News Briefs: Ecclesiastical Province of British Columbia and Yukon

Published January 1, 1999

Anti-panhandling law protested

The Diocese of New Westminster has protested moves by two municipalities to limit panhandling. City councils in New Westminster and Vancouver passed bylaws “meant to get rid of nuisances and to stop people from being harassed,” said Rev. David Harvard, who presented a motion to diocesan council in November.

“Poverty is a fact of life in our city and preventing someone from asking for help is a violation of civil rights,” he said.

“People are begging on the streets because they don’t have homes and their basic needs are not being met. As a society, and particularly as a Christian community, we need to keep pushing for solutions to the root causes of this poverty, rather than just trying to keep the problem out of sight.”

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Organist an octave above the rest

A Vancouver Island organist and choir director has won top honours while qualifying as an associate of the Royal Canadian College of Organists.

Nicholas Fairbank of St. Luke’s, Cedar Hill, sat the associate exam in June. He earned top marks in the country, winning the Willan prize for the highest overall score, the Rollinson prize for the highest marks in the written section and the Barker prize for the highest marks in the keyboard tests.

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