GayPEI and Rainbow Lodge Bed & Breakfast

BYRON CARR MURDER INVESTIGATION RE-OPENED

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 13:14:54 -0700

The Charlottetown City Police are re-opening the 19-year-old investigation into the murder of Byron Carr. Mr. Carr was a member of the Prince Edward Island gay community who was found murdered in his home. No one was ever brought to justice for this crime.

The police are requesting any details no matter how inconsequential they may seem. Please come forward if you know anything, and if you know someone who may know something please pass the request on to them.

Members of the public with information about this crime can go to the PEI Crimestoppers website where tips can be submitted completely anonymously either by email form or by online chat, or call the Aliant tip hotline at 1-877-566-3952.

JIM CULBERT PEI'S FIRST MARRIAGE COMMISSIONER

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:50:00 -0600

Ceremony big step for gay rights: commissioner
Last Updated: Monday, July 10, 2006 | 1:06 PM AT
CBC News
P.E.I.'s first private marriage commissioner has performed his first ceremony, and he's calling it a significant step for gay rights on the Island.

Jim Culbert, owner of the Rainbow Lodge in Vernon Bridge, married a same-sex couple from the Island on Friday.

"It's great to be able to see people finally getting things that they really would like in their life and not have to hide about it," Culbert told CBC News.

"You know, they can be openly married and go home and say, 'Hey, you know, we really are people.'"

When the province changed the rules in early June to allow for private marriage commissioners, Culbert was the first to apply. He said everyone has the right to marry, and that's why he applied for the job.

"I've been working for gay and lesbian rights for many years and this is just another step to have equality for us," he said.

Culbert has five more marriages booked this summer, including a double wedding later in the year.

First same-sex marriage performed

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:43:54 -0600

P.E.I. Gets Private Marriage Commissioners
July 12th, 2006

Prince Edward Island has finally allowed private marriage commissioners to perform marriages in the province, and the first such commissioner, Jim Culbert, was very proud to have his first ceremony be a same-sex marriage!

Its great to be able to see people finally getting things that they really would like in their life and not have to hide about it. You know, they can be openly married and go home and say, Hey, you know, we really are people.

This wonderful attitude is a far cry from Alberta, which almost passed legislation this spring that would have made commissioner discrimination against gay and lesbian couples perfectly legal. So, congratulations to Jim, the new couple, and Prince Edward Island! Heres to not being crazy bigots!

Eastern Graphic Article

Wed, 28 Dec 2005 18:12:00 -0700

EASTERN GRAPHIC MATT VENO December 28 2005

FINISHED PRODUCT GETS LOTS OF ATTENTION

Vernon Bridge upholsterer gives new life to two-wheeled buggy

Since he was a child Jim Culbert has been interested in antique carriages.
His parents owned a two-wheeled buggy and as a boy, Jim would often hook it up to a horse and go for a drive.
His passion eventually led him to sestoring the wooden carts

"They're an old way of transportation and it's interesting to be able to preserve that heritage," the 55-year-old said while sitting in tile living room of his Vernon Bridge home. "A lot of them are just rotting away as planters on somebody's front lawn."
In August, Mr. Culbert restored a four-wheeled carriage for neighbour Gary Tweedy. The three-week project was a challenge because the carriage was badly rusted and weathered.
Once the carriage was brought to his shop, Mr. Culbert pulled off the wheels and sanded the worn paint
down to the bare oak. Sanding the wheels alone took about 20 hours.
He then pulled off the wooden body and had the metal parts of tile chassis sand blasted. He then sanded tile wooden parts of the chassis and the body.
Mr. Culbert removed the brass pieces, which had been chromed over, from the wheels and dashboard and had them polished back to their original condition. He also re-upholstered the seat in a brass coloured fabric, He then painted tile chassis and body black, left the wheels their natural golden oak colour, and put the carriage back together
"I was really pleased with how it turned out" he said. "Especially the wheels because we were going to paint them again but they just came out so nice we decided to leave them their original colour"
The carriage was built for trips to town or church. There's a space behind the two-person seat to put groceries or other small items. In a 1906 Sears catalog, which Mr. Culbert also has at his home, a similar carriage is listed for about $30.
After he was finished the restoration, he parked the carriage in front of his house, beside his 1931 Chevrolet. The two rigs got a lot of looks from locals and tourists alike.
"There were quite a lot of people stopping, to take pictures of the two together, Mr. Culbert said.
As the owner of Blair Hall Upholstery, Mr. Cu!bcrt said restoring the carriage was a nice change from working on the traditional chairs and sofas.
Mr. Culbert also restored another carriage in 1990, but only worked on the body and upholstery in that case. The carriage s owner, Roy MacMillan, worked on the chassis and wheels himself.
The experience and his love for old carriages has Mr. Culbert searching for a carriage to restore for himself.
"I've been looking at a few," he said with a laugh.

This is how the two-wheeled carriage looked before Jim Culbert, of Vernon Bridge, put lots of man hours into restoring it this past summer.

JIM CULBERT, OF VERNON BRIDGE, paints part of the seat of the carriage he recently restored for his neighbour Gary Tweedy. The carriage took about three weeks to restore in August. The project was the first full carriage restoration Mr Culbert has done and the experience and his love for the old carts has him looking for one to restore for himself. Submitted photo

The finished buggy attracts a lot of attention from passersby.

Advertisement in Gay & Lesbian Canada Vacation Planner

Mon, 26 Dec 2005 21:40:00 -0700

GAY AND LESBIAN CANADA VACATION PLANNER

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND

Canada's Smallest Province and Last Tranquil Place in Canada

Prince Edward Island is blessed with miles of sandy shoreline, fringing the garden province with colorful stretches of white, champagne, pink and red. It is legally composed of three counties: King, Queen and Prince.

Some places beachgoers frequent are Panmure Island Provincial Park, Grand Tracadie, PEI. National Park,
Singing Sands, and the popular gay beach is Blooming Point.

Many of the patchwork pieces of Prince Edward Island's colorful landscape are stitched together with rivers, red roads and trails, all providing first-rate, fresh air touring options. Get to know the Island on a hike to the beach, a paddle down a river, or from the seat of a bicycle.

Island artists and craftspeople create hand-stitched quilts, potter), bowls, intricate woodworking and woven tapestries. Dozens of shops, from quaint to sophisticated are dotted across the Island.

Prince Edward Island is the first province to complete its section of the Trans Canada Trail. The Confederation Trail was developed on the railway lines abandoned more than a decade ago. The trail is surfaced with finely, crushed rock dust and it is quite smooth and almost flat. The full tip to tip, Tignish to Elmira distance is 274 kilometers and the trail passes along the seashore, by farm pastures and woodlots, and through many small communities as it links the opposite ends of the island.

The Island is surrounded by beaches, which are designated as Canada Parks, Provincial Sites and private
water frontages. The sand, called Singing Sands, makes a squeaking sound when tread upon. Ancient
erosive processes and freezing cycles have conspired to break it down to a powdery consistency, which makes for a pleasant walking surface. The beaches are categorized as South shore: North Shore.

Prince Edward Island has two excellent automobile connections to the mainland. Visitors can experience both the thrill of driving over one of the world's longest bridges and taking a mini cruise on a car ferry.

Residents see it as a privilege to live on this very special island and welcome visitors to Canada's smallest and greenest Province. So please "Come play on our Island."

The island also supports an aquaculture industry that grows shellfish on private leases. PEI Island Blue Mussels and Malpeque Oysters have a worldwide reputation for quality and are exported all over the world.

Prince Edward Island offer a complete range of affordable and accessible golf experiences. Nine and eighteen hole courses are located conveniently across the Island. The Province is also proud to announce that Golf Digest has placed the province among their top 50 places to play
worldwide, as well as awarded the coveted five-star rating · to the Links at Crowbush Cove.

Gay & Lesbian Canada Vacation Planner

FAB INTERVIEW

Mon, 26 Dec 2005 20:50:00 -0700

FAB NOV. 4, 2004 18 5 GAY THINGS TO DO IN PEI

Nudists can chill at Bloomerless Point, while musical marys can catch the theatre version of Anne of Green Gables. Or how about some salty balls?
by Rolyn Chambers

Needing a much-needed break from the go-go-get-out-of-my-way attitude of Toronto, I set my sights on the calm shores of Prince Edward Island for some go-go-I'm-going-to-the-beach relaxation. My arrival (as a reporter for a gay magazine) at the historic Inn on Great George is anticipated. The hotel staff

have kindly removed the Bible from my nightstand and have strangely replaced it wi th Celine Dion's biography. I pray to her the first night I'm there that she will uncover the gayness that I sense exists on this tiny isle. She answers my prayers, and the next day I meet the Three Wise Men, who guide me along my journey:

The Innkeeper: Jim Culbert, who owns Rainbow Lodge {1.800.268.7005, www. gaypei.com), eagerly tells the story of a gentlman who brought shame to Prince Edward Island a few years back. The story goes that two Montreal men visited PEI, but when they arrived they were told that there was only one bed in the room that they had requested. The bed and breakfast owners, puzzled, pointed out, "But you are two men. You will need two beds." They offered to give the men another room, but the happy couple, somewhat furious by now, stated that they wanted to share the same bed. The owners refused and the men ended up taking them to court. The B & B owners were given two choices change their policy or shut down. "Can you believe they chose to shut down?" Jim asks, shaking his head in disbelief. Known as the gay mayor of PEI [he travels around the island in a 1931 Chevrolet complete with Pride flags), Jim has lived on the island since 1988. His B & B, painted in the six colours of the rainbow, is known throughout the conmmnity. It's in Vernon Bridge, about a 20-minute drive outside the capital city of Charlottetown. Jim renovated an old general store into a B & B . It's very PE1, with a twist. The main house is called "The Barn" and every August Jim hosts his Annual Ripped Jeans Party. With its three huge Pride flags flying high on a 30-foot pole beside the main highway, you can't miss the place as you drive into the city. A lighthouse for lost gay tourists.

The Craftsman: Tanned and glowing from his latest arts-and-crafts expedition to South Asia, Peter Jansons has come hack with many pieces of furniture and clothing to sell in his popular establishment, The Dunes Cafe & Studio Gallery (www. dunesgallery, com). "When my lover and I first moved our studio from Charlottetown to this spot, we weren't sure if it would catch on,". Peter reminisces. Located in Brackley Beach, it is open from May to October and you can usually find Peter in the open studio painting one of his personally designed ceramic articles. The four-storey building, which has been featured in House & Garden magazine, also houses his top-floor apartment, a carefully designed roof-garden pond, a 100-seat restaurant, an arts/crafts gallery which boasts works by talented Canadian artisans and a Second-floor
gallery that showcases items Peter has brought back from his winter travels overseas.

Though there is no official gay bar in Canada's smallest province, the three assure me that there are many gay events (the mayor of Charlottetown raises the Pride flag at City Hall during Pride Week every July) that take place on either a weekly or monthly basis. I do not have a week. so I set off on bike in search of something to keep my idle hands busy. Here are five gay things to do in PEI:

1) SEX ON THE BEACH: After an educational ecosystem lesson at the Greenwich Interpretation Centre in PEI National Park, take a bike ride or hike through this protected forested area. Its miles of paths wind through spectacular sand dunes, ending at the beach. Blooming Point is the gay beach, nicked named Bloomerless Point, an unofficial nude beach.

2) LOOK UP THE KILT OF AN ISLANDER: Every August, the Caledonian Club hosts its Annual Highland Games at Lord Selkirk Provincial Park in Belfast, The event features brawny men in traditional kilts competing in log-tossing contests, Highland dancing and sampling local PEI foods like rice pudding and my personal favourite snack, "salty balls."

3) PRACTISE YOUR DRAG: Dress up in your favourite Laura Ashley dress and take a day trip to Green Gables, home to PEI's most famous heroine, Anne Shirley. The tour explores the main house and barn where Anne, created by author Lucy
Maude Montgomery, uttered the words "I just love bright red drinks!" to her bossom buddy Diana· I was disappointed to discover she meant raspberry cordial (which they sell bottled) and not Campari (which they don't sell).

4) ENJOY A MUSICAL: The Anne of Green Gables Play
has been playing to sold-out audiences (mostly tourists) at the Confederation Centre of the Arts for more than 20 years. A quick scan of the audience reveals a few musical marys trying hard not to drool over the cast of young men (and women) in their crotfih-hugging knickers, singing their hearts out in this excellent production accompanied by a full orchestra.

5) GET DRUNK WITH EXPERIMENTING COLLEGE BOYS:
Along Sydney Street, a historic cobblestone road, you will stumble upon numerous watering holes, including The Gahan House Pub 8: Brewery and The Olde Dublin Pub. Both are chock full of boys who flock here for beer and llve music. For those less adventurous, try Baba's, a gay-friendly spot on University Avenue. Practise the phrase "Boy was I drunk last night," and let the fun begin.

· Rolyn Chambers is fab's Deep Dish colunmist.

First Same-sex Marriage on PEI held At Rainbow Lodge

Fri, 19 Aug 2005 09:50:00 -0600

First Same-sex Wedding Performed on PEI
August 19, 2005

The first same-sex wedding took place on August 19th 2005 at the RAINBOW LODGE in Vernon Bridge Prince Edward Island. The happy couple were from Altadena, California but have family in PEI.

Chris Zarow and Connie Majeau were lucky to have the offices of Vital Statistics in Montague P.E.I. come in on a government holiday to issue the first same-sex marriage license in this province.

After calling Rainbow Lodge this morning Jim, the proprietor, was able to get a minister and a guest list and history was made.

The minister was Rev. Barry King of East Royalty, P.E.I.