Fence Notes - Creston, BC

While travelling in Peru, Barb Wloka saw a fence decorated with coloured tape. It was eye catching. Fast forward to July, 2012 and the construction of a deer fence at the property at the junction of Highway 3 and 36th Ave North. Barb looked at all those lovely little squares and could not resist weaving a message through them. Initially, the weaving was done with surveyor's tape right onto the fence - it was slow, tedious work and, in bad weather, unpleasant. But those involved persevered. Then Barb's son-in-law suggested we make up the words first and hang them on the fence. That worked well but finding the right way to attach the words took some time. Twist ties finally won out; then Barb's nephew was visiting as the sign was changed one day and he suggested pairing the twist ties with alligator clips. A really great idea - the clips hang the sign parts in their approximate spot and the sign can be checked to determine if changes need to be made. If they do, it is a very simple matter to unclip a couple of alligator clips rather than untwist numerous ties. Barb's sister, Anne, then suggested putting up messages for other people, then charge for the service and donate the moneys to a charity. As the Therapeutic Riding School performs a wonderful service in this valley but can always use funds, the school was chosen to be the recipient of any proceeds. The decision was to charge a minimum of $30 for the first day and $5 for every additional day. If signs stay up for longer than the required time, there is no additional charge. That was May of 2013 and just under $500 was collected by December 31 that year. In 2014 proceeds were almost $900 and in 2015 over $1000 was raised by the fence for the Therapeutic Riding School. Between paid signs, those involved work hard to think of signs which can be enjoyed by everyone. Since the paid signs have started, Anne has taken over doing all the lettering. She has it down to a fine art now. Barb continues to make the extra icons - the dog, the school bus, etc. And a local teen, Kristy, has taken to helping with taking down and putting up signs. The challenge is enjoyed tremendously by all and the fact that it supports such a worthwhile charity just makes it all the better.