Jay Durant

Reporter, This is BC

Author Archives

• ‘Once a Meraloma, always a Meraloma’: Amateur Vancouver sports club marks 100 years

  The Meraloma Club, Vancouver's premier amateur sports club, is marking its 100th anniversary this year. 

  Canada

  Sep 26
• B.C. man transforms old instruments into eye-catching art

  A Vancouver Island man is repurposing broken instruments into work of art, transforming items once meant to please the ear into sculptures that treat the eye. 

  Canada

  Aug 29
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• Veteran and retired CN employee celebrates 100th birthday touring Canada by train

  Bill Hamill's birthday wish was to take one more train ride across the country to see his younger brother Bob.

  Canada

  Aug 22
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• Vancouver’s iconic steam clock creator finally winding down

  Ray Saunders has been designing and building for the past 63 years, but it’s his steam clock in Gastown that’s made him Vancouver’s most famous horologist.

  Tech

  Aug 15
• B.C. teen wins scholarship to compete in Formula 4 competition in Europe

  B.C. teen Dylan Ulinder is getting the opportunity of a lifetime racing Formula 4s in France next month after winning a scholarship for young racers.

  Canada

  Jul 30
• Preparations underway for B.C. twins’ annual country music cancer fundraiser

  Everyone is chipping in to set the stage for Saturday's Gone Country fundraiser in the fight against cancer, according to co-founder Chris Ruscheinski.

  Features

  Jul 18
• ‘Fulfilling’: Kelowna para-climber defies gravity and the odds on world stage

  Kelowna's Shamus Boulianne never felt quite at home on the basketball court as a child, but on boulders, found his groove as an adult. 

  Sports

  Jul 16
• Canadian veteran pens memoir to heal from PTSD

  A newly published memoir called Brass & Unity is the story of one woman's service in Afghanistan. She wrote the book to deal with her own struggle with post traumatic stress.

  Canada

  Jul 13
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• B.C. veteran helps process PTSD by replicating ships he served on

  A veteran of the Royal Canadian Navy has found an interesting new hobby in retirement: Yvon Lehoux is replicating seven of the ships he served on.

  Canada

  Jul 4
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• Campbell River rock band reunites, writes album featuring voice of late lead singer

  In the early 1980s, Big Rock was a touring cover band, but This Is BC's Jay Durant hears that the music industry wasn’t interested in their original material.

  Features

  Jun 20
• Italian Day on the Drive returns after 3 years along with long-time performer

  Italian Day on the Drive is back and so is 93-year-old singer/guitarist Gianni Fuoco, who has been performing since the events early days.

  Canada

  Jun 12
• Nephew hopes to keep uncle’s ‘Soup Meister’ legacy alive in North Vancouver

  Evan Paul hopes to keep his uncle's legacy alive at North Vancouver's iconic Soup Meister restaurant. Ralf Dauns ran the business for 27 years before losing a battle with cancer.

  Canada

  May 25
• ‘Perfect cause’: Young B.C. barber gives back to community 

  Justin Karbowiak, from Coquitlam, has been cutting hair since he was a teenager and has decided to give back to his community.

  Entertainment

  May 21
• B.C. company that makes custom guitars is celebrating 20 years

  Prestige Guitars, based in North Vancouver, has not only made guitars for celebrity clients, but it is also celebrating being in business for the past 20 years.

  Features

  May 4
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• Blind man aims to swim across Georgia Strait to raise money for guide dogs

  It's a cause close to his heart: Scott Rees’ guide dog Kaleb has taken him to the water’s edge on countless training days.

  Canada

  May 2
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• NHL dads have full circle moment coaching kids at Osoyoos Desert Classic

  At this weekend's "Osoyoos Desert Classic," a number of NHL players are now hockey dads, which means mentoring and coaching a new generation of talent.

  Sports

  Apr 23
• B.C. man to run 22 marathons in 22 days for a cause close to his heart

  “I’m going to be running 22 marathons in 22 days,” Sachin Latti explained. “We’re going to start in Revelstoke and go all the way to Victoria.”

  Canada

  Apr 20
• B.C. company trains teams worldwide to safely handle off-road vehicles

  For anyone who's ever dreamed about tackling the backroads in this country, or anywhere else in the world, there's a team that's ready to train you.

  Environment

  Apr 18
• B.C. woman writes book and makes documentary about history of Sikhs in Canada

  Karen Dosanjh’s said her research into her family’s history turned into a much bigger project, tracing the origins of the first Sikh’s in Canada.

  Education

  Apr 16
• Hundreds of volunteer students giving back to Downtown Eastside community

  The non-profit Project Hastings now has more than 250 student volunteers, the majority of them still in high school.

  Canada

  Apr 9
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• One woman’s personal journey behind B.C. ‘Black and Rural’ production

  It’s a project that’s the culmination of years of life experience and dozens of heartfelt interviews all across Canada, the creator said.

  Perspectives

  Apr 2
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• Short film about growing up Chinese in Metro Vancouver up for U.S. national award

  Tony Shi’s story, produced while studying at the University of Southern California, draws on his his experiences as a youth in British Columbia.

  Entertainment

  Mar 28
• B.C. prop and set designer auctioning off decades of film and TV creations

  Booth Milton has been producing TV and Movie props for decades. Now the veteran craftsman is putting most of them up for auction.

  Mar 23
• B.C. women competing in 15-day Moroccan rally across the Sahara Desert

  The rally, which runs from March 3-18, will feature 190 different crews from around the world, with 14 crews from Canada.

  Sports

  Mar 9
• First Canadian pro women’s paintball team gearing up for competition

  With less than a month to go before Team Canada makes its National Xball League debut, the Northern Lights have some big plans to try and become one of North America's top teams. 

  Features

  Feb 19