PQBeat

Peter McCully chats with Former CBC producer Laura Palmer, who is the host of the podcast, ‘Island Crime.’

During the first four seasons Palmer has told stories that have included Lisa Marie Young's disappearance, a young woman from Nanaimo who was 21 when she vanished, Amber Manthorne of Port Alberni who went missing in 2022- and 4-year-old Michael Dunahee who went missing from a Victoria Playground.

‘When I first thought about ...

Host Peter McCully welcomes the Parksville and District Chamber of Commerce’s new executive director, Amir Tabatabaei.

Tabatabaei has a 20-year background in business development, strategic sales and marketing and has been in the area since 2017 part-time and full-time as a resident since 2019.

The new executive director is busy out meeting members in their place of business.

‘I am here to be their advocate. That's what the Cham...

Host Peter McCully welcomes Ross Peterson, the board chair, and Regan McKeever, the program manager.

Elder College began with a group of volunteers in Parksville and expanded to the VIU campus in Nanaimo

‘We promote Elder College for people who are 50 plus, but we do accept students who are slightly less than that, our oldest student is probably in her nineties,’ says Peterson.

Classes are offered both in person and through Zoom...

Host Peter McCully welcomes Andrew Harris to the PQBeat podcast.

Harris started his football career playing for the Vancouver Island Raiders of the Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL) in 2005. In 2006, 2008 and 2009 the Raiders won 3 National Championships.

McCully asked Harris how the experience shaped him as a player moving forward to the CFL.

‘Junior Nanaimo definitely was instrumental in my life as a man in my football ca...

Host Peter McCully welcomes Christa Stone and Doug Whittles to the podcast, both members of the Parksville and District Rock and Gem Club.

Whittles is a geologist.

‘I often find a lot of incredible rocks with my work, and I work in the Haida Gwaii and Vancouver Island generally and some of my favorites have come from the Haida Gwaii in terms of just different Thunder Eggs and some of the Blue Jaspers and different varieties that ...

Host Peter McCully welcomes Debbe Patterson, one of the founding members of the 100 Women Who Care ‘Oceanside’.

Dedicated to making a positive impact in their community, the group was founded in 2016 with the simple idea that 100 women could each donate $100 to a local charity, resulting in a $10,000 donation that could make a significant difference.

The process of selecting a charity to donate to is simple but effective. At each...

Host Peter McCully welcomes Parksville Beach Festival Society President Cheryl Dill and entertainment director Lloyd Derry to the podcast.

Dill updated the amount of community donations that were distributed after last year’s Beachfest event.

‘We had great results at the gate. People were very generous. This past year, for the first time, we took donations electronically with the tip tap machine. So, it was a successful year, Pet...

Host Peter McCully welcomes Mike Garland to the PQBeat Podcast. Garland was recently hired as the new executive Director of the Qualicum Beach Chamber of Commerce.

Garland talks about the business walk which is planned for April 11th, 12th and 13th. It is intended to allow one-on-one discussions with political representatives and business owners.

‘We're going to have some local councilors from Qualicum Beach getting a bit of a fe...

Host Peter McCully welcomes Gord Johns to the PQBeat Podcast. Since 2015 he has been the Member of Parliament for Courtney Alberni.

The MP talks about Fish Farms, Island Rail and the Pharma Care Program.

Johns is the critic for Mental Health and substance use and talks about a bill which he tabled.

‘Last year, I spent the bulk of my year in between the House of Commons, and weekends traveling the country, listening to experts, h...