Top Stories Category

by Muffet Bilyard-Leake, Muffet & Louisa – I can’t say that I am a Sidney native, but I have lived in North Saanich since 1969 which has made Sidney my market town for most of my adult life. When I decided to buy a business in the summer of 1986, Sidney was a busy little hub serving Sidney residents and the surrounding municipalities so, why not? I bought a small business on the corner of Fifth Street and Beacon Avenue, not because I had a need to bring my loveRead More

by Jo Barnes – Many years ago living on the Saanich Peninsula required people to draw their sustenance directly from the land upon which they lived. While most of us today rely on grocery stores, markets, or at best tend to backyard gardens, there are still those in our community for whom living off the land is a way of life. This is the first in a Seaside Magazine series featuring local community members who all share the same passion for the land and love of what they do.  SheRead More

by Nancy Wood –  These three dynamic women recently moved to Vancouver Island and are doing things that are interesting and inspirational. They have built on former skills in creative ways and developed new skills as part of their retirement or, as one woman calls it, “rewirement.” Erin Davis. In 2016, after a 30-year career hosting Toronto’s pre-eminent morning radio show, Erin Davis and her husband Rob knew it was time for a new chapter, not so much about retiring, but “rewiring.”  As relatively young retirees (Erin is 56), theyRead More

by Doreen Marion Gee – A child of the ’50s, I was raised in a time when the definition of success for a woman was getting a man and that ring on her finger. Fortunately, half a century has brought a seismic attitude shift, opening up a world of opportunities for women and avenues for fulfilment in their lives. One of those is savouring life as a single person. With choice comes power.  “You’re going to be an old maid,” snapped my brother when I was only 17, rather shy,Read More

story by Janice Henshaw, photo by Bonita Talstra –  Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed? Worn out from getting home from work and trying to fit too many activities into too short a day? Does your partner retreat to their hideout or special room and your kids to the family room with their friends from where they burst out every few minutes asking for snacks or drinks? Does the phone never stop ringing? As every mother knows, even the bathroom may not be a safe refuge. So where do youRead More