I am SO curious how you came up with Salt Spring Island, British Columbia where I lived for 5 years. I was the Executive Director for the multi social service agency for the five Southern Gulf Islands-Salt Spring, Pender, Mayne, Galiano and Saturna. I operated as one of my programs the Food Bank, it doubled in need in summer. Our parking lot used to get full of vans and pick ups with groups of young people coming to camp on the Island for the summer and everyone needed elastics but yet so did I, we all had long hair!. It is true that is has a large contingency of various complementary therapists of every type which is really amazing and few doctors, though there is a hospital. I used to buy the organic eggs at the end of those driveways. I will say however that Salt Spring gets more sun than Vancouver because of where it is situated and it has magnificent weather during a good part of the year and less rainfall. It is an extraordinary place to reside. It was great having a coffee by the ocean every day before work. It also has the largest number of artists per capita in North America. The drawback was running all the social service/mental health/substance abuse and family counseling programs, as well as being an elected school trustee, I knew everything that was going on with almost everyone (population 10,000 in winter and doubles with tourists in summer). I moved my kids off the Island after five years before high school started so they would have more opportunities and choices. Great to live with young children or if you are older. Not a place for teens if you want them to have opportunities. A lot of kids die in car accidents on the curvy roads at nigt, and have drinking and partying as their #1 activity and not too much else unless they leave the Island.
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