Longtime Burnaby resident and tap-dancing legend Madeleine Lord celebrated her 90th birthday recently.
And in true Madeleine fashion, the nonagenarian entertained party-goers with her tap dancing skills.
"It was a blast," she said. "You know how many birthday cards I've received so far? 130, 130 cards."
The celebration was held on April 8 at the Grimmer Street Legion, right next door to the Poppy Residences, where she lives. Roughly 200 people attended the celebration.
"I tap danced three numbers," she said, laughing. "I was dressed like in the roaring '20s. I
Wore fishnet stockings and fishnet gloves.
According to Madeleine, the regulars at the Legion joined in on the party.
NOW readers may recognize Madeleine's name from the feature we ran on her back in January. Madeleine first started tap dancing when she was a child, and she puts on shows for fellow residents at the Poppy Residences.
As for turning 90, she has no plans to slow down anytime soon.
"To reach 90, that's really something," she said. "I don't even feel like I'm 90, I feel more like I'm 65, 70. A lot of women that live in my building are younger than me, but they are old for their age. I keep going."
Happy belated birthday Madeleine, and keep on tapping.
Scouting awards
Congratulations to six Scouts from Burnaby who earned the highest award for leadership skills.
The Scouts were awarded the Queen's Venturer Scout Award in Victoria on April 12. The award recognizes competence and skills that are of use to them and their community.
The six Scouts are: Samuel Chen, Jade Martin Seedhouse, Hung Hsin Pai, Jordan Quan, Sarah Savic Kallesoe and Christopher Soltesz.
Triple-21
Burnaby's Down Syndrome Research Foundation has launched a new fundraising campaign to help families who have loved ones with down syndrome.
The campaign is called Triple-21, a reference to the triplication of the 21st chromosome, which causes down syndrome.
The foundation is hosting a special event on Wednesday, May 7, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. to launch the campaign. Swing by 1409 Sperling Ave. for refreshments, light snacks, facility tours and a presentation by Dawn McKenna, the foundation's executive director.
The foundation is looking for 210 people who will commit to donating $21 per month, and 21 people who will donate $210 a month. Twenty-one per cent of the proceeds will go towards a bursary fund that helps families pay to enroll their loved ones in the foundation's programs, while the remainder will go towards information services, program development, research and family support.
The foundation runs a variety of programs that help children and adults who have down syndrome. What makes the foundation unique is the onsite MEG brain scanner, so researchers can monitor the brain activity of the participants to see if the programs are having an effect. For more information, go to www.dsrf.org.
Send Here & Now items to Jennifer Moreau: [email protected].
