Shannon Quesnel

Shannon Quesnel

One More Girl adds one more girl

PENTICTON - A Penticton singer will be one more girl to perform with One More Girl at The Barking Parrot this Saturday. The two-sister singing act, Britt and Carly McKillip of One More Girl and country singer Brett Kissel will be stopping in Peach Town as part of their Young Gun Tour. Also on stage...

Cawston couple’s determination to rebuild ignites after fire

CAWSTON - A Cawston couple will not be budged from their property despite last year's flash flood and a Feb. 7 fire which destroyed their home. George and Marlene Mysel used to live at 1888 Barcelo Road but on Friday last week their house caught fire and burned to the ground. The couple and their...

Killer of Princeton area woman sentenced to life

KAMLOOPS - A Kamloops Supreme Court justice has found Roger Badour, 66, guilty of killing a Princeton area woman in 2011. Badour was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole eligibility for 10 years for the second degree murder of Gisele Duckham. He originally faced a first degree murder charge but that was later stayed.  He...

Preliminary inquiry starts for Princeton man accused of double homicide

PENTICTON - A preliminary inquiry got underway today for John Ike Koopmans who has been charged with two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. Koopmans, 51, was in Penticton Provincial Court this morning to listen to his lawyer Don Skogstad and Crown counsel Vern Frolick present evidence for Koopmans' upcoming trial. The...

Fire destroys garage, truck

PENTICTON - A fire that destroyed a tarp-covered garage at a Holden Road address was likely ignited by a nearby wood stove. Penticton Fire Department responded to a call about a fire in a garage made of tarp and wood beams Monday morning. Also on fire was a Ford pickup truck. Fire Chief Wayne Williams...

Keremeos firefighters tackle third blaze this week

CAWSTON - Keremeos volunteer firefighters are still dealing with the aftermath of a residential fire on Barcelo Road in Cawston. Keremeos Fire Chief Jordy Bosscha was at the scene and said fire crews are still occupied with burning logs. A staffer at Kelowna's fire dispatch office said the crews have been at the Cawston home...

Penticton singer directs Lego actress for soul-searching song

PENTICTON - Local artist, musician and Lego fan Ari Neufeld released his Treasure In You video which was made with some of the simplest online and iPhone tools. The guitar player and singer recorded Treasure In You with Grammy Award winning producer Randy Cabellero in Austin, TX but the video could have been made anywhere....

For some, Jack Frost doesn’t nip, he bites

PENTICTON - Icy weather and snow probably helps Apex Mountain Resort sell ski lift tickets but it's gotten some Penticton and Naramata citizens in a tizzy. The Okanagan Lake shore communities are in the grip of winter this February and it doesn't seem the cold is going anywhere any time soon. There was even an 85-year-old...

Extra power options for extra farmers’ market vendors

COUNCIL APPROVES $85K FOR VENDOR, FARMERS' MARKET POWER SUPPLY PENTICTON - Council decided $85,000 in upgrades to downtown's power distribution is worth the price if it means future projects can keep their lights on. Coun. Andrew Jakubeit said at an early special council meeting today having more power flowing under and through the downtown core...

Penticton, Osoyoos hit new record low temps

PENTICTON - Sunny Penticton busted an 85-year-old record low when the temperature dropped to -18.5 Celsius this morning, with the previous record being -17.8 C in 1929. A strong ridge of high pressure has persisted over the province for several days setting off record plunges. Osoyoos was also hit with an icy blast this a.m....

RCMP arrest 2 men in motel room drug raid

PENTICTON - A Westminster motel room raid on Wednesday resulted in two men being busted for possessing controlled substances and the discovery of three young children living there. RCMP Drug Task Force members executed a search warrant and netted a man, 29, charged with possession of heroin and Levi Darrin Savard, 22, charged with possession...

Government watchdog advocates for fairness

PENTICTON - Whenever former military judge and B.C. Ombudsperson Kim Carter and her 35-member staff release recommendations to improve the government those in charge take notice. "There is a real power to speak out independently about problem areas," she said. Carter said her job is making sure every person in B.C. is treated fairly by...

RCMP recover stolen ATV, tools

OSOYOOS - A 2014 Kawasaki UTV valued at about $19,000 was recovered by the Osoyoos RCMP. As of Feb. 5 the detachment has recovered the majority of the tools and batteries stolen from Jones Boys Automotive during a break and enter one week ago. Officers with assistance from the regional general investigation section also recovered the...

Summerland bobsledder all work, no play?

SUMMERLAND - Bobsledder Justin Kripps, 27, of Summerland hasn't seen much of Sochi since arriving there for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. The Hawaiian-born athlete hit the ground running in Russia and hasn't had much downtime between orientation, security checks, press conferences and seeing the track at the Sanki Sliding Centre in Rosa Khutor, a...

UPDATE: Alleged Mayfair Motel attacker identified

PENTICTON - Penticton man Ralph Scott James Lefteruk, 40, was arrested and charged with attempted murder in connection to violent attacks against one or more people at the Mayfair Motel on Skaha Lake Road. Penticton RCMP responded to a 4:18 a.m. call yesterday about a woman being attacked at the motel, according to Sgt. Rick...