As I mentioned in an earlier article, one of the changes that has occurred in North Bend since I lived there is that all the streets and roads have been officially named. One of these is the road that runs south of North Bend and is now called Green Ranch Road.
    To-day, this road has been extended many miles as a logging road. In the 1930's, however, the road ran no more than two miles south of town. At the end of the road was "Allen's Ranch" -the one with the big barn that can still be seen from the highway across the river. The Allens were
friends of our family and I visited their "ranch" on numerous occasions.
    But more about the Allens another time as this article is about the owner of the other "ranch" on the road -Green's Ranch lying some half way between the town and Allen's Ranch.
Mr. Green was locally known as "Butcher Green" as he owned and operated the North Bend Butcher Shop. It was located across the road from Coveney's General Store and next to the town's Barber Shop. While some North Bend families had meat orders shipped in from places like Lytton, my parents bought all their meat from Butcher Green. I recall that the shop's floor was always covered with a couple of inches of sawdust. There was a large cold storage unit containing huge blocks of ice -no doubt originating from the CPR "Ice House" in town.
    Like at the General Store, most North Bend families  would run a monthly account with Butcher Green. I suspect that even in the midst of the Depression Years, with most men working for the CPR in North Bend, neither the General Store nor Butcher Green had too much difficulty with settling their accounts with North Bend families at the end of each month.  
    I don't recall how Butcher Green travelled from his ranch to the Butcher Shop each day during the summer months. However, how he made the trip in the snowy winter months is vividly impressed on my mind. He would make this trip on an old caterpillar-type tractor slowly towing a large wagon-like sled. This sled had particularly long runners protruding out of the rear and the cause of the daily excitement for young boys during the non-school winter days.  We would wait at the edge of town awaiting Butcher Green and his tractor and then leap on the rear protruding runners for a free ride to the Butcher Shop.
    All this was before the aerial ferry, bridge and the new access road to both. In those days to get to Green's Ranch, one went south along Government Road (now Chaumox Road) turning left down Old Post Office Road past the Yearley's house. At the foot of Old Post Office Road and before crossing the tracks, you turned to the right past the Indian Reserve and on to Green's and Allen's Ranches.  
    Butcher Green's shop was part of a small, compact commercial area in North Bend during the 1930's comprised, in part, of the Butcher Shop, Barber Shop, General Store, United Church, Stevenson's Lunch Counter, CPR Hotel, Mount View Hotel, Repeater Station, CPR Station, etc. I'll attempt to write about North Bend's commercial centre in a future article. (I'd like to hear from any readers who may have lived in North Bend in the 1930's: "billem@islandnet.com".



     An 8-month study by industry fire experts has determined that children can sleep through the sound of an activated smoke detector. Fire prevention programs taught nationwide are structured to teach children what to do in the event that they are awaken by a smoke detector that has been activated. But if they never wake up to the blaring sound then their lives are at great risk.
Children sleep so soundly under the age of thirteen that during their first two hours of sleep that an activated smoke detector will fail to alert them.
    The 80 decibel shriek of detectors (will) under normal conditions alerts adults and older children, but expecting detectors to alert a young child early on during the first stages of a fire is not going to happen according to some paediatricians.  Studies have shown one in 20 children experiencing deep sleep who are subjected to a sounding smoke detector at 120 decibels are alerted by the sound. This is 50% louder than the normal detector found in residential homes. Rock concerts and    jet aircraft are routinely measured at 120 decibels.
Fire departments conducted testing on two families. Test group one was conducted using 3 brothers age 6, 8, and ten. Cameras were installed in the bedrooms so that observations and reaction times could be recorded for accuracy. After falling to sleep fire department officials would come into the home and use smoke machines to simulate smoke conditions and would activate the smoke detectors.    The 6 year old woke first and within a minute was at his bedroom window, the 10 year old woke but went right back to sleep. The 10 year old finally woke after hearing the 6-year-old call for him. The 8 year old never woke until his brothers called for him. All three brothers got out in 4.5 minutes.
This is disturbing because national fire safety officials state that a home evacuation should take less than 2 minutes.  
    The nearest smoke detector was located in the hallway outside the boy's bedrooms. A second test was conducted utilizing the same three children. In the second the smoke alarm sounded for ten minutes before the first child woke up and alerted the others. The reaction times were even more deficient during the second test than that of the first test.
     In test group two, this study utilized 5 children. The first to be alerted was the 14-year-old child. But the 14 year old fell back to sleep twice before finally awakening to the activated detector. The 14 year old evacuated after 5 minutes of the detectors activation.
      The four other children never woke up. The detector could be heard outside of the dwelling. All four children were finally awakened after their mother woke them up. From start to finish the total time was 10 minutes. After this study was taken fire departments officials discovered through interviews with the children that they never heard the sounding detectors and when they did hear them that they did not recognize the sound.
    A second test conducted and the results showed that within two minutes two children woke up which demonstrated a drastic improvement in the reaction time over the first test results. With multiple detectors sounding a third child woke up. The other two children never woke up after ten minutes of the alarms activation. A smoke detector that had activated was placed within 1 foot from the sleeping children's heads and with this action another other child woke up. The youngest child was 9 years old and during both test this child never woke up. This is disturbing because the smoke detectors decibel range was measured at 85 Db.
    Parents that are concerned over their children's safety should remember that the blaring sound of a smoke detector may not alert or wake up your children while they sleep. Routine fire drills with a real alarm will increase the chances that your children will recognize the sound and react accordingly.







Dear editor,

    I was passing through your town a few weeks ago and broke down with car trouble.  I would like to thank the two young fellows that helped me.  I didn't catch your names but I was the grey haired guy in the little red Toyota.  Thanks very much, I would never had made it home in time for a very special family celebration without your help.  You have some great people up there in Boston Bar, as I tried to give the boys a few dollars for their troubles, not much mind you, as I am a pensioner,  but they wouldn't accept the money.  Thanks again, I hope to visit your little town again soon.

                                                                                     --Larry Milligan, Burnaby
Dear editor,

    It appears my griping may have worked!  I noticed that the big eyesore of a sign with the picture of a bear, bearing the slogan “Don't Get Stuck Here”  is now gone! In it's place stands a billboard advertising glasses, or some such thing.  We can make a difference, if we just speak up!  Did anyone else complain ?  

                                                                                     --Still happy to be stuck here

     The EDDY Awards (Enterprising, Dedicated, Dynamic, Youth) are underway for the 4th annual event. "This Is a great event celebrating the achievements of young entrepreneurs and recognizing the challenges that young entrepreneurs face," says Stephanie Moore, coordinator of the event. "The EDDY Awards reflect young entrepreneurs' dedication, innovation and creativity In business",
    The EDDY Awards are the premiere event at which young entrepreneurs in the South/Central region of British Columbia are recognized for their achievements and success, Nominees must be 29 years of age or younger as  of April 30, 2003, and reside In the South/Central region of BC,
    Seven awards will be presented which reflect the many facets of excellence in youth entrepreneurship. "The award categories are exciting", says Moore, "because they highlight areas important In small business today". The categories are:
Nomination forms are available at Community Futures Development Corp. offices in Ashcroft, Kamloops, Kelowna, Penticton, and Salmon Arm, The deadline for nominations Is March 10, 2003. Entrepreneurs may be nominated by anyone in their community, or they may nominate themselves, Awards will be presented at a Gala Awards Evening on May 10, 2003 in Penticton, BC.
For more Information, please contact Debbie Arnott at (250) 453-9165,