This is the 24^th in our series of stories celebrating the outstanding accomplishments of youth in our community. These inspirational young adults are enriching our lives with their passion and commitment to the betterment of society.

Nikki Frazer

While reading the Oak Bay News a couple of months ago, I came across an article about Nikki Frazer. Nikki, a grade 12 student at Oak Bay High School, had just been announced as a finalist in the Start Something with Alesse scholarship contest thanks to her business proposal: Bee-utiful Fashion to Save the Bees. Her idea was to create an online store selling mainly bee-related fashion items, as well as ethically-sourced beeswax accessories like soap and candles, in order to raise money and awareness for the declining native bee population here in Canada – an issue she had become aware of after watching a TED Talk on the plight of bees.

After being selected to the top 10 finalists from more than 1,500 entries across Canada, Nikki’s proposal received over 1,000 votes in just 3 weeks. Nikki eventually finished 3^rd in the For-Profit Category, helping to bring a renewed attention to this important issue along the way.

Inspired by her passion and ingenuity, I invited Nikki to be a part of our celebrating youth series. After meeting with Nikki at my constituency office last month it was clear that that Oak Bay News article was just a small sample of the passion and determination she possesses.

Born in Kamloops but raised in Victoria, Niki attended Sir James Douglas Elementary and Monterey Middle School before ending up at Oak Bay High. Currently in her final year of High School, Nikki is the definition of an all-around-student. She is currently taking a full course load, including Calculous, AP English, Chemistry and Band, as well as serving on Oak Bay Student Council, the Community Leadership group, and the Oak Bay High Interact Club, of which she is Vice President, all while maintaining an exceptional academic standing. While she has a passion for classical literature and creative writing, Nikki’s favorite areas are mathematics and theoretical physics. In fact, she will be attending the University of Toronto next fall to do a double major in mathematics and physics.

Outside of school, Nikki volunteers with the UVic Seniors Program, where she teaches seniors how to use social media outlets such as Facebook, Gmail and Twitter, and with Disaster Aid Canada, where she organized over 100 Disaster Relief Kits to be sent out to disaster areas, such as Nepal. Through her work with Disaster Relief Canada Nikki also organized a team of youth volunteers for the Soap for Hope program. Once a week during the summer, and once a month during the school year, the group gets together to collect mini soap, shampoo and conditioner bottles donated from local hotels in order to create hygiene kits for local shelters and international organizations.

When not volunteering, Nikki has delivered newspapers for the Times Colonist (a job she discontinued last month to allow more time for exam studying) and has worked with the SMUS International Student Program, as a Canadian Ambassador for Japanese students, and with the Victoria International Education Centre (VIEC), assisting in ESL Classroom lessons and acting as a tour guide during fieldtrips.

While Nikki is clearly an exceptionally accomplished and determined young woman, perhaps what struck me most in my meeting with her was how modest and humble she was about her accomplishments. It was clear that she truly enjoys and believes in every project she has been involved with, and that her passion for community involvement is a key driving force behind her many endeavors. In fact, it was this humble nature that had her casually skimming over one of her more personal, but equally impressive, accomplishments: Nikki recently earned her Black Belt in Traditional Japanese Okinawan Shorin Ryu Karate.

Beginning her Karate practice learning Shotokan Karate, the more common Karate form practiced in the Western Hemisphere, Nikki won two competitions and earned her 4^th degree Brown Belt before switching over to the more traditional Shorin Ryu form. She currently trains under Sensei Masanbou Kikukawa, dedicating 12 hours a week to her Shorin Ryu practice.

Shorin Ryu has a strong emphasis on patience and respect. While practitioners train their bodies to be able to defend themselves physically, they also train their minds to never have to —instead developing the strength of mind to walk away from a fight, unless given no other choice.

While listening to Nikki talk about Shorin Ryu it became clear to me that the patience, respect and strength of mind that she has developed through her practice has benefited her in all aspects of her life and will continue to benefit her throughout her future. In fact, she is already looking for a Sensei in Toronto that share’s Sensei Kikukawa’s philosophies so that she can carry on her practice while at U of T. And when I asked her about her career goals for the future, she said she would like to be in a Management position at a physics company and have her own Dojo (Karate School).

Nikki’s humble nature, strength of mind and passion for life will no doubt lead her to a brilliant future. And one day Shorin Ryu students may be vying for the chance to practice under Sensei Frazer.

On Tuesday, March 29th 2016 we will be hosting an MLA Town Hall on Seniors and Health Care, with special guest B.C. Seniors Advocate Isobel Mackenzie. 

The event will take place from 7:00pm to 9:00pm at Oak Bay Recreation Centre, in the Sports View Lounge. Doors will open at 6:30pm and seating will be on a first-come, first-serve basis. 

The evening will include a brief update on Andrew’s work as an MLA, both in the Legislature and around the constituency, followed by a presentation by the Seniors Advocate. After the presentation, there will be an open Q&A period moderated by Cairine Green, during which time questions can be addressed to either Andrew or Ms. Mackenzie. 

We hope you will all join us for what is sure to be an informative discussion on issues surrounding seniors health care in our community. 

For more information, please don’t hesitate to contact our office by email: andrew.weaver.mla@leg.bc.ca or by phone: 250.472.8528.

Vancouver Island Youth aged 14 to 18 are invited to apply to attend the 24th Vancouver Island Youth Parliament (VIYP), sponsored by the British Columbia Youth Parliament. This year, VIYP will be hosted at the University of Victoria and will run from March 11th to 13th, 2016. 

The VIYP gives youth in our community an opportunity to learn about parliamentary procedures, debate Private Members Resolutions and build friendships by connecting with other youth who are passionate about our democracy and the critical issues that we face in society. In addition, VIYP intends to further its presence in the community by becoming more involved in service projects throughout the region.

VIYP is a non-profit, non-partisan youth organization that recognizes every young person’s potential to lead and serve in their community. VIYP’s aim is to provide a forum in which youth can develop skills in leadership, public speaking and the parliamentary process. These skills can then be put into practice through service to youth and the community. VIYP recognizes the significant abilities of youth and provides a forum in which youth can have their voices heard on issues that matter.

Each year, youth are “elected” to become members of VIYP as representatives of their schools or community organizations. You can find out more about the opportunity and application process by visiting their website.

Applications must be received by March 8, 2016.

This week I sent a letter to the Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations regarding the ongoing dispute in the Walbran Valley. I was inspired to do so after receiving thousands of emails from British Columbians expressing their concerns about the Teal-Jones Group’s intention to log cut block areas in the Walbran Valley and other old growth forests on Vancouver Island.

Old growth forests provide many important environmental and social functions, serving as homes to numerous species at risk and as popular recreation areas for locals and tourists alike. It is time that they receive a level of protection that reflects their importance to both our ecosystems and our economy.

To ensure this, it is necessary that we take an ecosystem focused and science based assessment in decisions concerning forestry management, and I am concerned that this is not what our government is doing. Instead, by playing the environmental and social concerns off against economic ones, they are merely allowing an unsustainable status quo to continue.

Protecting our remaining old-growth forests while building our forest industry do not have to be competing objectives.  It is time that we take a closer look at the status quo in forestry management in our Province, and ensure that we are looking at all the factors – social, environmental and economic – when we are making decisions.

Please see below to read my letter to the Minister in full.

Letter to the Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations

Dear Minister Thomson,

I am writing to you with regards to the ongoing dispute in the Walbran Valley, concerning the Teal-Jones Group’s intention to log a cut block in the area.

My office has received over 3000 emails from British Columbians, expressing their concerns about the continued logging of old-growth forests on Vancouver Island.

Old growth forests serve numerous environmental and social functions that need to be better protected. I am concerned that the government’s current approach to this issue implicitly plays the environmental and social concerns off against economic ones.

Similar to how this government has gone about updating our water management, it is essential that we take an ecosystem focused and science based assessment in decisions concerning forestry management. Anything less is merely allowing an unsustainable status quo to continue.

Protecting our few remaining old-growth forests while building our forest industry do not have to be competing objectives. It is time that we take a closer look at the status quo in forestry management in our Province, and ensure that we are looking at all the factors – social, environmental and economic when we are making decisions.

Within this context, I am hoping to get an explanation as to how the government is making its decisions regarding logging in old-growth forests on Vancouver Island.

I look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

Andrew Weaver

MLA, Oak Bay-Gordon Head

Each spring the Legislative assembly of British Columbia invites post-secondary students from across Canada to participate in the Summer Tour Program. As Tour Guides and Parliamentary Players, these students bring parliamentary procedure and British Columbian history to life for countless students and visitors.

The Summer Guide Program is a four-month opportunity for students to gain work experience providing educational tours to the general public about the Legislative Assembly. Summer Tour Guides must be enrolled at an accredited post-secondary institution with public speaking experience and the ability to communicate fluently in English and a second language.

Likewise, the Parliamentary Players Program is a four-month opportunity for students to gain work experience in the field of applied theatre. Actors will perform roles as significant historical and political figures from B.C.’s past. Parliamentary Players must also be enrolled at an accredited post-secondary institution with theatrical experience and be able to convincingly portray historical characters and creatively ad-lib with visitors.

Applications for the Summer Tour Guides Program and the Parliamentary Players Program are due by December 31st, 2015. For more information on these programs and how to apply, please visit the Legislative Assembly of B.C.’s Job Postings webpage.