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Happy birthday, B.V. Christian School

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Members of the original staff at the Bulkey Valley Christian School pose outside the campus from its early days. The school turns 50 years old this year.

The Bulkley Valley Christian School is celebrating 50 years this year, although the dream of having a Christian school here started even earlier.

Since 1961, Smithers residents have been planning a Christian school for the children of the valley, many of them new immigrants who just moved here from Europe.

“They did a lot of fundraising back then and people actually sacrificed quite a lot just to build the school,” BVCS development director, teacher, and academic counsellor John Buikema said. “A lot were really poor immigrants who really had nothing, and yet having a Christian school was important to them, so they made a lot of personal sacrifices.”

Their goal was to have a Christian school that would “be for all parents who believed in Christ and wanted Christian education for their children,” and eventually they had enough to get started, purchasing 36 lots on the edge of town on Walnut Drive for $3,610, and in 1961 they had a four-room school, a teaching-principal, two teachers, and 85 students who were enrolled for that first year, in Grades 1 to 7. Back then, those students mostly came from the Christian Reformed Church in either Telkwa or Smithers. The total budget for the first year was $16,000.

“Today, that would be three months of a teacher’s salary,” Buikema remarked.

Since then, they’ve seen numerous changes: their original campus on Walnut has had numerous additions that include a gym, stage, music room and a library and in 1978 they purchased the old public high school, located on 2nd Avenue, establishing their first high school program.

This, Buikema said, was seen as a leap of faith at the time. That school only lasted for five years, however, as in 1983 the school was set ablaze by an arsonist. That was certainly a set-back, but not a permanent one, as it led to the construction of the present campus on 14th Avenue.

Enrolment has fluctuated over the years, with that first class of 85 eclipsed by their all-time high in 2002-2003 school year with 465 students. While the original students came from the Christian Reformed Churches in Smithers and Telkwa, today BVCS takes students from all the churches of the Bulkley Valley.

This year also represents a monumental change for the school, as they’ve put their original elementary campus for sale. Last year, BVCS purchased the old library building from Northwest Community College, which they then moved to their 14th Avenue location and began renovating it to meet their needs. This fall, their elementary school kids will be taking in classes in their lower level, their middle school students will be in the portable building, and their high school students will continue as normal.

Enrolment concerns, combined with the financial reality of keeping two schools heated and running, means they had to take this step, Buikema said.

To celebrate their 50 years, they’re hosting a banquet at the Hudson Bay Lodge on May 26. The following evening will be a trip down memory lane with a soup supper being held at their elementary school campus.

“That used to be an event that was held annually … usually there was kind of a carnival attached to it so we’re going to repeat some of those games that were done in the past, just some of the old favourites that people might remember,” Buikema said.

The carnival will include things like fish ponds and face painting.

The next day, May 28, will be their annual charity golf tournament, which is well-attended each year.