Building bridges between all communities
Issue link: http://publications.winnipegfreepress.com/i/73121
PAGE 6 • JULY 2012 Respect, trust, handshakes & hugs Lead to one-of-a-kind Osoyoos lakeside cottage community Grant's Old Mill located on Sturgeon Creek at Portage Ave. MAY 19 - SEPTEMBER 3 10AM - 6PM CUTHBERT GRANT DAY SATURDAY, JULY 14TH 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. Food - Fun - Live Music MEET SIR JAMES Chief of Clan Grant CALL 986-5613 for more information Admission by donation. First Peoples Economic Growth Fund Success Story – Terry Cook, Cooks Campground & Cabins I approached First Peoples Economic Growth Fund (FPEGF) with a plan to purchase and expand an existing business – a campground located on Cedar Lake, north of Grand Rapids, Manitoba. I was new to the small business world and found the staff at FPEGF able to assist me greatly in getting the required information and professional help needed to do valuations of the campground and to do a proper business plan. The staff were easy to speak to and full of information and ideas on how to develop the business. They made the application, valuation and planning of the business as simple as possible for a newcomer in the small business world. Overall if someone is willing to work on the development of a business and provide information, the staff at FPEGF can be of great help with funding and getting a prospective business the support it requires. Show home meadow cottages overlooking Osoyoos Lake are now available for viewing. A rare level of trust between an 80-some- thing female First Nations elder and a 57-year- old male non-Aboriginal land developer has resulted in a $100 million, 28 hectare one-of- a-kind lake front community that will create up to 300 detached cottages on the shores of Osoyoos Lake between Oliver and Osoyoos. www.osoyooscottages.com Chilliwack–based land developer. After many (non-business related) meetings they devel- oped a mutual respect for each other and a level of trust that is seldom witnessed between First Nations and non-Aboriginals. Together they conceptualized a unique lakeside com- munity (www.osoyooscottages.com) that ben- efited both Stelkia's family and the Osoyoos Indian Band. It also fulfilled the dreams of devel- oper Van Maren – to create a laid-back cottage community where walking bare- foot down to the beach and boat slips is encouraged. After hugs and a hand shake a deal was struck that received majority approval from the members of the Osoyoos Indian Band. For Stelkia it is also about transition- ing from her past into the present - not just benefiting financially from the land development, but also becoming an in- tegral part of its future by buying a cot- tage and residing on the property. For Van Maren it's about transform- ing and sculpting a unique 28 hectares L to R: Daryl Bone, FPEGF Senior Loans Manager, and Terry Cook, owner Cooks Campground & Cabins Jane Stelkia and Eric Van Maren form unique bond enroute to build- ing cottages on Osoyoos Lake. Osoyoos and Oliver, BC (May 28, 2012) – Jane Stelkia, an elder with the Osoyoos Indian Band is both street smart and savvy when it comes to business. She also knows intuitive- ly whom she trusts. She had decided it was time to convert her ranch into something more meaningful. However, she did not know what that would be. Whatever it turned out to be, it would have to benefit her family, her Band and it would have to be developed on her terms. Suitors followed – but all were rejected out- right until she met Eric Van Maren, a low-key of prime Okanagan lakeside real estate into a one-of-a-kind cottage community that is af- fordable (homes start @ $300,000) for baby boomers and people looking for a unique lake- side vacation property. It was also important to the developer that the entire community blend into the surrounding semi-desert landscape and vineyards. If you are interested in learning more about this unique story, please contact: Mr. Neil Bousquet APR (403) 256-8834 prwizard@ prwizard.ca www.osoyooscottages.com