A B.C. participant in the Ottawa convoy protest organized a pot luck barbecue and some parking lot hockey games for kids in a Langley recreation centre parking lot on Saturday, Feb. 26.

John Bancroft, an excavator operator who lives in LangleyB次元官网网址檚 Brookswood neighbourhood, said he would like the event to lead to other, similar in-person meet-ups, to start a process of reconciliation and help heal divisions in the country.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 bringing the community together,B次元官网网址� Bancroft told the Langley Advance Times.

B次元官网网址淛ust getting everyone shaking hands again and talking. Once we get that going, it will all fix itself.B次元官网网址�

The George Preston get-together was not, he stressed, about the anti-vaccine-mandate protest that he took part in.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 completely separate [from that],B次元官网网址� said Bancroft.

B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 my personal thing.B次元官网网址�

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Bancroft said he left Ottawa before the police moved in and began making widespread arrests.

B次元官网网址淚 had a gut feeling,B次元官网网址� he recalled.

His memories of the Ottawa event were positive.

B次元官网网址淢y experience was nothing but community coming together,B次元官网网址� Bancroft remarked, adding he did not personally witness any of the reported incidents of bad behavior while he was in Ottawa.

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Another convoy participant, , drove in to bring the B次元官网网址淯nity Cup,B次元官网网址� an improvised replica of the Stanley Cup created by convoy participants, to the event.

Fortin explained the cup was created from a B次元官网网址済arbage can and a mop bucketB次元官网网址� after he and fellow convoy participant Ron Rotzetter decided to put an an empty stretch of street to use.

B次元官网网址淚 said, letB次元官网网址檚 start some hockey, here,B次元官网网址� Fortin recalled.

B次元官网网址淔or about two and half, three weeks, we went down every day with it and played hockey and got people to sign it,B次元官网网址� Fortin related.

The cup was completely covered with names.

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 know how many signatures are on there, but thereB次元官网网址檚 a few,B次元官网网址� Fortin said.

B次元官网网址淎 small fringe minority, letB次元官网网址檚 go with that.B次元官网网址�

Like Bancroft, Fortin left Ottawa before police began making wholesale arrests.

B次元官网网址淚 wanted to leave with that experience of the unity. ThatB次元官网网址檚 what I saw, the whole time I was there, the unity.B次元官网网址�

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The event was held without permission from Langley Township, but Mayor Jack Froese noted that while the municipality generally doesnB次元官网网址檛 rent out parking lots, they also donB次元官网网址檛 prevent people from meeting up in an empty lot, as long as there are no violations of laws or regulations, such as liquor laws.

B次元官网网址淧eople use our parking lots for meetings all the time,B次元官网网址� Froese said.

- with files from Matthew Claxton