Laying down the welcome mat

As a resort town with an annual influx of seasonal workers, Whistler sure knows how to lay down the welcome mat to new residents. Whistler Welcome Week (Nov. 14 to 19), hosted by the Whistler Community Services Society (WCSS), is an annual, jam-packed series events to introduce newcomers to the local community.

Leah Batisse, curator and executive director of the Whistler Museum said it’s a great way to introduce people who are new to the community to everything there is on offer.

She is helping organize the volunteer fair to be held at the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre on Tuesday (Nov. 15). Hosted by the Whistler Museum and Whistler Animals Galore (WAG), Batisse said there’s going to be about 19 organizations represented.

“The volunteer fair is a great way for people who are new to find a way to get involved with the community for however long they’re going to be here, and also help out organizations that desperately need it,” she said. “Volunteers are our life blood — it’s the only way we continue to do some of the awesome things that we do.”

Originating from an idea first expressed by Paula Del Bosco, executive director of WAG, Batisse partnered up with Del Bosco to launch the inaugural event last year. “We… were asked to do it again this year,” said Batisse.

Batisse agreed that Whistler is known as a transient town, but added, “The fun thing is that, yeah, maybe people are only coming here for a ski season, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have other valuable skills that they could lend out.

“It’s a great way to get some job experience so then when they do go home they have some concrete work experience — helping people out is going to help them in the long run,” she said.

Batisse said she loves the spirit of co-operation the volunteer fair inspires.

“I think us non-profit (organizations) get more accomplished the more we work together,” she said. “We’re all independently looking for volunteers and Paula’s idea was, ‘Why don’t we create a one-stop shop and all get out there and invite everyone to come see us?’”

Another highlight of Whistler Welcome Week is The Jill Ackhurst Community Welcome Dinner next Thursday (Nov. 17). The popular event is exclusively for new seasonal workers, where Whistler chefs design and cook a slow-food menu featuring food grown as locally as possible. Locals are recruited to host tables of up to 10 people, allowing the opportunity to network and reveal their knowledge on the community.

The Stand Up For Mental Health comedy night takes place on Wednesday (Nov. 16) and according to a WCSS press release, “The feedback from the inaugural event last year was so positive we are pleased to have the opportunity to welcome the comedy troupe back to Whistler.”

David Granirer, counselor, stand-up comic and author, tours around North America with his comedy troupe. He teaches stand-up comedy to people with mental illness as a way of building their confidence and fighting public stigma and discrimination. The show looks at the lighter side of taking meds, seeing counselors and surviving the mental health system.

Other WCSS Welcome Week events are the Millennium Rotary pancake breakfast, a scavenger hunt, complimentary yoga sessions and a film screening. To top off the week, the ninth annual Moist, the Pool Party, is set for Nov. 18 at the Meadow Park pool.

To find out more, go to www.mywcss.org/whistler-welcome-week.