Click Media Works

Click Client Series: Sunshine Coast artist inspires design, coaxes good spirit and happy endings in Vancouver family law office

Calm, welcoming colours, subjects and feng shui mitigate the stress and emotions attached to family law

(Vancouver, BC – December 9, 2011) Greta Guzek, well-known and widely collected Sunshine Coast artist, has painted a piece that is the inspiration for the design and spirit of an entire law office in Vancouver. (Scroll down to see the artwork.)

When Click Media Works client Fred Lowther and Lesley Durrant of Fred C. Lowther Family Law were looking to communicate a particular kind of atmosphere for their new Howe Street office, they discovered Guzek’s painting, Laughing Shore II.

“Through Greta Guzek’s work, we are able to convey the exact feeling we envisioned for our firm’s new office,” said Durrant. “We want a calm, warm place where our clients feel welcome and well cared for.”

“Family Law can be stressful and highly emotional,” added Lowther. “The new office is relaxing and hopeful—a place that inspires both new beginnings and happy endings.”

According to Durrant, when she showed Guzek’s painting to John Livingston of Livingston Fraser Design, he knew immediately the sort of office they wanted. He used the art to inspire the rest of the office design, from the colour choices for the walls and carpet to the wallpaper and the tiles. “And he did it brilliantly.”

One of the things about Guzek’s piece that captured both Lowther and Durrant was that it reminded them of Lowther’s cabin on Nelson Island, which has Arbutus trees very similar to those in the painting, as well as views of Texada Island and Nanaimo.

“He loves to spend time on the Sunshine Coast, on his way to Nelson Island,” said Durrant, “and having Greta’s piece in the office brings back happy summertime memories every day in Vancouver.”

She also noted that the flowing water depicted in the painting “contributes to positive feng shui, which is important to many of our clients.”

The law firm also consulted with Denise Bezanson of Bezanson Art Consulting, who sourced three additional pieces: two by Paul Paquette featuring Tofino and one by Lesley Ann Finlayson called Vivid Sky.

Laughing Shore II by Sunshine Coast artist Greta Guzek inspires both new beginnings and happy endings at Fred C. Lowther Family Law in Vancouver

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Abbotsford honours business excellence

Click Media Works is very happy to sponsor the Abbotsford Business Excellence Awards. Congratulations to all the nominees and award recipients.

Home Based Business Excellence
Sponsored by Click Media Works
Clayburn Pet Hospital

Retailer Excellence
Sponsored by Prospera Credit Union
Simply Perfect Flowers

Manufacturing & Production Excellence
Sponsored by Business Development Bank of Canada
New World Technologies

Agricultural & Agri-Business Excellence
Sponsored by TD Canada Trust Agriculture Services
Mt Lehman Winery

Consumer Services Excellence
Sponsored by Sevenoaks Shopping Centre
Booster Juice

Business Services Excellence
Sponsored by Firstbase Services Ltd.
Relevention Marketing Inc.

Eric Vanderham Young Entrepreneur of the Year
Sponsored by The Rotary Clubs of Abbotsford
Dustin Russell - LAunch Menswear

Dustin Russell of LAunch Menswear was recognized for business excellence with the Eric Vanderham Young Entrepreneur of the Year award

Non Profit Organization of the Year
Sponsored by Baker Newby LLP, Lawyers
Cyrus Centre

New Business of the Year
Sponsored by Tradex
Paper Nation

Established Business of the Year (1-19 Employees)
Sponsored by KPMG Enterprise
Maximum Collision

Established Business of the Year (20+ Employees)
Sponsored by The Abbotsford News
Phantom Screens 

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Crystal Gala Foundation comes $140,000 closer to second $500,000 commitment to Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre

Many thanks to all the Crystal Gala Foundation volunteers, donors, sponsors, supporters, guests, and partners. The Fraser Valley--from Surrey and Langley to Abbotsford, Chilliwack, and Hope to Agassiz, Mission, and Maple Ridge--is full of very generous people and organizations.

You came together and helped raise another $140,000 and that puts the CGF well on the way to meeting its next $500,000 commitment to the Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre.

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Writing workshops for small business, non-profit and the solo-preneur

Here are two writing workshops designed for the solo-preneur or those who work in small business and the non-profit sector.

The first one, No More Gobbledegook, will help you learn the keys pros use every day to unlock effective writing and that means you won't be wasting time, energy, or money writing pieces that fall flat—or worse.

The second, Making the News, will help you learn to craft a persuasive press release that is timely, relevant, and newsworthy. When you do that, traditional and new media editors will pick up and publish your important news.

Download Click Media Works Writing Workshops 2011

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Economic development in Abbotsford: read the October/November edition of eConnections

Here is the latest edition of the City of Abbotsford's economic development bi-monthly online publication: eConnections.

Jump right to the story that interests you most:

1. Walter, AHL Heat start by giving
2. Vital corridor leads to airport, key lands
3. New malls keep customers here
4. Water vote critical Nov. 19
5. Invest Abbotsford Tour informative
6. Railway district re-energized
7. Laube strategizes on next YXX step

Subscribe to Abbotsford eConnections.

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The apostrophe: Proper punctuation contributes to your credible, meaningful, and easy-to-read document

Commas, semi-colons, colons, periods, hyphens, en-dashes, ellipses, apostrophes, and exclamation, question, and quotation marks all contribute to your credible, meaningful, and easy-to-read document.

Without these marks, your message is confusing and your audience becomes distracted and disinterested.

The Apostrophe

1. Use an apostrophe and letter 's' to show a possessive noun
2. Use an apostrophe to indicate a contraction
3. Do not use an apostrophe to identify plural nouns

A possessive noun shows ownership:    

                Tom’s car had that just-out-of-the-showroom smell.

                        (the car belonging to Tom)

                Canada’s flag has a red maple leaf.

                        (the flag belonging to Canada)

                Tuesday’s management meeting begins at 9:00 AM.

                        (the management meeting of Tuesday)

When the noun is singular and ends with the letter s, choose to either end with just an apostrophe, or with an ′s.  The key is to be consistent:

             Lois’ family is visiting this week.

                Lois’s family is visiting this week.

When the noun is plural and ends with the letter s, then add just the apostrophe.

                Students’ timetables will be mailed next week.

In a contraction, the apostrophe takes the place of removed letters:

             I really shouldn’t have another piece of cake.

                        (Shouldn’t stands for should not.)

                 It’s too bad you didn’t make it to the party last night.

                        (It’s stands for it is.)

Do not use an apostrophe to identify plural nouns:

              Write this: Alex brought his marks way up this term.
              Not this: Alex brought his mark’s way up this term.

              Write this: So many guided tours were available.
              Not this: So many guided tour’s were available.

If you have a specific question regarding the apostrophe, or any other piece of punctuation, please write to us and ask it.  We’ll be glad to give you an answer.

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Madeleine Hardin is the new Associate Dean of Faculty in the College of Arts at the University of the Fraser Valley, headquartered in Abbotsford

Madeleine Hardin is the new Associate Dean of Faculty in the College of Arts at the University of the Fraser Valley (UFV), with campuses in Abbotsford, Chilliwack, and Mission, B.C.

Madeleine has been at UFV since 1989, teaching courses in professional and advocacy writing in the Communication department. In her early years at FVC and UCFV she also taught in the Media and Communication Studies department and taught mass communication and advertising.

Prior to coming to UFV, she was the publicist for CBC TV western region and researcher and writer for CBC TV News on the assignment desk. Madeleine left CBC to raise her two sons, but found her freelance career as a researcher for TV programs such as Beachcombers and Danger Bay, which later blossomed into a fundraising career when she was hired to raise $6 million for the Vancouver Aquarium.

Over the past two decades Madeleine has raised over $10 million for various non-profit organizations including UFV’s Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies; the Clayburn Schoolhouse restoration; and the Xa:ytem Longhouse Interpretive Centre. She was active in the Plan A initiative and is a founding board member of the Reach Gallery Museum in Abbotsford.

For her new role, Madeleine will be resigning from two community boards to concentrate on her new position and her doctoral dissertation in higher education leadership (SFU). Her dissertation, titled, Good enough to teach — professors on the margins: A narrative auto/biographical inquiry, is about academic sessional labour in BC universities.

Madeleine brings to the Associate Dean of Faculty position a range of administrative skills; she has served on many committees at UFV including as chair of UCC, chair of the policy review committee, and faculty representative to the UFV Board of Governors. Most recently Madeleine was the Faculty Contract Administrator for the FSA. She says that in her role as FSA Contract Administrator her goal was to serve faculty and in her new role as Associate Dean she will continue to serve faculty.

“I am excited about this new challenge and opportunity,” she said, “I know that my working knowledge of the collective agreement and my 20 years of UFV experience will help me to work for and with faculty in the College of Arts.” 

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Click Client Series: Canuck Place at the Campus of Care in Abbotsford

(Abbotsford, B.C.)  Canuck Place Children's Hospice in Abbotsford is getting closer to its $13 million campaign target that will fund the construction of, and help operate, a 30,000-square-foot 10-bed, five-family suite palliative-care facility in the Campus of Care next to Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre.

While fundraising was underway, and major media events were scheduled to announce key donations and facility naming (Dave Lede House), Click Media Works was there to provide timely writing and public relations services.

Click enjoyed working with the Canuck Place team in Vancouver and in Abbotsford for successful media events showcasing the donation of an Eagle Mountain home by Voth Bros. Developments Ltd. and Kingswood Capital Corporation, and generous contributions by Diane Delves of Quantum Properties and the Dave Lede Family Charitable Foundation.

Canuck Place provides a continuum of care to more than 400 children with life-threatening illnesses and their families throughout B.C.  The program is unique, offering world-class health care with a home-like environment when it is needed most.  

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Just 20 tickets left to the best party in Abbotsford: the 13th annual Crystal Gala

We are very pleased to support the Crystal Gala Foundation in its fight against breast cancer. If you haven't yet purchased your tickets for the 13th annual gala, Taming the Dragon, please hurry so you won't be disappointed. There are just 20 left as I write this.

You'll be greeted with a a signature cocktail and canapes; will enjoy a gourmet multi-course sit-down dinner that includes red and white wine; can participate in silent and live auctions or one of the value-packed (win trips, jewellery) 'games'; and then dance the night away to the always-popular Dr. Strangelove.

Oh, and did I mention that our supporters always make it possible for guests to leave with a lovely gift--and this year it is fabulous! 

Black tie is optional and the theme this year is Taming the Dragon, so think vibrant colours and exciting action, with an Asian influence.

Tickets are $200 each (incl. HST).

Call 604-853-5463 or write to crystalgala@shaw.ca to secure your tickets now.

Follow Crystal Gala on Twitter; 'like' Crystal Gala on Facebook.

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Click Media Works sponsors home-based business category at 2011 Business Excellence Awards in Abbotsford

We're very pleased to sponsor the home-based business category of the 2011 Abbotsford Business Excellence Awards.

This award honours consistent success by a home-based, licensed proprietor who is customer-centred and conducts his or her business with professionalism and integrity. 

You know lots of successful business people in Abbotsford. Why don't you nominate someone?

Here are the categories:

• Home-based Business Excellence
• Retailer Excellence
• Manufacturing & Production Excellence
• Agriculture & Agri-business Excellence
• Consumer Services Excellence
• Business Services Excellence
• Eric Vanderham Young Entrepreneur of the Year
• Non-profit Organzation of the Year
• New Business of the Year
• Established Business of the Year (1-19 employees)
• Established Business of the Year (20+ employees)

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