My husband and I have travelled Highway #1 past Lytton for more than 25 years. We knew every house, campsite, rest stop, and curve on that road. We would always look down onto the small quaint village of Lytton, with its nicely painted buildings, beautiful murals, and cute little shops we have visited a number of times.
Recently, we surveyed the area after a week of evacuation after fire destroyed most of the town.
I had just finished my term as president of St. Vincent de Paul Vancouver Central Council and was about to meet with the new president, Rose Morin. At our meeting, I mentioned Lytton and how devastatingly tragic it was that the fire moved so quickly through that little village. We knew we had to do something to help!
I had a contact number for the relief operation (received from the St. Matthew’s Society of St. Vincent de Paul conference in Surrey, which had already donated a generator to the relief effort). I called my contact and asked what was most urgently needed. The answer: food cards, gas cards, first aid kits, Tylenol, eye drops, mops and pails, heavy duty gloves, flashlights and batteries, head lamps, and other items.
We put the call out to our SSVP conferences and made a plea for donations of these goods or money to purchase them. We received a total of $3,850 plus goods from conferences, members, and the Regional SSVP Council of B.C.
We also spoke with Father Mark Schwab, the pastor of St. Stephen’s Parish in North Vancouver, and he announced the need at all Masses July 17 and 18. By Tuesday, July 20, the parish had collected $9,530. We could not believe it!
On Wednesday, Father Schwab used our new food van (a purchase made possible by a generous donation from the Archdiocesan Project Advance program) to pick up the requested items. The next day, with a packed lunch and a fully loaded van, Father Schwab, Morin, myself, and my pug dog Stella headed to the Relief Centre in Boston Bar.
The Relief Centre was set up at the long house in Boston Bar First Nations Tuckkwiowhum Village where we were met by a wonderful young man, Nathan (son of Chief Pam Robertson).
The volunteers were grateful for our donations and helped unload the van. The long house was well organized with clothes, food, linens, pet food, etc. We had mentioned that we had gift cards ($5,000 in food cards and $3,000 in fuel cards) so they asked us to take those to Chief Robertson at the band office.
The chief was grateful and mentioned to me the negative effect of the recent publicity surrounding residential schools on some survivors’ practice of the faith. I clarified that our visit was about helping those in need and that there will be more help if needed as this fire situation will not be repaired in a short period of time.
I told her we would pray for them and asked her to pray for us. We took pictures at the Relief Centre operation and with her before leaving. It was a great, great day.
As of writing, money for wildfire victims is still coming in, including another $6,060 from members of St. Stephen’s Parish. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is extremely grateful to all those who support our work for those in need and the poor.
Robin Newton is a PREP and religious education coordinator at St. Stephen’s Parish in North Vancouver.
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