Qualicum

Beach &

Oceanside

Communities,

Vancouver

Island, BCCommunity Mapping

Presentation – click on the

speaker icon!

Sarah Faulhafer

Stats about Qualicum Beach

As per the 2006 census there are

approximately 8500 people who live in

Qualicum Beach

The largest age groups include people

over the age of 55 however there is a

growing population of 0-19yrs

The smallest population is the age group I

belong in 25-40

More info about the area

“Oceanside” is the term used to

incorporate the communities nearby

including Qualicum Beach, Parksville,

Coombs, Errington and Bowser

The population doubles in the summer

months as many islanders and others

vacation or have summer homes here

Seniors

There is a thriving seniors community in QB and many resources for seniors are available at the QB Senior’s Activity Centre such as:

Fitness classes, cheap meals, singing, book clubs, hobby groups, art and music programs. These are all run by volunteers

There are three major retirement/senior care facilities in Qualicum Beach

Qualicum First Nation

The Qualicum First Nation Band is located

slightly north of Qualicum Beach – there is

a very small reserve with a population of

105 as per the 2006 census.

The nearest Aboriginal services offered

(such as the friendship centre, Aboriginal

rec centre etc.) are located in Port

Alberni, BC (which is 45 minutes away).

Community Needs Map

Diverse services

addictions

Youth programs

Affordable housing

Food bank

Aboriginal Services

Cultural diversity

and awareness

Qualicum Beach/Oceanside

Capacity Map

Minority/multicultural community

promote awareness

Growing younger population to

become involved in reaching out to

others in the same age group

Churches offer some groups/activities –potential to build a stronger youth-based

focus

Society of Organized Services (SOS 69) supports families in many ways – Parksville,

BC

Thriving seniors community with

many resources/activities/groups for seniors

to be among peers

Public awareness for all services offered

(which is in progress but could be

stronger)

Family Resource Association offers

support to “high risk” families that require

it (Parksville, BC)

Economy

Qualicum Beach is made up mostly of

retirees, however the workforce that does

exist is small at 34%

Most jobs are in the service industry and

the median income after taxes per year is

$22000 CAD

Housing is expensive and very little is

available for rental accommodations

Age & Diversity

There is a range of age within the

community but not as many services

directed to the different ages

There is no youth centre and very few

activities for teens unless they participate

in organized team sports/classes which

requires a considerable amount of money

Multiculturalism and Diversity

There are very few visible minorities in QB itself and no multicultural centres or events that celebrate other festivals (Chinese new year, no Synagogues, etc.)

There is an Aboriginal community on the outskirts of town but little interaction with that community and QB itself

There is currently a Cultural Planning Process underway to promote cultural events in the town and community involvement was invited in the summer (however as noted, the community is mostly retired, Caucasian people)

Services do that exist The few social services (unrelated to seniors

specifically) that are offered, are mostly located in Parksville which is 15 minutes south of Qualicum Beach

Society of Organized Services 69: provides a variety of services to children, youth, adults and seniors that may be in crisis

SOS69 is a non-profit that helps Oceanside residents to access resources such as financial assistance, grief and loss, victims of abuse, accessing formal dress-wear for $5, tutoring among many others

http://www.sosd69.com/

Services cont. Family Resource Association 69 assists families and

children that experience a variety of different challenges such as:

i. Children that experience any form of violence

ii. Mental health issues

iii. Developmental disabilities

iv. Parenting support

FRA provides education and intervention strategies to break the cycle of children that have a high risk to end up in the care of the Ministry for Children and Family Development which carries a negative stigma and to help parents work through challenges that they are facing http://d69fra.org/

Services Continued.. There is an extreme weather shelter in

Parksville – which is the only shelter of it’s kind for all of the Oceanside area

The shelter is mostly run by the Salvation Army and has partial funding from BC Housing

The shelter is only activated in “extreme weather” which is determined by 10am on the day of

Currently this program is experiencing adversity because there is little turn out to use the services

Services Continued…

The emergency shelter is working on providing more advertising on the days that it will be open

It was very difficult to find information about the shelter online (I have been following the stories in the local newspaper about it since November 1st)

The shelter only receives funding from Nov.1 – March 31st

Services Continued…

There is a very limited food bank service in

Parksville that is offered 2x a week for a

few hours, otherwise the nearest food

bank is in Nanaimo (40 minutes south).

SOS69 offers help to access affordable

groceries for emergency situations for

families

Experiencing Qualicum

Beach/Oceanside

I have done several community walks since moving to this community to get to know the area and residents. It certainly feels like a retirement community during the day time, I mostly met seniors. I have noticed that the youth population are around and exhibit a certain “style” that may be classified as alternative (bright coloured hair, wild clothes, body piercings). Everyone I have talked to, both youth and seniors have all been very friendly and I found it quite interesting observing the difference in youth and seniors.

Experiencing the community

continued….

I visited the Qualicum First Nation Band Office, but it has limited hours that it is open and was unable to obtain any information from the band. As noted, it is a very small reserve (25 homes) with very few local resources. Most Aboriginal resources are offered in Port Alberni or in the Comox Valley which are 45minutes away. The band does have a campground that is open to all visitors and appears to be one of the economic resources for the band.

Conclusion

Qualicum Beach and the Oceanside

communities have adequate services for

the seniors in the community. The

strengths that the community has are a

thriving and active seniors community

that volunteer for community events and

services. Being a small town, it isn’t hard to

physically locate the services and to meet

someone that is involved.

Conclusion continued…

There is room for improvement in the

Oceanside communities for community

building. There could be more services for

youth (such as a drop in centre), there is no

food bank, there is limited cultural diversity,

affordable housing, very little Aboriginal

resources for the local band, and nothing in

the town of Qualicum for addictions or

substance abuse. Most of the services that

are offered are located in Parksville, BC.

Conclusion continued… Getting to know the community of Qualicum

Beach and surrounding areas has been beneficial to learn how to look at a community’s strengths and where improvements can be made. Qualicum does a fine job at accommodating for seniors, but can definitely improve services for the younger population as eventually the demographic will change. It has been rewarding to get to know the town and what is in place and development for the residents here.