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A huge heartfelt thank you to Sally Long and her amazing family for hosting a garage sale this past Saturday — and for generously donating 100% of the proceeds to YANA! Thanks to their incredible effort and community spirit, $1263.77 was raised to support local families. Amazing!! Thank you Sally!

A huge thank you to Quantum Dental for organizing a silent auction at their staff holiday party and choosing to donate every dollar raised — an amazing $1,565 — to YANA 🦷😁

✨ A huge thank you to Design Therapy Inc. for their generous donation of $821 from their online auction — with all proceeds going to YANA! ✨
Your support helps ensure that families in our community know they are not alone. We’re so grateful!

Valley Vonka golden ticket countdown: Sweet treats for a great cause

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Originally published by the Comox Valley Record, April 25, 2025

Black Press Media Staff  – Comox Valley Record

Calling all chocolate lovers — time’s almost up!

You have until Monday, April 28, to turn in your golden tickets for this year’s Valley Vonka contest. This isn’t just a chocolate fix — it’s a treasure hunt.

Hidden in more than 3,000 bars made by Comox Valley’s own Hot Chocolates are five golden tickets, and at least three are still out there. The bars are scattered across participating businesses throughout the Valley, so your chances are still very real.

Need a place to start? You can still pick up Valley Vonka bars at Peninsula Co-op and Hot Chocolates — but don’t wait, they won’t last long. Each chocolate bar you buy supports YANA (You Are Not Alone), a local non-profit that helps Comox Valley families with children who need to travel for medical care.

Each golden ticket is worth between $780 and $1,000. Prizes include:

  • The Ultimate Relaxation Package: A luxurious stay at The Old House Resort & Spa, a delectable dinner at a local restaurant, and a family spa day (Value: $1,000)
  • A Healing Escape: Experience the magical Healing Caves at the Kingfisher Pacific Resort and Spa, an experience for four (Value: $780)
  • Save on Fuel: A Peninsula Co-Op Gas Card (Value: $1,000)
  • Shopping Spree Time: A Canadian Tire Shopping Spree (Value: $1,000)
  • Grocery Goodness: A Quality Foods Gift Card (for Comox and Courtenay stores – Value: $1,000)

So whether or not you find a ticket, you’re doing something great for your community.

Find gold, do good, and don’t forget — tickets must be turned in by April 28!

🌟 Huge shoutout to Euspira for being absolute community stars! 🌟
This amazing new business in the Comox Valley just wrapped up a silent auction fundraiser on their Instagram—and get this—they raised an incredible $1893 for YANA! 💛🙌


A huge thank you to Lacasse Construction for their generous donation of $1,197 to YANA! From January 14 to February 28, they pledged to donate $1 for every follower they had—and thanks to this amazing community, they went from 1,090 to 1,197 followers!

We’re so grateful for Lacasse Construction’s creativity, generosity, and community spirit—thank you for making a difference!

YANA Helps Comox Valley family after premature birth and B.C. journey

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Originally published by the Comox Valley Record, April 16, 2025

 Erin Haluschak – Comox Valley Record

Théodore Labrecque made an early appearance in the world this past December, and his birth gave his parents an expected adventure throughout the province, with help thanks to YANA.

Parents Rebecca and Jean-François Labrecque son’s birth took a surprise turn when he was born prematurely in the Valley.

The Labrecques went to the North Island Hospital Comox Valley, but due to complications, they had to find a neonatal intensive care unit.

“We were originally sent to Victoria, then Nanaimo and then Vancouver, but they were all full,” explains Jean-François. “As we were waiting in the hospital (getting ready to leave), a nurse came up to us and handed us an envelope from YANA with some money.”

The couple took an emergency flight transfer to Kamloops where Rebecca had a C-section; Théodore was born on Dec. 3, 2024 at 8:13 p.m. Because he was being monitored for jaundice and had to spend extra time feeding, the family was required to stay in the area for longer than expected.

Jean-François says in the original envelope there was a note from YANA that told him to contact the organization once the couple had settled with their newborn. He called YANA and, nearly right away, was transferred funds to help support the family for food and transportation, as they didn’t have a way of returning to the Comox Valley.

“Within a short time, I had a link to a car rental, funds for the ferry and for gas. We even had a stop in Pemberton with a hotel booked because we didn’t want to travel the whole way in one day with a newborn – everything was organized for us.”

He adds that both he and Rebecca are still in awe of the community’s generosity and how effortlessly the support came together.

“Rebecca knew of YANA from community fundraisers, but it is still amazing to see it (in action.) The nurse at the hospital just gave us an envelope, and overall (YANA) was so good as it saved us a lot of (expenses).

As for Théo, he’s been thriving and gaining weight just as he should. The family recently returned from a visit with loved ones.

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The Valley Vonka – a major fundraiser for YANA, is ongoing in the Comox Valley. Businesses throughout the community are selling chocolate bars (by donation) with the chance to find one of five Golden Tickets inside the bar. A Golden Ticket qualifies the redeemer to one of five grand prizes, values anywhere from $780 to $1,000.

Chocolate bars are available at:

YANA lives up to its name for Comox Valley family

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Originally published by the Comox Valley Record, April 9, 2025

Marc Kitteringham – Comox Valley Record

YANA stands for “You Are Not Alone,” and for the family of Henri Gayet-Hanachowicz, that couldn’t be more true.

Gayet-Hanachowicz is a 10 year old boy living in the Comox Valley. He and his family moved here in 2022 from Vancouver. He’s a happy kid, mom Alice Gayet says, despite needing to go back to Vancouver every few months or so and visit a series of specialists to help deal with a variety of health issues. Gayet-Hanachowicz was diagnosed with infantile onset of Crohn’s disease and infantile hyperthyroidism at the age of one. That led to a diagnosis at three of juvenile arthritis. That same year he had urgent eye surgery, and doctors discovered brain lesions. A few years later, he was diagnosed with a bone disease and psoriasis, among other health issues.

“Crohn’s disease for babies is extremely rare and aggressive,” Gayet said. “It’s a quite complex disease, and severe … Hyperthyroidism, when you’re an adult it’s okay, but when you’re a baby it can lead to developmental and intellectual delays.

“We were at the hospital quite a lot for this. Basically for years he has been on a combination of immunosuppressants, many of which were not approved for kids for a long time,” she said.

Gayet and her husband moved from France to Vancouver, where Henri was born. They made the move to Comox in 2022. BCFRP (BC Family Residence Program) told her about YANA and advised her to contact them. That’s when everything changed.

“I’d actually never heard about it, so I decided to call them,” Gayet said. “It wasn’t easy, because it’s not easy asking for help. I spoke to Kourtney (Van Velzen) there and she was so kind and empathetic and so supportive … it was a huge relief. I actually cried when I spoke to her.

“I was very shocked that people who never met us would help organize places for us to stay, help with expenses … we don’t have family here, they’re in Europe. It’s very lonely sometimes, and … to connect with this many people has been really transformative.”

Now, instead of worrying about where they are going to stay, eat, travel, how they are going to pay for it, they get to pay attention to what really matters: their son. Now, they try to find other things to do outside of Henri’s appointments, things like going to arcades and the aquarium.

“I got a strong little guy, and great support,” Gayet said, adding that YANA adds “emotional support, on top of the practical assistance, and the sense of community.”

“Every time we travel to Vancouver, there’s at least one moment when I just have a wave of gratitude,” she said. “It’s usually when we get off the ferry …  they really gave us a sense of community.”

***

The Valley Vonka – a major fundraiser for YANA, is ongoing in the Comox Valley. Businesses throughout the community are selling chocolate bars (by donation) with the chance to find one of five Golden Tickets inside the bar. A Golden Ticket qualifies the redeemer to one of five grand prizes, values anywhere from $780 to $1,000.

Chocolate bars are available at:

Huge thanks to Katrina Kaboly for her incredible generosity and community spirit! This year, Katrina donated $1,478.50 to YANA as part of her commitment to give back through her real estate listings.🏡💛 

Thank you for turning home listings into support for families in the Comox Valley! 🫶✨

💃🎉 A HUGE THANK YOU to Stupid IPF for hosting an AMAZING Bellyfit class FUNdraiser and raising a whopping $600.00 for YANA! 🎉💖

All class fees were donated, and we are absolutely blown away by the generosity and energy of everyone involved! 🙌 From the moves to the good vibes… there is truly nothing better🌟

We thank you for your support – you’ve got us shaking it with joy! 🕺💃