Coast Capital Savings has awarded six Burnaby students with education awards worth $2,000 to $5,000 each.
Casey Ruff was awarded the credit union's Standing Tall Award for his academic success and community involvement, despite growing up in a neigbourhood with drugs, gangs and violence, according to a press release. Ruff is now working on an undergraduate degree at Simon Fraser University.
The other award recipients are Bethanie Gian, Christina Guan, Jennifer Liu, Olivia Wong and Sunny Wang. They were selected for doing well in school while demonstrating community leadership.
COUNTING CANS
Thirteen Burnaby schools earned a combined total $2,997 last school year for saving used drink containers as part of Encorp's B.C. school recycling program.
The non-profit company provides schools with free recycling resources, and the schools keep 100 per cent of the profits. Schools that collect the most win cash prizes of up to $1,000. The participating Burnaby elementary schools were Aubrey, Brantford, Chaffey-Burke, Edmonds, Forest Grove, Marlborough, Nelson, Stride Avenue and Taylor Park. Burnaby North Secondary, Byrne Creek Secondary and Carver Christian also took part.
For more, go to www.return-it.ca/youthcentre.
CAFE TALKS
This fall marks an expansion for SFU's Philosphers' Café in Burnaby. The discussion series on philosophical subjects already takes place locally at the Shadbolt Centre and La Fontana Caffe. Now, the Bob Prittie Metrotown library branch and Club Ilia will also host the series. The Metrotown library branch is at 6100 Willingdon Ave., and Club Ilia is on Burnaby Mountain in the UniverCity development area. Organizers added the two new sites because of the program's growing popularity in Burnaby. For more information, go to www.philosopherscafe.net.
FILM AWARD
The Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion is co-hosting an awards event for the Vancouver International Film Festival. The Big Picture Awards recognize leaders in the community living movement, which aims to create more inclusive environments for people with disabilities. BACI is co-hosting the awards ceremony, followed by a screening of Benda Bilili, a film about a band from the Democratic Republic of Congo whose formerly homeless members have disabilities. Tickets for the awards ceremony and film are $25, available by calling 604-299-7851.
This year's award goes to Linda Perry, founder of the Vela Microboard Association, a non-profit group helping people with developmental disabilities find housing.
To see the Benda Bilili trailer, go to Jennifer Moreau's blog, Community Conversations, at www.burnabynow.com.
