Ian Lindsay & Associates: Ian Lindsay of Lindsay and Associates has played an active role in the local community since 1979. He has been with RE/MAX, Vancouver Island's most advanced real estate business network, since 1996, marketing and selling residential, rural, strata, and recreational investment and project development real estate. Ian has received several awards recognizing his exceptional community commitment locally, as well as awards for outstanding performance and achievement from both RE/MAX International and the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. You'll find true real estate professionals at IanLindsay.ca.

Eddie Van Haddock & The Rockfish: In a little town by the sea where the stories never end, lived Captain Dave and his crew, every child's favorite friend. With a smile as wide as the ocean and a heart that's full of dreams, he sails a mellow submarine where magic gleams and beams. Every morning at sunrise, when the world awakes anew, Captain Dave and his crew set sail in waters deep and blue. Through the ticking clock of time, where adventures come alive, they laugh and learn and play each day in their underwater dive.

Dave Graham: Deep beneath the sparkling blue waves of the Pacific Ocean, the most cheerful submarine you've ever seen was getting ready for a special adventure. The mellow submarine was painted bright yellow with rainbow stripes, and it had the biggest windows that looked like friendly eyes.

Captain Dave stood at the helm, adjusting his favorite blue captain's hat. He was a kind man with a bushy beard and twinkling green eyes. Today he was extra excited, and you could tell because he was wearing his special vacation shirt—the one with dancing seahorses on it.

"Larry, Larry the lobster!" Captain Dave called cheerfully. "Are you ready for our big adventure?"

From the engine room came the sound of tiny claws clicking on metal, and soon Larry the lobster appeared—Captain Dave's very best friend and first mate. Larry was bright red with the biggest, most expressive eyes, and he always wore a tiny sailor's cap that Captain Dave had made especially for him.

"Aye, Captain!" Larry chittered excitedly, his antennae wiggling with enthusiasm. "I've been checking our supplies all morning. We have enough kelp cookies for the journey. I've even packed my special beach bucket."

Captain Dave grinned widely. "Excellent work, First Mate Larry. Today we're heading to Parksville for the most wonderful celebration of the year—Beach Fest!"

Larry's eyes grew as big as sand dollars. "Beach Fest? Really? I've heard amazing stories about Beach Fest. There's music and dancing, sand castle contests, and delicious food."

"That's right, my friend," Captain Dave said, spinning the ship's wheel with excitement. "And the best part is we get to meet new friends and share in all the fun. Everyone is welcome at Beach Fest."

"All systems ready, Captain," Larry reported, checking his tiny clipboard. "Shall we surface and head to Parksville?"

"Full speed ahead!" Captain Dave declared, pulling the special golden lever that made the mellow submarine rise toward the surface.

When the mellow submarine finally broke through the surface, Captain Dave and Larry gasped with delight. The sun was shining brightly, and they could hear the most wonderful sounds drifting across the water: bouncy music, children laughing, and people cheering.

"Oh my starfish!" Larry exclaimed, pressing his face against the submarine's window. "Look at all the amazing things happening on the beach!"

The beach was alive with activity. Colorful tents and booths dotted the sand like a rainbow village. Families were building elaborate sandcastles, children were chasing waves, and musicians played on a stage decorated with seaweed and starfish.

As they got closer, children on the beach noticed the bright yellow submarine with rainbow stripes and began pointing and waving excitedly.

"Look, look!" shouted a little girl with pigtails. "It's a submarine—a real submarine!"

Soon, a small crowd had gathered at the water's edge, all waving and calling out friendly greetings. Captain Dave waved back through the periscope, and Larry pressed his claws against the window, waving his tiny sailor cap.

Captain Dave carefully brought the submarine to a gentle stop in the shallow water.

"Welcome to Parksville Beach Fest!" called out a cheerful woman with a sunhat decorated with seashells. She was Mrs. Marina, the Beach Fest organizer. "Are you here to join our celebration?"

"We certainly are," Captain Dave replied, tipping his captain's hat. "I'm Captain Dave, and this is my first mate, Larry the Lobster. We've traveled from the deep blue sea to experience the magic of Beach Fest."

A little girl named Emma led Captain Dave and Larry to a perfect spot on the beach where she had been trying to build a castle.

"The towers keep falling down," Emma said with a little frown. "I want to make a castle that looks like it could be under the sea."

Larry's eyes lit up. "Oh, I know exactly what kind of castle would work in the deep ocean! We have coral castles and kelp forests. Let me show you."

Larry began using his claws to shape flowing, organic forms that looked like coral formations instead of traditional straight towers.

"See, underwater castles don't have to be straight and tall," he explained. "They can be wavy and flowing like ocean currents."

Captain Dave knelt in the sand. "And here's a secret from all my years sailing the seas: the best sandcastles have lots of friends working together."

Soon more children joined them. Sam was an expert at making sand decorations. Maria could create detailed seashells out of sand. And twin brothers Jake and Joey were fantastic at digging moats.

Working together, they created the most magnificent underwater castle anyone had ever seen. Larry directed the coral towers while Captain Dave helped dig a moat connected to the real ocean waves. Emma added windows shaped like starfish and seahorses.

As they worked, Captain Dave told stories about amazing things he and Larry had seen. He described cities of coral where angelfish lived, and Larry shared his favorite memory of dolphins playing volleyball with salmon.

"You've seen so many amazing things," Emma said. "What's the most beautiful place you've ever visited?"

Captain Dave and Larry looked at each other thoughtfully.

"You know," Captain Dave said, "I think every place is beautiful in its own way, but this beach with all of you wonderful friends is pretty beautiful too."

"Plus," Larry added with a grin, "any place where friends come together is the most beautiful place of all."

Mrs. Marina appeared with a large conch shell. "Attention, Beach Fest adventurers!" she called out. "It's time for the great seashell treasure hunt!"

She explained that special treasure seashells were hidden around the beach, each containing riddles about ocean creatures. When they found shells and solved the riddles, they would earn Beach Fest treasures.

"The best part," Mrs. Marina said with a wink, "is that everyone who participates will find treasures, because the real treasure is learning and helping each other."

Emma grabbed Captain Dave's hand. "Will you be on our treasure hunting team?"

"We'd love to," Captain Dave replied, "though I have a feeling we might learn some new things too."

Their first shell contained this riddle: "I have eight arms, but I'm not an octopus. I live on the beach, but I'm not a crab. I point in all directions, but never move. What am I?"

After thinking hard and looking around, Emma spotted the weather vane on the lifeguard station. "The weather vane! It has eight points like arrows."

Sure enough, they found sea glass necklaces buried at its base.

The next riddle read: "I'm a home you can hear the ocean in, even when I'm far from the sea. I spiral around and around, growing larger as I grow older."

"A conch shell!" said Joey excitedly. "When you hold it to your ear, you can hear the ocean."

"That's right," Larry chittered. "The sound isn't really the ocean, but echoes bouncing around inside the shell."

Their treasure was a collection of shells from around the world.

The final riddle was: "I change the beach twice every day, but I never use any tools. I bring gifts from the deep sea, and I take messages back down below."

Larry watched the waves carefully. "Look what happens when waves come in and go out."

"The tide!" Emma exclaimed. "High tide and low tide happen twice a day."

They found a tide chart and a piece of beautiful driftwood.

As afternoon arrived, Mrs. Marina announced the sea creature parade. "Everyone dress up as your favorite sea creature!"

At the craft station, they created amazing costumes. Emma became a mermaid with flowing blue and green streamers. Sam made a seahorse costume with a curved golden tail. The twins became a two-person whale with a water spout made of white streamers.

Captain Dave added shells and seaweed to his captain's hat, saying, "I'll be a sea captain who's become part of the ocean."

Larry decorated his sailor cap with colorful sea anemone streamers.

Soon they had helped create dolphins, octopi, jellyfish, sea turtles, and even a family dressed as a coral reef.

When the parade began, it was magical. Everyone moved like their sea creatures, flowing together like one giant, joyful sea. Larry used his natural lobster movements to create an amazing sideways dance that had everyone laughing. The mermaids swayed gracefully, dolphins leaped and spun, and the whales moved in majestic formations.

"It's like we really are all sea creatures living together," Emma said as she danced.

Captain Dave noticed children who had been shy earlier now dancing confidently and making new friends.

"Look around, Larry," he said. "Everyone belongs here, no matter what kind of sea creature they chose to be."

As the sun began to set, painting the sky in brilliant colors, Mrs. Marina gathered everyone for sunset story time on the beach.

"Tonight we have special storytellers from the deep blue sea," she announced. "Captain Dave and Larry will share ocean adventures as we watch the sunset."

"What kind of story would you like?" Captain Dave asked.

"Tell us about the most magical place you've ever seen!" called Emma.

Larry's antennae wiggled with excitement. "Let's tell them about the Singing Whale Symphony!"

Captain Dave began: "Last winter, we heard incredible music echoing through the water. We followed it to an underwater valley where a family of humpback whales were arranged in a perfect circle, singing together in beautiful harmony."

"Around the whales," Larry continued, "hundreds of sea creatures had gathered to listen. Dolphins clicked percussion, sea lions added bass notes, and schools of fish swam in patterns like musical notes."

"We listened for hours," Captain Dave said. "Every creature was different—big whales, tiny fish, smooth dolphins, spiky sea urchins. But when they made music together, it was more beautiful than anyone could make alone."

Emma sighed happily. "Just like today at Beach Fest! We're all different, but together we made something more fun than any of us could have alone."

"Exactly," Captain Dave smiled. "That's what the ocean teaches us: diversity makes everything more beautiful."

As the story ended, Captain Dave and Larry had one more surprise. They gave everyone small packages wrapped in kelp paper, each containing a beautiful piece of sea glass and a tiny scroll.

"Each piece of sea glass is unique, just like each of you," Larry explained.

Emma read her scroll aloud: "The ocean connects all of us. Whenever you look at this sea glass, remember your friends Captain Dave and Larry, and that adventure and friendship can be found anywhere."

"Will you come back next year?" asked a little girl.

"If the ocean currents carry us this way, we'll try," Captain Dave promised. "But you'll always have a piece of the ocean with you, and somewhere out there, we'll be thinking of you."

As families packed up and children said goodbye, Emma and the others gathered for one final group hug.

"Thank you for the best Beach Fest ever," Emma said. "You taught us about the ocean and friendship."

"Well, thank you for welcoming us," Captain Dave replied. "You taught us that the best adventures are about the friends you make along the way."

As the beach grew quiet, Captain Dave and Larry returned to the mellow submarine. The night was clear with stars appearing in the darkening sky.

"That was the most wonderful day," Larry said contentedly. "I never knew being on the surface could be as magical as exploring the deep sea."

"Every adventure teaches us something new," Captain Dave agreed while he started the engines. "Today we learned that magic is wherever people come together to share joy and friendship."

As they sailed away, they could see Parksville's lights twinkling like stars.

"Where shall we go next?" Larry asked.

Captain Dave looked at the vast ocean ahead, then back at the lights growing smaller behind them. "Wherever the currents take us, my friend. But now I know every place has the potential to be magical, as long as we approach it with open hearts."

Larry nodded wisely. "And as long as we remember to share our kelp cookies!"

Captain Dave laughed heartily. "Especially that!"

The mellow submarine sailed into the star-filled night, leaving a trail of glowing plankton like tiny stars.

From that day forward, whenever children in Parksville found sea glass on the beach, they would remember their friends in the yellow submarine and know that somewhere in the vast blue ocean, Captain Dave and Larry were having new adventures, but never forgetting their magical day at Beach Fest.

Eddie Van Haddock & The Rockfish: When the night falls softly, and stars light up the sky, Captain Dave tucks his crew in with a gentle lullaby. Dreams of whales and mermaids, of treasures lush and green, await each little sailor aboard the mellow submarine.

Ian Lindsay & Associates: Ian Lindsay of Lindsay and Associates has played an active role in the local community since 1979. He has been with RE/MAX, Vancouver Island's most advanced real estate business network, since 1996, marketing and selling residential, rural, strata, and recreational investment and project development real estate. Ian has received several awards recognizing his exceptional community commitment locally, as well as awards for outstanding performance and achievement from both RE/MAX International and the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. You'll find true real estate professionals at IanLindsay.ca.