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- Thursday - May 22, 2025 - Langley City approves new mural
Thursday - May 22, 2025 - Langley City approves new mural
Grace Kennedy
May 22, 2025
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Good morning!
Sometimes at the Current, we are a little slower than traditional media. I have a few interviews that have been sitting on my desk for a couple months now, waiting for me to get around to turning them into a story. But once the story is actually written, editing and publishing can take place within a week, even a day.
That’s nothing compared to the book-publishing world.
In early April, I submitted my completed manuscript for my children’s book on Canada’s endangered animals. At the end of April, I received an email from my editor about the schedule for the book’s edits—and it is going to take nearly a year. At the end of May, I’ll get my book back for some big picture changes. By late July, I’ll review the copy edits. In August, the illustrator will get started on their work, and by mid-March of 2026, the book will finally be sent to the printer.
For someone used to the news, it feels almost ludicrously slow. (I understand why though—my 36-page kids book isn’t the only one going through the editing process.) But it is great to have the final process started, and to see how different the book world is from journalism.
– Grace
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Traffic & Weather
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News
How a martial artist compensates for diminishing sight
Chilliwack martial artist Ben Forde won a competition in Burnaby earlier this year. 📷️ Matthew Serjeant/Prime BJJ Series
Martial arts competitions have frequently been compared to a puzzle with a particularly painful consequence for failure.
But when Ben Forde steps onto the mat, he knows he will have a little less information than the competitor he hopes to outmaneuver. That’s because when he was 16, Forde’s world began to go fuzzy as a genetic condition robbed him of his vision.
Forde had earned a taekwondo black belt when he was 13 but left the sport soon after. By the time he returned to the spelt in his late teens, he had to re-learn not only techniques he had learned as a child, but how to employ those against a competitor he couldn’t see clearly.
Today, a decade and a serious injury later, Forde is finding new ways to disorient and surprise opponents who can see him clearly—until they can’t.
Related
Need to Know
👉 The murder of a Mississauga man following death threats has rekindled fears in Abbotsford, where South Asian business owners have been targeted with similar extortion attempts [Global]
👀 American border guards have started more frequent ‘outbound’ checks at the Aldergrove and Sumas crossings [Langley Advance Times]
🍓 Langley’s Driediger Farms has been listed for sale for more than $35 million [Country Life in BC] / The Current reported on Rhonda Driediger’s subdivision plans in January [FVC]
🚓 Alcohol may have been a factor in a car roll-over on Fraser Highway in Aldergrove Wednesday morning [Aldergrove Star]
🐻 A bear in Mission was caught on camera rolling a dumpster away as it attempted to break in [CBC]
💧 Hobo Hot Springs will be restored to its natural state [Agassiz Harrison Observer]
🏠 BC will build 65 new affordable homes for the Kwantlen First Nation on Kwantlen land in Mission [Mission Record]
🔎 Chilliwack RCMP are looking for the family of a woman who went missing from Yarrow more than four decades ago [Chilliwack Progress]
🐄 Scientists have made the first mRNA vaccine for cattle infected with bird flu [Nature] / The Current reported on local farmers’ approach to keeping their cattle free of bird flu earlier this year [FVC]
⚖ A Langley man has been charged in connection with a hit-and-run that injured a RCMP officer [CTV]
🏢 Mission is looking to turn its youth centre into a new multi-agency service hub [Mission Record]
📸 CURRENT CAM: Congratulations to Bomhof Rick for being the first person to identify this week’s Current Cam as Miracle Valley.
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The Agenda
Carla Maskall’s mural will be installed on the side of Langley City’s municipal hall and library building in an attempt to help prevent crime in the community. 📷 City of Langley
Langley City approves new crime prevention mural
The City of Langley has agreed to spend $3,500 to paint a “community safety” mural on its city hall and library building.
In 2023, the city tasked its Crime Prevention Committee with finding ways to reduce crime using art. The city didn’t say specifically how a mural will prevent crime, only that the artwork would “convey a message of how personal connections with neighbours and within neighbourhoods increases community safety and helps prevent crime.”
Designs for the mural were submitted at the start of 2025. Ten submissions were received, and the committee narrowed the final selection down to two proposals. The first was a moveable mural with the option for the use of augmented reality, so viewers could use their smartphones to listen to safety tips. The second was a simpler painting that used depicted Langely's core while using used the colours of the municipality's brand.
Langley City council ultimately approved the second image, which was submitted by artist Carla Maskall. The mural will be painted on plywood and installed on the north-facing wall of the City Hall and Library building.
The project will cost $3,500, to be paid out of the city’s public art budget. Staff say the city is still in discussions with the artist about the timeline for the installation.
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🗓 Things to do
Bee festival: The Langley Demonstration Garden celebrates its season opening with its annual Festival of Bees on Saturday. Learn about bees, beeswax candle-making, and more. The event will also include a plant sale and refreshments. Bee and other springtime costumes are encouraged. Details online.
Garage sale: Harrison Hot Springs residents are hosting a community garage sale on Saturday from 10am to 4pm. An interactive map of participating homes is available online.
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