters off Jericho Beach, raising a modest $1,000 to fund cancer research and support cancer patients, survivors and their families. Over the years, the volunteer-run, non-profit organization has held similar paddles in Victoria, B.C., Mississauga, Ont. and other North American cities, generating more than $300,000 for cancer-related charities. Continuing the fight against cancer, Starkey, and his new bride Whitney Stanford, along with fellow kayakers of all levels, converged once again for the eleventh staging in support of the Canadian Cancer Society.
FARM FRESH: The Coquitlam Farmers Market started as a research project by Simon Fraser University students. With the goals of reconnecting local producers with consumers, and citizens with each other, the first ever market began in 1996 with a handful of vendors. Two decades later, the market is one of Metro Vancouver’s longest running farmers markets with some 180 vendors. To mark its 20th anniversary, yours truly emceed a special long table dinner at Colony Farm Regional Park. Fronted by Selina Robinson, Polly Krier and Diana Dilworth, the alfresco dinner benefitted the Power of Produce Club, an initiative that teaches school children about fruits and vegetables, and where their food comes from.
