{"id":1065,"date":"2015-03-09T23:13:57","date_gmt":"2015-03-10T06:13:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.danloewen.com\/client1\/?page_id=1065"},"modified":"2018-02-27T00:44:35","modified_gmt":"2018-02-27T00:44:35","slug":"home","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/arocha.ca\/brooksdale\/","title":{"rendered":"Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” background_image=”https:\/\/arocha.ca\/brooksdale\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/KidsEatingTomatoesBackground.jpg” custom_padding=”3%||3%|” module_class=”picturesection”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_image admin_label=”Image” src=”https:\/\/arocha.ca\/brooksdale\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/JoinUsText.png” \/][et_pb_button admin_label=”Button” button_url=”https:\/\/arocha.ca\/portfolio-items\/brooksdale-campaign\/” button_text=”Donate” button_alignment=”center” background_layout=”dark” disabled_on=”on||” module_id=”bottom-donate” custom_button=”on” button_text_size=”22px” button_bg_color=”#e1523d” button_font=”Open Sans Light|on|||” background_color=”#708832″ \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” background_color=”#8f993e” custom_padding=”19px|0px|19px|0px”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”dark” text_orientation=”center”]<\/p>\n

The Campaign For Brooksdale<\/h1>\n

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The Story of Brooksdale<\/h4>\n

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Intro To A Rocha Canada<\/h4>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” background_image=”https:\/\/arocha.ca\/brooksdale\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/margaretatwood.jpg” parallax=”on” parallax_method=”off” custom_padding=”172px|0px|172px|0px”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_text admin_label=”If all Christians were like ” background_layout=”dark” module_class=”greenquote”]<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t remember ever being at an environmental event that was so full of joy. If all Christians were like those in A Rocha, ours would be a radically different world.\u201d<\/h4>\n

MARGARET ATWOOD, Author<\/p>\n

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A Brooksdale Story<\/h2>\n

Last September, Madison joined us at the Brooksdale Environmental Centre as an intern.<\/p>\n

Madison doesn\u2019t come from a background of Christian faith.\u00a0 She does, however, love nature, and after completing a BA at the University of Ottawa, she is now working toward a second degree in environmental biology.<\/p>\n

Over the course of her internship, Madison worked with each of our program teams.\u00a0 She shared at her farewell that, despite some ups and downs in her personal life, she had learned a lot.\u00a0 Most of all though, her primary experience at A Rocha had been love.\u00a0\u201cWhat I\u2019ve experienced most is love. So much love\u2026 And it\u2019s felt foreign. But also beautiful.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

Madison\u2019s experience was very personal and meaningful, but it isn\u2019t unique.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_toggle admin_label=”Toggle” title=”Read More” title_font_size=”16″]<\/p>\n

There is something special about a community that is shaped by caring for creation. As humans we are meant to be planted\u2014rooted\u2014in our physical environment. We are meant to be attentive to the creation around us\u2014to know and to care for it. This focus awakes wonder in us, and reveals the value of that particular piece of creation that is in front of us. And once we recognize the beauty and value of\u00a0that barn swallow and\u00a0that\u00a0western toad, we also become more attentive to and caring toward the\u00a0people around us. And ourselves.<\/p>\n

So the staff at the Brooksdale Environmental Centre regularly hear similar comments.
\n\u201cBeing here has helped me to start loving myself more.\u201d
\n\u201cI have never felt so welcome anywhere, as I have here.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Rocha\u2019s preferred way of participating in transformation is to work on long stories. To be present in a location for the long haul, nurturing a community that \u2013 in caring for the place and its people – will impact a watershed\u2019s ecological, social and cultural life for the long-term.<\/p>\n

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That is why we at A Rocha are so excited about the future of the Brooksdale Environmental Centre.\u00a0 And why we want you to be a part of it. \u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” background_image=”https:\/\/arocha.ca\/brooksdale\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Outside-Learning.jpg” parallax=”on” parallax_method=”off” custom_padding=”172px|0px|172px|0px”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_text admin_label=”If all Christians were like ” background_layout=”dark” module_class=”greenquote”]<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing here has helped me to start loving myself more.\u201d<\/h4>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve moved a LOT over the past 10-15 years, but I have never felt so welcome anywhere, as I have here.\u201d<\/h4>\n

Former Intern Feedback<\/p>\n

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An Ideal Time To Update Brooksdale<\/h2>\n

In February 2016, A Rocha officially gained title of the property that is the Brooksdale Environmental Centre<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0 It is a $4.1 million gift from a beloved donor family.\u00a0As owners, A Rocha is now positioned to updated the 85 year-old buildings for all our programming, including retreats.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_toggle admin_label=”Toggle” title=”More About Brooksdale” title_font_size=”16″]<\/p>\n

Brooksdale is a protected heritage property and includes 9 buildings and a barn, situated on\u00a017 acres of farmland, forest, river and pond that is perfect for our gardening, research and conservation work.\u00a0 We have been stewarding this property since 2010, and the Centre now hosts over 5,000 visitors per year, including over 2,000 kids through our environmental education programs with public and private schools.<\/p>\n

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In October 2016, A Rocha took title on Hazelmere Cottage<\/span>, the large house and 10-acre property on the east side of A Rocha’s stetch of the Little Campbell River.\u00a0 This, too, was a long discernment journey that included a few early donors pledging to donate over two-thirds of the purchase price.<\/p>\n

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The property was a strategic purchase that enables us to host 15 interns at once (instead of 7), thus preparing more leaders for hands-on conservation, education and hospitality work that can ripple out to transform their home communities after they leave.<\/p>\n

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As of Spring 2017, the Local Area Plan being developed by the City of Surrey for the 660 acres around Brooksdale is in its final stage of preparation before going to city council. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If approved, Surrey would develop the Brooksdale stretch of 16th<\/sup> Avenue into a \u201cNapa Valley\u201d-type neighborhood.\u00a0 It would become a showcase southern entrance to Surrey, with businesses related to hospitality or agrifood, with community-based agriculture, and with biking & walking networks that connect to the Little Campbell River and local eco-village residential neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

This will position Brooksdale well for increased visibility and outreach in Surrey, particularly as this new neighborhood will be a showpiece for Surrey\u2019s environmental sustainability.<\/span><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_toggle admin_label=”Toggle” title=”More About The Local Area Plan” title_font_size=”16″ locked=”off”]<\/p>\n

You may have heard about this Local Area Plan in September 2015 due to the controversy over a potential semi truck servicing facility<\/b> that was proposed for the fields right across 16th Avenue from the Brooksdale Environmental Centre.\u00a0 Thankfully that proposal has now been withdrawn, and the 18 months of resulting community consultation has led to a Local Area Plan that would promote and conserve the area\u2019s agricultural heritage and natural beauty.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_toggle][et_pb_toggle admin_label=”Toggle” title=”See The Local Area Plan Map” title_font_size=”16″ locked=”off”]<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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Finally, as Brooksdale grows, its leadership team is focused on diversifying its revenue streams through sustainable earned income.<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong> Each component of the Campaign for Brooksdale is designed to improve missional impact and<\/i> to increase earned revenue.<\/p>\n

So donations to the campaign will be leveraged into longer-term income to sustain the organization.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe environmental research work done by A Rocha, and in particular their mapping related to species of concern, has been a very valuable resource \u2026 as we develop land use plans and policies to guide future development, and as we assess development proposals and make informed recommendations to City Council.\u201d<\/h4>\n

DON LUYMES,\u00a0Community Planning Manager for the City of Surrey<\/p>\n

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Campaign\u00a0Goals<\/h2>\n

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Barn & Hospitality Centre<\/h5>\n

to restore the 85 year-old heritage barn into a learning centre and build a new adjacent food & hospitality centre<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_counters admin_label=”Bar Counters” use_percentages=”off” title_font=”Crimson Text||||” title_font_size=”28″ title_font_size_tablet=”26″ title_font_size_phone=”18″ title_font_size_last_edited=”on|desktop” percent_line_height=”2.5em” background_color=”#dddddd” bar_bg_color=”#708832″ background_layout=”light” border_radius=”0″ use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n

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$850k raised of $3.15m  –  $2.3m needed<\/p>\n

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Hazelmere Cottage<\/h5>\n

to purchase the adjacent 10 acres of river and forest habitat & refurbish the 37 year-old house for the internship program<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_counters admin_label=”Bar Counters” use_percentages=”off” title_font=”Crimson Text||||” title_font_size=”28″ title_font_size_tablet=”26″ title_font_size_phone=”18″ title_font_size_last_edited=”on|desktop” percent_line_height=”2.5em”]<\/p>\n

[et_pb_counter percent=”53″ background_color_default=”#dddddd” bar_background_color_default=”#708832″ use_percentages=”off”]$1.2m raised of $2.25m \u00a0– \u00a0$1.05m needed
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Brooksdale Site & Upgrades<\/h5>\n

to acquire the land & upgrade the 85 year-old buildings for all programming, including retreats<\/p>\n

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[et_pb_counter percent=”90″ background_color_default=”#dddddd” bar_background_color_default=”#708832″ use_percentages=”off”]$4.6m raised of $5.1m \u00a0– \u00a0$500k needed<\/p>\n

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[\/et_pb_counters][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” background_image=”https:\/\/arocha.ca\/brooksdale\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Brooksdale-barn-photo-by-intern-David-Nassbaumer.jpg” parallax=”on” parallax_method=”off” custom_padding=”94px|0px|94px|0px”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” make_fullwidth=”on” custom_padding=”98px|0px|98px|0px”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” \/][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_text admin_label=”If all Christians were like ” background_layout=”dark” module_class=”greenquote”]<\/p>\n

\u201cA barn raiser is a party, usually providing food and drink, during which a barn is built or rebuilt collectively by members of the community.<\/h4>\n

We host 5,000 visitors a year through our environmental education programs with schoolchildren, adults, refugees, interns and international visitors. But we have only one living room in which to host groups.<\/h4>\n

Transforming our old barn into a Learning Centre will enable us to more comfortably host the visitors we already have, and provide flexibility for our programming in the future.\u201d<\/h4>\n

DAVID ANDERSON, Brooksdale Centre Director<\/p>\n

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Barn & Hospitality Centre<\/h1>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_toggle admin_label=”Toggle” title=”Renovating the 1930s heritage barn into a Conservation Learning Centre” title_font_size=”16″]<\/p>\n