These past several years have seen some significant changes (yet again) for the Dell’Anno family. The COVID pandemic precipitated many changes for a LOT of us. For us, it meant eventually being let go from my Farm Manager position at the Sorrento Centre in the Shuswap late in 2021 and being forced out of our rental in Silver Creek, near Salmon Arm (due to family needing to ‘move
in’) in the same several months. So late in 2021 we loaded most of our belongings into a commercial truck trailer and headed for Mom’s place in New Liskeard for a 3 month visit.
In April 2022, I accepted an Interim ED position at Camp Pringle, about an hour north of Victoria on Vancouver Island. This is the farthest west we’ve ever been. We were fortunate to have some temporary housing with friends in Victoria. However, it became clear, the longer I spent trying, that we were not going to be able to find rental housing in our price range on Vancouver Island. So when my contract came up for extension, I declined.
I started a new job as the Executive Director of the Friends of Kootenay Lake Stewardship Society in April of 2023. This required 7 trips back and forth from Victoria to the Kootenays over 3 months. (About a 6 hour drive plus a 2 hour ferry wait and ride). I was able to secure rental housing in Slocan Park (about 30 minutes from Nelson)
and we made our final trip with pets, plants and the family on July 1, 2023 — no more ferry rides for the time being!! Our truck load of belongings, which had been stored in Armstrong, arrived the end of September and we spent the winter slowly unpacking and getting everything settled. Read more about it here….
Over the past year and a half, I have gotten started on garden construction and have most of the perennials settled in place. A high fence is necessary, to reduce elk damage. They have not been particularly pushy, but a hoof-print in the middle of the garlic patch can have a significant impact — they are big animals. The fence does keep them away from the most fragile planting areas. I have not yet got a pond built — that is on the list for next year — but I do have an over-abundance of water lilies to sell and the fish are doing well in their temporary home. Read more about my gardening exploits here… and here…. and here….
In May of this year, I took our little trailer full of furniture and Alex’s belongings and moved him to Cranbrook. Living rurally has significant disadvantages when you don’t drive and he really wanted to be some place where he could walk – to work, to the library, to friends, to the games night, etc. We spent a bit of time exploring smaller towns nearer us here and after our time in Victoria, they all seemed inadequate. He is doing well, working at the Save-On-Foods and has found an agreeable living space with roommates that he gets along with quite well. You can read more about it here… and here….
I have started a new 4-H club in the West Kootenays. This past year we had 7 young people sign up (and 5 active) throughout the year. Next year, I hope to double our membership. We had a really good year for having got started late and you can see pictures of us at the Fall Fair here. I was very proud of each one as they presented their projects on Achievement Day in early November.
Mark continues to enjoy his walks up the mountain, although he is more careful since he tore his meniscus (knee tendon) while we were still living in Silver Creek. The knee has improved greatly with time and exercise, but he still takes care when he walks. I have enjoyed a number of hikes up the trail as well and fall is a particularly beautiful time for hiking here in the
Kootenays. There are many ‘farther afield’ hikes to explore as well, but I have been so busy that we haven’t done much adventuring. We will see what the new year holds.
I have attended a number of Craft fairs over the past year, selling a variety of items and promoting my new business and the 4-H club. In the spring I had water lilies and plant starts for sale. Then this fall, I’ve been able to sell some herbals including dried mint, catnip, mullein and hops flowers, as well as sage and wild sagebrush. At each of them, I also offered my hand-carved rubber stamps. I don’t sell many stamps, but it does draw people into my ‘booth’ and gives me a chance to talk to them.
I first started carving when Alex was younger and we started letterboxing as a family. Letterboxing is much like geocaching, involving a treasure hunt in public parks, museums, cemeteries and other accessible locations. I haven’t done as much letterboxing in recent years, since we moved back west. There just aren’t very many folks in Western Canada creating and hiding them for others to find. There are sometimes a few new ones that appear as tourists travel through, but most of the new ones being ‘planted’ are put there by me. (And there’s not much motivation for me to go searching when the only ones out there are ones I’ve hidden.) I have listed 248 finds…. I’m so close to 250. There are several more nearby that I need to search out so that I can reach that 250 milestone.
However, once one crosses the Border into the US (we are only about an hour north of the border here), there are hundreds of letterboxes. I would love to plan a trip to the states, crossing into Washington state, crossing the panhandle of Idaho and then into the NW corner of Montana and back up into Canada. Three new states on my ‘find’ list in three days. We’ll see! At this point, the trip is only an idea in the back of my mind. Find out more about letterboxing here…
I’m also considering doing a workshop (or 2) next year to introduce some local families to letterboxing and get some new carvers and planters in the local area. Again…. This is just an idea in the back of my mind right now. I have MANY things to think about, LOL!!
In January of 2024, my position at the Friends of Kootenay Lake ended. The Society ran out of money and went into a hiatus status. I registered my own business as a Virtual Assistant in March. FoKLSS was my first client and I continue to do some Admin work for them under the umbrella of Dragonfly Meadows Virtual Solutions. I am also working with another not-for-profit in Alberta – a contact through someone I knew from my Scouting days. I was fortunate to qualify for a Rural Economic Development grant which is paying some of my living expenses for a time while I build my business and also provided ongoing coaching for me. So my days are divided between client work, coaching/training video conference calls and networking — both in-person and online — as I build my client base. Although I am quite comfortable with the demands of the admin work, starting a small business has required developing a whole new set of skills. I am grateful for all of the opportunities this new venture is affording me.
As part of my business development strategy, I have started publishing a monthly newsletter. There are two main articles — one has tips and ideas to streamline your own small business and the other is updates from us here locally, for family and friends. If you’ve made it this far, you will see the ‘subscription’ form on this website. Please sign up if you want to receive these monthly updates. Or send me an email at gwen@dragonflymeadowsinc.ca and I can sign you up.
The holidays will be a bit different for us this year with Alex not being able to get back home. We have been doing our December countdown readings via Facetime. We will likely have a very quiet holiday and I will be doing a lot of journalling and planning for the upcoming year. We may even try a game of Carcasonne via ZOOM.
We hope that you have a safe and happy holiday season as you celebrate with family and friends. And that the new year holds promise and hope as you look ahead.
It has been a long time and I’d love to hear how you’re doing. I think back often on our moves and the friends we have made over the years. You are in my thoughts and prayers. Let’s keep in touch.
