FRUGALITY HALLMARK OF MARIJUANA CANDIDATE

Somewhere along Vern Falk's journey through life he got a little sidetracked.

In 1976, the B.C. Marijuana Party candidate for Kamloops-North Thompson
stopped at Tod Mountain to visit a friend and, 24 years later, he's still here.

"It was a totally undeveloped ski hill at the time. There was only a
handful of people who worked there and not many skiers."

Through the years, Falk made a living through the ski industry, working as
a ski technician at Tod Mountain and at different companies around Kamloops.

"I worked for Dolson's, Glacier Ski Service, DB Pool and Ski."

Married with three children and one grandchild, Falk says he became
disenchanted with the business side of the ski industry.

"The commercialization ruined it for me. I haven't skied in years."

Once out of the skiing industry, Falk began to involve himself in another
passion, the environment.

"Over the years, I figure I've recycled more than five million board feet
of timber. I did the wood from the Carneau Bridge, Chase Bridge and the Red
Bridge when it was done. They don't make wood now like they used to, they
can't."

Using recycled wood, he says, can save plenty of money. His house is living
proof as Falk paid $3.21 for it.

"I built a 1,300-square-foot basement to put it on top of and then moved my
house. I don't think you could find one that cheap anywhere nowadays."

Like many Marijuana Party candidates, Falk says the election isn't so much
about legalizing marijuana as it is about protecting personal freedoms.

"It's none of anyone's business whether I smoke just as it's none of my
business whether you do. It's especially none of the government's business."

Getting involved in the political process was a quick step for the
Saskatchewan native.

"I was surfing around on the Internet one day and I came across the
Marijuana Party site. The next day I was meeting the people I was reading
about."

Many people brand the Marijuana Party to be concerned solely with the
legalization of the drug, but Falk, also a vegetarian, says there is much
more to his platform than that.

"I'm very concerned with what's happening with the economy. People need
money to live. Maybe that's why so many people are turning to growing
marijuana because they don't have jobs."

The campaign will also mark his first venture into the political spectrum
as he has never been involved with a political party.

COMMUNITY EXPERIENCE

* Member of Earthsave and Earth Trustees.

* Leader of The Greengang, a local recycling and construction group.

FUN FACTS

* Last CD bought: Self Made by Bob Marley.

* Last book read: Vital Signs by Robin Cook.

* If he was trapped on a desert island, what three things would he take:
Food, water and a computer.