The District of Houston received a letter from Smithers Dze L K’ant Friendship Society asking council to write a letter to support their application for a Hwy. 16 transportation grant.
This grant will provide affordable, safe and reliable transportation between Houston and Smithers. It will assist community members in the District of Houston to access groceries and hospital services, as well as transport supplies to the society’s satellite office in Dease Lake.
This is an eight passenger transit service to compliment the transportation system being implemented by B.C. Transit.
The main goal of this program would be to provide additional access to social services. The centre is applying to purchase a transport vehicle that would be solely operated by the centre to provide these additional services to their clients.
It would be used to help transport clients that live in Houston, Telkwa, and Moricetown that don’t own a vehicle and take them to Smithers to be able to access the centre, other social services, and the grocery store.
This transport vehicle will also carry supplies such as diapers and formula to Dease Lake where their pregnancy outreach program is located.
Submission of the letter was requested for Sept. 16, which council agreed to write.
On Oct. 18 it was presented at council the request for a second support letter for the Dze L K’ant Friendship Society’s application for a Food Security Worker.
“We received a request for a letter of support from the friendship society, they are applying for a B.C. gaming grant to support a community food sustainability worker,” said Gerald Pinchbeck, Chief Election Officer and Corporate Services Officer for theDistrict of Houston.
“So they want to apply for a gaming grant to hire someone?” asked councillor Rick Lundrigan.
“That is correct,” replied Pinchbeck, “To the base of my knowledge it is for a one year position.”
The goals of this position are to provide distress support to families of Smithers and Houston as well as allow access to food for those families in distress.
Council agreed to write this letter of support for the friendship society.
Houston Today contacted the Dze L K’ant Friendship Society in Smithers for more information, but they declined to comment.