B.C. senior creates 'Tiki Garage' to provide vacation from isolation

Before he decided to embark outside with a wine glass and folding chair, Gary Mitchell was feeling out of sorts.

"Everybody was in a mask. Nobody would talk," the Saanich, B.C., man recalls. "You didn’t want to get close to other people."

Along with enduring the pandemic, Mitchell was also mourning the loss of his wife of 55 years.

"I was maybe a bit lonely."

So, Mitchell attempted to do something about it. He set up his folding chairs safely beside his driveway, had a sip from his glass, and started engaging with the world again.

"I talked to people as they went by," Mitchell smiles. "And soon it developed."

Mitchell's salutations inspired his neighbours to join him along the street for physically-distanced soirées, which proved to be a salve for so much isolation.

"It was just this connection we could have," says Barbara Clee, who lives a few houses away. "We could enjoy ourselves."

But despite the camaraderie, it could be cold on the street. So, Clee offered to start hosting the gatherings in her garage.

"In the beginning everybody was looking at what’s in the garage, a lot of junk and stuff," Clee says. "I thought I want to [spruce it] up it a bit."

So, Clee started playing a sunny soundtrack of Hawaiian music on her CD player.

"It was just to take you away from reality," she smiles, before showing me how she started transforming her garage.

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Every week she would add something new, from floor to ceiling pictures of sandy beaches and palm trees, to bold flowers and bright parrots. Then there were the countless leis and a ukulele, and even sunscreen, shades, and a snorkel.

"I wanted it to be a happy-go-lucky place," Clee smiles. "To come and enjoy a few laughs!"

Every Friday afternoon, Clee would invite her neighbours over for a sunny sojourn.

"We could plan to be on a trip," Mitchell smiles. "We didn’t have to be far from our own home."

While the pandemic appears to be subsiding, and travel restrictions are lifting, trips just down the street to Clee's are only increasing.

"I feels like Hawaii! It feels good," Mitchell smiles. "We’ve all got to know each other even better."

Although it was designed as a vacation from isolation, Barbara’s Tiki Garage has become a venue for connection, a place were neighbours have become friends.

"We’ve all created such a bond between us," Clee smiles, "We’re like family now and it’s very nice."