About us

Contact Info:
Editor: Dee Gilbertson – editor@eshore.ca
Phone: 250.551.8800
Mail: c/o D.Gilbertson Gen Del Ponoka, AB T4J 1C9

History of The East Shore Mainstreet

The first East Shore Mainstreet was printed in July of 1991.

That first four-page paper from 1991 was carefully coaxed into life by editors Janet Schwieger, John Smith and Lorna Robin. The issue contained the first “Tom’s Corner” as well as “Gray Creek Pass Report”, the community calendar, “Info Booth News”, “Chamber News”, handibus and ferry schedules, a few classifieds, and exactly fourteen display ads – several of whom (Crawford Bay Store, Riondel Market, North Woven Broom, Kootenay Forge, Kokanee Springs and The Lakeview) continue to be loyal advertisers to this day, doing their part in feeding the local economy.

Starting in July of 1991, the editors counted their copies as such: July 1991, Vol. 1, No. 1. For many years, they chose to not produce a January edition. This method of marking the editions continued. In July of 1992, it was Vol. 2, No. 1 and was up to an impressive 16 pages with editorials, an expanded letters section, poetry and crosswords, and a few new contributions, including Robert Agnew’s “Dumpster Musings.” Alvin Dunic’s “Riondel Clips” continued on their merry way, with help from Colin Turner and well over forty new advertisers emerged from the business community. This year also saw the birth of the Mainstreet’s most stalwart and reliable column: Gerald Panio’s “Seldom Scene.”

Somewhere in the early ‘90’s (archives are missing a chunk of editions between July 1993 and 1996), the Mainstreet added one-spot colour to the print and began to implement a price per issue of one dollar. By now, John Edwards and Brenda Panio were on board as well, and the paper was printing as many as 48 pages (booklet style).

In the spring of 1997, the paper went to tabloid style (as it remains today) and Fran Kinder was now in the mix. This dynamic group of volunteer editors and contributors continued the well-established tradition of information and idea sharing for several years until January of 2002, when Ingrid Zaiss Baetzel took over ownership and the position of editor with help from Doreen Zaiss.

Today, it is a reasonably well-oiled machine in full colour and digitized. As owner and editor of the paper edition, Ingrid saw the paper through a strong period of growth and was pleased to be able to offer this website to long-time and new readers alike – a place to stay current with East Shore news and events. Please join us by subscribing and a short email will be sent to you (less frequently than even once per week) to keep you informed when a news item is posted.

In December of 2022, Dee Gilbertson purchased the paper from Ingrid (after a 20 year run as editor) and the paper moved into a new cycle of life. At the time of writing (Nov 2022), this transfer of ownership is in progress and much will be determined about the future of Mainstreet in the coming years. Welcome Dee to her new role!

“To Ingrid”: a speech by Heath Carra, delivered to her on March 4, 2023 at the Grand Opening of The Mainstreet’s first office, also a successful surprise retirement celebration.

“Some say a newspaper is like a ship. If this is true, then the East Shore Mainstreet had her keel laid down by shipwrights Janet Schwieger, John Smith, and Lorna Robin in 1991, and she was launched into the waves of readership in July of that year.

She began as a sleek four-page schooner, crewed by skillful locals who experimented by adding masts and sails, adjusting her trim, and tacking her into the wind of East Shore life.

In January 2002, Ingrid assumed command of the Mainstreet. The paper was 11 years old when Ingrid donned her peaked newspaper sailor’s hat, saluted briskly, and shouted into the wind, “Stand by to make sail! Indent new paragraphs! Lay aloft and loose topgallants! Capitalize proper nouns, and clear away the jib!”

Contributors to the paper all just looked at one another and blinked. It’s easy to let metaphors run away with you sometimes.

Anyway, Ingrid assumed the helm, and she sailed the paper through the sometimes turbulent seas of public opinion for the next 21 years. It’s no small feat captaining a paper in a community like ours. One must fearlessly brave tempests of typos while crashing through swells of contributor’s articles and deftly navigating the jagged reefs of reader subscriptions. Compiling it is like sorting through tangles of rigging while being hit in the face with the spray of letters to the editor. And always, there’s the relentless draw of the print deadline swirling like a maelstrom and threatening to suck the whole enterprise down into the abysmal deep.

But all great voyages eventually end, and as she sails this mighty ship into port, there is cheering on the pier. Once the newspaper is securely moored, and the gangplank is lowered, Dee is the first welcomed aboard. It’s customary at this point to assemble contributors, subscribers, and advertisers on deck for the change of command ceremony. This lets everyone know who is now in charge, so there won’t be any mutinous talk once the paper is under full sail again. The two captains exchange some spirited banter, Ingrid hands over her fancy hat, and she wishes Dee fair winds and following seas, before smacking her on the butt and coming ashore to accept the jubilation of the crowd.

Everyone is excited to hear her adventures. After all, she’s been at sea twice as long as Odysseus, and she’s at least twice as cute. She snogs a couple of random sailors, high-fives young editors-to-be, and then the crowds’ part as they present her with the key to the community.

This is a medieval tradition that honours figures of great distinction – valued members of the community that have earned the trust of those they’ve served.

For over two decades, Ingrid has navigated small-town journalism in the service of the East Shore. She’s unfurled the paper sails of the Mainstreet, and she’s carried us safely through both the calm and the tumult of nearly a quarter century. She’s been a liaison for this community – helping us all speak to one another, bringing residents together despite the disagreements that threaten to pull us apart. She’s encouraged us to hear one another and to respect our differences as we travel together into this new millennium. And as a source for local info, she is unparalleled.

“Ingrid. Is it true we’re in shark infested waters?”

“Ingrid. I heard a rumour we’re headed for an iceberg?”

“Ingrid. Ingrid! We’ve struck a shark infested iceberg. What should we do?!”

With her cool head and her courageous spirit, Ingrid has been an invaluable voice of reason, helping us make sense of our nonsensical world. By her deft steering of this little paper, she’s provided a means for us to communicate with one another, and that is no small feat.

For her years of bravely broadcasting the voice of the community, for her intrepid informing, and for her selfless spellchecking, we’re proud to present her with this key.

Ingrid is a trusted friend of the East Shore, and from this moment forth, no door shall be locked to her. This key grants her free access to all our homes so that at any time of the day or night, she can come in and drink our beer or eat our ice cream. Ingrid is our Santa of the newspaper slot, and today we salute her.

So, wave your newspaper flags in the air, launch the fireworks, and fire the cannons – our great heroic editor has returned home to us in victory!”

The Mainstreet’s horizon…

In the transition of business ownership, a new company had to be formed to house The Mainstreet, and that company is named Bluebell Publishing. Having moved to the East Shore in 2019, Dee and her family settled in comfortably to a homestead developed in the late ’70’s, a timber-framed home that originally had been the shower-house for miners at in Riondel. Living on Bluebell Mountain, the name seemed a good fit to accompany a journey that continues to unfold. Proud to continue the legacy this local community newspaper carries, Bluebell Publishing aims to assist in the telling of stories of our local community by working with authors to bring their work to readership in the Kootenay’s and beyond, as well as continue the publication of The East Shore Mainstreet for years to come.

We look forward to promoting local events, business, and being a forum for issues that matter most to our community. Continuing to connect people from Wynndel to Riondel, as well as those who may call somewhere else home, yet hold a special place in their heart for this unique area.

Venturing abroad . . .

We are excited to welcome the 2026 new year with big plans that have until now been mere dreams – an expansion!

Stay tuned as we confirm details of our increase in coverage area and welcome submissions and advertising from all regions of the Kootenay’s!