At this time next week, some 323 workers at Woodfibre will punch out for the last time and leave behind a mill, which has been a big part of the community, even before it was rightly a community.
The gaping hole left in Squamish's economy by the mill's closure, and how to fill that gap, has been a subject of articles, coffee house chats and official discussions.
But along with a large part of our municipal coffers, Woodfibre's closure will also deprive the community of more than a few valued citizens.
For Squamish is truly a community in every sense of the word. From incredible volunteerism for events like the Test of Metal and Relay for Life, to people spontaneously holding fundraisers to aid friends or neighbours in need, or young girls left without mothers.
I think that is why Woodfibre's closing has affected the community as deeply as it has. Sure, everyone is concerned about the hit to the local economy - the loss to our tax base, as well as local shops that will see 300 fewer customers. But because we are so closely-knit and concerned for the community's overall well-being, most of us are more concerned with those who will be jobless next week. These are our friends and neigbours, maybe even relatives. These are the people we pass on our way to work, or wave to as we drop our kids off at school. Many of them will have no choice but to leave in search of greener pastures. It is a sentimental thought, yes. But money can always be made back, and with the amount of development and interest in our little community, it may be a few years, but we'll get back there somehow.
Good people and families that have roots in a community, can't be so easily replaced.
As we move ever closer to becoming a bedroom community for Vancouver and Whistler, and as more people snap up properties for investment rather than as places to live, will we lose that incredible spirit of community which is at once so rare, yet also so present in Squamish? I certainly hope not.
Hopefully, through the continued hard work of event organizers and those civic-minded folks we have come to know and respect, the loss of a few hundred people won't be so hard on the community's spirit.
I hope, through re-training or perhaps another large employer coming into town, that many if not most of those who get laid off next week will find other jobs in and around the area, so those with roots in the community can continue to grow that family tree.To those who will be forced to leave, Squamish has been a better community for having you here. We will feel your absence. We wish you the best.
