Welcome to Island Chronicles - stories of island history, people, activities and events. To share an item, telephone 604-947-2440 or email lbmcarter@shaw.ca.

The last Chronicles detailed chapter one of the BoMmart’s history – the Dave Moon years. Chapter two varies in its details but seems to begin with the Clement family who took their annual Bowen vacation in Orchard cabin # 13. Their daughter, Helen, loved being on the island and was proud that as a teenager, she worked for the unforgettable Pie Ladies. As an adult, Helen worked at B.C. Electric. In 1962, she married Ralph Holte, a big, kindly Norwegian who had come from Rivers Inlet, worked for Standard Oil and then the Union Steamship Company. On Bowen, he’d operated an island garage and provided taxi service. In 1970, Ralph bought Moon’s Café and Alec McLellan came in with him. They removed the booths to make room for the grocery shelves but the counter and stools were left intact. The new BowMart became a good place to buy delicious soup and pies.

Alec McLellan had been a Union Steamships mate, following in the steps of his legendary father, Captain A.C. McLellan. When the USS ceased running, he sailed with the Alaska Cruise Lines. Off-season, he lived in his Miller’s Landing cottage. When Alaska Cruise stopped operations, he retired, mooring his boat in Snug Cove. Helen and Ralph had a house on Deep Bay where they raised Sheltie dogs. Helen joined the Bowen Island Historians and she and Ralph were part of Legion life. Ralph’s unexpected death in 1972 of a heart attack changed things. Helen had to take over. Alec’s role isn’t clear but as time went by, he began to drink heavily and Helen ended up as sole proprietor.

As Helen grew older, the grocery aspect dwindled and Helen concentrated on basic diner items although for many years, island kids found it a good place to buy penny candy. Islander Tiny Howarth aided Helen with many things including town trips to buy supplies. In later years, the BowMart became a comfortable place for a group of older island friends, like Scotty Waters and Archie Buchanan, to get together for coffee and talk. The gang was sometimes referred to as the Senators. After Tiny died, right in the BowMart, Helen’s brother Jack Clement came over weekly to help her out. Helen worked right until the end on May 1, 2004 and after that, the building stood vacant and lonely. When it eventually came up for sale, island realtor Francis Frost bought and renovated the structure, creating BowMart # 2, a welcome sight for islanders and the home of good food. Now, with new proprietors, BowMart # 3 is known as Mik-Sa’s. Best of luck to the new team!

Ten Years Ago in The Undercurrent of June 25, 1999: Sixty per cent of the electorate voted ‘yes’ to making Bowen a municipality. Some saw this as a sign of maturity overdue, while others worried that it was the end of rural life. In any case, there was a lot to do before the November election of a mayor and six councilors. Step one was adding the finishing touches to the Letters Patent, which is like a constitution for the municipality. The Ministry of Municipal Affairs was working with the Restructure Committee to finalize the LP. Next step was the hiring of an administrator to set up the accounting system, and coordinate the handover of the administration from the Islands Trust, the Ministry and the GVRD. This was to be the embryonic infrastructure. • The wake of the Pacificat Explorer fast ferry was causing havoc for small boaters as well as people near shore. The ship, already notorious in B.C. for cost overruns, was recently put into service on the Horseshoe Bay-Nanaimo run • High school grads in the 1999 annual Undercurrent grad issue included Robin Seims, Shelly Begg, Tyler Clements, Chris Zwanenburg, Rory Ritchie, Andrea Hurlburt, Jennifer Karst, Andrea Pearce, Bryan Sluggett, Christopher Mueller, Nicole Cannell, Katie Kotz, Dustin Pritchard, Ayla Lepine, Dan Hall, Stephanie Rotella, Nicholas Luksha, Jessie Green-Sparks, Christina DiPoce, Rein Ellis, Paul McGillivray, Frank Riley, Hailey Tocher and Laura Yeager.

The Last Word: I’m looking forward to the 2009 Storybook Time BowFest. It still has room for individuals and organizations to get involved.