Still Creek Enhancement Project and the story of Bucky

Bucky is the plush toy mascot of Opus’ Mail Order department. We thought we’d share the story of how Bucky came to join us as it shows a little bit of the endearing personality our staff bring to their jobs.

A few years ago, the Opus warehouse was involved in a Toy Drive, and word passed among the various departments at our Cornett offices about the opportunity to donate a toy for an underprivileged child that holiday season. Ruth, with generous thoughts, went out to purchase a few toys for the effort.

But there was a particular theme in Ruth’s mind at the time. Our offices border Still Creek, one of Vancouver’s hidden natural creeks – creeks that have been diverted into underground pipes in the wake of urban development. The portion of Still Creek that runs beside Opus had been overrun by invasive species and was quite polluted. As part of the Still Creek Enhancement project, a project to revitalize the Still Creek watershed, the creek was landscaped in 2007 to bring back native species and to support the natural regulation of the water temperature.

Well, it seems we had a neighbour living in Still Creek – a beaver. And it was an active beaver, flapping around in the water, chewing down trees to make dams (the tree is growing back now, but only from its roots). And so, that Christmas as Ruth went looking for toys to donate, “Bucky” (as the beaver had been named) was on her mind.

So for this toy drive, Ruth bought a plush Bucky, who found a perch on a Mail Order shelf due to an overflow in the donations area. Though the original plush Bucky did eventually make it to an excited child, Mail Order realized that things just weren’t the same without their trusty mascot. A new Bucky found a perch on the same Mail Order shelf soon after, and today remains ever ready to get inspired about art supplies and to remind us of the natural creek we work beside. And, of course, to generally bring a smile to our faces.

Thanks Bucky!