Pubdate: Thu, 17 Oct 2013 Source: Alberni Valley News (CN BC) Copyright: 2013 Alberni Valley News Contact: http://www.albernivalleynews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4247 Author: Susan Quinn Cited: Sensible BC: http://www.sensiblebc.ca CANNABUS ROLLED IN PORT ALBERNI Advocates for the decriminalization of marijuana in British Columbia are accelerating their petition signing bid in the Alberni Valley, and they are slowly working towards their goal of 3,500 signatures. The petition is part of a provincewide campaign to force a referendum on the issue. And you'd be surprised at the volunteers who are taking up the cause in smaller communities such as Port Alberni. "We're not your stereotypical long haired, tattooed potheads," says Alberni-Pacifc Rim organizer Kim Blake. "The response we're getting in the community is 80 per cent positive." Blake and a contingent of more than dozen people greeted Sensible BC leader Dana Larsen's 'cannabus'-sans Larsen-Tuesday evening in a parking lot at Pacific Rim Centre. The bus has been touring the Island to bring attention to the campaign to decriminalize marijuana. Tyson VanIngen, 15, went up to Pacific Rim Centre to check out the Cannabus and the petition, even though he is too young to sign it. "My mom brought me down here to show me a bit about this," he said. Both his parents support the petition. "I think they're (Sensible BC) doing the right thing. I think Port Alberni could be a much better place if we try and fulfill what they're doing." So far the local district has collected about 1,200 signatures, Blake said, but they need 3,500 from this riding to reach the minimums required. Volunteers are set up every Monday from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the parking lot across from Starbucks. On Tuesdays they are in the empty lot at Gertrude Street and Southgate, across from Roger Creek Park, from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Wednesdays they are at West Coast Hemp on Third Avenue from 12-2 p.m. Canvassers go door-to-door with petitions on the remaining days of the week, and are identifiable by their Sensible BC buttons and paperwork. They are only asking for signatures, Blake said. Volunteers will also be in Ucluelet on Tuesday, Oct. 22 all day at the Blackberry Cove Marketplace. For more information, please phone Blake at 250-724-9700 or e-mail her at More information on the petition can be found at sensibleBC.ca. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom