Douglas College Language Partner Program Tribute to Volunteers Fall 1996 9 Semesters (4.5 years) : Patrick Longworth 8 Semesters (4 years) Gordon Roberts 7 Semesters Hiroshi Yasuoka 6 Semesters (3 years) Margaret Cope = Allan Louie 5 Semesters Tim Arinobu Ralph Mills Jamia Pestafio » 4 semesters (2 years) Nicole Duffield Scotty Harris Shiun Lee Cary Wong 3 Semesters Brian Beck Naomi Boquski Elizabeth Czaja Kimiko Karpoff Jason Mak Jay Patel Lois Reimer Dave Seaweed Ampy Tercias Myrle Westervelt Diane Wiesner Gweny Wong 2 Semesters Nicole Batistic Jack Chau Lanny Chau Dale Harvey Jennie Johns Karen Langley Jason Lau Daniel Le Van Kevin Ng Miwa Oyama Alan Turkington Robert White Vivian Wong Ann Yamashita Chris Zuk First Semester Graham Andrews Greg Bedford Ronny Brumec Aaron Louis Buma Mercy Calixterio Jody Carter Robyn Chan-Kent Neal Davis Anita Navnit Dosanjh Regan Faber Maria Figueroa Mathew Hall Amanda Haymond Hung Hoa Ken Huber Toni Jones Marilyn Kitteringham Karen Lee Tuan Le Britt Leggett John Lok Anna Low Christina Lu Christina MacVicar Jennifer Mak Kingsley Mok Brenda Musclow Lisa Olsen Michael Pierre Jon Richardson Annabelle Rivera Michael Soliven Lena Stewart Zowie Tan Patricia Tracey Gloria Tsui Warren Tutkahke Greg Van Vugt Grace Wei Myrle Westervelt Kevin Westwood Tom Wojciechowski Daisy Wong Frances Yao _ ABig Thank You for - your dedication to the Language Partner Program over the years. OPinion oped@siwash.be.ca Why | like clearcuts by Corene McKay It started when I was a child and didn’t know any better. As I grew older, I realized that I was, well, different from most people. It’s a difficult thing to admit, But...] like clearcuts. It’s not that I don’t like trees. I pathologically adore trees. As a child I used to name them. As I grow older, I continue to get upset when they’re cut down. I couldn’t live without trees, without being able to press my hands against their bark and feel the strength of their lives: the tackiness of their sap smearing into my pores, the deep clutching of their roots, the lightness of their leaves outflung towards the heavens, the smell of them opening up my soul. I get religious about trees. .. . letters But, in spite of this, I like clearcuts. There’s a stillness in destruction. A sense of awe settles over after the storm, the fire, the civilization, has passed through. The environment has been altered so much, you feel like you’re on a different planet. Clearcuts are places of rough clay roads, deep pits and murky puddles. With the removal of the forest comes the sky. An openness is created. The world of the forest is exposed, like that of the sea when the tide is out. Amidst the broken remnants of trees, deer graze on new growth, bears amble about scavenging, wildflowers spring up. Devastation brings out the best, the worst, the truth in people. With war, famine and ecological destruction comes our heroes, our villains, our high drama. BC can be laid back to Learning a new language, learning to under- stand, and making friends... . the point of torpor. Amidst the apathy, words like Clayquot, Carmanah and Steine have the ring of battle sites. British Columbians get emotional about their trees. Against a back- ground of chainsaws, protests and drums, the people of this province manage to give a damn about something. It’s strange, but for some reason it’s when I’m standing in a clearcut that I have the most pride in my species. When we mess up, we really mess up. No small-scale mistakes for this species. I stand there and my subcon- scious goes “Wow, something really big and powerful must have been here.” The pioneer spirit of my ancestors stirs in my veins and it’s us against the malevolent wilderness. I stand there and pretend to myself that we have won. That we are great. continued I joined the Volunteer Language Partner Program at Douglas College in 1994 and I’ve been a volunteer ever since. I first heard about the program through a friend of mine who had previously participated. She suggested that I get involved because it would be an excellent opportunity to learn about other people’s culture and to gain experience teaching English. In the two years that I’ve been involved with the program, I’ve interacted with students from Korea, Guatemala, and Japan. I’ve learned that being an ESL language partner isn’t so much about tutoring someone to speak English. Most of the activities that my international friends and I do are for fun. We watch movies, go shopping, exchange cooking recipes, walk around parks, do arts and crafts, and play sports together. My friends feel that the best way to learn the language is if they’re involved in things that are not always about school. They feel that it helps if they’re friends with a Canadian so they’!l be able to understand everyday English conversation that isn’t taught in the classroom. While my first experience wasn’t as success- ful, my second and present one have been positive and enjoyable. I’ve realised that patience and understanding is a key to a successful partnership. Staying committed is another. Only an hour once a week is required to fulfill the program. But my friends and I are having so much fun learning together—about each other’s culture and as people, an hour isn’t enough! I’d like to thank Lani Hyde, our ESL coordinator, and the rest of the volunteers, and especially the students who’ve made this program work and grow into a network of friends from all notions. Jamia Pestafio Submissions are being accepted for the Otherthan, Douglas College's student run writing anthology. Bring your poetry, fiction, nonfiction, drama and artwork to room 1020. The Other Press October 29 1996