Williams Lake, BC news and events as they happen
- Assembly of First Nations to intervene in Tsilhqot’in title rights hearing
- City to focus on boulevard parking bylaw
- Jeep Cherokee stolen in Williams Lake overnight
- RCMP report quiet weekend in Williams Lake
- Skateboard thief arrested and released
- Remembering, recovering, reconciling: SJM Residential School
- Bear spray used in downtown robbery this afternoon
- Be safe as you travel this long weekend
- Friday farmers market returns to Boitanio Park
- City to respond to wrongful dismissal claims by 'former' CAO
- Family hoping for safe return of dog involved in yesterday's tragic crash
- Highway 20 claims another life
- Cariboo-Chilcotin Liberals celebrate victory
- Serious crash slows traffic on Highway 20 this afternoon
Central Cariboo Search and Rescue hopes to raise funds for TIC’s
| Events |
A unique, modern and forward-thinking fundraising campaign kicks off in the Cariboo-Chilcotin region today with an online bidding auction.
The Cariboo Regional District’s Central Cariboo Search and Rescue (CCSAR) team is hoping to raise enough funds to acquire at least one Thermal Imaging Camera (TIC) – a very sensitive piece of equipment that is used to detect the differing temperature of objects, specifically people. This camera will enable the CCSAR crews to locate persons who are lost or injured in various scenarios.

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| Human interest |
This afternoon, 68 year old Neil Saunders is taking time on his weekend to clean up the ditches along Dog Creek Road near Mountview Elementary School.
Neil, who has lived in Williams Lake for 41 years said he just wants to make it look nicer. He is being ultra responsible by wearing a high-visibility vest.

Open burning ban comes into effect in the Cariboo tomorrow
| News |
The Williams Lake Fire Department helped some residents get a small out-of-control grass fire under control on Woodland Drive this afternoon, at the same time as the 150 Mile House Volunteer Fire Department did the same thing in their area.
Reminder to Cariboo residents, effective at noon on Monday, April 15, open burning will be prohibited across the entire Cariboo Fire Centre to help prevent person-caused wildfires and to protect the public.
City to undertake public consultation on place brand
| News |
(Media release.)
In response to community feedback over a proposed City place brand, Williams Lake City Council will undertake public consultation to allow more opportunity for residents to provide feedback.
Council recognizes and appreciates the full gallery of residents who attended the April 9 Council meeting, as well as a large volume of feedback from a diverse group of residents.
Police looking for info on bear spray incident in March
| News |
The Williams Lake RCMP are seeking the public's assistance in identifying two males involved in a bear spraying incident nearly two weeks ago.
On March 31, at 1:15 am, the Williams Lake RCMP received a complaint of an assault that occurred in the school yard of Marie Sharpe Elementary. A group of 6 people were sprayed with bear spray by two male suspects.
VIDEO: 'Republic of Life' stayed for public consultation process
| News |
Deanna Phillips and Karen Springle were among the first to arrive at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting, with opposition signs in hand.
The two had created the ‘Boycott “Republic” of Williams Lake’ page after Karen read about the placebrand slogan on the Williams Lake News and Events Facebook page.
“All the comments I was reading were from people my age who have lived here for a long time – not necessarily the demographics the campaign was looking for,” said Karen. “So, I contacted Deanna about it, who is in the target market they were looking for.”

Ice Road Trucker visits James Western Star in Williams Lake
| Events |
Star of the popular TV series, Alex Debogorski was in Williams Lake on Tuesday. James Western Star Sterling Ltd. hosted the reality TV star with a display of promotional items and a delicious BBQ lunch to give the public a chance to meet and chat with Mr. Debogorski. Fans of all ages gathered to have their photo taken with Alex, who was incredibly friendly and chatted with each one.

(Photo: 13 year old Derrick Schindle got the inside scoop that Alex would be there today, as his Dad is the local Western Star dealership’s branch manager. Derrick came to see Alex today because he watches him on TV and really likes the way he drives his truck. He feels Alex "goes with everything, instead of against it -- just for the sake of grumbling. He’s easy going." Derrick is planning on being a heavy duty mechanic when he grows up.)
Alex is taking advantage of some rare spare time to do a bit of travelling, since they’ve just finished filming the seventh season of Ice Road Truckers, which premier in June. It’s also spring break-up for him in Yellowknife, NWT, where he hauls gravel and topsoil .
You may see Alex around the Cariboo from time-to-time because he has a gold mine in the Likely area which he purchased in the 70’s. He comes to ‘visit it’ more than work it, and he likes to help out the other local miners as well as learn from them.
He was on CBC early Tuesday morning and today he was in Vancouver, featured on the Global TV Morning Show. He will visit a Freightliner and a Western Star dealership there, before enjoying a visit with a dear aunt.

(Photo: Shannon and Caleb Sheppard with their 5 month old daughter Molly.)
Alex will head back home next week to get ready for spring, “getting the ‘ol John Deere” ready to work. He has 150-200 vehicles at home that always need fixing, adding that all of his hobbies seem to revolve around his work. “We have 11 children and 13 grandchildren, so that keeps us busy, too. We’ve got half a dozen grandkids in the basement at any given time, and he jokes that “we let them out on Wednesdays.”
He brought some hats, t-shirts, calendars and posters which were the hot-ticket items for everyone to get autographed. Visitors and staff of the dealership noted that his book ‘King of the Road: True Tales from a Legendary Ice Road Trucker’, was also a popular item.
Amazon describes the book as “The highest-rated reality show ever to hit History Television, Ice Road Truckers follows the heart-pounding adventures of the tough-as-nails truckers who risk peril every day to deliver goods and supplies in Alaska and across Canada's frozen north. shares tales of his adventures, and misadventures, in the north, and explains, in his own entertaining voice, how he got to where he is today—a working-class hero, bona fide celebrity, and the improbable star of a smash-hit television show. Debogorski is a natural storyteller who knows how to spin tales about his colourful life growing up in the backwoods. Whether he's recounting tales about his hair-raising confrontations with bears, calculating the strength of newly formed ice, divulging the secrets of providing security in a barroom full of combative, drunken miners, or saving the life of another trucker, he keeps readers wanting more. King of the Road gives fans of Ice Road Truckers a deep look inside the life and times of the show's biggest rising star.
If you missed his visit Tuesday, you have an opportunity to pick up a couple of the items, as Alex generously donated an autographed book, an XL t-shirt and a Yellowknife pin to the upcoming Central Cariboo Search and Rescue online auction. Alex has agreed to personalise the autograph for whoever wins the bid on this item, the next time he is back in town.

(Photo: Autographed book, t-shirt and pin up for grabs on the CCSAR online auction beginning April 15, 2013.)
One of the highlights of Alex’s visits happened when Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement officer Ed Marshall arrived to show Alex what a violation ticket looked like. There were no infractions, but Alex was good enough to ‘autograph’ a ticket and wrote ‘sorry’ under his signature – in case he ever has an incident in the future.

(Photo: CVSE Officer Ed Marshall now has a violation ticket autographed by Ice Road Trucker star, Alex Debogorski and it didn’t even cost Alex anything – this time.)
Likely, BC restaurant owner, Diane Gibson, is Alex’s agent in BC. She said he just walked in the restaurant one day and they hit it off, and she has been promoting him ever since. Diane says Alex is available to do promotions and endorsements. He was most recently involved with California’s Maxwell Technologies promoting their Engine Start Module. Alex will appear in Maxwell's marketing campaign for the new Engine Start Module that features new technology designed to ensure reliable starting for the trucking and transportation industry, especially in cold weather.
Alex will be back in Williams Lake during the annual Stampede.

(Photo: Alex gathers with the employees and management at James Western Star, the host of this execellent community event.)
View a much larger photo album on our Facebook page: 'Williams Lake News and Events'.
Cariboo Draft Horse Club loses one of their own; remembering Lincoln
| Human interest |
Well-known and much beloved Williams Lake draft horse, Lincoln, died suddenly on March 16th, leaving owners Karen and Kim Sepkowski devastated.
Lincoln, a sorrel (red) colored rare breed of horse called a Suffolk Punch, along with his partner, Bentley, were a popular and familiar sight to many Williams Lake residents. They participated in the Santa Claus parade bringing Santa to town. They gave annual rides at the seniors’ complex. They appeared at weddings, graduations, the well-known Valentine’s Day sleigh ride with the Cariboo Draft Horse Club, and gave rides to the public each year at the fall fair. In the winter, the team gave sleigh rides to families and businesses. Last year they took Premier Christy Clarke and MLA Donna Barnett in the stampede parade.

Revenue-sharing agreements with Mt. Polley to benefit local First Nations
| News |
Two new revenue-sharing agreements will enable two Williams Lake-area First Nations to benefit from the expansion of the Mt. Polley mine.
Economic and Community Development Agreements (ECDA) will facilitate the Williams Lake Indian Band and Xatśūll First Nation (Soda Creek Indian Band) to receive a share of mineral tax revenues collected by the Province enabled by the expansion of the Mt. Polley mine, located east of Williams Lake.
“These agreements underscore our government’s commitment to helping First Nations meaningfully participate in, and benefit from, resource activity happening within their traditional territory," says Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation Minister Ida Chong. "It will help the Williams Lake Indian Band and Xatśūll First Nation build a better future for their own communities, while also supporting a mine expansion that will provide huge benefits to Williams Lake and the surrounding area.”
Cariboo couponing group invites new members to save money
| Human interest |
On her Facebook page, Williams Lake resident Shelby Philpotts describes herself as a “coupon punk, trying to get the best deal I can and helping anyone I can along the way.”
Shelby first became interested in saving money using coupons after seeing the TV series ‘Extreme Couponing’. Her curiousity piqued, she researched couponing in Canada and found that the rules were vastly different from the US.
A local couponing group did not exist, and there was no source for acquiring coupons, according to Shelby. So, in the summer of 2011, she started the Facebook group Cariboo, BC Coupon Swap. “Within a couple of months, the group had grown to 100 members across Canada,” explains Philpotts. The group is now up to 225 members.
(Photo: Shelby 'Couponpunk' Philpotts, founder of Cariboo, BC Coupon Swap.)



































