Florence Nightingale Celebration
Dawson Creek Auxiliary members Sandra, Lorraine, Fran and Helen prepare and set up their annual Florence Nightingale Celebration. This is a time to reflect and honour our nurses for the outstanding care they give to our patients, each and every day. 
In the 1800s, during the Crimean War, Miss Nightingale was responsible for giving nursing a favorable reputation as she bravely made rounds of wounded soldiers during the night. She was known as the “Lady with the Lamp.” In 1860, Miss Nightingale established her 
nursing school at St. Thomas Hospital in London. She therefore laid the foundation of professional nursing. It was the first secular nursing school in the world. I have no “nursing” background and, therefore, went to Wikipedia and discovered that this lady was a wonderful pioneer and an advocate for nurses everywhere. And so each year we remember Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, as we celebrate and honor nurses everywhere.
(Dawson Creek Auxiliary Facebook Page, Oct. 9, 2019)
Daring to Dream Big to Save Babies
This year, the Dawson Creek and District Auxiliary Society of Local Health Care dared to dream big… REALLY BIG! What if we could collect 350 knitted and crocheted purple baby caps to donate to the Prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome BC – CLICK for Babies Campaign? This number was specially selected because it represents the annual number of babies born in the South Peace. If we were going to reach our goal, we would need help. So, we challenged all South Peace area knitters and crocheters to make one or more purple baby caps for us this year. We also asked the public to donate purple wool for the caps.
Just as we were preparing to kick off this year’s challenge, our Auxiliary Gift Shop suffered major water damage from a burst pipe. With our shop closed for repairs, we no longer had a drop-off location for the little caps. We needed a small miracle. Without any hesitation, the owners of Faking Sanity came to our rescue. They offered to be our purple baby cap drop off location. Their shop regularly hosts knitting and crocheting evenings and workshops, and they sell yarn and all sorts of knitting accessories too. We couldn’t have asked for a better partnership.
On September 5, 2019, we packed up 374 little purple baby caps and mailed then to the BC Children’s Hospital. Our little caps will join a collection of over 10,000 purple baby caps that have been gathered from across the province as part of the CLICK for Babies Campaign. This public awareness campaign focuses on raising awareness about normal increased infant crying and the dangers of reacting in frustration by shaking or harming an infant. The purple baby caps are redistributed by the BC Children’s Hospital in November and December along with PURPLE Crying program materials to all BC birthing hospitals and community health units.
Since the CLICK for Babies Campaign public education program launched in BC in 2009, there has been a 35 percent reduction of the number of children, under the age of two, admitted to BC hospitals with shaking-related injuries. For more information visit: https://dontshake.ca/click-for-babies/. We would like to thank everyone who contributed their time, talent and wool to this challenge. Special thanks to Cindy and Lou from Faking Sanity for their support.
(Dawson Creek Auxiliary Facebook Page, Sept. 10, 2019)
Island Thrift Shops Win Awards
On Oct. 26, the Chemainus Health Care Auxiliary’s Thrift Shop was named the winner of the Chemainus Golden Brush Award, given to the Not-for-Profit of the Year. President Susan Beaubier accepted the award on behalf of the organization from Moira Hauk, Coastal Community 
Credit Union’s regional manager for South Vancouver Island. On Nov. 14, the Campbell River Auxiliary Thrift Shop held a Customer Appreciation Event to thank its supporters for voting it the Best Thrift Shop for the last five years. Congratulations to the Auxiliary volunteers in Chemainus and Campbell River for their dedicated efforts and continued excellence!
Invermere Auxiliary Making a Difference
“The heart of a volunteer is not measured in size, but by the depth of the commitment to make a difference in the lives of others!”
The East Kootenay Foundation for Health would like to send a HUGE thank you out to the Invermere Health Care Auxiliary Society for their unwavering support in improving health care for our region! This hard-working group of volunteers proudly donated $124,117.60 to the EKFH. 
$115,848 went to purchase equipment for the Invermere and District Hospital and an additional $8,269.60 went to support equipment needs at the Golden and District Hospital. All of the funds raised and donated comes from a very successful Thrift Store that these amazing people operate in Invermere. Be sure and stop by to support them. Each and every volunteer with the Invermere Health Care Auxiliary is a true gift to health care!
(East Kootenay Foundation for Health Facebook Page, July 9, 2019)
Pictured (left): the Invermere Thrift Store cheque presentation and (right) a Thursday Thrift Store Day customer lineup in downtown Invermere.
Auxiliaries in Action
Outgoing Kootenay Boundary Area Director, Allana Ferro (left) and BCAHA Director of Finance Val Wright (middle) welcome incoming KBA Director, Gwen Chernenkoff at the KB Area Conference & AGM.
Rossland Thrift Store auxilians (pictured right) are pleased to present the third installment of the $155,000 pledged for the new Emergency unit at Trail Hospital.
St. John Hospital Auxiliary Society would like to send out a HUGE Thank-You to the NVSA-Sporting Clays Club. The Club donated $7,000 that was raised through the 2019 “Take a Shot at Cancer” fundraiser, now in its sixth year. The club is proud of its fundraiser and has been strongly supported by the Integris Credit Union which has now committed to a three-year funding support of the program. This support will include promotion and onsite help from staff of the Vanderhoof Branch on an annual basis. The “Take a Shoot at Cancer” program would not be successful without the strong support of the Vanderhoof business community led by Omineca Source for Sports and the Four Rivers Co-op as major contributors, but it is also the many other businesses in our community that have supported us on an annual basis. NVSA-Sporting Clays is proud of the fact that with our $7,000 donation, we have now contributed over $46,000 in the past six years with the money going to the St. John Hospital Auxiliary for the Oncology Ward at the hospital.
(St. John Hospital Auxiliary Society Facebook Page, Sept. 8, 2019)
Thank you to our partners in #TeamSpirit the Auxiliary to UHNBC team and Spirit of the North Board Member, Rob Jarvis of Canfor, for putting smiles on #SmileCookies today in support of #Spiritofthenorthhealthcarefoundation. All proceeds from @TimHortons cookie campaign are being generously donated to Spirit of the North and directed to Paediatrics here in the North.
(Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation Facebook Page, Sept. 16, 2019)
Attendees at the Vancouver Island Area Conference held in Campbell River, Oct. 1.
A beautiful day for the Langley Memorial Hospital Auxiliary to leave its mark by signing one of the steel beams for the hospital’s new emergency department.
On Saturday, Nov. 2, the Hopkins Landing Branch of the Sunshine Coast Healthcare Auxiliary held its annual Fall Bazaar. A wonderful assortment of crafts, clothing and jewellery was on offer, as well as a delicious lunch of homemade soups. It was a fun day for all volunteers and the community with all proceeds going to support healthcare on the Sunshine Coast.
For the third year in a row, the Auxiliary to Fraser Canyon Hospital and Fraser Hope Lodge
was chosen Best Decorated Float during the Sept. 9, Brigade Days Parade.
BCAHA Green Bags Go Global
BCAHA’s Green Bags are making their way to destinations near and far. Recent stops include Spain, Utah, Alaska, Greece, Iceland, Sunshine Coast, Tofino, Abbotsford and Mission. Thank you, all, for sharing BCAHA’s spirit of volunteerism!
