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June 4-North Saanich author's powerful story emerges
Gender wage gap still a chasm in BC
Capital Daily Team
June 04, 2025
Good morning !
Our first story involves a Victoria woman who was abducted and used in the sex industry. As upsetting as it may be to digest, imagine writing a book about it. That’s what her mother did.
— Mark
Today’s approx. read time: 5 minutes
🌡️ Weather Forecast
NEWS
North Saanich writer pens book about daughter's captivity
Cover of Broken Butterfly, by Victoria’s Wanda Gray
Writing has always been a sanctuary for North Saanich’s Wanda Gray.
“When I was in my thirties, I was writing articles for print magazines and newspapers, mainly on the subjects of raising horses and olden days on the farm,” she tells Capital Daily.
Gray enjoyed writing about wildlife, fantastical imaginings, and humour, but it wasn’t until she began to write about grief that she realized how cathartic it could be.
“It could sometimes feel both excruciating and liberating at the same time.”
The excruciating part is easy to understand when you hear Gray’s story. The liberating part is something only someone who has gone through what Gray has endured can determine or comment on.
Part love letter to daughter Erin, part true crime novel, part help manual for anyone trying to navigate the unfathomable that comes when a monster hijacks your daughter, Broken Butterfly chronicles the horror Erin ran into when, at 20, she met a man who would ruin her life.
“There were a lot of elements at work, but I do know that I felt a need to get the events written down in order to try and make some sense out of it all,” Gray tells Capital Daily.
“I also knew I needed to do something with my grief that was bigger than journaling and reading self-help books.”
It took Gray three years to come up with a first draft of the hell Erin—and by extension, her family—was exposed to mostly in Victoria, and the resulting work may stay with readers for a lifetime.
The work of a skilled essayist, Broken Butterfly flows evenly, and its tragic subject matter may challenge some. However, Gray summons the courage to emphasize grace over pain and calmness over vengeance as she compellingly recounts—in chilling detail—incredible accounts of captivity and abuse her daughter endured at the hands of a serial predator—and the downward spiral to which it led.
⚠️ Capital Bulletin
Free bus travel today for Clean Air Day. [BC Transit]
2025 Esquimalt property taxes to increase 9.9%. [See budget breakdown]
Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.
NEWS
BC’s gender pay gap is shrinking, but still one of the largest in Canada
Graphic: Province of BC
BC made history last fall as the first province to achieve gender equity in parliament. But the province is still lagging when it comes to gender equality—particularly how much less women are paid overall than men. Last year, BC had the fourth-largest gap in pay between men and women.
Last week, the province released its second report on wages since passing the Pay Transparency Act in 2023. In 2024, the gender pay gap was 15%, down from 16% in 2023. This means women made 85 cents on average for every dollar a man made. This is considerably higher than the national average of 12% in 2024, or 88 cents on the dollar.
For women who are visible minorities or who have disabilities, the gap is even larger. Transgender women in BC experienced the most significant gap, earning only 52 cents to every dollar a cisgender man made.
The gender pay gap is not a comparison of payment for the same jobs, but instead looks at the average gross hourly earnings for all women and men.
BC’s gap is smaller than Alberta’s, which topped the list of provincial pay gaps at 22% last year. Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador had gaps of 18% and 17%, respectively.
BC’s gender pay gap improved the most in three sectors last year:
Agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting (the gap was 36%, down from 45% in 2023)
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (17%, down from 24%)
Wholesale trade (11%, down from 18%)
The study also found women to be twice as likely as men to work part-time. When working full time, women earned an average of $31.25 per hour while men earned $36.
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⭐️ Capital Picks
🏅 Greater Victoria Business Awards 2025. [Chamber of Commerce]
🎞️ Ocean: With David Attenborough. [Vic Theatre]
📝 Victoria Writers’ Society: Come to the June 4 meeting, 7-8:30pm at Russell Books, 747 Fort St., for the Launch of Island Writer Magazine, Summer 2025 Edition. The talented contributors will read from their works. Learn more here.*
🦭 Local mermaids: Clarence “Butch” Dick (Yux’wey’lupton) of Songhees Nation shares art and lore about harbour seals. [GVHA]
🎤 Your last chance for TEDxVictoria 2025 tickets is here. Bold stories, big ideas, limited seats. Secure yours before the curtain rises.*
🕷️ A closer look at different jumping spiders. [Facebook photos]
*Sponsored Listing
🗞️ In Other News
City aims to keep Rock Bay an enterprise zone
Look for the neighbourhood just north of downtown to be built up, but not with hotels and swanky restaurants. The city wants the area to remain industrial and has plans to incentivize companies to help grow it into an even bigger hub of blue-collar production. Coun. Matt Dell says the city wants industry, tech, R&D, and the arts sector to drive the area and not drive away to the Westshore. [CHEK]
Longtime employee buys Avenue Gallery in Oak Bay
Kathleen Prince has worked at the gallery—nestled between Ivy’s Bookshop and Starbucks in Oak Bay Village—for 11 out of its 23 years. The shop’s founder, Heather Wheeler, died unexpectedly in 2022, leaving the business with her husband, Larry, who promoted Prince to manager. Now, Larry is stepping down, but Prince is determined to keep the gallery unchanged as she takes over. [Oak Bay News]
Island health wants to help put a lid on childhood concussions
And one way to do that is to have them wear helmets, it says. The main cause of concussions for kids is falling, followed by sports injuries, an Island Health spokesperson said. Although a helmet won’t necessarily prevent a concussion, it can reduce brain trauma, Olivia Aguiar told CTV as she used a simulator to demonstrate the benefits of wearing a helmet during this Safe Kids Week. [CTV]
🗓️ Things to do
⛸️ Disney’s Frozen JR: The Sooke-based non-profit Amber Academy Youth Fine Arts Society presents this performance as for the first time in forever, Frozen JR comes to Sooke. Edward Milne Community School Theatre. June 13 & 14. 2pm & 7pm. [Info]
🤘 Hellbent Punk Market: Dive into a world of edgy vendors, fashion, and punk rock vibes with bikes, bands, and beers at Wheelies Motorcycles & Cafe. June 15. 10am-4pm. [Info]
🎨 Explore the Marine Debris Art Exhibit: The Floating World, an art installation by Pete Clarkson, featuring sculptures made from marine debris collected along Canada’s West Coast, will be on display as part of Ocean Week Victoria. Hillside Shopping Centre. Today–June 8. [Info]
🎤 Summer at Ship Point: Charis Tazumi: Enjoy a live performance by singer-songwriter Charis Tazumi as part of the CityVibe summer events series, bringing music and local talent, food trucks, games, and outdoor fun. Today. 5pm. [Info]
🌊 Ocean Stories: Reading Corners: Relax among ocean specimens at the Royal BC Museum with pop-up reading spaces and ocean-themed books, plus special storytimes for kids at 11:30am and 12:30pm. Today. 11am-2pm. [Info]
🕯️ Candlelight Concerts: A Tribute to ABBA: Experience ABBA’s greatest hits performed by a Listeso String Quartet in a magical candlelit setting at St. Ann's Academy. Fri. 8:45pm. [Info]
🏳️🌈 Planet Earth Poetry: Queer Island Festival of the Arts: Celebrate the final Fri. reading, with words by Tawahum Bidge and Tracy Wai de Boer, plus an all-queer open mic, at Russell Books. Fri. 7:30pm. [Info]
🎡 Oak Bay Tea Party: Join the 63rd annual Oak Bay Tea Party at Willows Beach with rides, a parade, live music, floating teacup races, and pancake breakfasts for a full weekend of family fun. Fri-Sun. Various times. [Info]
🎉 The Village Block Party: Celebrate summer in Cook Street Village with 125+ vendors, live music, food trucks, and the beloved “Fastest Dog of Cook Street Village” race at this lively block party. Sun. 10am-6pm. [Info]
⚰️ Speaking of Death…: Join the discussion on talking about death in our death-phobic culture. Caffe Fantastico Quadra Village. Today. 6:30pm. [Info]
👀 In Case You Missed It
Tuesday’s headlines: Building begins on 2,800 homes in Royal Bay; Driftwood mammoth statues return to Colwood beach; Victoria councillors push for protecting downtown movie theatres. [June 3]
Missing Colwood teen may have gone to the Prairies. [CHEK]
No cigarettes: One Sidney man’s 12-year crusade to ban cigarettes in BC drugstores. [Peninsula News Review]
No guns back: Area man denied bid for return of seized weapons. [Times Colonist]
US tariffs on steel and aluminum are set to double today. [CP/ Yahoo]
CityVibe summer guide. [City of Victoria]
Old Victoria: See the view of the Inner Harbour from the Parliament Buildings in 1900. [Facebook photo]
That’s it!
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