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Good morning!

Apologies for the slightly later arrival in your inbox today. We were putting the final touches on a feature from writer William Johnson on a Fraser Valley institution you almost certainly know. Keep reading for the full story on Greendale Acres, and let us know: which other businesses in the Valley deserve the spotlight for the way they bring community together?

– Emily

P.S. We're hiring! We’re looking for curious, community-minded writers to join our contributor network. If you're based in the Fraser Valley and want to turn your knowledge of the region into great local journalism, we'd love to hear from you.

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🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope | Mission

🚘 Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google, and find DriveBC’s latest updates.

🛣 Click here for links to road cameras across the Fraser Valley, including those for the Coquihalla, Highway 7, Hope-Princeton, Fraser Canyon, and Highway 1 in Langley and Abbotsford.

Most people in the Fraser Valley know Greendale Acres — or at least they think they do. They might remember it as the Chilliwack Corn Maze, a place they went as kids, the farm they bring their own kids to now. But the story behind it goes deeper than the name suggests.

It starts in 1999, with a magazine article, a leap of faith, and a skeptical Dutch immigrant grandfather. It runs through three sisters who grew up picking apples and working the corn rows, built separate lives, and came back in the middle of a pandemic to buy the farm from their parents. Today, Danielle Miller, Vanessa Oddy, and Mariah Vermeer run Greendale Acres alongside their husbands and ten small children — no CEO, no hierarchy, just a lot of hard-won systems and a clear sense of what the place is for.

It's a story about land, legacy, and what it means to keep something alive for the next generation.

Read the full story: The roots of Greendale Acres →

💊 RCMP revealed details of a Chilliwack drug superlab bust from last October, where nearly 40 kilograms of fentanyl and 5,000 kilograms of chemical precursors were seized. Two men remain in custody. [CBC News]

🌍 Langley City's fifth annual Earth Day celebration takes place April 25 at Douglas Park, featuring exhibitor booths, bike repairs, a gardening workshop, and a free seedling for the first 200 attendees. [Langley City]

🌱 Abbotsford is seeking feedback on its draft Climate Resilience Strategy, which identifies flooding, wildfire, and extreme heat as the city's top risks heading into 2050. [City of Abbotsford]

🏘️ Public feedback on a proposed 216-unit housing development on Yale Road near Popkum closes today, April 17, after the applicant scaled back an earlier proposal of 265 units. [Fraser Valley Today]

⚖️ Former Spuzzum First Nation Chief James Hobart was sentenced to one year of probation following a 2022 assault in Mission. [Hope Standard]

⚡ An unknown driver struck and damaged an EV charging station on Pioneer Avenue in Agassiz while towing a trailer. The vehicle has not been identified. [Agassiz-Harrison Observer]

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Valley Festival Singers 50th Anniversary Concert: The Valley Festival Singers mark half a century of music with three concerts on April 17, 18, and 19, featuring conductor Rob Workman alongside a string quartet and piano accompaniment.

Petals & Pints at Botanica: A relaxed afternoon in the tulip fields with Old Yale Brewing's craft beer garden, live music, a food truck, and time to explore the u-pick experience, April 19.

Focus Youth Mental Health Group: A weekly workshop series for ages 12–16 running Wednesdays April 1–May 20, equipping young people with tools to better understand and manage their own mental health and resilience.

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