Dear editor,

The 2022 Comox Valley Recreation Guide describes the Comox Valley as an 鈥渙utdoor recreation utopia.鈥�

No argument there. And no doubt we are all aware of the vital role our Comox Valley Search and Rescue plays in making that utopia safer for everyone.

But I doubt that most of the public is aware that our Comox Valley group is the only one in the province who does not have land/facilities allocated to it by its regional districts or municipalities at no or minimal costs 鈥� (most $ 1 annually). Currently, our CVSAR is the only team on Vancouver Island paying annual rent for its base of operations鈥� expected to be $80,000!

With barely one-half of their funding provided, our search and rescue professionals are reduced to sorting cans and bottles at the landfill and spending valuable time attempting to fundraise. Purchasing rescue vehicles secondhand, struggling to replace outdated equipment, and falling behind all the other teams is a demoralizing, morale-destroying endeavour for a 鈥渦topian鈥� team.

I believe the public should insist on long-term support of our Comox Valley Search and Rescue heroes by having the municipalities provide a without-cost land allocation to support the building of a permanent home for CVSAR鈥檚 future operations. A minimum allocation of $500,000 over five years to see the construction of a new permanent SAR facility seems the least we can do with a regional district total budget of $173.8 million for 2023.

The men and women who have served us for 50 years deserve so much more than the raw deal they are currently enduring.

Barbara Mellin,

Comox